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| Hours & Information |
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The Whaling Museum open seven days a week!
May 14 - Oct 31
Whaling Museum:
Open Daily,
10 A.M.- 5 P.M.
NHA Historic Sites
June 27 - September 6
Open Daily
12 P.M. - 5 P.M.
September 7 - October 12
Open Thursday - Monday
12 P.M. - 4 P.M.
Oldest House
Kitchen-Garden Tours
Last tour of the season:
September 4, 1 P.M.
Free for NHA members, $6 general public
Walking Tours of Historic Downtown Nantucket
Monday - Sautrday
4:30 P.M.
September 1 - October 12
Monday - Saturday
11:15 A.M. & 2:15 P.M.
Sunday
2:15 P.M.
NHA Research Library
7 Fair Street
Open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday - Friday. Closed Wednesdays & Labor Day (September 7)
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| NHA Museum Shop |
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July 1 - September 6:
Open Daily,
Monday - Saturday,
10 A.M. - 9 P.M.
Sunday, 10 A.M. - 5 P.M.
After September 7:
Open Daily,
10 A.M. - 5 P.M.
Featured items:
The complete catalog. $75.00
Bird's Eye View of Nantucket Reproduction of the classic map of Nantucket looking southwest, 1881. $175.00
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| Exceptional Events begin with Unforgettable Venues... |
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Many NHA properties are available for weddings, dinners, and parties. Celebrate life amid Nantucket treasures at the
or one of our other properties. Surround your guests with elegant art and important objects that bring the story of Nantucket's past to life.
Autumn Special:
Host your summer cocktail party on the Whaling Museum's rooftop observation deck for $3,000! (or $2,500 for NHA members). You and your guests will enjoy a never-ending view of land and sea, high above town. Call Susan Beaumont for details at 508-228-1894, ext. 131, or visit our Web site for more information |
| Show you care about Nantucket history: |
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| Gifts that Give |
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giftsthatgive.com is a Web site offering quality products for you to choose from, and 25% of your purchase will be donated back to the NHA on your behalf. Just select the NHA from the drop-down box at checkout.
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| Early-American Arts & Crafts at the 1800 House |
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Scrimshaw, with Lee Papale
September 10 and 11
Shorebird Woodcarving, with Bill Sarni September 15 to 18 Read more...
Reverse Painting, with Mary Emery Lacoursiere September 21, 25 Read more... | |
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| NHA E-Newsletter |
September 2009 |
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| A Message from the Executive Director |
We are thrilled with the success of the 32nd August Antiques Show. The new venue under the tent at Bartlett's Farm was appreciated by all, and this year's show attendance was up thirty-five percent over last year. Many thanks to Olivia Charney for ably chairing the show and to the members of the Antiques Show Committee for their enthusiasm and support. ( To view The Newtown Bee / Antiques and the Arts Online article "Nantucket Antiques Show Score Home Run in New Location" click here.)
Meanwhile, documentary filmmaker Ric Burns and his colleagues from Steeplechase Films were on island for a second time to film at the Oldest House and interview people for the twenty-minute "gateway" orientation film to Nantucket history they are producing for the NHA. This project is on track for a 2011 premiere at the Whaling Museum. In the same year, we intend to have our historic property Greater Light - our window onto Nantucket as an art colony and resort - completely restored. With twenty-two properties in its care, the NHA is proceeding on these two fronts that will help us best "preserve and interpret" Nantucket history. Click here to read more about this important initiative.
 In these challenging economic times, it is very reassuring to have your continued support as we work together in these pursuits. We have secured the needed support for the film, and we are only $75,000 from our $1.2 million goal to restore Greater Light. I thank all who have contributed and hope that others might help bring us to our goal by summer's end. In particular, my thanks to Janet Sherlund, president of the board of trustees, and her husband, Rick, for their $50,000 challenge gift. What encouragement this lends!
Bill Tramposch
Executive Director
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| Collections & Library News |
Property Spotlight: 1800 House
 Formerly a little visited historic house museum, the 1800 House on Mill Street has been given new life as haven for those interested in early American arts and crafts. Teachers from off island, as well as local experts, have been coming to Nantucket to offer multi-day classes and workshops since its establishment in 2004. Not only has this program attracted students, but it has garnered national attention for its innovative use of a historic property. The program has been the subject of several articles in national publications and has been featured in panel discussions at the American Association of Museums. The 1800 House program has invigorated not only the NHA, but the entire island by bringing new people to visit Nantucket! Library Recieves CPC Grant for Oral Histories
The NHA Research Library has received a $25,000 grant for "Preserving Nantucket's Voices," a project of reformatting oral histories and other audio and videotaped materials held at the NHA into digital files. Analog tape materials have a tendency to degrade over time. The digital files of the materials will then be made available to researchers.
New Digital Exhibition: Beloved and Honoured Parents: Reuben Pinkham Letters from Nantucket 1827-1838
 Nantucket readers of these letters, written by Reuben and Lydia Pinkham, will recognize many things as familiar. There are complaints of the cost of living in Nantucket, the lack of selection, and the school committee having major conflicts. There is also plenty of new information - how to cook eels, for instance, and interestingly, lots of gossip of Nantucket relationships. Constant throughout the letters is the expression of affection, respect, and love for each other. Click here to visit this digital exhibition.
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| Coopering Demonstration Show |
Wednesday, September 2, 1:30 - 3:30 P.M.
Whaling Museum side yard
 Marshall Scheetz, a traditionally trained cooper from Colonial Williamsburg, will discuss the process of making wooden buckets and barrels - and by employing 18th-century technology and methods - he will truss and fire a beer firkin, assemble a shooked cask, and piece together a bucket.
