R is for Railroad- In the days before the railroad, people and goods moved in and out of the region by stagecoach and wagon. When the first railroads were built in the 1840s, the region was connected to the bigger world in new and exciting ways. Freight could move easily from rural factory to urban […]
Q is for Quig- Nelson painter, musician, and frame maker Albert “Quig” Quigley painted landscapes and portraits that captured life in the Monadnock Region. Mt. Monadnock and the Nelson Congregational Church (which he could see from his house) were favorite subjects. He painted portraits of locals, sometimes on commission but often because he found their […]
P is for Paper- Paper making is one of the oldest industries in the Monadnock Region, with the first paper mill established in Alstead in 1793. In 1819, John Flagg built a paper mill on the banks of the Contoocook in Bennington. Flagg’s mill, like the Alstead paper mill, made paper by hand using cotton […]
Old is for Old Home Day– In August of 1899, Governor Frank Rollins invited the sons and daughters of New Hampshire to return to the old home for a week of festivities celebrating our towns. Faced with a declining population and a sluggish economy, Rollins saw Old Home Week as a way to encourage civic […]
N is for New Ipswich Academy- In the early days of public education, New Hampshire towns were only required to have a grammar school. Private academies were the only choice for students desiring a secondary education and preparation for college. The New Ipswich Academy was the first private academy founded in the Monadnock Region. Established […]
M is for Mariarden– A hundred years ago, Marie and Guy Currier bought an old farm in Peterborough and established the Mariarden Theatre. Marie, a former actress, created Mariarden as an outdoor stage and summer training camp for drama and dance. She engaged the power couple of modern dance, Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn, […]
L is for Lafayette Artillery- Before the New Hampshire National Guard, citizen soldiers in local militia units provided security and defense. In 1803, New Hampshire reorganized its militias but there were only a few artillery units. The following year, the 22nd Regiment Artillery Company was established in Peterborough under the leadership of Captain James Wilson. […]
K is for Kalmia- Kalmia Latifolia, commonly known as Mountain Laurel or Spoonwood, is a native flowering bush found throughout the Monadnock Region. Dense Kalmia wood is perfect for carving and it is said Native Americans favored it for making spoons. This rugged woody plant is a member of the heath family and loves to […]
J is for the Jaffrey Meetinghouse- Nearly every town in the Monadnock Region is graced by an elegant meetinghouse. These stately structures seem timeless and as though they have stood since the earliest days of settlement. But many of the meetinghouses we know today are second or third meetinghouses. In some cases, the original meetinghouse […]
I is for Ice– In the days before electric refrigeration, ice harvested from lakes kept food cool in the summer months. Often called the first harvest of the year, ice harvesting happened in January and February. While some harvested ice for their own use, ice became a huge business in the 19th century. By 1890, the […]
The Monadnock Center will be closed:
December 22-January 1, 2020
Exhibit on view through December 21, 2019
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