NHA News - Recent Press Releases

June 2, 2011

Whaling Museum & Historic Sites Now Open Daily
New Walking Tours of Downtown & Historic Houses

NANTUCKET, Mass.: Welcome the summer season by visiting the Nantucket Historical Association’s Whaling Museum and Historic Sites, and taking the new Historic House and Downtown Walking Tours.

• Whaling Museum, 13 Broad Street, is open daily, 10 A.M. – 5 P.M., featuring Nantucket’s Cabinet of Curiosities: A to Z, this summer’s major exhibition of iconic, curios, oddities, and treasures of Nantucket history, as well as exhibits of scrimshaw, whaling tools, portraits, and a forty-six-foot sperm whale skeleton. The Bones of History film, Whale Hunt lecture, and Essex Gam are offered daily, along with special gallery tours. Beginning July 3, Nantucket, the NHA’s new film by Emmy-winning filmmaker Ric Burns, will be shown twice daily. The 26-minute film showcases Nantucket’s natural beauty and its significant role in global history.
• The Museum Shop, 11 Broad Street, is open daily, through June 30, 10 A.M.–5 P.M.; and July 1–August 31, Monday – Saturday, 10 A.M.–9 P.M.; Sunday, 10 A.M.–5 P.M. Adjacent to the museum, the shop carries a wide selection of fine gifts—many with a nautical theme that includes reproduction scrimshaw, china, glassware, books, children’s toys, reproduction lightship baskets, and specialty jams. Shop at www.nantucketmuseumshop.org or call 508-228-5785.


• Oldest House and Kitchen Garden, 16 Sunset Hill, are open daily, through June 30, Noon – 4 P.M.; July 1 – Sept. 4, Noon – 5 P.M. Situated in a pastoral setting, the 1686 Jethro Coffin House and recreated colonial kitchen garden are open for scheduled tours on the hour and half-hour. Special kitchen garden tours are offered Fridays, June 3 – September 16, 11 A.M.–Noon.


• Old Mill, 50 Prospect Street, is open daily, Noon – 4 P.M. through June 30; July 1 – Sept. 4, Noon – 5 P.M. Weather permitting, the millers grind corn daily and conduct tours of America’s oldest continuously operating mill. Scheduled tours are offered on the hour and half-hour.


• Quaker Meeting House, 7 Fair Street, adjacent to the NHA’s Research Library, is open for self-guided tours, Monday, Thursday, and Friday, 10 A.M.–4 P.M.; Tuesday 11 A.M.– 4 P.M. Closed Wednesdays and weekends. The library’s Whitney Gallery features Eastman Johnson and His Contemporaries, an exhibition of late-19th-century masters on Nantucket.


• Old Gaol, 15R Vestal Street, is open daily for self-guided tours, through June 30, Noon – 4 P.M.; July 1 – Sept. 4, Noon – 5 P.M. Built in 1806, the “jail” continued to hold prisoners for more than 125 years.


• Fire Hose-Cart House, 8 Gardner Street, is open daily for self-guided tours, through June 30, Noon – 4 P.M.; July 1 – Sept. 4, Noon – 5 P.M. Built after the Great Fire of 1846, it is the last structure of its kind on Nantucket.


• Greater Light and Garden, 8 Howard Street, is open July 20–September 30, Wednesdays and Fridays, 4–5 P.M., in open-house format. Explore this recently restored whimsical house and garden, which offer a gateway to Nantucket’s art colony and resort era in the early 20th century.


• NHA Research Library, 7 Fair Street, is open Monday, Thursday, and Friday, 10 A.M.–4 P.M.; Tuesday 11 A.M.–4 P.M.; closed Wednesdays and weekends. The library’s Whitney Gallery features Eastman Johnson and His Contemporaries, an exhibition of late-19th-century masters on Nantucket. Research assistance is available on all aspects of Nantucket history: whaling, genealogy, house histories, art and architecture, and thousands of historic photographs. Researchers pay a $5 use fee; no charge for NHA members.


• Historic House Walking Tour is offered daily, 2:15 P.M., through October 10 (no tour July 4). The 70-minute guided tour visits three NHA properties representing three centuries of Nantucket history—the Hadwen House, an elegantly furnished 1845 Greek Revival mansion representing the prosperity of the whaling era; the 1745 Macy-Christian House, with its walk-in fireplace and beehive oven, demonstrating the Colonial Revival style that became popular on island; and Greater Light, the recently restored whimsical home and garden representing Nantucket’s emergence as an art colony and resort in the early 20th century. Meets at the Hadwen House, 96 Main Street, rain or shine; purchase tickets in advance at the Whaling Museum or at the Hadwen House at the start of the tour.


• Guided Historic Downtown Walking Tour is offered Monday – Saturday, 11:15 A.M., through October 10 (no tour July 4). Flex your history muscles during this one-hour guided walk and become a history buff. Enjoy a unique “workout” as NHA staff coach participants to “step into the past while strolling in the present” and share stories of the people, places, and events that transformed Nantucket from a remote island outpost, to the whaling capital of the world, to a resort destination of international acclaim. Departs from the Whaling Museum, 13 Broad Street, rain or shine; purchase tickets at the Whaling Museum.

Admission Information

• NHA Members: Unlimited free admission to the Whaling Museum, Historic Sites, and Walking Tours.


• Whaling Museum and Historic Sites Pass: $20, adults; $18, seniors (65+); and $10, youth (6–17). Sold at the museum and sites, passes provide one-time admission to the Whaling Museum and all of the Historic Sites; passes may be used throughout the 2011 season. The Historic Sites are open through October 10. For a daily program schedule, visit our web calendar , or call 508-228-1894, ext. 0.


• Whaling Museum Ticket: $17, adults; $15, seniors (65+); and $8, youth (6–17). One-time admission to the museum only. For a daily program schedule, visit our Tickets & Times page, or call 508-228-1894, ext. 0.


• Greater Light: $6, adults; $3, youth (6 –17). One-time admission to Greater Light only.


• Walking Tours: $10, adults; $8 seniors (65+); and $4 youth (6-17).

For more information on the Whaling Museum, Historic Sites, Walking Tours, and the NHA’s many programs and special events, call 508-228-1894, ext. 0, or visit the Whaling Museum & Historic Sites webpage.