This Week @ MHS

It will be an eventful week here at the MHS with plenty of quality public programming for all to enjoy.

Kicking things off on Tuesday, 12 March 2013, is the latest in the Environmental History Seminar series. This edition will see Sarah Sutton, Brandeis University, presenting "The First Local Food Movement: Elizabeth Lowell Putnam and Boston's Cmpaign for Clean Milk." The seminar looks at the perceived relationship among rural environments, food consumed in urban areas, and human health through the evolving understanding of bacteriology in the early 20th century, using the Massachusetts Milk Consumers' Association and the "milk question" as a case study. SUNY-Albany's Kendra Smith-Howard will provide comment. Seminars are free and open to the public but RSVP is required. Subscribe to receive advance copies of the seminar papers. The event will begin at 5:15pm.

Then, on Wednesday, 13 March 2013, there will be a full house as the Society hosts "An Evening with Margaret Fuller in Italy," a talk with prize-winning author and MHS Fellow Megan Marshall. Ms. Marshall will read from Margaret Fuller: A New American Life, a biography of the 19th-century heroine who spent her final years as a war correspondent in Rome and Florence. The author reflects on how this period in Ms. Fuller's life should be remembered given the scandal she created through her love affair with Giovanni Ossoli during the early stages of Italy's Risorgimento. Complementing the discussion will be a performance by the Folk ensemble Newpoli, who specialize in southern Italian folk music from the Middle Ages to the 19th century. They will focus their energy on the vibrant music emblamatic of Italy at the time and that Ms. Fuller came to adore. Pre-talk reception at 5:30pm, author talk begins at 6:00pm. Advance reservations requested, however, as of Friday, 8 March, registration is closed and the MHS is no longer accepting reservations.

The Historical Society invites new MHS Members and Fellows to enjoy a Reception & Tour. This special event on Thursday, 14 March, is an opportunity to learn more about the Society and its collections. RSVP required and there is no cost to register. For more information, call 617-646-0543.

On Friday, 15 March, join the MHS Art Curator, Anne Bentley, as she shines a spotlight on our current exhibition with "Our Fanatacism: Garrison's Antislavery Banners." This gallery talk examines the nature and use of WIlliam Lloyd Garrison's banners in the 1840s and 1850s for various local fairs and demonstrations that were sponsored by the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society. This event is free and open to the public and will begin at 2:00pm. Show up early or stay after to explore the multiple exhibits currently on show and highlighting the fight against slavery in Massachusetts and the nation. Exhibits are free and open to the public Monday-Saturday, 10:00am-4:00pm.

Finally, join us Saturday, 16 March, as our public building tour returns after a couple of weeks off. The History and Collections of the MHS is a 90-minute, docent-led tour that explores the art and architecture of the public spaces here at a1154 Boylston St. Tour begins at 10:00am in the lobby of the MHS and is open to the public at no cost. No reservation is required for small groups but parties of 8 or more are requested to contact the Society in advance of attendance. For more information, please contact Curator of Art, Anne Bentley, at abentley@masshist.org or 617-646-0508.

Plenty of great reasons to shake off the last of the snow and pay the MHS a visit!

This Week @ MHS

It is time again to check out what events are on tap this week at the Historical Society.

First, on Tuesday, 5 March 2013, join us for our latest in the Early American History Seminar series. Presenting "Blood in the Water: The Pequot War, Kieft's War, and the Contagion of Coastal Violence," Andrew Lipman of Syracuse University examines the links between the Anglo-Indian conflict in 1636-1637 and the Dutch-Indian conflict of 1643-1645. The paper deals with the larger implications of seeing these two wars as tandem events and viewing New England and New Netherland as part of a single contested region. Comment will be provided by Katherine Grandjean, Wellesley College. Seminars are free and open to the public though RSVP is required. Subscribe to receive advance copies of the seminar papers.

On Wednesday, 6 March 2013, there will be two events to take advantage of at the Society. Pack a lunch and come by at 12:00pm for a Brown Bag discussion. Independent researcher Charles Wyzanski will share information about his research into the papers of his father when he presents "Charles E. Wyzanski, Jr.: Lawyer, Judge, Public Citizen in Massachusetts and Beyond." In 1927, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes encouraged the subject to "...realize that every detail has the mystery of the universe behind it and keep up [his] heart with undying faith." Throughout his life, Mr. Wyzanski, Jr. carried out the advice and had a large influence on the legal, political, intellectual, and moral life of his times, until his death in 1986.

And on Wednesday evening the MHS will present "Walking the Great Beach with a Volume of the MHS 'Collections' in Hand," the next event in the "Object of History" series.This conversation series, hosted by MHS Librarian Peter Drummey, looks at various documents and artifacts from the collections of the Society to see what they can tell us about the characters, events, and issues of the past and the role of the Society in documenting them. In Henry David Thoreau's Cape Cod, the author describes using an early MHS publication as a sort of antiquarian travel guide -- a way of looking back on the landscape he traversed as it had been described almost 50 years earlier. What did the founders of the MHS set out to print and what have later generations made of our early publications? There will be a pre-talk reception starting at 5:30pm with the event kicking-off at 6:00pm. Registration is required and there is a fee for this event. Please contact the education department at 617-646-0557 / education@masshist.org.

