Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association Halloween 2023 Program Offerings

October 27, 2023

NANTUCKET, MA — The Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association (MMA) announces it will offer Halloween-themed programming and activities that include “H’Owl Prowl,” Spooky Science: Potion Making, and Hinchman House Halloween Hocus.


H’Owl Prowl is offered Thursday, October 26 from 5:30pm to 6:45pm, and will meet at 2 Vestal Street. You will join the MMA's Field Ornithologist, Ginger Andrews, as we listen for calls of a variety of nocturnal animals and birds during our special spooky edition Owl Prowl program highlighting Alfred Wallace and his dabbles in the spirit world. Alfred Wallace was a British Naturalist, explorer, geographer, anthropologist, and illustrator who extensively researched the paranormal realm and was committed to materialist, reductionist cosmologies.


Night-time has always had a mysterious appeal, which brings out a whole new cast of avian and other creatures. It requires patience, and a shift of consciousness from sight to hearing. We will watch for owls as they begin their nightly activity. While an owl sighting is not guaranteed, you will certainly be able to observe several fascinating nocturnal animal species.


This program is designed to be interesting for adults and children ages 8 and older. At least one adult must sign up with children. This program will be cancelled in the event of rain and refunds issued.


Cost per participant: $30


Pre-registration is required. Register at the link below:

https://112458a.blackbaudhosting.com/112458a/HOwl-Prowl-Halloween-Owl-Prowl


Spooky Science: Potion Making will be offered Friday, October 27 through Sunday, October 29 from 11am to 12pm at the Hinchman House Natural Science Museum, 7 Milk Street. Join the MMA's naturalists on a “spooktacular” exploration into the world of science! For Halloween weekend, we will create bubbly and colorful chemical potions though a series of hands-on science experiments.


This program is appropriate for adults and children ages 5 and older. All registered children must be accompanied by a registered adult to participate in this program.


Cost per participant: $20


Pre-registration is recommended. Register at the link below:

https://112458a.blackbaudhosting.com/112458a/Spooky-Science-Potion-Making


Hinchman House Halloween Hocus will be offered Tuesday, October 31 from 2pm to 4pm at the Hinchman House Natural Science Museum, 7 Milk Street. Come to the top of town before the annual Halloween parade for some festive and spooky fun! Activities include potion making, turtle encounters, spooky activities, and treats.


This event is free to the public. No registration is required


The Maria Mitchell Association is a private non-profit organization. Founded in 1902, the MMA works to preserve the legacy of Nantucket native astronomer, naturalist, librarian, and educator, Maria Mitchell. The Maria Mitchell Association operates two observatories, a natural science museum, an aquarium, a research center, and preserves the historic birthplace of Maria Mitchell. A wide variety of science and history-related programming is offered throughout the year for people of all ages.


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For Immediate Release

October 23, 2023

Contact: Molly Mosscrop, Marketing Director

mmosscrop@mariamitchell.org

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June 4, 2026
NANTUCKET, MA – On Thursday, June 11, 2026, the Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association Aquarium, Hinchman House Natural Science Museum, Historic Mitchell House, Vestal Street Observatory, Loines Observatory, and the Maria Mitchell Association Research Center will open for the 2026 summer season. The Historic Mitchell House, located at 1 Vestal Street, will be open for tours Monday–Friday, 10:00AM– 4:00PM, and Saturday 10:00AM–1:00PM. Built in 1790, this traditional Quaker house was acquired by the Mitchell family in 1818. The home became a museum in 1903 after the Maria Mitchell Association’s (MMA) founders acquired the House in 1902 to preserve the legacy of one of Nantucket’s most celebrated daughters. The House contains many stunning artifacts from the Mitchells’ daily life in the nineteenth century, including many of Maria’s personal items such as beer mugs, opera glasses, and her Dollond telescope. The House is well known for the remarkably preserved example of faux-wood grain painting in the kitchen from the 1850s. The Vestal Street Observatory, next to the Historic Mitchell House, will be open for tours Monday – Saturday, 11:00AM–1:00PM. Built in 1908, the Observatory’s original dome now houses an 11-inch research telescope. Public accessible spaces include the Astronomical Study which displays historic astronomical collections, including Maria Mitchell’s 5-inch Alvan Clark telescope from 1858, and the Pillar Room where changing exhibits are featured. The current exhibit, “The Mitchells: A Family Constellation” showcases members of the Mitchell Family. The MMA Aquarium, located at 32 Washington Street, will be open Monday–Friday, 10:00AM–4:00PM, and Saturday 10:00AM–1:00PM. Located on the waterfront of Nantucket Harbor, the MMA Aquarium displays local Nantucket species and offers an immersive place to learn about the amazing marine life of the island. 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By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger June 1, 2026
The Mitchell House and the entire MMA is opening for the season on Thursday, June 11, 2026! Come see what is new, come see things you have missed before, and come meet our new interns who will be with us for the summer! We are excited to have ALL our doors back open for the summer! For more information on classes, workshops, walks, children’s classes and camps, and our museum/site schedules, please find out more on our website! JNLF
By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger May 18, 2026
A repost from long ago – because I still like a good chair. Quite awhile ago, I wrote about some of my collection addictions, including pottery shards, 19 th century kitchen mirrors, and of course, enamelware. Well, here is another one for you. I love chairs. Yes, this is another collection addiction of mine. But not all chairs – chairs from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Typically, I like plain, simple wood chairs with a horizontal piece or two of wood for the back and a plain, thick wood seat. Simple, not a lot of turns to the wood, and not a lot of decorative features or paint. Several years ago, I had a meeting at the home of the leader of a group I was working with. She owned the Obed Macy house, very much untouched and quite a remarkable house. Yes, Obed was the Nantucket historian (among other things), as well as the son of island entrepreneur Judith Macy, and the nephew of the island “she-pirate” Kezia Coffin. We met outside on the side porch which was a late 19 th century addition to the house and one that certainly reflected what life was like in the period it was added to the house. The owner had brought out every chair in her home. I was on a chair high (not a highchair!) – here I had my choice of nineteenth chairs to sit on. Since I was one of the first to arrive, I took my time picking out which chair I was going to sit on – I kid you not. I was like Goldilocks − though I was grown-up enough not to sit on every chair to decide which one I was going to claim for the meeting! I went on and on and likely on and on about all these lovely chairs to her. Unfortunately, the day came several years later when she was faced with having to sell her beloved home to move off-island. She called me. She wanted to know if I wanted any of her chairs since she remembered how much I went on and on about them. It was a mixture of emotion because losing this island resident was a loss for the island and for its history and historic architecture. I went to her home a few days before she was going to have her sale and helped her move items from the house out onto the lovely 19 th century side porch where I first reveled in her chair collection and also out into the large, simple backyard that looked like it too had not been touched since the 19 th century. She told me to take whichever chairs I wanted as she wanted me to have them. Depressing. I told her I would not take but that I would buy. We had a little back and forth but she finally relented. Then, I had to choose and it was quite agonizing. Not wanting to be a chair hog, I limited myself. I now have two matching and two others sitting around my dining room table made from salvaged Nantucket pine floorboards. We refer to them as “Helen’s chairs” – their previous owner. She likely found them here on Nantucket; one or more may have even come with the house when she bought it. We eat every meal sitting in them, spend time with our family in long discussions and laughter sitting in them, and each time I sit, touch, dust, or move them, I think of Helen and the house these chairs once sat in and the conversations and people they must have witnessed over the many years. A simple wood chair – a witness to history and time. JNLF
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