New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trail To Feature Hot Rods in August

Antique cars on display at New England Racing Museum

On Saturday, August 24 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., the New England Racing Museum, member of the NH Heritage Museum Trail, will host Hot Rods, Muscle and More Car Show. Presented by Shea Concrete Products, the annual event will feature more than 250 vehicles with proceeds to support the mission of the New England Racing Museum.

“Our mission is to discover, preserve and educate the public on the history of New England motor racing,” said Thomas Netishen, executive director. “This show is a fun way for the public to learn more about us and the region’s rich motor racing history.”

In total, the museum will award 20 trophies, including the Parker-Coraine Best of Show Trophy. Winners of this award receive a complimentary brick that will be permanently placed in the museum’s tribute wall. Winners are also invited to take a picture inside the museum with their winning car, or truck, at the conclusion of the show with the Parker-Coraine trophy.

According to Netishen, the Best of Show Trophy is named after Ted Parker and Gil Coraine, each of whom have contributed extensively to the museum’s success. This year’s award, however, will have special significance.

“After a period of declining health, Gil passed away in February of this year,” added Netishen. “Gil was a local drag racing pioneer and former museum board member—he will be missed.”

Hot rod

Over 250 vehicles will be on display

Along with the car show, visitors will be invited to enjoy and explore New England motor racing history at more than 30 historical race car and motorcycle exhibits inside the museum. Visitors can also test their skills on an iRacing rig and four-lane electric slot car track.

The show will also feature a 50/50 raffle and an onsite food truck. “Whether you are a fan of racing or not, the event is always a fun time with family and friends,” said Netishen.

The cost to enter a vehicle into the show is $20, which includes one passenger and two free tickets to view the museum that day of the show. The cost for spectators is $5 per person with kids under 12 admitted free. To learn more, visit NERmuseum.com.

In addition to the New England Racing Museum, member institutions on the New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trail are located in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, Merrimack Valley, and Seacoast.

Guests go ‘Behind-the-Scenes’ on New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trail

Sherburne House (1695) at Strawbery Banke Museum courtesy of David J. Murray

Strawbery Banke Museum, a member of the New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trail, is offering guests behind-the-scenes guided tours that explore early maritime history in Portsmouth, New Hampshire on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through October.

Tour groups will pass into a historic maritime trade hub, the Puddle Dock neighborhood, and will gain “exclusive access” to the Sherburne House (1695) and the Chase House (1762).

“These tours are really exciting,” said Strawbery Banke Museum Executive Director Linnea Grim. “We want guests to step into the past, literally, in a neighborhood that shaped the region’s history.”

Lasting approximately an hour, the tours invite guests to pass behind museum barriers and handle reproduction objects. There will also be time to ask questions. “It’s an opportunity for guests to interact with over 300 years of history, while enjoying our vibrant campus,” Grim added.

For New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trial President Jeff Barraclough, it’s an innovative idea. “These tours are exactly the kind of immersive experiences that get people interested in history,” he said. “This is an excellent addition to The Trail.”

This year Strawbery Banke Museum was recognized as one of the top ten best open air museums in the country by USA Today. Grim noted that they have recently expanded exhibits on Abenaki history and sea level rise, are hosting the New England BIPOC Fest on Sunday, August 18, and holding their 36th annual Vintage and Vine event on Thursday, September 12.

“We’re excited to welcome lots of guests this summer and fall,” she said.

A daily admissions ticket for Strawbery Banke Museum is required to attend this tour. Tickets for behind-the-scenes guided tours are an additional $20 and can be purchased at strawberybanke.org.

In addition to Strawbery Banke Museum in Portsmouth, member institutions on The Trail are located in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, Merrimack Valley, and Seacoast.

New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trail Expands

Exterior of NHBM’s Moultonborough Facility (Photography by Kimberly)

One of nearly two-dozen member institutions on the New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trail, the New Hampshire Boat Museum (NHBM) recently opened a new campus in Moultonborough.

Trail President Jeff Barraclough expressed excitement about The Trail’s newest addition.. “It’s fantastic to see our member institutions expanding,” he said. “I believe the New Hampshire Boat Museum’s new facility will become a preeminent destination for visitors from across the region…This is an important development for The Trail.”

