Noank Historical Society

On the Waterfront: The Photographs of Mode Rathbun
2025-10-04 13:00 - 2025-10-25 16:00 UTC | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
Due to popular demand, we are extending the Mode Rathbun exhibit currently on display at the Latham/Chester Store (108 Main Street, Noank). The exhibit will be open every Saturday in October from 1-4pm.

On the Waterfront: The Photographs of Mode Rathbun
2025-09-17 19:30 - 21:00 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
JOIN US: Wednesday, September 17, 2025
7:30pm—Special Exhibition and Program
On the Waterfront: The Photographs of Mode Rathbun,” by John Wilbur
The Latham/Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank

Moses “Mode” Rathbun (1881-1965) was a native and lifelong resident of Noank. He was also an avid photographer who was fascinated with the village, particularly the waterfront. A collection of glass-plate negatives discovered at his former home on Front Street has yielded dozens of exceptional images of Noank in the early 1900s. Prints from these negatives provide a rare window into a version of Noank that is both familiar and unrecognizable. They capture the village at a time when the Palmer Shipyard was still producing large wooden ships, when there was still a substantial offshore fishing fleet, and when the shoreline was still cluttered with fishing shacks, lobster pots, buoys, marine railways, boat shops and coal docks. Join us September 17 for a special exhibition of these photographs and a lecture explaining their historical significance by NHS historian John Wilbur.

Noank Museum Opening Reception
2025-06-28 13:00 - 16:00 | Noank Museum, 17 Sylvan Street, Noank, 06340, United States
Join us for an opening reception and refreshments at the Noank Museum, Saturday, June 28, 1-4 p.m., 17 Sylvan Street.
The Noank Museum at 17 Sylvan Street will be open for the summer season June 28 – September 1, Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, 1-4 p.m.

Noank Artists Reception & Exhibition
2025-06-27 17:00 - 19:00 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
All are welcome to an opening reception for the Noank Artists Exhibition at the Latham/Chester Store (108 Main Street, Noank), Friday, June 27, 5-7 p.m.
The annual Noank Artists Exhibition will feature works by artists from around the region when it opens for the season Friday, June 27. A village tradition going back for more than 30 years, the show will present a diverse range of media, including original paintings, photographs, sculptures and prints. Gallery hours are 1-4 p.m., Wednesdays-Sundays, June 27 – August 31.

“Voices from the Past: Memories of Noank in Days Gone By”
2025-03-19 19:30 - 21:00 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
JOIN US: 7:30 PM—WEDNESDAY,
March 19, 2025
The Latham/Chester Store,
108 Main Street, Noank
One of the most incredible resources at the Sylvan Street Museum is the Noank Historical Society’s oral history collection. The collection includes dozens of interviews and recordings from a generation of Noankers who are no longer with us, sharing their memories of Noank from days gone by. Join us on March 19 to hear selections from this collection including stories about the village’s lawless 4th of July celebrations, the 1938 Hurricane, childhood on the waterfront, Noank’s shipyards and various Noank characters from Capt. Ben Rathbun, Walter Davis, Bernie Davis, Albert Patterson and Walter Palmer.

The Legacy of Robin Cassacinamon
2024-11-20 19:30 - 20:30 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
NOANK HISTORICAL SOCIETY Presents:
“The Legacy of Robin Cassacinamon”
By Kevin McBride, University of Connecticut
Wednesday, November 20, 2024
7:30 PM, Latham/Chester Store

By the end of the Pequot War (1636-1637) the Pequot tribe lost almost half of their pre-war population of 4,000. Fifteen hundred Pequot were killed during the war and hundreds more were sold into slavery in New England and the Caribbean. The 1638 Treaty of Hartford stipulated that the remaining Pequot were to be divided among the Mohegan and Narragansett and never to be called Pequot again and were never to be allowed to return to their homeland. The goal of the English to eliminate the Pequot as a viable political and social entity was all but achieved. Led by the Pequot sachem Robin Cassacinamon the Mashantucket Pequots managed to reestablish themselves in Noank (and later Mashantucket) as self-governing people only twelve years after the Treaty of Hartford. Cassacinamon achieved this by pursuing a strategy of accommodation and negotiation and by building lasting personal and political relationships with colonial leaders such as John Winthrop Jr. Cassacinamon was one of the most successful Native leaders of the 17th Century and his legacy is the thriving Mashantucket Pequot community at Mashantucket.
Kevin McBride is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at UCONN and the former Director of Research at the Mashantucket Pequot Museum & Research Center. McBride’s research on Colonial & Native American archaeology in the northeastern United States has been published in numerous academic journals that focus on historical archaeology and indigenous studies.

