Boston Flora

Tag: Schlesinger Library

  • Tuesday, March 6, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – A Visit with Isabella Stewart Gardner

    A few years ago, The Garden Club of the Back Bay welcomed acclaimed performer Jessa Piaia, who took attendees back to 1910 with her dramatic portrayal of Isabella Stewart Gardner, America’s first patroness of the arts, and lover of plant material.  For those who missed the meeting, you’ll have another chance on Tuesday, March 6, from 10 – noon at South Church, 41 Central Street in Andover.  The Andover Garden Club is sponsoring the program, and a $5 guest charge includes refreshments. Piaia studied performance at London’s Oval House Theatre and graduated from the University of Massachusetts in Boston. An employee of Harvard University, she conducts most of her historical research at the Schlesinger Library at Radcliffe Institute, which specializes in the history of women in America.

    Founded in 1927, the Andover Garden Club is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that encourages the study and practice of horticulture, landscape design, and floral design; aids in the beautification of the town of Andover; and helps protect and conserve natural resources. A member of the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts, Inc., and National Garden Clubs, Inc., the club provides both financial and hands-on support to a variety of municipal, educational, and environmental organizations throughout the region.  To reserve, please call 978-475-7119.

  • Thursday, November 19, 12:15 pm – Girls’ Night Out in the 1890s

    On a hot July day in 1891, four wealthy women set off for ten days of “roughing it” on Great Brewster Island and kept a diary of their summer adventure on their “enchanted isle.”  Now in the collection of the Schlesinger Library at Harvard University, the diary is a snapshot of a time when the Harbor Islands played a prominent role in the lives of Boston-area residents.  Author Stephanie Schorow introduces us to the “Scribe, Autocrat, Aristocrat and Acrobat” and their delightful get away.

    Stephanie Schorow is a long-time Boston-area reporter and writer. If she’s not working on a book project, she’s hammering away at articles for a host of publications and institutions, including the Boston Globe, the Boston Herald, Lifescript.com, MIT, Harvard and many others. She writes on health issues, history topics and cultural trends. She reviews restaurants for Globe North and music reviews for the Chicago Blues Guide. She also writes and takes photographs for travel features.

    Ms. Schorow is the author of the nonfiction book, The Crime of the Century: How the Brink’s Robbers Stole Millions and the Hearts of Boston, published in February 2008 by Commonwealth Editions. Her book on the Boston Harbor Islands, East of Boston: Notes from the Harbor Islands, was published in July 2008 by The History Press.

    $5 admission. The talk will take place at the Old South Meeting House, 310 Washington Street, on Thursday, November 19 beginning at 12:15 pm.  For more information, call 617-482-6439, or log on to www.oldsouthmeetinghouse.org.

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