Programs & Events Calendar
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All in-person programs will be held at the New Hampshire Historical Society, 30 Park Street, Concord, unless otherwise noted.
Christmas and New Year's Day Holiday Hours
Wednesday, December 24, 2025: 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Thursday, December 25, 2025: Closed
December 26 through December 31, 2025: 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Thursday, January 1, 2026: Closed
Virtual Lecture: Staging Nostalgia in the Old Home Movement
Wednesday, January 14, 2026, 7 p.m.
The Old Home celebrations of the early 1900s sought to spark rural revitalization by appealing to nostalgia. Local festivities beckoned former New Hampshirites to return to the state for summer celebrations filled with performances of bucolic charm: parades, pageants, plays, and pie-eating contests. Join New Hampshire native Andy Colpitts, a theater artist and PhD candidate at Cornell University, as he explores how this invented tradition has now become an authentic expression of regional culture through the intersection of nostalgia and theater. This program, conducted via Zoom, is free for everyone. Advance registration is required through the Humanitix.
Curator’s Tour: The American Revolution at the New Hampshire Historical Society
Saturday, January 17, 2026, 2 p.m.
Join Director of Education Elizabeth Dubrulle on a tour of the Society’s new exhibition, If You Had to Choose: Patriots and Loyalists in Revolutionary New Hampshire. Follow the stories of nearly a dozen New Hampshirites as they decide which side to support in what became America’s first civil war. The tour will also include the Society’s rare Revolutionary War flags and other objects currently on display associated with the conflict. Admission is free for New Hampshire Historical Society members, $10 for nonmembers. No registration required.
Lecture and Book Signing: Listening to New England
Saturday, January 24, 2026, 2 p.m.
Drawing from his nearly half century of reporting and writing about the unique people and places of New England for Yankee magazine, Mel Allen helps us see and feel the region in a unique way, much as he does in his new book, Here in New England: Unforgettable People, Places and Memories That Connect Us All. Allen talks about Yankee’s past and how it has survived for 90 years since its founding in 1935. This program is free, and copies of Allen’s book will be available for sale and signing at the event. No registration is required.
Virtual Lecture: Turning Craft into Technology: Standardization within the U.S. Stone and Brick Industries, 1880–1940
Wednesday, January 28, 2026, 7 p.m.
Brick and stone have been used for thousands of years. However, in the early 20th century they were scientifically investigated, tested, and classified to create material standards: rules that could be inserted into building codes. These standards erased regional variations and craft traditions. Northeastern University doctoral candidate Alicia Svenson examines the social and economic forces involved with this process of standardization. This program, conducted via Zoom, is free for everyone. Advance registration is required through Humanitix.
Screening and Discussion: The American Revolution: Spirit of Service
Location: Red River Theatres, 11 South Main St., Concord
Saturday, January 31, 2026, 10 a.m.
Join Red River Theatres, the New Hampshire Historical Society, and New Hampshire PBS for a special screening of Spirit of Service, an excerpt from the documentary The American Revolution, that explores the enduring ideal of service in American life, and how the most diverse population of the 18th century came together to form a nation. Following the screening, guests are invited to stay to learn 10 things you probably didn't know about New Hampshire’s role in the American Revolution with Mary Adams from the New Hampshire Historical Society, followed by a brief, moderated discussion. This event offers an opportunity to connect national events with our own history right here in the Granite State. The cost for this program is $5. Tickets can be purchased through Red River Theatres.
Family Program: Family Fun Day
Saturday, January 31, 2026, 2 to 4 p.m.
Bring the whole family to the New Hampshire Historical Society for an afternoon of games, crafts, and storytelling. Explore the historic building, tour the exhibits, test your knowledge of Granite State trivia, and make a New Hampshire-themed craft to take home. Introduce your kids or grandkids to the special things that make New Hampshire a wonderful place to live! Family Fun Day is geared for families with kids ages 6 to 10, but all are welcome. Children must be accompanied by an adult. No registration required. Admission is free thanks to a generous contribution from Concord Pediatric Dentistry.
