Preservation Society of Newport County Events
Preservation Society of Newport County Events List 1-14-2019
Upcoming Society-Sponsored Events
2019
September
Sept 19 – History Book Club – The book club will meet on Thursday, September 19 at the Portsmouth Library from 6 – 7:30 pm.
On a winter’s evening in 1673, tragedy descended on the respectable Portsmouth, Rhode Island household of Thomas Cornell. His 73-year-old mother, Rebecca, was found close to her bedroom’s large fireplace, dead and badly burned.
The Portsmouth Historical Society historical book club will host a discussion of Killed Strangely: The Death of Rebecca Cornell, by Elaine Forman Crane. The book relates the compelling story of Rebecca Cornell’s death and its aftermath, vividly depicting the world in which she lived. The discussion will be led by Gloria Schmidt, PHS member, author and noted expert on Portsmouth Portsmouth history.
Copies of the book have been placed on reserve at the library; just inquire at the front desk. The event is free and always welcomes new attendees who enjoy reading about our rich local history.
October
Oct 11 – Portsmouth Historical Society Day at Rail Explorers. Special Discounts for PHS Members. Stay tuned
Oct 13 – 2:30 – 4 PM “History Comes Alive” (at the Historical Society). Last day of museum opening for the season.
Sponsoring Organizations: Joint project of the Portsmouth Historical Society and the Portsmouth Community Theater . The program begins at 2:30, but 4 PM is the last time visitors can join a group touring the building.
Description: As in our past “History Comes Alive” programs Portsmouth Historical Society guides will shuttle groups of visitors to the presentation sites. This year will be more interactive for the visitors – they will be more involved in the presentation. Visitors will spend about 15 to 20 minutes at each location on the Portsmouth Historical Society Museum grounds.
In the Audience Room upstairs, Richard Schmidt will be portraying Temperance preacher John B. Gough who traveled through the area with his rallies. Maria Schmidt will portray the wife of a reformed drinker who lauds Gough’s efforts. This room was actually used for Temperance speeches, so we will be having a Temperance rally with songs, signing the pledge, etc. We will be stepping back in time to the 1870s.
In the Southermost School, Cindy Killavey will portray Isabella Fish conducting her first class of the year at Newtown School. She will go over school rules and visitors will be assigned the name of an actual student in her class. Isabella will lead a spelling bee and poetry reading demonstration. We will be stepping back to the 1900 timeframe.
In the kitchen area of the Museum, Portsmouth’s first girl scout leader, Gertrude Macomber, will be tutoring her scouts on how to pass their cooking badge. Denise Betz (as Gertrude) will be quizzing the visitors (scouts) on common cooking questions like how to prepare eggs three ways. Could you pass the 1924 Girl Scout Cooking test? We will be stepping back to a 1924 timeframe.
In the Old Town Hall miller and farmer Benjamin Boyd (portrayed by Jim Killavey) will be telling stories about windmills in Portsmouth. Visitors will be assigned questions to ask (they are reporters interviewing him for a news article). Benjamin Boyd’s answers are taken from actual newspaper articles on him. This is a 1940s timeframe.
Our tours should be finished by the usual 5 PM museum closing time.
For more info contact Gloria Schmidt
401-824-6886 (phone not available Sept 22 to Oct 4)
Oct 17 – Save the Date: Our Annual Harvest Social will be held on Thursday October 17th at Greenvale Vineyards, more information to follow. We hope to see you there
Oct 23 – Beirut Memorial Ceremony at the Museum. On Oct 23, 1983, the Marine Barracks in Beirut, Lebanon was attacked by a car bomb that left 241 service personnel dead, including 7 Marines from RI. Each year the PHS opens its doors for a ceremony to commemorate the event. More details soon.
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