"The Sinking of the Paddlewheel Steamship ATLANTIC"
2024-09-18 19:30 - 21:00 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
Presented by Captain Bill Palmer
Wednesday, September 18, 7:30 p.m.
Latham/Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank

On the day after Thanksgiving, November 27, 1846, the paddlewheel steamship Atlantic sunk in Fishers Island Sound with a tremendous loss of life. This September, Captain Bill Palmer will share the story of terror, courage and sacrifice, as the steamer drifted, powerless, in hurricane force winds for two nights and a day as the Captain, crew and passengers did all they could to help. It’s been over 175 years since the ship wrecked on the rocky shores of Fishers Island and nothing is left of the Atlantic now except monuments and tombstones, which dot the Cedar Grove Cemetery in New London.
Captain Bill has been diving since the late 1960s and has been running dive boat charters since 1974. He is the owner and operator of the Thunderfish and the new Thunderfish Express. Capt. Bill also operates Thunderfish Productions, which produces videos on east coast shipwrecks and marine subjects. He has written several books including “Night of Terror: The Sinking of the Paddlewheel Steamship Atlantic.” Copies of this book will be available at the Latham/Chester Store.

Noank Artists Exhibition
2024-06-28 17:00 - 2024-09-01 17:00 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
June 29 – September 1, 2024
Wednesday – Sunday, 1-4 p.m.
Latham/Chester Gallery
108 Main St., Noank
Meet the Artists Reception
Friday, June 28, 2024 5-7 p.m.

NHS Annual Meeting and Dinner
2024-06-19 18:30 - 21:00 | Palmer’s Provisions, 17 Pearl Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
Join us for our Annual Meeting and a special presentation on the Palmer’s of Noank at Palmer’s Provisions, June 19, 2024.

"Some Anecdotes of Prohibition in Noank"
2024-03-20 19:30 - 21:00 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
By Steve Jones
JOIN US: 7:30 PM—WEDNESDAY, March 20, 2024
The Latham/Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank
On January 17, 1920, the 18th Amendment went into effect, and for the next 13 years it was illegal to manufacture, sell or transport liquor in the United States. During the Prohibition, Long Island Sound became a hotbed of illicit activity as rum runners sought to smuggle foreign booze into New York City. The people of Noank had front row seats to the show. On Wednesday, March 20, local author and rum running expert, Steve Jones, will share some Noank anecdotes of the Prohibition—“anecdotes, because documentation is by nature hard to come by on an illegal trade which thrived on poor enforcement!”
The public is cordially invited. Refreshments will be served.
http://www.noankhistoricalsociety.org

Voices from the Past: Memories of Noank in Days Gone By
2023-11-15 19:30 - 21:00 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
JOIN US: 7:30 PM—WEDNESDAY, November 15, 2023
The Latham/Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank
One of the most incredible resources at the Sylvan Street Museum is the Noank Historical Society’s oral history collection. The collection includes dozens of interviews and recordings from a generation of Noankers who are no longer with us, sharing their memories of Noank from days gone by. Join us on November 15 to hear selections from this collection including stories about prohibition, the waterfront, the 1924 shipyard fire, Carson’s store, Noank’s early seafaring days and various Noank characters from Captain Adrian Lane, Jessie Carson Plumstead, Halstead Brown, Florence Oliver, Ben Rathbun, Mary Virginia Goodman and more.

The 30th Anniversary of the Noank Artists Exhibition
2023-09-20 19:30 - 21:30 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
NOANK HISTORICAL SOCIETY Presents: “The 30th Anniversary of the Noank Artists Exhibition: The artwork, the artists and their subject matter” By Tim Mockler and Sloan Keck
JOIN US: WEDNESDAY, September 20, 2023
7:30 PM
The Latham/Chester Store,
108 Main Street, Noank
In celebration of 30 years of exhibitions, first gallery director and contributing artist, Sloan Rankin, will review the creation of the Latham/Chester Store as a summer gallery. Work by some of the earliest participating artists will be on display. The evening will honor the high-liner artist, Tim Mockler, who has generously donated all the proceeds to NHS from the print pictured above. Prints will be available for purchase. Mockler will present personal memories, some imagery and speak about how the village of Noank inspires his work, past and present.
The public is cordially invited. Refreshments will be served.

The Noank Masters - A Retrospective of the Noank/Mystic Art Colony
2022-10-21 18:00 - 21:00 | The Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank, CT, 06340, United States
The Noank Masters – A Retrospective of the Noank/Mystic Art Colony
The Noank Historical Society is hosting a special viewing of original artwork by prominent members of the Noank/Mystic Art Colony (c. 1900-1950), with the collector, Jonathan Sproul. Enjoy cocktails and hors d’oeuvres as you learn about the history of the colony and its most distinguished members. We will also be hosting a raffle of an original painting by Terence Finch, “A Time and Place in Noank.”
Sponsored by: Abbotts, Noank Shipyard, The Noank Village Boatyard, The Real McCoy Rum, Spencer & Lynn, Willow Realty and Zest Bakery
Date: Friday, October 21, 2023, 6-9pm
Location: Latham-Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank.
Event Tickets: $15 advance / $20 door
Raffle Tickets: $20
