In the Footsteps of the Rockefellers: From the Gilded Age to Modern America

Trace the Rockefeller family’s extraordinary arc from Gilded Age industrialists to modern cultural visionaries on this six-day journey, May 3–8, 2027, through the Hudson Valley and New York City. Beginning in Albany, you’ll privately tour Nelson Rockefeller’s monumental Empire State Plaza and its remarkable collection of modern art, then visit the New York State Capitol, where he served four terms as governor. From there, travel south along the Hudson to explore Olana, the Persian-inspired home of painter Frederic Edwin Church, the Vanderbilts’ opulent 54-room mansion, and Springwood, the lifelong home of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Throughout the journey, Jason Barabas ‘93 and Anna Mitchell Mahoney of Dartmouth’s Nelson A. Rockefeller Center offer lectures and insights into the family’s influence on American history, politics, and public life.

The journey culminates in Pocantico Hills and New York City, where the Rockefellers’ legacy is on full display. Tour Kykuit, the family’s hilltop estate, with the underground galleries Nelson created for his modern art collection, then visit Union Church of Pocantico Hills to see Matisse’s final commissioned work and nine stained-glass windows by Marc Chagall. In Manhattan, enjoy a before-hours, director-hosted tour of the newly restored Frick Collection, then explore Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Center, the United Nations Headquarters, and the Museum of Modern Art, which Abby Aldrich Rockefeller co-founded. Lunch at Stone Barns, the Rockefellers’ former dairy complex, and a festive farewell dinner offer the perfect bookends to a journey as rich in flavor as it is in history.

Event Itinerary

Day 1: Albany, NY

• Arrive independently in Albany and check in to the Renaissance Albany Hotel, housed in the former DeWitt Clinton Hotel, a longtime gathering place for New York politicians
• Introductory lecture, followed by dinner with the group

Day 2: Albany / Hudson / Rhinebeck

• Views across Albany and the Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza from the Corning Tower observation deck
• Private tour of the Empire State Plaza, a striking modernist government complex conceived in the 1960s to transform downtown Albany
• Visit the New York State Capitol, where Rockefeller served four terms as governor before becoming vice president of the United States, including the Executive Chamber, the Red Room, and the Million Dollar Staircase, known for its detailed stone carvings and hundreds of sculpted faces
• Private tour of the Empire State Plaza Art Collection, featuring works by Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Helen Frankenthaler, plus Alexander Calder’s sculpture Triangles and Arches on the plaza
• Lunch, then travel to Hudson for a guided tour of Olana, the Persian-inspired home and estate of Hudson River School painter Frederic Edwin Church, with commanding views above the Hudson River
• Continue to Rhinebeck and check in to Mirbeau Inn & Spa Rhinebeck; group dinner at the hotel

Day 3: Rhinebeck / Hyde Park / Beacon

• Morning lecture
• Guided tour of the Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site, a 54-room Gilded Age residence designed by McKim, Mead & White, with opulent interiors and sweeping views of the Hudson River and Catskill Mountains
• Lunch at the Culinary Institute of America, whose Hudson Valley campus occupies the former St. Andrew-on-Hudson Jesuit seminary
• Tour Springwood, the Hyde Park estate that served as the lifelong home and birthplace of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who is buried there alongside his wife, Eleanor
• Continue to Beacon and check in to Mirbeau Inn & Spa Beacon, a French-inspired resort that opened in May 2026 on a historic 19th-century estate; dinner and evening at leisure

Day 4: Beacon / Tarrytown / Pocantico Hills / New York City

• Morning lecture
• Guided tour of Kykuit, the Rockefeller family estate completed in 1913 and home to four generations, including the residence, the underground galleries featuring works by Picasso and Warhol, and the gardens where Nelson Rockefeller assembled a major collection of modern sculpture
• Tour the Union Church of Pocantico Hills, the Rockefeller family’s place of worship and home to Matisse’s final commissioned work, the Rose Window, and nine stained-glass windows by Marc Chagall
• Lunch at Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture, housed in the Rockefellers’ former dairy complex, followed by a stroll through the courtyard and a visit to the Farm Shop
• Visit the Rockefeller Archive Center at Hillcrest, the former estate of Martha Baird Rockefeller, to learn how the family’s philanthropic work grew from its Standard Oil fortune
• Explore the Pocantico Center, where the Rockefeller Brothers Fund maintains historic family properties, including Abeyton Lodge (the family’s former Playhouse, with a bowling alley and indoor tennis court), the Marcel Breuer House, and the Japanese Garden and Teahouse
• Transfer to New York City and check in to the Thompson Central Park New York (or similar); evening at leisure

Day 5: New York City

• Morning lecture
• Before-hours director’s welcome and guided tour of the newly restored Frick Collection, including galleries reopened in 2025 and the Frick family’s former private living quarters, now accessible to visitors for the first time
• Guided tour of Radio City Music Hall, the Art Deco theater opened in 1932 as part of John D. Rockefeller Jr.’s Midtown development
• Lunch at Rockefeller Center, followed by a walking tour of the complex
• Tour the United Nations Headquarters, built on land purchased in 1946 with an $8.5 million gift from John D. Rockefeller Jr.
• Visit the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), co-founded in 1929 by Abby Aldrich Rockefeller
• Festive farewell dinner

Day 6: New York City / Depart

• Breakfast, then check out and depart independently