On Wednesday, February 15, the Nantucket Historical Association (NHA) will reopen their Nantucket Whaling Museum, with free admission for island residents and for NHA members offered year-round.
“We are excited to reopen our doors this February after our maintenance team has completed necessary projects and our curatorial team has made some exciting updates and placed new items on display. In addition to welcoming the community into the museum, we will have a number of free program offerings to look forward to this winter season,” said NHA Gosnell Executive Director Niles Parker.
Among many important projects throughout the Whaling Museum was the installation of new ADA-compliant glass doors to two of its major exhibition spaces, the McCausland Gallery and the Scrimshaw and Folk Arts Gallery. Finishing paintwork on the handicap lift in the Candle Factory, installed last year, has also been completed.
One of this winter’s program offerings includes the launch of a new series, Mindful History, a participant-based conversation and reflection program using objects on display within the Whaling Museum’s galleries to form a personal connection to art and history. Yoga, meditation, and Decorative Arts workshops will also be offered. This series is in partnership with Fairwinds Nantucket and is generously supported by The Tupancy-Harris Foundation.
The family Discovery Center will also reopen, and during February vacation week Winter Discovery Days will be offered. The NHA will host its first Transcribe-a-thon, inviting the community to participate in its volunteer transcription program and other transcription-related activities on Saturday, March 11.
In addition to community programming, the Whaling Museum will offer the Essex Gam and Life Aboard a Whaleship in-person presentations put on by Museum Guides during normal Whaling Museum hours. The exhibit Island People: Portraits and Stories from Nantucket will reopen for the season, with updates to be completed this spring for the exhibit to run through 2023. The exhibit, Cape Verde In Our Soul, will also reopen this winter for visitors to enjoy for a few more months before a new installation of recent acquisitions arrives in the spring.
Museum hours will be Monday–Saturday (closed Sundays), 10 am–4 pm, through Memorial Day weekend. For more information on planning your visit to the Whaling Museum and to learn more about our community program offerings, visit NHA.org or call 508-228-1894.
The Nantucket Historical Association’s mission is to preserve and interpret the history of Nantucket through its programs, collections, and properties, in order to promote the island’s significance and foster an appreciation of it among all audiences.