1872 Jubilee
Join the Rhode Island Historical Society on Saturday, June 11, for the second of its Bicentennial Jubilees, featuring a free … Continue reading 1872 Jubilee
SOLD OUT: Annual Goff Lecture to Celebrate Olmsted’s 200th with Laurence Cotton
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE GOFF LECTURE IS SOLD OUT. CAPACITY WILL NOT ALLOW FOR THE ADMITTANCE OF WALK-IN GUESTS. The … Continue reading SOLD OUT: Annual Goff Lecture to Celebrate Olmsted’s 200th with Laurence Cotton
Romance After Dark
Join the Rhode Island Historical Society on Thursday, February 10th at 6pm for Romance After Dark, a virtual evening filled … Continue reading Romance After Dark
Teacher Appreciation Week
Welcome back, teachers! During the Rhode Island Historical Society’s Teacher Appreciation Week–Tuesday, July 26, through Saturday, July 31–we invite teachers … Continue reading Teacher Appreciation Week
POSTPONED: A People’s Tour of the John Brown House Museum
THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED A People’s History Tour of the John Brown House was researched and presented by local … Continue reading POSTPONED: A People’s Tour of the John Brown House Museum
Few Dining in the Dark Tickets Remain – 9/17 Deadline!
On September 21, explore the limits of your senses at Dining in the Dark, a culinary experience to benefit accessibility at the RIHS’s Museum of Work & Culture and John Brown House Museum.
RIHS Joins Smithsonian Magazine for 14th Annual Museum Day
Free Admission at John Brown House to Include Kids Book Event; MoWC Also Free The Rhode Island Historical Society, a … Continue reading RIHS Joins Smithsonian Magazine for 14th Annual Museum Day
The Private Side of One of America’s Most Powerful 18th-Century Families
When the sun sets in 18th-century Providence, what happens at the mansion on the hill? Find out Thursday, April 19, when the Rhode Island Historical Society and Newport Historical Society present After Dark: Browns, Bad Boys, and Boudoirs.
RIHS Announces Upcoming Volunteer Docent Trainings
We’re recruiting enthusiastic and inquisitive history lovers to volunteer as docents and educators at the John Brown House Museum in Providence. Deadline January 31, 2018!
Smithsonian Museum Day Live! and Doors Open R.I. Come to RIHS
John Brown House Museum in Providence and Museum of Work & Culture in Woonsocket Will Offer Free Admission, Tours on September 23
A Morning of Family Fun at the John Brown House Museum!
What: Learning Quill and Ink Writing at the John Brown House Museum! When: Saturday, July 8th, 9:00-10:00am Mornings at the Museum will be … Continue reading A Morning of Family Fun at the John Brown House Museum!
After Dark at the Museum Returns April 27
On April 27, the Rhode Island Historical Society’s “After Dark at the Museum” will give visitors the rare opportunity to tour the John Brown House Museum by (battery-operated!) candlelight and discover what went on during private evenings – and late nights – at home in the 18th century.
Volunteer With Our ‘Avi Program’
The Rhode Island Historical Society runs a robust elementary school walking tour called the “Avi Program” every spring and fall. This tour is based on Avi’s book Something Upstairs, set in the Fox Point area. As this program grows annually, RIHS is looking for guides to fill our walking tour guide roster.
Smithsonian Museum Day Live! at RIHS
The Rhode Island Historical Society will open its doors free of charge on Saturday September 24, 2016, as part of Smithsonian magazine’s 12th annual Museum Day Live! On this day only, participating museums across the United States emulate the spirit of the Smithsonian Institution’s Washington, D.C.-based facilities, which offer free admission every day, and open their doors for free to those who download a Museum Day Live! ticket.
What Cheer Wednesdays
What Cheer Wednesdays will bring you behind the scenes with free museum admission and pop-up programming. It’s a series featuring rotating weekly offerings – as well as chats with curators, docents, and educational staff – all intended to give visitors a unique look at a day in the life of our museums.
Of Feet and Seats
If you were to eavesdrop on some specialists discussing furniture without seeing the objects they see, you might wonder what … Continue reading Of Feet and Seats
After Dark at the Museum: Shedding (Candle) Light on 18th-Century Nights at Home
On April 21, the Rhode Island Historical Society’s “After Dark at the Museum” will give visitors the rare opportunity to tour the John Brown House Museum by (battery-operated!) candlelight and discover what went on during private evenings – and late nights – at home in the late 18th century.
Best Foot Forward
These delightful little slippers were worn by Frances Mary Eldredge of Brooklyn, Connecticut at her marriage to Dr. Daniel Lyman … Continue reading Best Foot Forward
Announcement: The RIHS Removes Four Dead Elm Trees From John Brown House Museum Property
Of interest to our members, friends, and supporters: We regret to announce that the Rhode Island Historical Society was forced to remove four more dead elm trees from the John Brown House Museum property. The RIHS hired TF Morra Tree Care, Inc., to handle the removal (as well as, potentially, a replanting strategy of more varied and disease-resistant trees in the coming months and years), and as this stage of the project draws to a close, we present Executive Director C. Morgan Grefe’s official statement on a painful decision that wasn’t really a decision at all:
Let’s Celebrate This WaterFire Weekend!
To celebrate the Saturday, July 18, full WaterFire lighting, the John Brown House Museum (52 Power St.) will be open from 10am until 7:30pm, and will reopen on Sunday, July 19, at 1pm, closing at 4pm.
Talk About a WaterFire Lighting …
Happy Gaspee! Thanks to one well-placed sandbar at Namquit Point off the coast of Warwick, the movement toward American Revolution really heated up 243 years ago today when the HMS Gaspee ran aground and was later boarded and burned by rebel colonists under the direction of John Brown and Abraham Whipple. Guess what? We have a walking tour for that!
Object Thursday: The Declaration of Independence
Tonight, Thursday, July 3rd, the Rhode Island Historical Society will display a rare, original Rhode Island edition of the Declaration … Continue reading Object Thursday: The Declaration of Independence
Object Thursday: Soup Tureen
With the cold weather we’ve had lately, soup seems especially appealing. This Chinese export porcelain tureen in the shape of … Continue reading Object Thursday: Soup Tureen
Object Thursday: Gorham Silver
The RIHS has a small but lovely collection of Gorham Manufacturing Company catalogs from the last quarter of the nineteenth … Continue reading Object Thursday: Gorham Silver
Object Thursday: The Narragansett Basket
The Narragansett Basket is one of only two surviving 17th-century Algonkian baskets in the world. Despite an accompanying note describing … Continue reading Object Thursday: The Narragansett Basket
Object Thursday: A Chair, and the Measure of a Man
John Brown, by all estimates, was not a small man. His waistcoat measurements lead one historical clothing expert to estimate … Continue reading Object Thursday: A Chair, and the Measure of a Man
Behind the Scenes at the Museum
The collections staff at the John Brown House Museum has been working for several months preparing the former silver and … Continue reading Behind the Scenes at the Museum
John Brown House Museum: Yankee Magazine Editors Choice Award
First we were a Local Treasure in the January-February 2012 issue of Yankee Magazine, and now the museum has been … Continue reading John Brown House Museum: Yankee Magazine Editors Choice Award