Museum Pieces: Immerse yourself in history
“Soy sauce and seaweed go really well with potato chips.” —Jose Andres
Time to feed our curiosity with all kinds of things you may have never thought about before. Trying something new — even if...
Museum Pieces: readings, conversations, and land
“I really couldn’t tell which were fantastic and which were novelty. I just love the words.” —Fan Ogilvie
Island poet Fan Ogilvie has just released a trilogy of poetry books that explore life and death...
Museum Pieces: Rebecca Amos revealed
“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you. —Maya Angelou
Martha’s Vineyard Museum desires to be a home for Island history in great measure, but acknowledges that certain aspects of Island...
Museum Pieces: Fish tales and other stories
The time is nigh when many of us lose our partners to the siren call of the 79th annual M.V. Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby. The 2024 Derby begins at 12:01 am this Sunday,...
This Was Then: Parachutes and peacock plumes
By the mid-1890s, Cottage City (Oak Bluffs) was a resort town in decline.
Massive fires had claimed the two largest landmarks in town — the Sea View Hotel and the Casino — in 1892, together...
Museum Pieces: Penikese Island History
"Study nature, not books." —Louis Agassiz (1807–73)
In 1873, Louis Agassiz persuaded a wealthy NYC businessman, John Anderson, to give him Penikese Island plus a $50,000 endowment to start a school for natural history, where...
Mystery and history
Marian Pierre-Louis is a sleuth — or, more precisely, a house historian. She has been doing this sort of deep research into the history of houses since about 2000, discovering fascinating facts about hundreds...
Museum Pieces: Widdiss wampum belt revealed
“I promised myself a long time ago that I would lead an interesting life.” —Sacheen Littlefeather
The Wampanoag people have lived on Martha’s Vineyard for more than 10,000 years. In all that time, they moved...
‘Equal. Powerful. Unstoppable.’
The YWCA is celebrating its 165th anniversary. The YWCA is the oldest and most esteemed organization dedicated to empowering women and girls in the U.S. The YWCA's national and global movement to eliminate racism...
Museum Pieces: A Luce celebration and more
“Them that calls on me must come with good hearts, tender feelings, speak the truth to my face and behind my back, but gross sinners must keep away. Strive for the love of God...
Museum Pieces: Each a path to history
“Do people ever ask you if you’re in the Witness Protection Program?” —A repairman arriving at writer Margaret Knight’s Chappaquiddick home
There is a story down every dirt road on Martha’s Vineyard – from how...
New exhibit at the Aquinnah Cultural Center
The Aquinnah Cultural Center preserves and promotes Aquinnah Wampanoag history, culture, and contributions on Martha's Vineyard by documenting their past, present, and future. It has been providing cultural education and tribal engagement since its...
Museum Pieces: Get lost in the past
“What’s curious about one’s journey is that we have opportunities to drink from the wellsprings of those who’ve come before us.” —Lyle Ashton
Martha’s Vineyard Museum has an exceedingly large field of deep roots to...
Museum Pieces: Come be curious
“The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity.” -Dorothy Parker
Dorothy Parker was a Jazz Age poetess and frequent visitor to the Vineyard. She was also a guest at Lillian Hellman’s...
Museum Pieces: History through young lives
“It’s important to me that I create the type of representation I want to see.” –Zoe Alphonse
Zoe Alphonse is a 16-year-old filmmaker from Chicago whose family also has a residence on the Vineyard. It...
Museum Pieces: Devin, the Semenaks, and a Big Red Dog
“We are a glass-half-full type of family.” –Judah Semenak
It was a special day at Martha’s Vineyard Museum on July 11 when we welcomed the Semenak family from Ottawa, the capital of Canada. They came...
This Was Then: Boundaries
Before 1870, Martha’s Vineyard was divided into just three towns: Tisbury (named after a village in Wiltshire), Chilmark (an adjacent village in Wiltshire), and Edgartown (named after the Duke of York’s deceased toddler).
But the...
Museum Pieces: Discover the Island
“My mother believed that a North Atlantic summer was one of the most magical gifts in life.” –Caroline B. Kennedy
Martha’s Vineyard is a mystical place full of lore, thanks to its first people, the...
Museum Pieces: Independence, fireworks, and fire engines
“As the sun dips to dusk, downtown Edgartown pairs pyrotechnics with a picturesque backdrop of its iconic lighthouse and seascape.” –MV Times, June 28, 2023
Edgartown Lighthouse is part of Martha’s Vineyard Museum’s roster of...
Museum Pieces: Oral histories, Eisenstadt, small business, and more
“I could never in a hundred summers get tired of this.” –Susan Branch
It’s here. The summer of 2024! What memories will we make and keep forevermore? All of us at the Martha’s Vineyard Museum...