Historic Happenings at the RIHS

Join the Rhode Island Historical Society in celebrating the season with two festive open house events!

The Rhode Island Historical Society is hosting two free holiday open houses! Visit the John Brown House Museum on Saturday, November 30th, from 10am - 4pm and the Museum of Work & Culture on Saturday, December 7th, from 10am - 5pm for special activities, festive displays, and holiday cheer!

Visit the links below to find out more about each day's events!

More Details- JBH Open House!

More Details- MoWC Open House!

Upcoming Programs & Events

Plantation Goods: A Material History of American Slavery Book Talk with Seth Rockman

Thursday, December 5th, 6pm - 7pm

The Aldrich House

The RIHS will host historian Seth Rockman for a talk on his latest book, Plantation Goods: A Material History of American Slavery.

Plantation Goods tells the biggest stories of early American history through the most mundane artifacts: woolen dresses stitched in Rhode Island for enslaved women in South Carolina to wear, for example. Following these goods from where they were made to the where they were used, Plantation Goods rethinks the geography of slavery and freedom in the decades between American independence and the Civil War. The book poses questions that continue to preoccupy us in the age of the iPhone and fair-trade coffee: what are the moral, ecological, and political relationships linking consumers and producers across long distances? What does it mean to be “complicit"? 

Attendance for the talk is free, but registration is required.

Register Now

Amitié Franco-Américaine Traveling Exhibit

Tuesday, November 19th- Tuesday, December 3rd

The Museum of Work & Culture

The Museum of Work and Culture will host a special traveling exhibit on view for two weeks in the Merci Boxcar Gallery beginning Tuesday, November 19. 

The French-American Friendship special exhibit features a historical section retracing the history of both the Marquis de Lafayette and the D-Day landings, a section on the competition and the voyage to France, and a section highlighting testimonials from students and teachers, where visitors can also propose their own definition of French-American friendship. Student art inspired by the relationship between France and America will also be on view.

This exhibit is included in Museum admission.

Member Exclusive Program

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE: National History Day Preview

Thursday, December 10th, 5:30pm

The Aldrich House

Join the RIHS on Tuesday, December 10th, at 5:30pm for a member-exclusive event highlighting Rhode Island History Day, our state’s affiliate of the National History Day program.

Discover how this impactful education program engages students in grades 6–12 through historical research, analysis, and creative expression. Each year, participants present their work as documentaries, exhibits, papers, performances, or websites at a statewide contest. RIHS Education Manager Michelle Walker will provide an in-depth look at the program, its categories, and the judging process.

The evening will include a hands-on judging simulation, where attendees can evaluate a project as a group.

Light refreshments will be served.

Sign Up Now

Current Exhibits

John Brown House Museum

The Girl of My Dreams:  Sylvia, a 19th Century Life

Museum of Work & Culture

Welcome Blanket

Event Calendar