Concert: Dance Music of the Revolutionary Era in New England
Saturday, February 7, 2026, 2 p.m.
Music ensemble Colonial Minstrels will perform popular instrumental music of Revolutionary-era New England on flute, whistle, fife, and recorder. The performers will also discuss the background of the tunes selected and the instruments played. Admission is free for New Hampshire Historical Society members, $10 for nonmembers. No registration required.
Virtual Lecture: Letters from Home: Northern New England Women and the American Civil War
Wednesday, February 11, 2026, 7 p.m.
Savannah Clark focuses on the wartime experiences of women from the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont in this virtual lecture. Northern New England women lived far from Civil War battlefields, but they were deeply impacted by the conflict. Clark, a doctoral candidate at the University of Maine, uses letters written by women to explore how they dealt with the political, economic, and emotional trials of the Civil War. This program, conducted via Zoom, is free for everyone. Advance registration is required through Humanitix.
Lecture: Why Democracy?
Saturday, February 21, 2026, 2 p.m.
Democracy is taken to be an obvious good. It often seems like the one thing we can agree on in a political debate. After all, only dictators and fools question the value of democracy, right? And yet, the benefit of democracy has been challenged again and again throughout history. Joshua Duclos leads this program that seeks to analyze, articulate, and explore the arguments on which democracy is grounded. This lecture is offered through the Humanities to Go program of New Hampshire Humanities, and admission is free.
Virtual Lecture: The Civilian Conservation Corps in New Hampshire
Wednesday, February 25, 2026, 7 p.m.
As a flagship program of the New Deal, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was one of several federal programs that turned to the natural and built environment to help strengthen social and cultural unity throughout the Great Depression. James Fortuna, a visiting scholar at Columbia University, investigates the CCC’s role as an agent of national transformation., with a specific focus on New England. This program, conducted via Zoom, is free for everyone. Advance registration is required through Humanitix.
Lecture: Maple Sugaring in New England
Saturday, February 28, 2026, 2 p.m.
From steel buckets and oxen-drawn wagons to the advanced technology used today, maple syrup production has changed considerably over time. But one thing has remained constant— maple trees and their sweet sap. Join Steven Roberge, University of New Hampshire’s State Extension Forester, to learn about the history, production, and biology of maple sugaring. Admission is free for New Hampshire Historical Society members, $10 for nonmembers. No registration required.
Family Program: Aspiring Artists: White Mountain Landscapes
Saturday, March 7, 2026, 10 a.m. to noon
Shake off the winter doldrums by exploring New Hampshire’s natural beauty. Kids will learn about White Mountain landscape art and its importance to the Granite State, then create their own landscapes with a variety of art materials. This program is geared for ages 5 to 9, but all are welcome. Children must be accompanied by an adult. No registration required. Admission is free thanks to a generous contribution from Concord Pediatric Dentistry.
Lecture: Reviving 19th-Century Art in the 21st Century
Saturday, March 7, 2026, 2 p.m.
Artist Erik Koeppel shares some of his original oil paintings and speaks about his work to revive 19th-century aesthetics in landscape art. Koeppel's lectures are noted for spontaneity and depth as the conversation between artist and audience gives rise to a variety of topics concerning art, history, philosophy, and life. A professional artist with degrees from the Rhode Island School of Design and the New York Academy of Art, Koeppel has paintings in both private and public collections around the world. Admission is free for New Hampshire Historical Society members, $10 for nonmembers. No registration required.
Virtual Lecture: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn: A Rebel for Our Time
Wednesday, March 11, 2026, 7 p.m.
New Hampshire-born Elizabeth Gurley Flynn was nicknamed the Rebel Girl because she fought to free women and workers from exploitation and injustice, but her legacy became controversial when a state historical marker was raised in her honor a few years ago. Join Mary Anne Trasciatti, professor of rhetoric at Hofstra University, to learn about Flynn’s story and her fight for a better world. This program, conducted via Zoom, is free for everyone. Advance registration is required through Humanitix.
