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1623: The Untold Story of New Hampshire’s Founding Family by J. Dennis Robinson

by Portsmouth Athenaeum | Nov 8, 2023 | Announcements, Events

November 30, 2023 5:30 p.m. Shaw Research Library   Why do we know so little about David and Amias Thompson of Plymouth, England? And why is the little we know so often wrong? Our first European couple “settled” at Rye, NH in 1623. Within five years the Thompsons...

2023 Lecture Series: Water Has a Memory: Sea Level Rise, Our Past, Our Future with Rodney Rowland

by Portsmouth Athenaeum | Nov 2, 2023 | Announcements, Events

Wednesday, November 15, 2023 5:30 p.m. Shaw Research Library & Zoom   This year’s series concludes on November 15 when Rodney Rowland presents Water Has a Memory: Sea Level Rise, Our Past, Our Future. Strawbery Banke Museum is confronting the impacts of and...

2023 PACM Concert: ASMI Trio

by Portsmouth Athenaeum | Oct 13, 2023 | Announcements, Events, Performance

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 29, 3 p.m. ASMI TRIO at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 101 Chapel Street, Portsmouth The Altschuler Summer Music Institute develops musicians of all ages through participation in masterclasses, private lessons, and performances with renowned...

2023 Lecture Series: At Home in Portsmouth, 1750 – 1850, with Jane C. Nylander

by Portsmouth Athenaeum | Oct 6, 2023 | Announcements, Events

Wednesday, October 18, 2023 5:30 p.m. Shaw Research Library & Zoom   A long-time student of New England interiors, Jane C. Nylander’s talk on October 18, At Home in Portsmouth, 1750 – 1850 will weave together a host of primary sources to expand our...

2023 PACM Concert: Rasa String Quartet

by Portsmouth Athenaeum | Sep 26, 2023 | Announcements, Events, Performance

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 8, 3 p.m. RASA STRING QUARTET at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 101 Chapel Street, Portsmouth Currently in residence at Philips Exeter, Boston-based Rasa String Quartet violinists Maura Shawn Scanlin and Kiyoshi Hayashi, violist Emma Powell, and...

Nancy R. Hammond Book Signing and Talk

by Portsmouth Athenaeum | Sep 21, 2023 | Announcements, Events

Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023 5:30 p.m. Shaw Research Library   A presentation and book signing by Proprietor Nancy R. Hammond, whose new book, The Life and Times of Jonathan Mitchel Sewall, 1748-1808, Poet – Lawyer – Patriot, resurrects a forgotten Portsmouth...
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Recent News

  • July 2026: The Red Light District
  • Exhibit Shines the Red Light on City’s Past
  • Portsmouth Athenæum Chamber Music 2026
  • Athenæum Interim Director
  • A Letter from Tom Hardiman, Keeper and Executive Director

Events Calendar

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5:30 PM - Franklin Club
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5:00 PM - Art 'Round Town for "The Red Light District: Vice in Portsmouth, NH, at the Turn of the 20th Century"
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3:00 PM - 2026 PACM Series: Balourdet String Quartet
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5:30 PM - Franklin Club
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5:30 PM - Athenaeum Annual Holiday Gala
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Franklin Club
Franklin Club
November 4, 2026    
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Portsmouth Athenaeum
  • Franklin Club
Franklin Club, Sawtelle Reading Room
The Junto, also known as the Leather Apron Club, was a club for mutual improvement established in 1727 by Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia. The Leather [...]
More Info
Art 'Round Town for "The Red Light District: Vice in Portsmouth, NH, at the Turn of the 20th Century"
Art 'Round Town for "The Red Light District: Vice in Portsmouth, NH, at the Turn of the 20th Century"
November 6, 2026    
5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Portsmouth Athenaeum
  • Art Round Town
  • Exhibit Events
Exhibits, Randall Gallery, Red Light District
Join us for Portsmouth's Art 'Round Town featuring our latest exhibit "The Red Light District: Vice in Portsmouth, NH, at the Turn of the 20th [...]
More Info
2026 PACM Series: Balourdet String Quartet
2026 PACM Series: Balourdet String Quartet
November 8, 2026    
3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
$10.00 - $30.00
St. John's Episcopal Church
  • PACM Concert Series
  • Performance & Concert Series
2026 PACM Concert Series, Balourdet String Quartet, Concerts, St. John's Church
Currently the first ever Quartet-in-Residence at the Seattle Chamber Music Society, the Balourdet Quartet is acclaimed for its vibrant energy and masterful blend of technical [...]
More Info Book Now!
Franklin Club
Franklin Club
December 2, 2026    
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Portsmouth Athenaeum
  • Franklin Club
Franklin Club, Sawtelle Reading Room
The Junto, also known as the Leather Apron Club, was a club for mutual improvement established in 1727 by Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia. The Leather [...]
More Info
Athenaeum Annual Holiday Gala
04 Dec
December 4, 2026    
5:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Portsmouth Athenaeum
  • Members Events
More information forthcoming.
More Info
Events on November 4, 2026
Franklin Club
Franklin Club
4 Nov 26
Portsmouth
Events on November 6, 2026
Art 'Round Town for "The Red Light District: Vice in Portsmouth, NH, at the Turn of the 20th Century"
Art 'Round Town for "The Red Light District: Vice in Portsmouth, NH, at the Turn of the 20th Century"
6 Nov 26
Portsmouth
Events on November 8, 2026
2026 PACM Series: Balourdet String Quartet
2026 PACM Series: Balourdet String Quartet
8 Nov 26
Portsmouth
Events on December 2, 2026
Franklin Club
Franklin Club
2 Dec 26
Portsmouth
Events on December 4, 2026
04 Dec
Athenaeum Annual Holiday Gala
4 Dec 26
Portsmouth

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