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Keeping History Alive

The mission of the Sag Harbor Historical Museum is to promote and encourage public education and appreciation of Sag Harbor Village’s history and to foster and work to preserve the Village’s historic buildings, sites, and other materials. 

The Museum is housed in one of Sag Harbor’s original colonial homes, 174 Main Street, on Sag Harbor’s Captain’s Row. Originally a “half-house,” the house was bought in 1871 by the Cooper family, one of Sag Harbor’s important whaling boat builders and outfitters.

Annie Cooper Boyd, the Museum, and the Collection

Having grown up next door in the Cooper family home, Annie Cooper Boyd inherited the “cottage” at 174 Main Street, now referred to as the Annie Cooper Boyd house, 1907. In the early years of the twentieth century, Annie enjoyed Sag Harbor summers with her then-young family and moved into the house full time when her husband retired. A prolific writer and painter, Annie left us with a chronicle of her childhood and adulthood in Sag Harbor from the early 1880s until her death in 1941.

In 1998, Annie’s daughter Nancy Boyd Willey, who had inherited the house when Annie died, generously donated it to the Sag Harbor Historical Society. Willey’s gift included Annie’s original artworks, diaries, and letters, comprising an astonishing record of a woman of her times, and a record of Sag Harbor during those years.

In addition to the Annie Cooper Boyd collection, the museum’s many collections include historic objects, records, maps, letters, and other papers, as well as an extensive eighteenth and nineteenth century costume collection. These collections will be housed in our newly planned Archive Building.

Our Activities and Reach

The Museum has an active publishing and exhibition program, as well as special initiatives relating to historical sites and events in Sag Harbor. The organization also provides educational and historical exhibits, videos, tours, seminars, and presentations about Sag Harbor and its environs for the public, including the students and teachers of the Sag Harbor School District. 

Collaboration with other local historical associations and arts organizations is key to the Museum’s mission. The Museum provides research and conducts house histories when requested by the public and actively works toward the preservation of Sag Harbor’s rich history, spanning the eighteenth century to today. 

Please come and visit us and learn more!