Jay Heritage Center

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Rye, NY
Jay Heritage Center

The Jay Estate is a 23-acre Award-Winning Park & Culture Hub on Long Island Sound, the Heart of Westchester’s Only National Historic Landmark District.

Learn more at www.jayheritagecenter.org News and photos about ongoing historic preservation activities, talks, camps and concerts at the historic Jay Estate in Rye. The Jay Estate is the centerpiece of a National Historic Landmark, an irreplaceable cultural and natural resource, which illustrates the evolution of democracy and architecture in the United States. JHC's sustainable stewardship of the

estate was recently recognized on July 9, 2013 by New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (NYOPRHP) which entrusted sensitive restoration of an additional 21.5 acres of parkland to JHC in a model private-public partnership agreement. 4 additional historic structures will be rehabilitated with energy efficiency in mind as will 4 outdoor garden spaces. Using these "classrooms" JHC will expand upon its curricula of innovative programs. Two of the primary venues on the site, the 1838 Jay Mansion and the 1907 Van Norden Carriage House, are consistently furnished with citizens and ideas, not just artifacts. Just as the architects of our nation's government pursued self improvement through dialogue about our nation's most relevant topics, we promote learning through interactive experiences. Our lectures, concerts, and children's camps are led by prominent experts and academics in a variety of disciplines from sustainability to legal history to archaeology. Operationally, we synthesize the best management practices and technology in restoration and historic preservation while also incorporating new methods of adaptive reuse and energy efficiency. We form lasting partnerships with other non-profits and educational institutions to expand the reach and impact of our work.

08/25/2026

Ready for some summer jams? Join us for our end of summer concert with the Brooklyn Bluegrass Collective! Members of the BkBC have individually and collectively performed thousands of gigs nationally and internationally, from European theaters and concert halls to Tennessee house concerts to Pennsylvania barn weddings to NJ convention centers and every gazebo from Maine to Maryland. Join us in the Jay Mansion circle for a perfect summer afternoon with your friends and family. Bring your picnic blanket, cooler and lawn chairs and settle in for a consummate outdoor music experience. Past performers have included Blue Plate Special, Bandits on the Run, Ken Dircks Trio, Oh La La and more. Register at link in bio.
And enjoy FREE Ice Cream from Jimmy’s Soft Serve! Purchase light bites from Crazy Taco Mex.

08/23/2026

Watch this amazing behind-the-scenes footage of our installation of Analogue Sites by Jorge Otero-Pailos! Thank you to SRI Fine Art Services for their exceptional care and quality of handling these magnificent sculptures. Learn more about the artwork from the artist himself, Jorge Otero-Pailos Otero-Pailos Studio on September 10 at 5:30pm in the Jay Estate Gardens. Register at link in bio. ARTnews New York Times Fashion & Style

08/21/2026

Thank you to Westchester Magazine for highlighting our nonprofit organization as the Face of Historic Preservation and Environmental stewardship. Thank you to their phenomenal photographer for capturing our staff, volunteers and summer campers in full swing! These are the dynamic individuals restoring the Jay Estate in Rye! The 23-acre site we protect is an award-winning culture hub and wildlife refuge on Long Island Sound, located in the heart of Westchester’s only National Historic Landmark District. Visitors and school groups learn about our nation’s flawed yet precious democracy through indoor and outdoor public programs about American History featuring prominent writers and educators. Free horticulture and birding workshops at “the Versailles of Rye” teach guests about native plants and wildlife. Family-friendly concerts draw hundreds for old-fashioned fun and unplugged enjoyment. Sign up to volunteer or access all we have to offer at link in bio. NYstateparks

08/19/2026

This Sunday! Join us for the Way of Pruning: Reading Nature in the Japanese Garden Tradition with Seiho Umeno. Japanese master gardener Mr. Umeno will explain and demonstrate how attentive pruning can feel meditative through careful observation, waiting, and sensing what the garden needs. Umeno is the President & CEO of Umebachien Co., Ltd. and the Founder of the Common Garden. Co-sponsored by our longtime partners at the Japan Society of Fairfield County. The Japan Society of Fairfield County, Inc. is a private non-profit membership organization comprised of volunteers who are dedicated to building knowledge and mutual understanding between Japanese and Americans through educational, cultural and philanthropic programs. FREE admission but pre-registration is required. REGISTER at link in bio! Japan Society Japan Society Fairfield County Rye Garden Club The Garden Conservancy Rye Chamber of Commerce The Rye Record

