As part of Gallery Night Providence, the Mathewson Street United Methodist Church and Heads Up, Inc. will offer a free lecture and tour of Rhode Island’s oldest surviving Methodist church. Founded in 1848 on its current site at 134 Mathewson Street, the Mathewson Street Church has a rich cultural history of ministry and mission that spans over 150 years. In addition to being a building of high historical integrity, this five-story space has proven to be an important resource for direct services and outreach in downtown Providence since its founding.

As noted in the church’s 25th anniversary booklet, “the parish has been noted, from its organization until the present, for generous contributions to the regular charitable calls of the Church, to miscellaneous public objects of benevolence, to private solicitations, and to the aid of new and feeble church enterprises.” Mathewson Street Church has carried on these “generous contributions” through the generations to the present day through its participation in the arts community, outreach to those in need, and a willingness to open their doors to the less fortunate and those with alternative lifestyles who others have turned away.

Caitlin Murphy, The Mathewson Street Church’s Project Historian, will present a lecture on the rise of Methodism in Rhode Island, the historical significance of the church, and the effects of its mission in downtown Providence.

Visitors will also be able to tour this unique urban ecclesiastical building
and learn about Mathewson Street Church and Heads Up, Inc.’s plans for continuing to meet community needs through support to underserved populations, programming, and outreach.

The presentation is made possible though funding support from the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities.

Contact: Karen Gager (401) 331-1069

Inspired by the life and work of Sarah Helen Whitman, a literary legend of Providence and one time fiancé of Edgar Allan Poe, Anna Ghublikian’s Volumes of Forgotten Lore is a libretto born in the archives of the John Hay Library at Brown University. A mix of Whitman and Ghublikian’s words, Volumes of Forgotten Lore is an imaginative narrative that transcends time and space by engaging the spirits of yesterday with the bodies of today. It does not resolve any questions or reveal any truths, but rather reminds us that we will be haunted by these ghosts forevermore. In May 2012, it premiered as Part I: The Raven and The Dove, a small experimental project. Ghublikian has spent the last year arranging and rehearsing with her band to bring Volumes in fuller form. Providence holds many of Whitman and Poe’s stories and secrets, thus it seems fitting that such a performance be staged here. At the nexus of scholarship and song, academic and creative practice, Volumes presents imagination as an affective and interpretive process. The complexities of life, love, and loss that resonate within Whitman’s words are experienced anew through the melodies and lyrics of Volumes of Forgotten Lore.

Anna Ghublikian is completing her MA degree in Public Humanities at Brown. This piece grew out of her interest in  performance studies, archival work, and creative scholarship.

2013: Faith & Freedom at the Rhode Island Historical Society
Three hundred and fifty years ago, Rhode Island was formed with a unique charter that spelled out more rights than any other document of its kind.  In 2013, as we mark the issuance of Rhode Island’s charter we ask: how has Rhode Island been shaped by its at once very religious population and its steadfast connection to tolerance?

In an Antiques Roadshow-type format, Mr. Rickman will cover what makes a book valuable, what type of book has the highest retail value, and will offer complimentary estimates of up to three of your books’ value.  He draws on his years of experience as a long-time rare book dealer in Providence and the former host of “Bestsellers” on Rhode Island Public Television.

RSVP: programs@rihs.org or 401-273-8107 x412

Between 1845 and 1851, the population of Ireland was devastated by a terrible potato famine. Historians estimate that as a result of the tardy and inadequate British government response to the “great hunger,” one million or more Irish men, women and children died. One and one-half million more Irish emigrated to the United States and other countries.

On Sunday, April 14, take a tour along the Providence River with Don Deignan, Ph. D., president of the Famine Memorial Committee and URI Professor Scott Molloy, Ph. D.  Our guides will speak about what drove the Irish to Rhode Island during the Famine and what happened to them in this state after their arrival. We will also learn how the Famine Memorial monument was funded and built, and what the future holds for the commemoration and Irish heritage in RI.  Following the tour, a dinner at RiRa will be enjoyed by all.

Sponsored by the Friends of the Museum of Work & Culture.

The bus will depart at 2:30 pm from Andrew’s Bistro’s parking lot, located at 3755 Mendon Rd. Cumberland, RI.  People who do not wish to take the bus can join the group at the Memorial at 3:00 pm.

To reserve or for information contact Anne Conway at aconway@ rihs.org

Don’t Forget About Our Trip to Ireland!

RIHS members and friends are invited to join the Museum of Work & Culture on a nine day, seven night fundraising trip to Ireland from September 10th-18th, 2013.  Conway Tours will donate a portion of each ticket sold back to the RIHS to help support its programs and care for its collections.

Contact Anne Conway at aconway@rihs.org or 401-769-9675.