LECTURE SERIES

Join PHM for a rousing lecture series on the Second Sunday of every month at 2:00. Our Curator, in partnership with the DAR as a Corresponding Docent with the DAR Museum, is presenting lectures/PowerPoints on early American history. Each lecture features a different theme and showcases the history of the United States as told through the decorative arts collection of the DAR Museum in Washington, DC and the collection at PHM.

The Lecture Series is free and appropriate for all ages.

  • January 11: History of the DAR Museum
    • This presentation is a history of the DAR Museum including the thirty-one period rooms, the O’Byrne Gallery, and the Yochim Gallery. This history includes how the museum has grown and moved throughout the DAR Headquarters and what it offers to the public both near and around the world.
  • February 8: Fighting for Freedom: Black Craftspeople and the Pursuit of Independence
    • This presentation is in conjunction with an exhibit at the DAR Museum last year. The exhibit sought to embrace the stories of all those who pursued independence by centering on the lives and experiences of Black craftspeople and artisans from the 18th and 19th centuries. It highlight the creations, contributions, and legacies of African Americans as they fought for freedom from the earliest calls for American independence and beyond. Fighting for Freedom spans the war years of the Revolution through the present, as African Americans have sought to pursue agency and liberty through craft. The underpinning idea of African American craft as a catalyst for freedom-seeking displays itself in a host of ways in this exhibition, encompassing furniture, metals, ceramics, textiles, art, tools, and personal accessories.
  • March 8: American Women’s Fashions: 1760-1925
    • This presentation program traces the history of American women’s fashion through some highlights from the DAR Museum’s collection.
  • April 12: Myth or Truth
    • There are many stories about people and things that are told in museums and historic houses every day that either have little documentary basis or are outright fabrications – stories told to entertain or explain. In this presentation, we will look at some favorite stories that are often heard in museums and various historic places. Examine the evidence, and come to your own conclusions. We will tell you what we think about most of the stories. For the rest, we will ask you what you think!
  • May 10: Dining in Early America
    • Dining rooms and kitchens are integral parts of the American home today. Families and friends convene in these spaces to eat and socialize. In Colonial America, the kitchen was the multi-purpose and multi-functional center of the home. As families pushed for more private spaces, many of these rooms evolved into our more modern-day rooms and homes. This presentation will cover cooking and dining traditions in the American home in the 18th and early 19th centuries. We will look at five period rooms from the DAR Museum: a kitchen, a tavern, and three different spaces for dining. What was it like to be a guest at the table? Who served these meals? How did Americans prepare food in the 18th and 19th centuries? What type of foods did early Americans consume? What were the social rules that one must follow while dining? As we move through the presentation, consider the similarities and differences in dining practices. Even though we may be discussing different centuries, some practices are not too different from today!
  • June 14: Something Old, Something New
    • This presentation focuses on the evolution of the customs and traditions surrounding the wedding day. Today we will see how wedding traditions and customs evolved from the seventeenth century to the present day.
  • July 12: By, For, and Of the People: Folk Art and Americana
    • This presentation looks at functional as well as decorative objects made by American people for the average citizen. These objects are known as folk art. Most of the objects in this program were made and used in the nineteenth century. More than reminders of the country’s past, they reflect a bit of how Americans lived their day-to-day lives during a century of great change.
  • August 9: For the Fun of It
    • This presentation provides an introduction to some of the toys, dolls, and games in the DAR Museum collection from the New Hampshire Children’s Attic. What was childhood like in early America? Sometimes it can be difficult to feel like we understand how our ancestors lived. With toys, however, we can remember our own childhoods, when many of us played with toys that are not so different from those seen during the program. The charm and appeal of these toys helps us step into the past, to see how the people that came before us lived.
  • September 13: Masterpiece Quilts
    • This presentation provides an overview of some of the masterpiece quilts held in the DAR Museum’s collection. These fabric artifacts provide a glimpse into the minds and lives of women now long departed and are often the only evidence of their existence. From a variety of backgrounds and places they produced a common legacy of artistic expression in thread and cloth that challenged their hands, cheered their hearts and warmed their bodies.
  • October 11: Obsolete, Odd, & Absolutely Ooky: Strange Stuff from the Vault
    • Like most museums the DAR museum has some pretty strange stuff among it’s treasures, running the gamut from obsolete, to merely odd, to altogether ooky. In this presentation, we raid the vaults to examine some of the most outrageous objects in the collection. While the purpose is to entertain, you may find that you’ll actually learn something about America’s past.
  • November 8: Seven Deadly Sins
    • This presentation provides a unique look at the theme of the Seven Deadly Sins. Were early Americans really as moral as they seemed? Decide for yourself as we enjoy a light-hearted look at early American culture and the temptations of envy, gluttony, greed, lust, pride, sloth, and wrath.
  • December 13: Holiday Traditions
    • This presentation explores the importance of traditions around the holiday season through the lens of the home. Learn how Christmas celebrations have changed over time in America and how similar winter holidays are celebrated by various cultures. No matter how they are celebrated, cultural traditions often center around the same things. We want to celebrate with our family and share good food, beautiful music, or colorful lights. It’s a time of togetherness and tradition. We hope that this journey puts you in the spirit of community, togetherness, and acceptance.