By Dan Hinchen

After a shortened holiday week and a brutal cold spell, we have a nice line-up of public events at the MHS this week. Come in for one or all and buff up on your history.

First on the list is the next installment in our Immigration and Urban History Seminar series. On Tuesday, 29 January 2013, join us for “Pretended love of personaly liberty: Antislavery, nativism, and deportation policy in antebellum Massachusetts.” In this seminar, Hidetaka Hirota of Boston College examines the implementation of deportation policy in the 1850s, paying special attention to the contradiction between the defense of African Americans’ personal liberty and the seizure of Irish immigrants. Comment provided by Lucy Salyer, University of New Hampshire. RSVP required. Subscribe to receive advance copies of the seminar papers.The seminar begins at 5:15pm.

On Wednesday, 30 January 2013, join us for “Dumb Witnesses: Relics of George Washington at the Massachusetts Historical Society.”  In this latest installment of our “Object of History” series, MHS Librarian Peter Drummey leasds a conversation which looks at the Society’s early collection of Washington artifacts and documents to see what they say about the founding of the MHS and the image of Washington in the early Republic. There will be a pre-talk reception at 5:30pm and the program will begin at 6:00pm. Registration is required for this event and there is a fee. Free for MHS Fund Giving Circle members. Contact 617-646-0557/education@masshist.org for more information.

Saturday, 2 February 2013, come in for a free tour of the Society’s public rooms. “The History and Collections of the MHS” is a 90-minute, docent-led tour that touches on the history, art, and collections of the MHS. The tour is free and open to the public. While no reservation is required for small groups, parties of 8 or more should contact the MHS prior to attending. The tour will assemble in the lobby and begin promptly at 10:00am.

Finally, we still have three great exhibits on view. This is the final week for our extremely popular main exhibitition, “In Death Lamented: the Tradition of Anglo-American Mourning Jewelry.” The final day for this show is Thursday, 31 January 2013, so be sure to come in before it is gone! In addition, we also have two smaller exhibits commemmorating the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. “Forever Free: Lincoln & the Emancipation Proclamation” and “Lincoln in Manuscript & Artifact” are both on view until 24 May 2013. All exhibits are available for viewing 10:00am-4:00pm, Monday – Saturday.

By Dan Hinchen

It is a shortened week at the MHS but there are still some excellent programs to take part in. And with only two more weeks left to see our current exhibition, In Death Lamented: The Tradition of Anglo-American Mourning Jewelry, there are plenty of reasons to make a visit!

On Thursday, 24 January 2013, the next installment of our Biography Seminar series will take place. Join us at 5:30pm for Biographer’s Round Table: A Conversation with Stacy Schiff. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Stacy Schiff will discuss her career as a writer and biographer with Susan Ware moderating the conversation. Stacy Schiff’s most recent book is Cleopatra: A life (2010), which was named one of the top ten books of the year by the New York Times Book Review. Susan Ware is an independent scholar who specializes in 20th century U.S. History, women’s history, and biography, and her most recent book is Game, Set, Match: Billie Jean King and the revolution in women’s sports (2011). Seminars are free and open to the public. RSVP required. .

Then, on Friday, 25 January 2013, Stephen T. Riley Librarian, Peter Drummey, will present The Real Gettysburg Address. This Exhibition Spotlight will focus on orator Edward Everett, the “other” speaker at the commemoration of the National Cemetery at Gettysburg, and will examine who said what, and why, on that famous day. The talk is free and will begin at 2:00pm.

And, in addition to our main exhibit, do not forget that we also have two exhibits commemorating the 150th anniversary of the end of slavery in the United States. Forever Free: Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation, and Lincoln in Manuscript & Artifact are both on view until 24 May 2013. Visit our website and take a look at our events calendar to see what other great programs are down the road!

By Dan Hinchen

It is another fairly quiet week here at the MHS but we still have two programs that should not be missed.

On Tuesday, 15 January 2013, join us for the next installment from our Environmental History Seminar Series. John Spiers, Boston College, will present ” ‘Whither Have All the Forests Gone’: A Case of Land Preservation in Suburban Washington.” The seminar addresses the issues and obstacles associated with suburban land preservation in the late 20th century. Comment provided by James Levitt, Harvard Forest. The talk will begin at 5:15pm and is free and open to the public, RSVP required.

Then, on Saturday, 19 January 2013, Len Gougeon, Distinguished University Fellow at the University of Scranton, will present “America’s Second Revolution: New England, Old England,& the Civil War.” Co-sponsored by the New England Quarterly and the MHS Eduation Department, this event will look at the cultural conflict that arose between New England intellectuals and their British counterparts during the Civil War. The talk will begin at 2:00pm and is open to the public at no cost, RSVP required.

And do not forget about our three current exhibitions. “In Death Lamented: the tradition of Anglo-American mourning jewelry” is our main feature and will only last until 31 January so come in soon! In addition, to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Emancipation Procalamation, we are happy to present “Forever Free: Lincoln & the Emancipation Proclamation” as well as “Lincoln in Manuscript & Artifact.” Both of these exhibits will be available until May.

