The Heckscher Museum of Art is celebrating its 106th anniversary on July 10.
In 1917, Anna and August Heckscher donated the land that would become Heckscher Park to the Heckscher Trust, envisioning a magnificent 18.5-acre park and museum to be the center of the community’s recreational, cultural, and social life. Julius Franke of the New York City firm Maynicke and Franke was the Museum’s architect.
On July 10, 1920, “The Heckscher Fine Arts Building,” as it was then called, was dedicated at a festive community celebration (photo left, with August Heckscher at center). According to The Long Islander, the 35-piece Seventy-First Regimental Band played a concert, fireworks lit the pond, and an American flag and “Heckscher Park” streamer dropped from the sky. Children were treated to “ice cream, cake, and orangeade,” while adults toured the Museum.
August and Anna Heckscher donated 185 works of art from his private collection to the Museum. In his dedication speech, he stated that Huntington was to be “one of the few places in the United States outside of the large cities [that] possess galleries of such extent and importance.”
The Heckscher Museum takes great pride in continuing his legacy and serving our community more than a century later. The Museum creates opportunities for everyone to experience art that broadens our understanding of the past, fosters community connections to our present, and creates diverse possibilities for our future. The Museum is always free for everyone, thanks to a grant from Bank of America (Below, a 1940 postcard of the Museum and Park).
