Date: September 13, 2020

Time: 2:00-4:00 p.m.

Location:

               Newmarket Town Hall

168 South Main Street

                        Newmarket, NH

Fee:

2020 is the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote.   Our speaker will focus on Women’s History, Suffrage  and passage of  this historic Amendment in 1920.

We listened.  During our past few teas we asked our patrons if they would prefer another time of the year, rather than the hot summer months for our tea.  Most preferred springtime or fall. We initially scheduled for April this year; however, the fast moving events of the Coronavirus in March forced us to move the event to the fall.  It will be held 2 p.m. on Sunday afternoon, September 13th at the Newmarket Town Hall.

(Getty photo: Mrs. Herbert Capenter, marching down Madison Avenue, NYC, 1914)

Admission charges for this Fund Raiser: $20 for members, $25 for non-members.  

Reservations (recommended) and payment can be made by credit card via the PayPal link on our home page, or by calling 603-659-3289. 

Dr. Nicolette Gullace, UNH Associate Professor of History has an extensive background in women’s history in Victorian Britain, WWI, and feminism in modern European history. She has published numerous books including The ‘White Feather Girls’: Women’s Militarism in the UK …”where the suffrage movement was split by the Great War.  Most often remembered are the pacifists, but the militant history of feminist war supporters in Britain, and the audacity of the ‘White Feather Girls’ … shamed young men into enlisting.”

Date: September 14, 2020

Time: 7 p.m.

Location:

Newmarket Town Hall Auditorium

186 South Main Street

Newmarket, NH

Fee: None (Donations always appreciated!)

When the Republican Party and William Harding enjoyed a huge win in the 1920 election, over 100 Newmarket women joined in Newmarket’s victory parade.   They wore white, waved white flags and carried red lights as they proudly marched in celebration of Harding’s win — and of their first time at the ballot box. 

—

This program highlights the accomplishments of many of the town’s women who gave a great deal to the community since colonial times.  They were authors, businesswomen, entrepreneurs, artists and poets, lawyers and activists, Olympians, teachers, politicians, police women and military volunteers  - many of whom broke glass ceilings and were Newmarket Firsts!

—

(Photo:Newmarket resident Harriett  Carpenter, along with her sister Esther,  were the first women to enlist in the US Navy during WW I)      

Our Presenter is also a Newmarket First!

Attorney Patti Blanchette is a Newmarket native and a graduate of Newmarket High School, the University of New Hampshire, and Franklin Pierce Law Center. While in high school she championed a Constitutional Amendment to allow 18 year olds to vote, addressing the NH House of Representatives on that issue at the age of 15.  After law school she worked for the Boynton and Waldron Law Office in Portsmouth—the first woman hired by that firm. In 1974 at the age of 22, she was elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives after leading the Concerned Citizens of Newmarket, which opposed locating the Onassis Oil refinery in Newmarket.

Patti was the subject of an NHPTV video “Lawmaker At Work” which was shown in schools throughout the state to educate young students on the role of a Legislator.  She served seven terms in the House while also chairing the Newmarket Budget Committee.  In 1992, Patti was elected as the first woman President of the New Hampshire Bar Association.  She then went on to serve as President of the New England Bar Association in 1994 and 1995. She has been honored by her peers for her distinguished service to the profession, and was previously named as one of the top ten most powerful women in New Hampshire. 

Attorney Blanchette has had an active family law practice spanning several counties, and is a lifetime member of the Newmarket Historical Society.  Most recently, with support from the Historical Society, she headed the Friends of the Rockingham Ballroom to save the 80-year-old Ballroom from being closed to due the lack of a fire sprinkler. Ten years later, the sprinkler is in place and the dancing goes on. 

Date: September 28, 2020

Time: 7:00 PM

Location:

Newmarket Town Hall Auditorium

186 South Main Street

                      Newmarket, NH  

Fee: None (Donations gladly accepted)

Abenaki history has been reduced to near invisibility as a result of conquest, a conquering culture that placed little value on the Indian experience, and a strategy of self-preservation that required many Abenaki to go “underground,” concealing their true identities for generations to avoid discrimination and persecution.

Robert Goodby reveals archaeological evidence that shows their deep presence here, inches below the earth’s surface. 

Dr. Robert Goodby is a professor of Anthropology at Franklin Pierce University in Rindge. He holds a Ph.D. in anthropology from Brown University and has spent the last thirty years studying Native American archaeological sites in New England.   He is a past president of the New Hampshire Archeological Society, a former Trustee of the Mount Kearsarge Indian Museum in Warner, and served on the New Hampshire Commission on Native American Affairs. In 2010, he directed the excavations of four 12,000 year-old Paleoindian dwelling sites at the Tenant Swamp site in Keene.

Date: October 26, 2020

Time: 7:00 PM

Location:

Newmarket Town Hall Auditorium

186 South Main Street

Newmarket, NH

Fee: None (Donations greatly appreciated!)

