Upcoming Events

An effort increase public awareness of upcoming history-related events. Links to each event are provided whenever possible -- text is quoted from sources. Some of these events may or may not be reviewed on the home page at some point after the fact; all will find their way to the past events page.

Connecticut Historical Society's Summer Furniture Series
Fridays: June 29 | July 20 | August 17
5:30 pm refreshments | 6:00 pm lecture
Individual lectures: $12 CHS/SAPFM members | $15 non-members


Lectures are in conjunction with the special exhibition, A Tradition of Craft: Current Works by the Society of American Period Furniture Makers.Each program will conclude with an open discussion and questions and time to visit the exhibition.

Space is limited, and reservations are recommended. For more information or reservations, please call (860) 236-5621 x209 or email Mary Muller.To purchase single or series tickets in advance, visit the CHS online store. These lectures are made possible through the generous support of the Society of American Period Furniture Makers and the Connecticut Valley School of Woodworking.

Jamestown Historical Society
WINDMILL DAY
Saturday, July 14
11 - 3

• See the sails raised and the arms turn
• Tour the mill
• Eat jonnycakes
• Play colonial games
• Listen to country music

South County Museum 115 Strathmore Street, Narragansett, RI
Centreville Bank Coastal Lecture
Thursday, July 19th, 2012 7:30 pm
Talk by Historian Walter Schroeder, author of The Hessian Drummer Boy of Newport, The Defenses of Narragansett Bay in WWII, and Images of America: Davisville and the Seabees/Dutch Island and Fort Greble.


Smith's Castle
Saturday August 4, 11, 18 & 25, 2012 Noon-4:30 PIRATES: Against All Flags Exhibit

Facts and folklore of the pirates of long ago, with a variety of period weapons, an array of pirate flags, period coins, examples of what treasure pirates really sought, pirate books and movie costumes, types of punishments, and other piratical paraphernalia, and a pirate living-history reenactment group.

2012 Newport Jazz Festival
Friday-Saturday-Sunday, August 3-4-5, 2012 Fort Adams State Park • 11am - 7pm

An historic lineup!

H.P. Lovecraft: A Literary Walk
August 18, 2012 10:00 - 11:30 AM
Departs from the John Brown House Museum
52 Power St. Providence, RI 02906


"Celebrate the 122nd birthday of America’s master of the strange and macabre. Author of “The Thing on the Doorstep” and “The Call of Cthulhu,” H.P. Lovecraft was born in Providence in 1890. This walking tour explores the College Hill neighborhood where Lovecraft drew literary inspiration and where he called home.

Tours are led by Rhode Island Historical Society guides. Tickets are $10 per person and may be purchased at the start of the tour. Reservations are most welcome."

Contact Barbara Barnes: (401) 273-7507 x62 or bbarnes@rihs.org.
Image of H.P. Lovecraft by Jeremy Eckhart



Western Rhode Island Civic Historical Society
Traces of the Trade, September 18, 2012 7:00 PM
Coventry Public Library
1670 Flat River Rd.
Coventry, RI


Katrina Browne tells the story of her forefathers, the largest slave-trading family in U.S. history. Given the myth that the South is solely responsible for slavery, viewers will be surprised to learn that Browne’s ancestors were Northerners. The film follows Browne and nine fellow family members on a remarkable journey which brings them face-to-face with the history and legacy of New England’s hidden enterprise.
For reservations call Jane at 822-9100.
More information also at http://www.tracesofthetrade.org/

“America’s Bloodiest Day: Antietam, Emancipation, and Memorialization”
A Symposium
September 28, 2012
Department of History
Rhode Island College


The Department of History forty ninth symposium is entitled “America’s Bloodiest Day: Antietam, Emancipation, and Memorialization.” The symposium is part of Rhode Island’s 150th commemoration of the American Civil War.

The Battle of Antietam can be considered a critical turning point during the Civil War given the political importance attached to the event by Abraham Lincoln and the British reaction to the event that resulted in the issuing of the Emancipation Proclamation and the ending of British consideration to interfere directly in the conflict through recognition of the Confederate States.

Faculty Dining Center (Donovan Hall, next to Student Union)
The Long Road to Antietam: How the Civil War Became a Revolution
9:00 – 10:15 A.M. Professor Richard Slotkin
Wesleyan University
Living History Program
10:15 – 11: 15 A.M.
Keynote Address: Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation
11:30 – 12:30 A.M. The Honorable Frank Williams

12:30 – 1:15 P.M. Lunch

Fortes Room, Adams Library
Photography and Memorial: Antietam
1:30 – 2:30 P.M. James Ulrich
Roundtable Discussion: Memorial During the Civil War
2:45 – 3: 45 P.M. Professor Emeritus, J. Stanley Lemons, First Baptist Church, Providence, The Reverend John Alexander, St. Stephen’s Church, Providence, and Dr. Erik Christiansen

Please RSVP by Friday, September 7.
If you have any questions, please contact: Professor Karl Benziger Kbenziger@ric.edu, or Professor Erik Christiansen Echristiansen@ric.edu.
This Symposium has been endorsed by the Rhode Island Civil War Commission.


Western Rhode Island Civic Historical Society
4th Annual Heritage Day
September 29, 2012 9:00 AM - 4:00 OM
The Paine House Museum 7 Station St.Coventry, RI


The Western Rhode Island Civic Historical Society annual Heritage Day and Annual Smithsonian Museum Day incudes demonstrations by the Elisha Dyer Camp 7 Artillery Group, the 2nd Rhode Island Regiment Colonial Militia, The Providence Brigade Band, and The RISEUP Paranormal Group, and a Native American Peace Ceremony. Crafts and a food court will also be available.