Finally, the MHS will be closed on Monday, 21 January 2013, in observance of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. Remember to check our calendar to find out more information about upcoming events. We hope to see you at one of our programs soon!

By Daniel Hinchen

With only two events on the calendar, this will be a quiet week at the MHS but there is still plenty to see if you step in from the cold!

Join us at 12:00pm on Wednesday, 9 January, for a Brown Bag lunch. Greta LaFleur of the University of Hawai’i at Manoa will present “American Insides: Popular Narrative and the Historiography of Sexuality, 1675-1815.” All of our Brown Bag discussions are free and open to the public so grab a snack and come on in!

On Saturday, 12 January, stop by for a tour of the MHS. “History and Collections of the MHS” is a 90-minute, docent-lead tour which explores all of the public spaces in the MHS, with comments on the art and architecture of the building. These tours are free and open to the public and depart the lobbby promptly at 10:00AM.

And along with these two events we currently have three exhibits on display. “In Death Lamented: the tradition of Anglo-American mourning jewelry” is our main feature and will only last until 31 January so come in soon! In addition, to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Emancipation Procalamation, we are happy to present “Forever Free: Lincoln & the Emancipation Proclamation” as well as “Lincoln in Manuscript & Artifact.” Both of these exhibits will be available until May.

By Elaine Grublin

As the holidays draw near, 2012 is winding down here at the MHS.  We have one last week jam packed with quality programs.  If you have not fulfilled last year’s resolution of attending a program at the MHS, be sure to visit us this week. 

Tuesday, 11 December at 5:15 PM, the final Environmental History Seminar brings Brown University’s Strother Roberts to the MHS to present “Changes in the Water: Early Modern Settler Society Impacts on the Connecticut River and Long Island Sound.” This paper explores how the commodity production activities of early settlers impacted the land and waterscapes of New England’s longest river. John T. Cumbler, University of Louisville, will provide the comment. Please email if you you would like to attend.

Wednesday, 12 December at 6:00 PM, Fellows and Members of the MHS are invited to celebrate the season with the Trustees and staff of the MHS at the Holiday Party.  All guests must register in advance.

Thursday, 13 December at 6:00 PM, a semester long collaboration with a class of undergraduate students at Boston University commences with “Making History: King Philip’s War in Documents & Artifacts,” with a presentation and exhibition put on by the students. A pre-talk reception begins at 5:30 PM.  Please RSVP if you plan to attend.    

Finally, there are two more building tours remaining this year.  Join us either Saturday, 15 December or Saturday, 22 December at 10:00 AM for “The History and Collections of the MHS.” This 90-minute tour departs our front lobby and explores all the public space in the building. 

Our great programming resumes early in 2013.  Be sure to check back at the Beehive, or look ahead on our online calendar.

By Elaine Grublin

The weather this week is predicted to be lovely!  Why not walk down to the MHS to attend a program.  We are offering two evening seminars, two afternoon public talks, and a morning tour — so there is a bit of something for everyone! And all events this week are free and open to the public.

Tuesday, 4 December, at 5:15 catch the final Early American History Seminar of 2012. Alejandra Dubcovsky, Yale University, will present “ ‘To know if it is true’: Spies, Sentinels, and Prisoners of War in the South Carolina-Florida Borderland.” This seminar paper, available to series subscribers prior to the event, describes how the Spanish created a new network of information that consisted of mobile and trusted informers in the colonial South. Seminars are free and open to the public. An RSVP is required.

Wednesday, 5 December at noon enjoy listening to MHS-NEH Long-term Fellow Kristen Collins, Boston University, discuss her research “Entitling Marriage: A History of Marriage, Public Money, and the Law.” After a brief presentation Collins will entertain questions from the audience.  Bring a brown-bag lunch if you wish. Coffee & softdrinks are provided.

Thursday, 6 December brings the final History of Women and Gender Seminar of the year. Beginning at 5:30 PM, Premilla Nadasen, Queens College, presents “The Origins of the Domestic Worker Rights Movement.” The seminar paper is part of a book-length project that follows four women and examines how and why they launched local campaigns for the rights of domestic workers. Ruth Milkman, City University of New York and Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Stud, will provide the comment.  An RSVP  is required. And remember to subscribe to received an advance copy of the seminar paper.

Friday, 7 December at 2:00 PM, the Society’s own art curator, Anne Bentley, offers her gallery talk “A Family Remembers: The Cheever, Davis, & Shattuck Memorial Jewels.” This hour-long talk allows guests to take an in-depth look at the half a dozen mourning jewels that George Cheever Shattuck gifted to the Society in 1971.  The jewels are part of our ongoing exhibition In Death Lamented: The Tradition of Anglo-American Mourning Jewlery.

And finally our Saturday tour “The History and Collections of the MHS” departs the front lobby promptly at 10:00 AM.  This 90-minute tour is free and open to the public. No reservation is required for individuals or small groups. Parties of 8 or more should contact Curator of Art Anne Bentley at 617-646-0508 or via email. 

By Elaine Grublin

Bouncing back from the November holidays, we have a very busy week ahead at the MHS.