Finally, do not forget about the three exhibits currently on display. First is "Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land: Boston Abolitionists, 1831-1865." Through various artifacts, manuscripts, and photographs related to the abolitionist movement, this exhibit demonstrates how Boston emerged as a center for the national antislavery movement in the decades leading up to the Civil War. Included in the display are examples of William Lloyd Garrison's, the Liberator, the country's leading abolitionist newspaper, published in Boston beginning in 1831. Also illustrated is the fierce resistance that this radical movement received, not only from Southern slaveholders, but from Northerners, as well.

Complementing this new exhibit are two minor exhibitions that spotlight Abraham Lincoln and the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, an event that occurred on the first day of the new year exactly 150 years ago. All of these exhibits are free and open to the public with opening hours Monday-Saturday, 10:00am-4:00pm. All three will be on view until 24 May 2013.

This Week @ MHS

This week will be quiet here at the MHS but we still have a couple reasons for you to break your cabin fever and pay us a visit.

First, we are happy to announce the opening of our most recent exhibition, "Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land: Boston Abolitionists, 1831-1865." Through various artifacts, manuscripts, and photographs related to the abolitionist movement, this exhibit demonstrates how Boston emerged as a center for the national antislavery movement in the decades leading up to the Civil War. Included in the display are examples of William Lloyd Garrison's, the Liberator, the country's leading abolitionist newspaper, published in Boston beginning in 1831. Also illustrated is the fierce resistance that this radical movement received, not only from Southern slaveholders, but from Northerners, as well.

Complementing this new exhibit are two minor exhibitions that spotlight Abraham Lincoln and the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, an event that occurred on the first day of the new year exactly 150 years ago. All of these exhibits are free and open to the public with opening hours Monday-Saturday, 10:00am-4:00pm. All three will be on view until 24 May 2013.

On Tuesday, 26 February 2013, join us for another installment in the Immigration and Urban History Seminar series. Starting at 5:15pm, David Jaffee of the Bard Graduate Center will present "Seeing in the City: Broadway and the Culture of Vision in 19th Century New York." With Keith Morgan of Boston University providing comment, Mr. Jaffee explores Broadway as the central location for various case studies of cultural entrepreneurs and as the subject and site of new ways of seeing in the city. Seminars at the Society are free and open to the public though, RSVP is required. Subscribe to receive advance copies of seminar papers.

Finally, make note that this Saturday there will not be a public building tour as the Society plays host to part one of "Writing, Reading, & Preserving Eighteenth-Century Letters," a two-part teacher workshop. In this workshop, done in conjunction with the Revere House, teachers will learn about the importance of letters as communication tools in the 18th century and as their importance as historical sources today. For more information about the workshop, please contact the Historical Society's Education Department at 617-646-0557 or education@masshist.org.

And as always, keep an eye on our calendar for information about upcoming events.

This Week @ MHS

This week is shortened due to the President's Day holiday but there is still plenty of excitement at the MHS. There is a seminar that is overdue, an exhibit that is right on time, and tour of the MHS building.

First, the next installment of our Early American Seminar series takes place on Tuesday, 19 February. If you remember back to late October, you might recall that there was a little storm that caused some big problems for everyone on the east coast. Hurricane Sandy compelled the MHS to close its doors and shutter its windows for a couple of days and forced the postponement of a seminar. Now it is time to carry on with our scheduled program. Join us at 5:15pm as Daniel Mandell, Truman State University, presents "Revolutionary Ideologies and Wartime Economic Regulation." This seminar, rescheduled from October 30, is part of a larger study of the notions of equality in America. It will focus on the ideological elements in the conflict over wage and price regulation. as wartime debates created a conceptual gap between calls for economic equality and liberty. Comment provided by Brendan McConville, Boston University. Seminars at the MHS are free and open to the public but RSVP is required. Subscribe here to receive advance copies of the seminar papers.

Then comes the unveiling of the next public exhibit at the Society. In the decades leading up to the Civil War, Boston took center stage in the national movement to promote antislavery. In 1831, William Lloyd Garrison commenced publicaiton of his famous newspaper, the Liberator, as a vehicle for promoting the cause. The movement met resistance, though, both from Southern slaveholders and Northern intellectuals, alike. "Proclaim Library Throughout All the Land" will feature manuscripts, photographs, and artifacts related to the abolitionist movement in Boston. MHS members and fellows will be able to get a sneak-peek at the exhibit on Thursday, 21 February, beginning at 6:00pm with remarks from the MHS' Stephen T. Riley Librarian, Peter Drummey. Registration is required for members and fellows planning to attend. 

On Friday, 22 February, the exhibition will open to the general public, free of charge. To coincide with the public opening, at 2:00pm join Librarian, Peter Drummey, as he presents "'I Will Be Heard:' William Lloyd Garrison & the Abolitionis Movement in Boston, 1831-1865." This exhibition spotlight will examine materials in the new exhibition that illustrate the life and career of Garrison, a central figure in the antislavery movement and editor of the Liberator.

The new exhibition will be on view Monday-Saturday, 10:00am-4:00pm, until 24 May 2013. Remember, also, that there are currently two other smaller exhibitions highlighting Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation, signed into law 150 years ago this year. Both of these complementary exhibits will also be on view through 24 May.

And last but not least, join us on Saturday at 10:00am for the History and Collections of the MHS. This free, 90-minute guided tour will expose visitors to the history of the MHS, the collections contained within, and some of the art and architecture of 1154 Boylston St. No RSVP required for individuals or small groups. However, parties of 8 or more should contact the MHS prior to attending the tour. For more information please contact Curator of Art Anne Bentley at 617-646-0508 or abentley@masshist.org.

We look forward to seeing you here for any or all of our great public programming!