Lecture and Book Signing: Grappone Automotive: The Founding
Saturday, March 14, 2026, 2 p.m.
In the hill country of southern Italy in the late 1800s, two families—the Grappones and the D'Orlandos—eked out an existence as their ancestors had for generations. Both looked to America for a better life. In New Hampshire, their families came together and purchased a small filling station, just as the automobile craze took off in the 1920s. From these seeds grew the Grappone Automotive Group, the largest collection of car dealerships in the state. Join Amanda Grappone Osmer as she shares this quintessential tale of the American dream. This program is free, and copies of Osmer’s book will be available for sale and signing at the event. No registration required.
Genealogy Workshop: Using Revolutionary War Records
Saturday, March 21, 2026, 1 to 4 p.m.
Understand how to locate and best utilize Revolutionary War muster rolls and service records to learn about your ancestor. David Allen Lambert from American Ancestors presents an overview of local, state, and federal sources to find and track individual soldiers. The cost of this workshop is $40 for New Hampshire Historical Society members and $55 for nonmembers. Space is limited, and registration is required. Register through Humanitix.
Virtual Lecture: Glorious Country: Frederic Church, New England Landscapes, and the Fate of a Nation
Wednesday, March 25, 2026, 7 p.m.
When the United States was still young, Frederic Church helped put American art on the map of world culture. Church, lauded internationally as the first great painter born in the so-called New World, forged an original visual language composed of sky, earth, water, and light. In this richly illustrated talk, biographer Victoria Johnson shows how Church drew on his New England heritage to convey both his passion for the earth's natural beauty and his love for his country. This program, conducted via Zoom, is free for everyone. Advance registration is required through Humanitix.
Family Program: Redcoats and Rebels: Pick Your Path
Saturday, March 28, 2026, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Reenact the American Revolution with a role-playing game at the New Hampshire Historical Society. Kids will immerse themselves in New Hampshire’s fight for independence from Britain. Each child will create a character that will have to choose sides in the journey from colony to country. This program is geared for kids ages 8 to 13, and children must be accompanied by an adult. Admission is free thanks to a generous contribution from Concord Pediatric Dentistry. Advance registration is required through Humanitix.
Lecture: Portraits of Revolution
Saturday, March 28, 2026, 2 p.m.
This program explores American portraits painted and sculpted in the years surrounding the Revolution. The ideals, values, and virtues expressly stated in our founding documents are easily identifiable in these portraits once we know how to “read” them. Guided by art historian Inez McDermott, audiences will be introduced to, and practice, some skills of art analysis and learn how art works can reveal so much about a culture. This lecture is offered through the Humanities to Go program of New Hampshire Humanities, and admission is free.
Annual Spring Lecture Series
Thursdays, April 9 to May 14, 2026, 6 p.m.
Details will be available soon.
Genealogy Workshop: Researching Women in the American Revolution
Saturday, April 11, 2026, 1 to 4 p.m.
Men were certainly not the only ones affected by—or involved in—the American Revolution. Women boycotted British goods, produced home-spun cloth and supplies for soldiers, and even took to the battlefield on occasion. This workshop, led by Melanie McComb from American Ancestors, looks at women’s role in the fight for American Independence and how to research your female ancestors during this period. The cost of this workshop is $40 for New Hampshire Historical Society members and $55 for nonmembers. Space is limited, and registration is required. Register through Humanitix.
New Hampshire Historical Society 2026 Annual Meeting
Saturday, May 2, 2026
Details will be available soon.
Screening and Conversation: Ken Burns and the American Idea
Tuesday, June 9, 2026
Location: Capitol Center for the Arts, 44 South Main St., Concord
The New Hampshire Historical Society, New Hampshire PBS, and New Hampshire Humanities join forces to present Ken Burns to discuss his most recent documentary, The American Revolution, and the themes that have emerged from his films. The American Revolution is touted as Burns’s biggest film since The Civil War, and it’s a centerpiece for the national commemoration of the 250th anniversary of that conflict. More details, as well as information on where to purchase tickets, will be available in the spring.