Celebrate the reopening of American Ancestors, a national center for family history, heritage, and culture!

Come tour the new Family Heritage Experience, The Brim-DeForest Library, and the Wyner Family Jewish Heritage Center, and learn why American Ancestors is the answer to all your family history questions.
 

The Brim-DeForest Dedication Ceremony & Open House

Wednesday, April 23, 2025; 11:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

The Brim-DeForest Library
American Ancestors headquarters
97 Newbury St. Boston, MA 02116

11:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. - Open house 
         Enjoy free access to The Brim-DeForest Library for the day!

11 a.m. - Dedication Ceremony of The Brim-DeForest Library

11:30 a.m. - Library Tours and Collection highlights

11:30 a.m.- 1 p.m. - Reception

Registration now open

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

Thursday, April 24, 2025; 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

American Ancestors
97 Newbury St. Boston, MA 02116

After a multiyear renovation project, American Ancestors is reopening its doors and launching a national center for family history, heritage, and culture. Our multi-structure building complex, to be named after American philanthropist and preservationist Thomas Bailey Hagen and Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr., will house the Brim-DeForest Library, R. Stanton Avery Special Collections, the Wyner Family Jewish Heritage Center, the Brue Family Learning Center, museum store, staff offices, and the Family Heritage Experience—an interactive museum experience that introduces visitors to the joys and possibilities of family history. 

Celebrate the launch of this expanded cultural institution! 

10:00 a.m. - Remarks and Ribbon Cutting

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. - Reception and Building Tours for VIPs

Registration now open 

American Stories, American Lives Gala

The Power and Promise of Family History

Thursday, April 24, 2025; 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. ET

Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel
138 St. James Avenue Boston, MA 02116

6:00 - 6:45 pm Reception
6:45 - 9:00 pm Dinner and Program

Cocktail Attire.

Registration now open

Engaging in family history enriches lives. It is a source of joy, education, inspiration, empowerment, and a means of healing and repair. It is an undertaking that can profoundly influence the lives of individuals and holds the power to impact society positively. By exploring family histories, we uncover the stories of our ancestors—their triumphs, struggles, cultures, and traditions—and bring context and meaning to the world in which we live.

The American Stories, American Lives gala celebrates the work of American Ancestors and the contributions of those in the fields of genealogy and history. 

Proceeds of the American Stories, American Lives Gala help fund our groundbreaking work, including educational programs, youth outreach, original research and scholarship, diversity programming, publications, online services, and content development.

In Conversation - The Power and Promise of Family History

Henry Louis Gates, Jr. is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University. He is an Emmy and Peabody Award winning filmmaker, literary scholar, journalist, cultural critic, and institution builder. He is the host of the popular PBS show, Finding Your Roots, now in its eleventh season.

Bill Griffeth covered Wall Street for almost 40 years. In 2019 he retired from day-to-day anchoring duties at CNBC and became an Anchor-At-Large. Among many awards, he was nominated for six Cable ACE awards as Best News Anchor. Bill is the author of numerous books including The Stranger in My Genes and Strangers No More, both published by American Ancestors. 

Kendra Taira Field is Associate Professor of History at Tufts University and Chief Historian of the 10 Million Names Project. She is the author of Growing Up with the Country: Family, Race, and Nation after the Civil War and the forthcoming Stories We Tell: A History of African American Genealogy (W.W. Norton). Field co-founded the African American Trail Project and the Du Bois Forum, a retreat for writers, scholars, and artists.

An educator and historian, Ryan Woods is President & CEO of American Ancestors. For nearly two decades, he has led the development of award-winning experiences for exploring family history, heritage, & culture.

Presenting Benefactors

Thomas B. Hagen

Silver Benefactors

Cheryl L. Edwards
Tawny Welch

Bronze Benefactors

Brenda L. Johnson
Aislie McEnteggart
Stephen J. McCarthy
Bonnie A. Reilly
Tim and Julia Schmolke
M. David Sherrill
Lionel and Vivian Spiro
Jonathan Buck Treat and Leslie Aitken
David M. Trebing
Morrison D. Webb
Dale and Jim Yoe

Parking Information

National Center for Family History, Heritage & Culture Ribbon Cutting - 97 Newbury Street

LAZ Parking

400 Stuart Street, Boston. Head west on Stuart St toward Clarendon St. Turn right onto Clarendon St. Walk down Clarendon St. Turn right onto Newbury St. The Research Center will be on your left hand side.

The Back Bay Garage

222 Berkeley Street and 500 Boylston Street, one block down and one block over from the Research Center. Call 617-266-7006 for more information. Entrances on Clarendon Street, between Boylston Street and St. James Avenue, and on St. James Avenue between Berkeley and Clarendon Streets.

Garage at 100 Clarendon

Adjacent to Back Bay Station, four blocks south of the Research Center. Entrance at 100 Clarendon Street. For more information, call 617-275-0151 or visit their website. By car from the west: follow the Mass. Pike (Route 90) East towards Boston and take Exit 22 (Prudential Center/Copley Square). Bear right to Copley Square. This will bring you onto Stuart Street. At the second set of lights, take a right onto Clarendon Street. The parking garage is on the right-hand side of Clarendon Street.

By car from the north or south: follow Route 93 towards Boston and take Exit 26 (Storrow Drive/Cambridge). Follow signs onto Storrow Drive/Back Bay. Follow Storrow Drive signs to Back Bay and exit at Copley Square (a left exit). Turn right at the lights onto Beacon Street. At the second set of lights, turn left onto Clarendon Street. Follow Clarendon Street through (7) sets of lights. The Garage at 100 Clarendon is on the right.

Boston Common Garage

Zero (0) Charles Street, located directly across from the Public Garden and beneath the west end of the Boston Common. Note: height restriction - 6′3″. For more information, please call 617-954-2098. The automated information line is 617-954-2096. Visit their website

Copley Place Garage

100 Huntington Avenue, four blocks form the Research center. Call 617-369-5025 for more information or visit the website. From Mass. Pike Eastbound, take Exit 22 (Copley Square). Bear left around the Westin Hotel following signs for Copley Place parking. 

American Stories, American Lives Gala - Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel

The Hotel offers the following valet parking services:
- Overnight Parking: $68 USD
- Late Fee: $30 for any time after 1 p.m.
- Daytime Function: $45 USD
- Evening Function: $45 USD
- Restaurant: $30 USD, with validation

Self-parking is also available nearby at the following locations (subject to change):
- Back Bay Garage: $43 USD (overnight; daily max; vehicle must exit by 5 a.m. next day; input 85 St. James Avenue, Boston 02116 in your GPS)
- Copley Place: $42 USD (overnight; input 100 Huntington Avenue, Boston 02116 in your GPS)
- LAZ Parking: $42 USD (overnight; input 126 Dartmouth Street, Boston 02116 in your GPS)

  Questions? Please contact Special Events & Engagement Manager Kelly Neagle at kelly.neagle@americanancestors.org or 617-226-1215.