Rockefeller, who had a life-long philanthropic interest in the restoration and preservation of places of historic importance, had previously provided funding for several such projects, most notably the establishment of Colonial Williamsburg in the late 1920s.
In January 2016, Historic Hudson Valley sold Montgomery Place to Bard College, returning to its original Westchester county mandate, while retaining its new name.
The Rockefeller Brothers Fund leased the property from the National Trust, and in 1991, entered into a partnership with Historic Hudson Valley to operate a program of public tours, which began in 1994.
[4] Historic Hudson Valley focuses its work on three key areas: Tours at Philipsburg Manor, Sunnyside, and Van Cortlandt Manor use the third-person "living history" approach by interpreters in historic clothing supplemented by hands-on demonstrations of period work and leisure activities, while Kykuit and the Union Church use a more traditional lecture/discussion approach.
Historic Hudson Valley offers a varied menu of school workshops developed with teachers and based on state curriculum requirements.