08/17/2026

Our volunteers are the G.O.A.T.! From planting our veggie beds to pruning roses or hand pulling porcelainberry and mugwort in the meadow, we’re mindful of all the hours and transformative power that they put into making our park look amazing for the benefit of the community, Look for the spectacular bursts of life and color they’ve highlighted through their care. Tomatoes, peppers, corn and even artichokes are thriving! Roses are reblooming. And in the meadow, goldenrod, mountain mint, whorled milk w**d, butterfly w**d, foxtail barley, nodding onion, and common milkw**d are outcompeting invasive species. Gardens Illustrated The Garden Conservancy NYstateparks I LOVE NEW YORK LWLA

08/12/2026

Join us in the gardens this week from 9:30 to 11am for plein air sketching and painting! Thank you to Meera Agarwal • Artist• Instructor• Volunteer for guiding our visitors this morning through botanical shapes and colors! NYstateparks I LOVE NEW YORK Ellora Shah Juliet Tuncer Rye Chamber of Commerce Rye HamletHub by Nicole Ball, Realtor

08/07/2026

Thursdays are harvest day! And the tomatoes (cherry and heirloom) and peppers (shish*to, green and jalapeño) we grow get donated to Meals on Main Street! Meals On Main St. Thank you to all our volunteers today who made today’s healthy harvest possible!

07/31/2026

Rainbows came out after the rain last night for Rosé in the Roses! Thank you to our Auxiliary Board Chairs Eliza Fraser Eliza Fraser and Katy McCrory Katy Finneran McCorry for gathering such a brilliant group of supporters to the Jay Estate for a beautiful summer pop-up wine-tasting and tours. A few showers didn’t dampen spirits and everyone made it through the gardens all the way to the rose arbor. All proceeds from the event will directly benefit JHC and its mission-driven programming like our workshops with the Blue Skies campers. Stay tuned for news about more fun events at link in bio. Photos by Kimberly Crichlow . Summer savories by Scarborough Fair Catering - NY . jayheritagecenter I LOVE NEW YORK Nicole Russo Steinthal New York Times Fashion & Style Melissa Tomlin Jessie Spellmann-Mignone📍Westchester NY Westchester Magazine thehudsonvalleyexplorer HVHAPPENINGS | Sharing NY's Best Places Home & Garden CT-NY The Cut Rye Moms & Rye Brook Moms lovingwestchester

07/25/2026

Monarch mating alert! Thanks to ongoing stewardship and our staff and volunteers, our meadow is full of life especially these beautiful and highly vulnerable monarch butterflies. Stroll the meadow paths and see what you can spy happening. LWLA New Directions in the American Landscape VOM CftE Rye Sustainability

07/21/2026

We’ve been dreaming of this historic moment! Please mark your calendars for this incredibly memorable night! The Jay Medal Soirée will be held Saturday, September 19, 2026 at the Jay Estate from 5:30-9:30pm. Cocktails, dinner, award ceremony and dancing. Cocktail Attire. Tickets in bio. The Jay Medal for Service was created in 2012 to recognize individuals who demonstrate a selfless spirit of commitment to and engagement with their community mirroring the multifaceted contributions of John Jay and his descendants. These honorees have demonstrated through their life’s work that our shared narratives as a country, complicated as they are, can be better illuminated through the highest caliber of ongoing scholarship and advocacy. Honorees are selected for their excellence in the fields of American history, environmental stewardship, social justice or civic engagement.
We can think of no better way to celebrate America at 250 than with a toast to two of the most respected guardians of our nation’s nuanced evolution - Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annette Gordon-Reed, the Carl M. Loeb University Professor at Harvard University and award-winning Lincoln historian Harold Holzer.

Joining us for the celebration will be Chief Judge of the State of New York and the New York Court of Appeals, Honorable Rowan D. Wilson and historian and philanthropist Elihu Rose who will present the awards at our annual Soirée.

Address

210 Boston Post Road
Rye, NY
10580

Telephone

(914) 698-9275

Website

http://www.jayheritagecenter.org/

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