Rendering of the 76th Street Façade of the Tang Wing for American Democracy at The New York Historical, designed by RAMSA (Robert A.M. Stern Architects). Credit: RAMSA / Alden Studios
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The New York Historical has announced that its long-anticipated new Tang Wing for American Democracy will open to the public on June 18, 2026, marking a major expansion for the Upper West Side museum as the United States begins commemorating its 250th anniversary.
The 71,000-square-foot addition, now under construction at the museum’s Central Park West campus between West 76th and 77th streets, will significantly expand gallery space, classrooms, conservation facilities, and on-site storage, while also becoming the future home of the American LGBTQ+ Museum, which broke ground in 2021. The wing is being funded through a mix of public and private sources as part of a $175 million project.
Rendering of the Geoffrey and Sarah Gund Democracy Classroom in The New York Historical’s Tang Wing for American Democracy, designed by RAMSA (Robert A.M. Stern Architects). Credit: RAMSA / Alden Studios
According to museum leadership, the Tang Wing will play a central role in civic education. It will allow the New York Historical to dramatically expand its Academy for American Democracy, an immersive program designed to address gaps in the teaching of American history and civics. With new classrooms in the wing, the program is expected to grow from serving about 3,000 students annually to as many as 30,000 sixth graders each year.
The new wing will also include several major museum facilities, including the Klingenstein Family Gallery, a large exhibition hall showcasing works from the museum’s American art collections and rotating exhibitions, and the Stuart and Jane Weitzman Shoe Museum, which traces three centuries of American women’s lives through historical footwear. Additional features include new storage for the Patricia D. Klingenstein Library—home to the Robert A. Caro Archive, the Time Inc. Archive, and the Billie Jean King Archive—as well as a state-of-the-art conservation lab.
Rendering of the Klingenstein Family Gallery in The New York Historical’s Tang Wing for American Democracy, designed by RAMSA (Robert A.M. Stern Architects). Credit: RAMSA / Alden Studios
Rendering of the new, state-of-the-art conservation studio in The New York Historical’s Tang Wing for American Democracy, designed by RAMSA (Robert A.M. Stern Architects). Credit: RAMSA / Alden Studios
Designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects, the Tang Wing is intended to integrate with the museum’s existing landmarked structure. Its façade will be constructed from granite sourced from the same Deer Isle, Maine quarry used for the original building more than a century ago. Plans also call for a landscaped courtyard and a rooftop garden terrace with views of Central Park.
Rendering of the fifth-floor rooftop terrace of the Tang Wing for American Democracy at The New York Historical, designed by Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects.
The opening of the wing will coincide with a slate of major exhibitions planned for 2026, including shows focused on Native American art, women’s roles during the Revolutionary era, the evolution of democracy in the United States, and New York City during the nation’s bicentennial year in 1976.
At its summit, the Tang Wing will provide a permanent home for the American LGBTQ+ Museum, which is expected to open in late 2027. The museum will include two galleries and is being developed in collaboration with the New York Historical’s Center for Women’s History.
Construction on the Tang Wing began in fall 2023. Museum officials say fundraising is ongoing to support exhibitions and programming tied to the expansion, which represents one of the largest physical and educational investments in the institution’s 220-year history.
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