2024 Events and Programming
Gilbert Stuart Spring Fair
April 28, 2024 12:00 - 4:00 pm
Join us to celebrate the start of the 2024 season with our annual Gilbert Stuart Spring Fair!
Enjoy displays by the Narrow River Preservation Association, URI’s Master Gardeners, and the Rhode Island DEM. Learn about American eel migration, watch the famous herring run and explore our extensive nature trails. You can visit our colonial-era kitchen garden then get gardening tips and soil testing for your own garden.
History comes to life in the Birthplace with an appearance by Gilbert Stuart, always happy to talk about his life. Traditional music from Farm Dog keeps things lively. And our master miller operates the Hammond Gristmill, grinding corn on site exactly the way it was done back in 1755, while fresh made Jonny Cakes are available for visitors.
The spring fair is also the first opportunity to see our new exhibition, Embroidered Lives: Samplers from South County and Their Stories. Enjoy a beautifully curated and thoroughly researched exploration of these vital historical creations and the lives of the young girls whose skills they memorialize.
Admission $10 adults
$5 children (ages 6-12)
FREE Children under 6
FREE for 2024 members
Schoolgirl Sampler made by Rebecca Hammond in 1827
Collection of the Gilbert Stuart Birthplace & Museum
Sampler ID Day
May 18, 2024 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Do you have an antique schoolgirl sampler of your own? You could help contribute to the research and knowledge about these beautiful examples of 18th and 19th century art and material culture. The Sampler Archive Project is an endeavor to locate, photograph, document, interpret and celebrate historic needlework samplers and related girlhood embroideries.
The Gilbert Stuart Birthplace is hosting this opportunity for the public to contribute to this project. Experts from the South County Sampler Initiative and the Sampler Consortium will be available to photograph and document your antique needlework samplers.