October 2016 Newsletter

October 2016 Newsletter

(portsmouthhistorical.org)

Greetings fellow historians! And welcome to our October newsletter. The Portsmouth Historical Society continues a very busy effort to bring to you (and your friends) a number of activities emphasizing the wonderful history of Portsmouth. We remain anxious to grow our organization, so please encourage your friends and neighbors to join us so we can do more programs and also enhance our wonderful museums.

Upcoming Events:

1. Save the date: Friday 14 October: Harvest Social Annual Fundraiser. 5-7 PM at Greenvale Vineyards. Please join me and our Board members to learn a bit about the history of our “Gentlemen’s Farms” and to enjoy some of Greenvale’s finest vintage wines. Tickets are $25 each or $20 for members. This event will mark the beginning of our Fall Membership Drive, and the funds generated will help us continue to provide quality historical programs throughout the next year.

2. “The Photo Detective”.  In collaboration with the Portsmouth Free Public Library we will host Maureen Taylor, an internationally recognized expert on photographic identification, photo preservation and family history research on Tuesday 4 October at 6:30 PM. The event is free, but call the Library at 683-9457 fort a reservation.

3. “Ghostly Witness”.  Dinner theater at the Valley Inn with the Portsmouth Community Theater. This play reenacts the 1673 trial of Thomas Cornell fore the gruesome murder of his mother. Performances will be held on 4,5 and 6 October. The doors open at 6:45. Tickets for the dinner and the play are $36. For reservations and further information, please call 401-847-9871.

4. The Society will sponsor a series of lectures by our Town Historian in November and December. Stay tuned for topics, dates and locations.

     5. After a very busy summer our Historical Society?s Museum will be open for the last Sunday (2-4 PM) on 16 October. If you haven’t had a chance to see our annual exhibit on old houses and residents of Portsmouth, be sure to come by by that date.

    6. On Sunday 23 October the Museum will be the location for the Beirut  Memorial Ceremony. Further detail will be forthcoming.

Society Activities

* The Society is very interested in working on making the Historical Society museum buildings ADA-handicap-accessible. We are in the beginning stages of this study and we see it as a win-win project so that the main Museum building can be used for a variety of community activities.

* Also, the Board of Directors has initiated a long-range planning study to view what we our expectations are for the ensuing few years. We always welcome ideas on this from our membership. What are your ideas on how we can serve the community better in preserving the wonderful history of our town.

* We continue to seek volunteers for the various committees of the Board. We always can use more curator staff (no experience required) as well as those who can assist with ?handyman projects? at the Museum.

* The best way that you can help is to talk to your family, neighbors and friends and encourage them to join our organization. Membership applications are available on our website above.

* By the way: When you check out at Clement;s Market, you will see a display by the exit door that encourages shoppers to put their change into the container. In September Clement’s has selected our Historical Society to be the beneficiary of these donations. Please consider thanking Clement?s for doing this for us.

Jim Garman

President

Portsmouth Historical Society

Taking Pride in Portsmouth’s History