Hours: Thursday through Sunday from 1 to 5 PM, Saturday from 10 AM. Call 860-447-2501 or email.
The Frank L. McGuire Library is open by appointment, email.
Admission: FREE for current members, individuals with current military or USCG cadet ID and children under age 14 (with adult), admission $7 suggested donation.
New London's Custom House Maritime Museum!
Tuesday, October 29, reception at 6:30, presentation at 7 PM
Lafayette in the Abolitionist Imagination
As we continue celebrating the bicentennial of Lafayette's 1824-1825 tour of the United States, the New London Maritime Society welcomes renowned historian Dr. Manisha Sinha to the Custom House. Dr. Sinha will present a talk entitled Lafayette in the Abolitionist Imagination. A reception to meet Dr. Sinha will begin at 6:30 PM, with the talk starting at 7:00. Space is limited, so please register in advance: https://sinhalafayette.bpt.me/.
Dr. Sinha's talk will delve into Lafayette's role not only as a revolutionary 'hero of two worlds' but also as an antislavery icon for both black and white abolitionists in the United States. It will examine how abolitionists and African Americans received Lafayette during his triumphant tour and how the issue of slavery challenged revolutionary republicans. The discussion will also address how abolitionists leveraged this contradiction to advocate for emancipation.
Manisha Sinha is the President of the Society for Historians of the Early American Republic and Draper Chair in American History at the University of Connecticut. Her latest book, The Rise and Fall of the Second American Republic: Reconstruction, 1860-1920 was published in 2024 by Liveright (Norton) in 2024, and is in the museum Shop.
Sunday, October 20, 2 PM
Winsome Bingham reads THE WALK
We're pleased to have author Winsome Bingham at the museum for a Sunday afternoon family program. Ms. Bingham will read THE WALK, illustrated by E. B. Lewis, followed by a conversation with families about empowering the children in their lives, and how we can foster and encourage them to make choices
THE WALK is not only about voting and democracy. It is about community, love, and conversation.
Admission by donation. Space is limited. Please pre-register online: https://thewalk.bpt.me/. There will be books available in the shop for the author to sign.
My name is Winsome Bingham and I am an author and literacy advocate for reading and authentic representation of children and communities in children’s literature. I am the author of one of The New York Times Best Books of the Year, SOUL FOOD SUNDAY, which is also the Connecticut Book Award winner and the Coretta Scott King Honored Illustrator award for C. G. Esperanza. I am a connoisseur of soul food and a master cook (at KidLit dinner parties, reunions, and get-togethers). I am a teacher by trade and a disabled military veteran by circumstance. I received both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education, and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults.
.■ Tours to climb HARBOR LIGHTHOUSE run year-round. The views at the top are spectacular! We meet at the lighthouse, then climb 116 steps to the lantern room – all the while learning about the 261-year history of Harbor Light, the oldest and the tallest lighthouse on Long Island Sound. Sign up online at https://harborlighthousetour.bpt.me/ or send an email to schedule your tour:[email protected]
■ Open Mic at the Museum meets from 6-9 PM the last Sunday of the month: Share your original music, poetry, prose, stand-up, or just say what is on your mind. Open Mic welcomes performers of all kinds. Perform, or just enjoy. By donation. September 29, October 27, November 24.
■ JIBBOOM CLUB #1 meets the 3rd Tuesday of the month at 1:30 PM. Join us for a talk, good company, coffee & cookies. Sponsored by the Maco Family Fund, the gatherings are FREE and open to all.
~ October 15 -- On October 15th we're trying something different, when master storyteller Claudia Kenyon invites six fellow Jibboomers to tell their own stories about the waterfront. It's a maritime, spoken word Open Mic.
- Tales: Down By The River
- Margret Palmer, “Full Circle” Some stories about growing up on the mouth of the Branford River.
- Mike Johnson, “My Experience on the Mayflower” The Mayflower is a replica of the original ship that landed in Plymouth, MA. The 200th year anniversary never took place because of the Covid 19 epidemic.
- Claudia Kenyon, “Fish Fries” Keeping my eyes wide open to the spiritual realm. A connection to my deceased father who was a fisherman and how his spirit still makes an appearance in nature.
- Skip Guzy, “Mystic Seaport” The topic will be about the Charles W. Morgan, the wooden whaling ship docked at the Mystic Seaport.
- Kate Wells, “Essex Fire, 1968”
- Joseph Maco, “Francis Scott Key Bridge Update” There is more to the story that will help us understand what happened after the MV Dali was removed from the bridge in Maryland
■ Excursions to LEDGE LIGHT and RACE ROCK LIGHTHOUSE are delayed this season, due to restoration work. Please watch nlmaritimesociety.org for updates on all summer lighthouse tours & special programs.
October 4 - Opening reception & talk 6 PM
CH Community Case exhibitions
Richard Stremme: The Scrimshaw/Tattoo Connection
Consummate collector Richard Stremme will share objects related to one of his many interests: the connection between/and origins of American scrimshaw and hand poke tattoo.
On October 4, a Concert with Rich's band The Deacons follows our opening. It starts at 9 PM, at 33 Golden, $10 cover.
Rich Stremme is a teacher at Brooklyn College now living in Pennsylvania. He writes: I grew up in pre-IBM Southbury, CT, and spent lots of time in New London playing shows (at El N Gee, among others) and exploring around.
