News From RI Historical Society

Upcoming Events & Programs In This Issue Upcoming Events Quick Links Membership Donate! Library RIHS -- Upcoming Events   Thursday, October 14, 6:00 p.m. Aldrich House 110 Benevolent Street, Providence Free Admission, To R.S.V.P.: Dalila Goulart (401) 331-8575 x45 or programs@rihs.org   Commodore Abraham Whipple: Privateer, Patriot, Pioneer Abraham Whipple (1733-1819) commanded insurgents who destroyed the HMS Gaspee in Narragansett Bay and helped direct the successful invasion of the Bahamas. This little-known, yet intrepid and frequently successful Continental Navy officer contributed significantly to the War for Independence. An esteemed officer of the fleet, he spent his last years in frontier Ohio where he was respected and appealed to younger generations as a 'representative of the Revolution'. Dr. Sheldon Cohen's biography of Whipple presents a look inside the life of a Continental officer. He illustrates at a personal level the complexities of naval warfare, including Whipple's reliance on personal finances and family connections to outfit his ships and pay his crew. Cohen also reveals the commander's treatment as a British prisoner of war, and his eventual migration west, shedding light on experiences shared by many Revolutionary War veterans. Sheldon S. Cohen, professor emeritus of history at Loyola University Chicago, is author of numerous books, including Yankee Sailors in British Gaols and British Supporters of the American Revolution. Dr. Cohen will be selling his book after the lecture and will be available for signing as well.   ***************************   Saturday, October 16, 2010, 10:30 am - noon Rhode Island Historical Society Library 121 Hope Street, Providence To Register: libprograms@rihs.org or (401) 273-8107 x12 Fee: RIHS members $8; non-members $10   Finding the Elusive Female Ancestor - The Origins of Mary Drummond of New Bedford           Looking for female ancestors can be a frustrating experience. The lively case study of Mary Drummond, the purported oldest native Negro of New Bedford in 1928, will teach new ways to find your female roots in New England, and will include tips for success and pitfalls to avoid. Carol Prescott McCoy, Ph.D. has been tracing her own roots for 30 years and has her own genealogy business, Find-Your-Roots.com.   **************************   Thursday, October 21, 6:30 p.m. Gallery Night John Brown House Museum 52 Power Street, Providence Free Admission, To R.S.V.P.: Dalila Goulart (401) 331-8575 x45 or programs@rihs.org  If These Walls Could Talk... Fifty-nine in '84 In 1884, Providence Grays pitcher Charles "Old Hoss" Radbourn won an astonishing fifty-nine games - more than anyone in major-league history ever had before, or ever will again. Then he went on to win all three games of baseball's first World Series. Fifty-nine in '84 tells not only the dramatic story of that amazing feat of grit, but also the tale of big-league baseball two decades after the Civil War-a brutal, bloody sport played barehanded, the profession of ill-educated, hard-drinking men who thought little of cheating outrageously or maiming an opponent to win. Fifty-nine in '84 is an indelible portrait of a legendary player and a fascinating, little known era of the national pastime. Author Edward Achorn, a Pulitzer Prize finalist for Distinguished Commentary, is the deputy editorial pages editor of The Providence Journal. His work as an editor and editorial writer in Providence served to focus his interest, in particular, in Old Hoss Radbourn and the 1884 Providence Grays, as he spent many nights hunched over a microfilm reading machine in the newspaper's library and at the Rhode Island Historical Society. He has worked closely with the members of the Providence Grays Vintage Baseball Club, a modern team that plays under 1884 rules and with 1884 equipment (or lack thereof), to better understand the experience of baseball in those times.   ***************************   FRIDAY, OCTOBER 22 - SUNDAY, OCTOBER 24 ALL TOURS DEPART FROM THE JOHN BROWN HOUSE MUSEUM, 52 POWER STREET, PROVIDENCE For more information: (401) 273-7507 x62   BROWN FAMILY WEEKEND WALKING TOURS Join us during Brown Family Weekend for five guided walking tours presented by The Rhode Island Historical Society. All tours begin at the John Brown House Museum, 52 Power Street, Providence. Reservations and Pre-payment are required. You can use PayPal, download the ticket form, (http://www.rihs.org/BrownWeekend.html), or contact Barbara Barnes: 401-273-7507 x62 or bbarnes@rihs.org.  Friday, October 22, 3:00 p.m. - Lovecraft's Providence: A Literary Walking Tour $15/person, 90 Minutes Friday, October 22, 5:00 p.m. - Dining With History $10/person, 60 minutes Saturday, October 23, 10:00 a.m. - Personally Providence: African-American History Tour $15/person, 90 minutes Saturday, October 23, 1:00p.m. - Historic College Hill $15/person, 2 hours Sunday, October 24, 9:00a.m. - The Providence RiverWalk $10/person, 60 minutes   **************************   The Rhode Island Historical Society's blog is the best place online for a regular dose of colorful stories and images from Rhode Island's history. Visit us at http://rihs.wordpress.com to learn about pirates, eighteenth-century robots, and a lot more, especially the many ways that historical artifacts can bridge the gap between modern life and the past.