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Exist Dates: 1999 -
Abstract: The Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History was established in 1999 and took the place of the Department of Astronomy. Along with the Department of Earth and Planetary Science, it makes up the Division of Physical Sciences. This record pertains to the current Department of Astrophysics beginning in 1999.

Exist Dates: 1881 - 1961
Abstract: There has never been a formal department of Botany at the American Museum of Natural History. However, throughout the museum’s history there has been botanical activity and a close association with the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) and Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Additionally, the museum curated an important collection of the woods of North America, managed by The Department for Woods and Forestry. The president’s report of 1908 outlined the subjects and divisions of science the museum was to administer; forestry and forest conservation was included in this. However, it was stated that “this, with the Jesup Wood Collection, is the only invasion of the science of Botany” the museum would enter into. (1)

Exist Dates: 1909- - present
Abstract: The early history of the Department of Herpetology at the American Museum of Natural History can be traced back to 1870, with the museum’s acquisition of Alexander Philipp Maximilian’s vertebrate collection. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, care of the herpetological collection was shifted between various zoological departments, until in 1909 a Department of Herpetology and Ichthyology was formalized. Herpetology was first established as a separate department in 1920, but in the years since has been combined in certain periods with experimental biology (as the Department of Herpetology and Experimental Biology from 1928 to 1934), with fossil reptiles (as the Department of Amphibians and Reptiles from 1942 to 1944), and again with ichthyology (as the Department of Herpetology and Ichthyology from 1987 to 1997).

Exist Dates: 1909 - present
Abstract: During the late 19th and early 20th centuries at the American Museum of Natural History, the limited ichthyology collections were shifted between various broad zoological departments. It was not until 1909 that a Department of Herpetology and Ichthyology was formalized, and a further 11 years until an independent Department of Ichthyology was established in 1920. In the years since, Ichthyology has been combined in certain periods with other zoological disciplines and adopted different departmental names, including the Department of Living and Extinct Fishes (1930-1942), the Department of Fishes (1942-1944), the Department of Fishes and Aquatic Biology (1944-1960) and again the Department of Herpetology and Ichthyology (1987-1997).

Exist Dates: 1869 - present
Abstract: The Library of the American Museum of Natural History was established in 1869 with the founding of the museum. Since that time, it has grown into one of the largest natural history libraries in the world, with topics spanning the full range of all the natural sciences except botany. It also includes the Perkin Astronomy Collection, which was transferred from the Hayden Planetarium in 1997. The Library's mission is to foster intellectual growth and support the research, teaching, and educational activities of the Museum. The Library fulfills its mission by acquiring, organizing, preserving and making available collections of scholarly materials in all formats to Museum staff, students, the wider scientific community and the general public. The Library's holdings are comprised of a research collection, special collections and digital collections. (source: American Museum of Natural History Jesup Society newsletter, Spring 2014, Volume 9 Issue 3 and AMNH website, accessed October 11, 2017)

Exist Dates: 1924 - 1999
Abstract: The Department of Astronomy at the American Museum of Natural History existed from 1924 to 1999 and was the earliest manifestation of the study of Astronomy at the Museum. It was originally conceived in 1924 as part of the Division of Mineralogy, Geology and Geography, with Department of Education Curator Clyde Fisher put in charge (1, 1925 p. xix). In 1935 the Department’s reach expanded with the opening of the Hayden Planetarium. Thereafter the scientific research department and the physical exhibition and educational space were merged. From 1935, curatorial staff held responsibility for both the Department of Astronomy and the Hayden Planetarium, and the department’s name changed to Department of Astronomy and Hayden Planetarium. In 1953 it would change to Department of Astronomy and American Museum-Hayden Planetarium. In 1999, the department was re-envisioned as the Department of Astrophysics. This reflected a change in divisional focus and the construction of the new Rose Center for Earth and Space, which would open in 2000. At this point, the relationship between the Hayden Planetarium and the scientific Department of Astrophysics split into more discrete identities. This record documents the Department of Astronomy up until the opening of the Hayden Planetarium, from 1924-1935.

Exist Dates: 1935 - present
Abstract: The Hayden Planetarium opened on October 3, 1935 and provided a physical space to represent the American Museum of Natural History's recently established Department of Astronomy. From this beginning, the relationship and identity of the Astronomy department and the Hayden Planetarium, as well as their staff members, were interchangeable. In 1999, the Department of Astronomy changed to the Department of Astrophysics and the Hayden Planetarium began to have distinct leadership. In 2000, the Hayden Planetarium reopened as part of the Rose Center for Earth and Space. This record primarily represents the Department of Astronomy and Hayden Planetarium between the years 1935 and 1999.

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