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HOMESTEAD HAPPENINGS

There's lots happening at the Homestead! 
We are bringing history to life through lectures, reenactments, literary workshops, kids learning & fun, art-at-mather, music-at-mather, field trips and more!
Upcoming events below ...

  • Vinyasa Yoga with Mary Ann
    Vinyasa Yoga with Mary Ann
    Feb 24, 2025, 9:30 AM – 10:30 AM
    Refresh your mind and energy with this revitalizing practice to uplift and restore your entire system. Enjoy a well-paced flow that will offer you just the right amount of challenge while encouraging strength, resistance, and flexibility while reducing tension in the hips, back and shoulders.
  • Black History Month Lecture:  Brigadier General Charles Young, first black National Park Superintendent
    Black History Month Lecture:  Brigadier General Charles Young, first black National Park Superintendent
    Feb 26, 2025, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
    Author Brian Shellum will share the fascinating life of Charles Young (1864-1922), born into slavery in Kentucky, who was the third Black graduate of the United States Military Academy, first Black U.S. national park superintendent, first Black military attaché, and first black Colonel in the Army.
  • Poetry with Samantha:  William Butler Yeats
    Poetry with Samantha:  William Butler Yeats
    Feb 27, 2025, 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
    In February, we will discuss one of poetry's greats: William Butler Yeats (1865 – 1939). Yeats was an Irish poet, dramatist and writer, and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. We'll discuss his poetry as well as his "tangled" love life!
  • Kids Book Club + Craft with Samantha:  "Lyddie" by Newbury Award Winning Katherine Paterson
    Kids Book Club + Craft with Samantha:  "Lyddie" by Newbury Award Winning Katherine Paterson
    Mar 02, 2025, 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM
    Samantha will lead an educational, interactive and fun discussion of "Lyddie". It tells the story of a nineteenth century girl and her brother who are hired out as servants to pay their family farm's debts. Lyddie is recommended for ages 8 to 12, grades 3 to 7.
  • Fun + Learning for Kids (Darien Public Schools Conference Days)
    Fun + Learning for Kids (Darien Public Schools Conference Days)
    Mar 19, 2025, 2:00 PM – Mar 21, 2025, 3:30 PM
    Kids - Join us for fun + learning at the Mather Homestead on March conference days! Day #1: Escape the Tories! Day #2: Fun at the National Parks! Day #3: Mather Crafts & Games! Reco grades 3-5.
  • Poetry with Samantha:  Elizabeth Bishop
    Poetry with Samantha:  Elizabeth Bishop
    Mar 19, 2025, 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
    Join us during women’s history month for a discussion of the work of poet and short story writer Elizabeth Bishop (1911-1979) who has been called "one of the most important poets of the 20th century" by The NY Times.
  • Lecture:  Women Architects at Work
    Lecture:  Women Architects at Work
    Mar 27, 2025, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
    Authors Kevin D. Murphy and Mary Anne Hunting will discuss a topic near and dear to the Mather Homestead's heart -- female architects, as Bertha Mather McPherson was one of Connecticut's first female architects. Four local renowned local female architects will then join a panel discussion.
  • Book Club with Samantha:  Harlem Rhapsody
    Book Club with Samantha:  Harlem Rhapsody
    Apr 02, 2025, 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
    From the author of the Personal Librarian (discussed in 2022) comes "a page turner and history lesson at once." Victoria Christopher Murray's book, to be released on February 4, is gripping narrative about the woman who kicked off the Harlem Renaissance, Jessie Redmon Fauset.
  • Kids at Mather:  Architecture 101
    Kids at Mather:  Architecture 101
    Apr 05, 2025, 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM
    Kids! Join us at the home of one of CT's first female architects to learn about architecture! Local "A List" architect Matthew Dougherty will introduce the basics of architecture -- then we'll build! We hope kids will leave with a greater appreciation for and interest in architecture.
  • Make Modern Comes to Mather:  Embroidery Sampler
    Make Modern Comes to Mather:  Embroidery Sampler
    May 10, 2025, 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
    Make-Modern is coming back to Mather for an embroidery workshop! Erika Allen will teach your children how to create a gorgeous sampler, just like the Mathers did in the 19th century. Ages: 2nd - 5th Grade. All materials + snacks provided.
  • Field Trip to the Hill-Stead and Avon Old Farms School
    Field Trip to the Hill-Stead and Avon Old Farms School
    May 14, 2025, 8:30 AM – 3:30 PM
    Field trip to two of Theodate Pope Riddle's greatest achievements - Hill-Stead, Riddle's family estate, and the Avon Old Farms School. Carpool. Boxed lunch provided.
  • Book Club with Samantha:  Dearest of Geniuses - a Life of Theodate Pope Riddle
    Book Club with Samantha:  Dearest of Geniuses - a Life of Theodate Pope Riddle
    May 15, 2025, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
    Samantha will lead us through a discussion of a this fascinating book about one of the first American women architects and a survivor of the sinking of the RMS Lusitania. 
  • 2025 Garden Tea
    2025 Garden Tea
    May 22, 2025, 11:30 AM – 2:00 PM
    Join us for our fifth annual garden tea supporting preservation of the Mather Homestead and property. More details to follow soon.
  • Plein Air at the Mather Homestead   June 8 to June 15 - please RSVP for lunch on June 10th!
    Plein Air at the Mather Homestead   June 8 to June 15 - please RSVP for lunch on June 10th!
    Jun 10, 2025, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM
    Artists and aspiring artists are invited to enjoy the Mather Homestead property from June 8 through June 15. Come to paint, draw, photograph and be inspired!! Lunch event on Tuesday, June 10th. Raindate June 12th. Please RSVP!
  • Brown Bag lecture featuring Artscapades - Gardenscapes: From Vista to Vase
    Brown Bag lecture featuring Artscapades - Gardenscapes: From Vista to Vase
    Jun 11, 2025, 12:30 PM
    With a focus on Impressionism, ArtScapades will look at how gardens and flowers played an important role in the works of artists throughout history, including Hieronymus Bosch, Gustav Klimt, Wassily Kandinsky, and Henri Rousseau, Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, Mary Cassatt, and Vincent Van Gogh.
  • Literary Lyrics with Samantha: Dylan!
    Literary Lyrics with Samantha: Dylan!
    Date and time is TBD
    We’re spicing up our literary evening with music! We’ll discuss the lyrics of Bob Dylan, considered one of the greatest songwriters of all time, and hear his music played by Parkway Ramblers!! We'll also discuss his beat poet influences - Kerouac, Ginsberg - plus Guthrie!
  • Exhibit - Bertha Mather McPherson: A Legacy of Preservation
    Exhibit - Bertha Mather McPherson: A Legacy of Preservation
    Date and time is TBD
    This exhibit will look at Bertha Mather's legacy as preservationist of home, family and community. To open Spring 2025
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