As dried leaves start rustling in the streets and the moon shines bright in late fall evenings, it’s time to reflect on Newmarket’s share of sinners. Join us as we visit 300 years of local lore and legend.  This program promises to be poignant, chilling, laughable, and sometimes grisly as we learn a bit about the darker side of our heritage.

(photo: the old Elm Block in 1905, at the corner of Elm Street & Nichols Avenue, a scene of adultrous rage, revenge, and bloody murder)

Subjects will range from:

the infamous (and yet lovable) Henry Tufts, The Chicken Thief,

The Slaughter House,

Unreturned Love,

and being sentenced to “Remove Yourself From Newmarket Within 24 Hours”  along with many more!

New Market Historical Society Board Member Michael Provost  will dig deep into his collection of the peccadilloes of former Newmarket residents and share some of their  stories.  Michael is a longtime Newmarket resident, local historian, and is noted for his walking tour of “Murder, Mischief, Mishaps, and Mayhem: Tales of Old Newmarket”.  Special thanks are extended to John Carmichael, who has also caught the “spirit” and continually adds to Michael’s collection as he pursues his own research on local history.

Date: November 9, 2020

Time: 7:00 P.M.

Location:

 Newmarket Town Hall Auditorium

186 So. Main Street

Newmarket, NH

Fee: None (Donations gladly accepted)

Through traditional music Jordan Tirrell-Wysocki relays some of the adventures, misadventures, and emotions experienced by Irish emigrants.  The focus is on songs about leaving Ireland, sometimes focusing on the reasons for leaving (a man driven from his land by English persecution), sometimes revealing what happened upon arrival (an immigrant drafted into the Union army during the Civil War), and sometimes exploring the universal feeling of homesickness of a stranger in a strange land (a factory worker in London missing his home in County Clare).

The presenter discusses the historical context of these songs, interspersing the stories with tunes from Ireland that made their way into New England’s musical repertoire, played on his fiddle or guitar.

This Program is sponsored by NH Humanities 

Jordan Tirrell-Wysocki is a teacher and historian who displays the Irish immigrant experience that evolved into New England’s musical repertoire.   On acoustic fiddle and guitar, he is an award-winning fiddler who grew up playing dances and folk festivals around New England. He was first recognized as part of New Hampshire’s culture at the age of 12, when he was the youngest member of the delegation representing the state at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C.  Jordan has toured nationally with bands of various genres, performed across Ireland, and released multiple recordings of Celtic music that can be heard on radio stations around New England. He currently performs over 200 shows each year, mostly with his own band, the Jordan TW Trio. His lifelong passion for history helps bring to life the traditional music around which he built his career.

Date: November 14, 2020

Time: 1 - 5 p.m.

Location:

Newmarket Community Church Kitchen

137 Main Street

Newmarket, NH 

Fee: $25 pre-payment

Polish Cooking for the Holidays

Sat., Nov. 14, 1:00-5:00 pm

Newmarket Community Church Kitchen                                                  

Michael Provost will take you through pierogi making, sharing a sample tasting menu and Polish holiday traditions. Each participant will leave with approximately 2 dozen pierogi that they have made, and recipes for a full Polish Christmas Eve gathering.

                                                                                                              Each attendee must bring a cutting board (at least 12 by 16 inches), an apron, and a rolling pin. A pre-payment of $25 is required to register for this class (see website).   Any proceeds will benefit the Stone School Museum.  This class is presented in cooperation with the Newmarket Community Church. 

It is suggested that you reserve your spot early!  Class is limited to 20 people.

Board Member Michael Provost, past owner of Mike’s Cafe, caterer, and cook of all things Polish will teach this course.   After Michael’s Polish program last fall,  he was asked by several members to teach a class in Polish cooking.   He looks forward to explaining the mysteries of Pierogis to you at the Community Church.  

Date: December 5, 2020

Time: 10:00 am - 03:00 PM

Location:

Stone School Museum

3 Granite Street

Newmarket, NH

Fee:

Holiday Open House 

Saturday, December 5th,   10 a.m. til 3 p.m.

Stop in to see our new displays.

Our old dolls and toys will reappear.

We will again offer holiday fare, and unique gift items for sale.

This year we again feature a large dollhouse built and fully furnished with hand crafted items by Forrest Shorrey for his wife Dot for their 40th anniversary in 1986.  In October 2019, their children donated this special piece of folk art to the Historical Society. 

Historical Society Board of Directors 

Date: December 5, 2020

Time: 06:30 PM til 11:00 PM

Location:

Downtown Newmarket

SEVERAL PUBS ONCE

AGAIN JOIN IN

THE CELEBRATION

Fee: $20.00

Photo from our 2019 Pub Crawl  

Revelers stroll throughout downtown dressed in holiday gear.  

                                  (with the exception of  “Grinches”… no “Grinch” is allowed)

                                                                      Visit Newmarket’s several pubs and taverns and spread joy and good will up and down Main Street.

The Historical Society truly appreciates the support of all who participate in this fundraiser, which has become an annual event (last year we sold out).  All proceeds go directly toward the preservation and acquisition of items for our permanent collection.  

Updated info to be published at a later date.