At the new campus, which features a “light and bright” 24,000 square-foot building, visitors will experience a “museum in the making,” according to NHBM Executive Director Martha Cummings. “It’s a chance to glimpse into our future,” she said. “This is a huge and exciting project, and we want the public to be a part of the process.

Interior of NHBM's Moultonborough Facility

Interior of NHBM’s Moultonborough Facility (Photography by Kimberly)

When complete, the new facility will feature exhibits that showcase boat building, speed and sport, and a variety of styles and types of boats powered by wind, steam, gas, and paddles. Featuring interactives that allow visitors to literally touch history, exhibits will also peel back the various sociological and cultural layers that surround boating (and its history).

According to Cummings, the new campus strengthens NHBM’s mission. “Our ability to preserve history and celebrate boating, the outdoors, and lake life is enhanced with this state-of-the-art campus,” she said. “We are so excited to develop and share stories about the incredibly diverse history of the state’s boating culture, which belongs to everyone.”

In celebration of the new campus, admission is free to NHBM’s Moultonborough Campus in 2024. “We want everyone to experience the beauty of this place,” added Cummings.

Founded in 1992 by vintage and classic boating enthusiasts, NHBM offers dynamic exhibits and engaging programs and events tailored to the diverse boating lifestyles and values of people of all ages. To learn more about NHBM, visit nhbm.org.

In addition to NHBM in Moultonborough, member institutions on The Trail are located in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, Merrimack Valley, and Seacoast. 

Students Pay Tribute to New Hampshire Soldiers

Prospect Mountain High School Students at Wright Museum/em>

At the Wright Museum on June 6, which marked the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings, Prospect Mountain High School students paid tribute to New Hampshire soldiers who lost their lives during the historic invasion. These tributes took place at a public event where students presented short biographies of the soldiers and discussed their research with guests. The event concluded with a special reception.

“The tributes were very moving, especially to the students, who were very close in age to the soldiers they presented on,” said Peggy Hennelly-Maniates, executive director of the Wright Museum.

The students’ research began last year when they visited the American Cemetery on a school trip to France where many U.S. soldiers who died on D-Day are buried. “When they returned home, each student was assigned a fallen soldier and the students learned who they were,” Hennelly-Maniates explained.

The event was enhanced, according to Hennelly-Maniates, with a late May visit by WMUR’s NH Chronicle, which visited Wright Museum for a special series on the 80th anniversary of D-Day that also highlighted the students’ research. “WMUR was wonderful to work with,” she said. “We were very excited to let people know about some very brave men who gave it all for the freedoms we now enjoy.”

Trail President Jeff Barraclough also expressed appreciation for the media coverage of New Hampshire Heritage Trail members. “We’re a network of 21 museums working together to help promote one another,” he said. “When one of our members gets the spotlight, it connects people to all of our museums.”

 

In addition to the Wright Museum in Wolfeboro, member institutions on The Trail are located in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, Merrimack Valley, and Seacoast.

New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trail Puts Spotlight on “the Village”

Tours at the Village. Photo by Ellen Friedlander

Located on a country road in rural Canterbury just 20 minutes outside New Hampshire’s state capital in Concord, Canterbury Shaker Village ( the Village) sits on nearly 700 acres, delighting visitors from across the world.

“Our campus is expansive, providing visitors with the chance to experience nature on groomed trails just minutes outside of fairly urban settings,” noted Education Manager Kyle Sandler. “These trails are free and open to the public.”

Founded in 1969 as a nonprofit, the Village has developed an international reputation as one of the oldest, most representative, and best preserved of all the Shaker villages. During its 200-year history, more than 2,000 Shakers called the Village home.

“At its height in the 1850s, 300 people lived, worked, and worshiped among more than 100 buildings laid out in a practical, functional grid,” added Sandler.

The Shakers’ way of life, according to Shirley Wajda, Ph.D., Curator of Collections, offers relevant lessons for today’s visitors.

“The Shakers embraced the values of gender and racial equity, pacifism, simplicity, innovation, resourcefulness, and enterprise,” she said. “Their values and ability to thrive as a self-sufficient community for 200 years offers insight into how we may live better today.”

In talking about their membership in the New Hampshire Heritage Trail, Sandler said he hopes Canterbury Shaker Village inspires visitors to explore other member institutions.

“The Trail is an amazing asset for the state,” he said. “Each member museum works hard to not only preserve history but also to actively interpret and present it to people of all ages and interests.”