Tuesday, 27 November at 6:00 PM, Waite Rawls, Museum of the Confederacy, presents The Confederacy in History, Myth, & Memory.  A pre-event reception begins at 5:30 PM. Reservations are requested for this free event. To RSVP call 617-646-0560 or click here.

Immediately following the program, current and prospective associate members (age 40 and under) are invited to adjorn to The Hawthorne in Kenmore Square to continue the conversation at our first historical happy hour from 8:00 PM to 9:00 PM.  A separate reservation is required for this event and can be made by calling 617-646-0560 or clicking here.

Friday, 30 November, we close out the month with our signature fundraising event.  Tickets are still available for Cocktails with Clio.  The evening begins at 6:00 PM with an elegant cocktail buffet at the Society’s building, followed by a trip to the Harvard Club for dessert and a conversation with cultural critic, Harvard scholar, host of PBS series Finding Your Roots, and MHS Overseer Henry Louis Gates, Jr.  Tickets cost $200 per person. All net proceeds from the event will support the Society’s outreach efforts. For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact Carol Knauff at cknauff@masshist.org or 617-646-0554.

Please note that in order to transform our building for the event, the library and exhibition galleries will close at 2:00 PM on Friday, 30 November.

By Elaine Grublin

It is a relatively quiet week at the MHS, with only one public program being offered.  But it promises to be a great one.

If you are looking for something to do on your lunch hour on Wednesday, 7 November, come to 1154 Boylston Street at 12:00 PM for a brown-bag lunch presentation by MHS-NEH long-term fellow Matthew Dennis, University of Oregon. Dennis will present “American Relics and the Material Politics of Public Memory,” a project that assesses American relics that have emerged and persisted since the colonial period, placing them in a broader context, using their histories to analyze the means through which Americans have used them to express and authorize their public words by making those words (literally) concrete.

Please note that their is no building tour on Saturday as the MHS will be closed Saturday, 10 November and Monday, 12 November in observance of Veterans Day. 

By Elaine Grublin

It has been busy, busy, busy at 1154 Boylston Street this fall.  And this week is no different.  Plan to attend one of this week’s events.  And remember to visit the online calendar for additional information.

Monday, 22 October at 6:00 PM, author Missy Wolfe launches her new publication, Insubordinate Spirit: A True Story of Life and Loss in Earliest America 1610-1665 with Elizabeth Winthrop: Insubordinate Spirit.  Reservations are requested. To RSVP call 617-646-0560 or register online. 

Tuesday, 23 October at 5:15 PM the Boston Immigration and Urban History Seminar continues with John Ochsendorf, The Guastavino Project, MIT, presenting Palaces for the People: Guastavino and America’s Great Public Spaces.  This event will take place at the Boston Public Library.  In lieu of reading a paper, participants will engage in discussion with the presenter after touring the exhibition “Palaces for the People.”

Please note there will be no building tour on Saturday, 27 October. The exhibition galleries, featuring In Death Lamented: The Tradition of Anglo-American Mourning Jewelry and In the Arena: The Presidential Election of 1912 in Massachusetts will be open Monday through Saturday, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. 

By Elaine Grublin

The fall season is in full-swing.  We are offering three evening programs, a brown-bag lunch, and a building tour this week. There is a little something for everyone, so plan on stopping in.  Additional details about all events are available through our online calendar.

Monday, 1 October at 6:00 PM, Christian Samito, Boston University School of Law, discusses “The War of 1812 & the Making of Modern America.” This program is presented in partnership with the USS Constitution Museum as part of the War of 1812 Bicentennial Series. There is a pre-event reception at 5:30. Reservations are requested. RSVP by calling 617-646-0560.

Tuesday, 2 October at 5:15 PM, the Boston Early American History Seminar series returns with Daniel K. Richter, University of Pennsylvania, presenting “Colonial Proprieties: Atlantic Possession in England’s Restoration Era.” Steven Pincus, Yale University, will provide the comment. Advance copies of seminar papers are available to series subscribers. RSVPs are required, and can be made by contacting Kate Viens via email or at 617-646-0568.

Wednesday, 3 October at 12:00 PM, bring your lunch and enjoy the conversation as Lauri Coleman, College of William and Mary, presents “’Some are weatherwise, some are otherwise’: Popular Almanacs and Weather Cosmology in Mid-eighteenth Century America” at a brown-bag lunch program.

Thursday, 4 October at 5:30 PM, the New England Biography Seminar series kicks off with Judith Tick, Northeastern University; Jan Swafford, The Boston Conservatory; and Tim Riley, Emerson College, sharing their insights on “Symphony and Song: Writing Lives in Music” Megan Marshall, Emerson College, will moderate the discussion. RSVPs are required, and can be made by contacting Kate Viens via email or at 617-646-0568.

Saturday, 6 October at 10:00 AM, all are welcome to explore the “History and Collections of the MHS” during our 90-minute guided tour. 

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If you are planning ahead, NEXT WEEK @ MHS, on Monday, 8 October, we are participating in the Fenway Alliance’s annual Opening our Doors event. The MHS galleries will be open from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM.  The research library will be closed. Stay tuned for the next installment of This Week @ MHS (or consult the online calendar) for details about additional events next week.