Abby Epplett, Historian

From November 2 through November 4, I attended the 2022 Annual NEMA ( New England Museum Association ) Conference as a General Scholarship Recipient , which I received thanks to “ Connecticut Humanities and the Connecticut Office of the Arts ; MassHumanities ; Mass Cultural Council ; Vermont Humanities ; and NEMA Annual Appeal donors. After two years of attending virtually, the 104 th edition of the conference was back in-person at the Sheraton Hotel in Springfield, Massachusetts Keynote Session: Becoming Good Ancestors: A Sense of Oneness Before the keynote, NEMA Executive Director Dan Yaeger began with opening remarks about the last time the conference had gone on hiatus, which was during World War II when some museum workers were drafted. He introduced the new Value Statements and Mission Statement, which highlight the need for equitable treatment of all people, dismantling oppressive structures within the museum world, addressing the global climate cri

Besides many great museums and historic houses in Newbury and Newburyport, some of which I will explore during my next trip to the Essex National Heritage Area , I visited several quick history stops along the Newburyport Harborwalk & Clipper City Rail Trail . The Custom House Maritime Museum is located along the route, along with sculptures from New England artists, lighthouses, and signage describing historical events and buildings in the area.

This past Saturday — July 6, 2024 — I visited three stops in the Passport to History developed by Old Colony History Museum , along with one bonus stop. Attleboro Area Industrial Museum was the second stop on my trip. I had been meaning to visit this museum since learning about it at the Industrial History New England Lunch on Day 1 of NEMA Conference 2022 , so this visit checks off another item from my very long museum bucket list.

While planning day trips to the Essex National Heritage Area, I stumbled upon The Beacons Are Lit: The Lighthouse Keepers of Bakers Island . I was intrigued by the bizarre juxtaposition of a late 18 th century lighthouse in Salem, MA and a line from Peter Jackson’s The Return of the King , so I had to further investigate this short online exhibit. The exhibit begins with a quick review on the history and importance of lighthouses with a special focus on the Pharos of Alexandria in Ancient Greece. Then the exhibit dives right into the importance of the lighthouse on Bakers Island. The current lighthouse is “Pa”, as it was the “husband” of “Ma”, a slightly older and shorter lighthouse next door that was torn down in 1926. Lighthouses have been on the island since 1798, and a keeper was needed to run them. This work was incredibly risky, as third keeper Nathaniel Ward and his assistant Marshall (with no clarity in the exhibit over whether this was a first name or last name

Last September, I visited Boardman House in Saugus, MA, a study house museum owned and operated by Historic New England since 1911, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1966. Like other 17 th century buildings maintained as study homes, Boardman House had minimal furniture. The excellent guide allowed to stand in the fireplaces and explore the attic and basement.

In mid September 2022, I took a day trip to the Newbury and Newburyport area in Massachusetts, part of the Essex National Heritage Area and North of Boston . My first stop was the Custom House Maritime Museum in Newburyport. The 1834 Neoclassical stone building was designed by architect Robert Mills , who also laid out the plans for the Custom House in New Bedford and multiple famous buildings in Washington, D.C. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1971 for its former use as a United States custom house, making it a crucial part of the transatlantic trade system in the mid 19 th and early 20 th century. The custom house ceased operation in 1911, and the building fell into disrepair until its restoration by the Newburyport Maritime Society from 1972 to 1975. In late 2018, the building was official sold to the Society by the now-dissolved Newburyport Redevelopment Authority .

October 13 was Day 1 of Historic New England Summit 2022 held at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Massachusetts. The theme for the conference is “Recovering New England’s Voices”, after HNE’s multi-phase initiative to research the histories of marginalized people and communities. In the words of Dr. Alissa Butler, Study Center Manager at HNE, the organization seeks to “shift and recenter the learning experience to cover all these incredible stories”. Below are highlights from the summit with links to learn more. There was so much great conversation, and I could not include it all! Forging a New Lens The first speaker in this section were Dr. Alissa Butler , whose quote appears in the opening paragraph. She described the process of hiring experts in Indigenous, Black, LGBTQ, and women’s history. Two of her stories were familiar to me, as I had visited the associated HNE houses in September (Those blog posts are coming soon!). The organization recenters the story of Hen

From November 2 through November 4, I attended the 2022 Annual NEMA ( New England Museum Association ) Conference as a General Scholarship Recipient , which I received thanks to “ Connecticut Humanities and the Connecticut Office of the Arts ; MassHumanities ; Mass Cultural Council ; Vermont Humanities ; and NEMA Annual Appeal donors. After two years of attending virtually, the 104 th edition of the conference was back in-person at the Sheraton Hotel in Springfield, Massachusetts Session 1 Who Was Mary Duncan? Accessing New Narratives at Historic House Museums Danielle Bennett , a graduate student at CUNY Graduate Center , and Jan Williams , the Executive Director of Buttonwoods Museum , also called Haverhill Historical Society, discussed their efforts in turning tours in Haverhill from “Old Dead Rich White Guy History” to a more inclusive narrative. Several women are featured in the new Buttonwoods tours. One story features Hannah Duston ,