Saturday June 30, 2018
10:30 am - 12:30 pm

Rediscovering Mount Washington’s Hidden Culture

Over the course of one calendar year, journalist Dan Szczesny explored the history and mystique of New England’s tallest mountain. In The White Mountain, Szczesny turns a veteran journalist’s eye toward exploring Mount Washington’s place in the collective consciousness of the country and how this rugged landscape has reflected back a timeless history of our obsession and passion for exploration and discovery.

Dan Szczesny is a long-time author and journalist living in New Hampshire. His books include travelogues on Nepal, Alaska, and the White Mountains. He is a Hemingway Foundation finalist for short fiction and has also written a collection of short stories and of poetry. He’s traveled widely throughout the country speaking about adventure travel and the importance of getting kids into the outdoors. He currently calls Manchester, New Hampshire his Base Camp where he lives with his wife and daughter. Learn more about Dan’s work at www.danszczesny.com.

Join us for a short lecture by the author and book signing.  Books will be available for purchase in the Millyard Museum Shop.  Free and open to the public.  For more information please call the Manchester Historic Association at (603) 622-7531.

Saturday July 7, 2018
10:30 am - 11:30 am

" The Black Suitcase Mystery - A World War II Remembrance" by Gail Downs

This book tells the story of George Elliott Rich, who was separated from his mother in 1930 and was sent to New Hampshire to be raised by his paternal grandparents.  The only communication mother and son had for almost 13 years was through cards and letters. They finally saw each other in 1942 for just one short week.  Two months later, George was in the Army Air Corps where he was killed over German occupied Poland on his 50th mission.  
That young New Hampshire hero’s life is chronicled in the letters his mother saved and stored in a small, battered, black suitcase which the author now possesses.  From 1991-1995, the black suitcase took Gail and fifth-grade students on an incredible journey!  What started in May of 1991, as a way to acquaint ten-year-old students with the basics of genealogy research, eventually developed into a four-year study.
 The project received numerous awards and brought local, state, and national recognition.

Join us for a short lecture by the author.  Books will be available for purchase in the Millyard Museum Shop.  Free with admission to the Millyard Museum.  For more information please call the Manchester Historic Association at (603) 622-7531.

Manchester’s Masters: The Artist’s Perspective

Manchester is known not only for its rich industrial history, but also for the amazing men and women that have resided in these city limits. Actors, inventors, athletes and business moguls have all become part of the tapestry that is Manchester.  Lesser known are Manchester’s artists: talented, creative individuals with a story to tell. Immortalized by the masterpieces they left behind, each artist has told their story with watercolor, pencil or paint.

The Manchester Historic Association is proud to present, “Manchester’s Masters: The Artist’s Perspective”, featuring the lives and works of Henry W. Herrick, Edward L. Custer, Lisa Anne Fletcher, Omer T. Lassonde and George C. Soule: artists who called Manchester home.

On exhibit through June 30

Saturday, July 21, 2018
10:00 a.m.- noon
$5 Manchester Historic Association members - $10 General Public
Pre-registration is required - Please call (603) 622-7531
Meet at the Goodwin Funeral Home parking lot (607 Chestnut Street, corner of Harrison Street)

Travel the trail of the visionaries and the successful citizens of Manchester's Victorian era. See the elegant Straw mansion, the fairgrounds and trotting park, and the site of Webster General Hospital! Join local historians Dick Duckoff and Matt Labbe for a unique tour in the city's North End.

Saturday, August 11, 2018
10:00 a.m.- noon
$5 Manchester Historic Association members - $10 General Public
Pre-registration is required - Please call (603) 622-7531 
Meet at the parking lot of the Brookside Congregational Church, corner of Elm and Clarke Streets. 

Visit the neighborhood of Manchester's movers and shakers when the new century dawned in the early 1900s. Learn about the amazing mansions of North River Road, and a controversial dump! Join local historians  Dick Duckoff and Matt Labbe for a unique tour in the city's North End.

NOTE: The tour will finish on River Road near Stark Park

The Manchester Rotary Club, celebrating its centennial, wants to make sure Manchester students get a dose of Queen City history, and has just announced a $15,000 grant to the Manchester Historic Association to fund field trips to the Millyard Museum for every fourth grade class in the city, starting this September.  “Manchester is a resilient city that has reinvented itself more than once,” said incoming Rotary Club President Susan Manchester. “We need to learn from our past, which is why Manchester Rotary Club is pleased to donate this sum to MHA so our students can witness the successes, challenges and perseverance of those who came before them.”

The grant money will cover bus rentals and the cost of two educational programs at the Millyard Museum.  The grant award was embraced by Manchester’s Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Bolgen Vargas, who is an avid fan of the Millyard Museum.  “Manchester has a rich history, and all of our children should have the opportunity to learn more about what makes our city unique,” said Vargas. “We are thankful to the Manchester Rotary Club for providing the resources that will help the Millyard Museum reach more than a thousand fourth-graders in the next school year. I know that our teachers and students will be eager to participate in the educational programs available.”

As funding permits, the MHA will also reach out to parochial schools and charter schools in the city, according to MHA Executive Director John Clayton.  “To this very day, I remember full well my fourth grade field trip to the MHA from Gossler Park School,” he said, “and the Manchester Rotary Club is now giving that same opportunity to so many kids. We couldn’t be more grateful.”

Pictured, from left: MHA Board Chair Ed Brouder, incoming Rotary Club President Susan Manchester, MHA Board Member Gail Spaulding York,, third generation Rotary Club members Mark Burns and Charlie Goodwin and Honorary Chair Ron Covey, CEO of St. Mary’s Bank.