The craft of coopering has existed for over 3,000 years. Casks were originally used to transport precious cargo such as whale oil, tobacco, sugar, coffee beans, wine, beer, tar, and other commodities. Although casks or barrels were used in shipping, simple wooden buckets and tubs have been found in virtually every homestead throughout history.
Free to NHA members, or with admission to the museum. For more information, please call 508-228-1894, ext. 0
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| Exhibition: Harbor & Home: Furniture of Southeastern Massachusetts, 1710-1850 |
Peter Foulger Gallery, Whaling Museum
Through November 2
 This traveling exhibition explores the largely unstudied region of New England furniture - specifically the area between Boston and Providence, including the seafaring communities of the Cape and the islands. Of the more than seventy pieces of furniture - along with paintings, portraits, maps, prints, and ship furniture - many artifacts are on loan from the NHA collections.
Harbor & Home: Furniture of Southeastern Massachusetts, 1710-1850 was organized by Winterthur Museum & Country Estate. Major support for Harbor & Home provided by: Americana Foundation, Chilton Foundation, Croll Foundation, Elizabeth B. McGraw Foundation, Wodecroft Foundation, Anonymous. The exhibition at the Nantucket Historical Association is made possible with support from Wilmington Trust FSB Massachusetts, Mr. and Mrs. Amos B. Hostetter Jr., Mr. & Mrs Hampton S. Lynch Jr., Mr. and Mrs. Jay M. Wilson, and Anonymous.
Free to NHA members, or with admission to the museum. The exhibition catalog is available in our Museum Shop and through our Web site. |
| New Exhibition: The Camera's Coast: Historic Images of Ship and Shore in New England |
| Opens September 4
Hadwen & Barney Candle Factory
 This exhibition is a sampler of images from Historic New England's extensive collection of historic photographs documenting New England's rich maritime history, including Nantucket. The exhibit will be on display through November 8 and includes photographs of many traditional occupations - from longshore fishing, shipbuilding, and deep-water voyaging - Subjects depicted include square-riggers, coasting schooners, fishing vessels and fishing ports, small boats and large yachts, summer hotels and fishermen's shacks, fishermen, seaweed gatherers, and saltmarsh haymakers.
 Curated by noted author and maritime historian William H. Bunting, The Camera's Coast illustrates life along the New England coast in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Pioneering photographers represented in the exhibition include Nathaniel L. Stebbins, Henry G. Peabody, Baldwin Coolidge, and Emma L. Coleman.  Historic New England is the oldest, largest, and most comprehensive regional heritage organization in the nation; the organization shares the region's history through vast collections, publications, public programs, museum properties, archives, and family stories that document more than 400 years of life in New England.
Free to NHA members, or with admission to the museum. |
| Walden Chamber Players in Concert |
Friday, September 25, 7 P.M., Whaling Museum
The renowned Walden Chamber Players return for an exceptional concert featuring an assortment of classical delights and popular favorites. Founded in 1997, the Walden Chamber Players present educational curricula and concerts designed to showcase rarely heard works by composers of the past as well as music by contemporary composers. Comprising twelve dynamic artists in various combinations of string, piano, and wind ensembles, the Walden Chamber Players "highlight the belief that music is the human experience translated into sound." Based in New England, the ensemble performs in New York, New Hampshire, and throughout Massachusetts.
$5 for NHA members, $15 general public
Walden Chamber Players features Nantucket Student Zeb Bennett
Sunday, September 27, 12 P.M., Whaling Museum
If you missed them on Friday the 25th, we invite you to come and enjoy the Walden Chamber Players' talents as they perform with Nantucket student-musician, Zeb Bennett, for a noteworthy early afternoon of music.
Free for NHA members, $15 general public |
| Record Museum Attendance |
August 13th holds the record for the largest number of visitors in the Whaling Museum for 2009
On Thursday, August 13, 1,220 guests toured the Whaling Museum and enjoyed its daily offerings. While this does not beat our all-time record of 1,405 guests from August 6, 2008, it is the highest attendance of the 2009 season to date!!! |
| Exhibition: Views from the Tower, South Church 1809-2009 |
Whitney Gallery, 7 Fair Street
May 23-December 31
 This exhibition celebrates the 200th anniversary of the South Church on Orange Street through artwork, posters, and historic photographs. The South Church Preservation Fund, Nantucket Preservation Trust, and the NHA are collaborating on this celebration of the church's anniversary.
Gallery is open during library hours.
Views from the Tower Digital Exhibition
See how our landscape has changed over the last 150 years. Views from the tower are available for viewing online: Visit the digital exhibition. |
| Coming up in October |
 Harvest Fair, October 3
Old Mill, 11 A.M. - 2 P.M. Celebrate fall harvest at the Old Mill. Learn about Nantucket's agricultural heritage, play lively colonial games, and make traditional crafts.
 Food for Thought Brownbags
Starting October 1, Noon This year's annual theme is "Travel to and From Nantucket," focusing on Nantucket as a hub for global travel, both in the whaling days and today.
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| The Compass Rose Collection to benefit the NHA |
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Ralph Lauren has added an attractive new cream and navy canvas beach tote to its special collection of merchandise featuring the Compass Rose mural that adorns the east side of the Nantucket store, designed in 1936 by photographer H. Marshall Gardiner. The Compass Rose Collection was created to preserve and honor this significant piece of Nantucket history. This attractive tote is available on the Ralph Lauren Web site as well as in the store. Signature t-shirts, hats, and caps are also available at the Main Street store, and 100% of sales is donated to the Nantucket Historical Association. | |
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