Celebrating Portsmouth Neighborhoods

If you have never come into the Portsmouth Historical Society Museum on the corner of East Main Road and Union Street, this is the year to visit.  The Historical Society has a lot of celebrating to do.   The town is marking the 375th Anniversary of its founding and the Historical Society is celebrating 75 years of trying to preserve town treasures and properties.  

Memorial Day Sunday will be the opening day of the museum season.  This year's display -"Southside, Northside:  All Around the Town" - is in honor of the history of Portsmouth neighborhoods.  Everything we have in the museum comes from some Portsmouth community, so it was difficult to pick out representative items.  

Among the items in the neighborhood display cases are:

Stone Bridge & Greene Farmhouse:  A bottle from the original Nadeau's Pharmacy.

Common Fence Point & the Hummocks:  Images of Menhaden "Pogy" Boats.

Town Pond:  Shards of dishes from Baulston's Tavern, the first Inn in the Colony (1638).

Anthony Hill:  Images of the Anthony Seed Farm.  Layout of the Webb Estate which eventually became the Sea Fare Inn.

Bristol Ferry Common & Town Landing: Images of the ferry landing.

Arnold's Point:  Lantern from the Coal Mine which operated from 1809 until 1913.

Cory's Lane.  Cannon Balls from Bloody Brook.  Early images of Green Animals.

Newtown Village (along East Main Road):  Vintage images.

Quaker Hill & Middle Road:  Greene Tavern license.

South Portsmouth:  Glen Farm Guernsey Sale Catalog.

Wading River & Lawton's Valley:  Kittymouse book about Barbara Norman Cook.

Along with the neighborhood display, there is a cabinet of memorabilia from the Historical Society's 75 years.  

Permanent exhibits - The Southermost Schoolhouse, the Old Town Hall (vehicles and farm tools), the Julia Ward Howe room and the Union Church - are always available for tour.  The Museum is open on Sundays from 2 to 4 PM from Memorial Day Weekend to Columbus Day weekend.