Strawbery Banke

Last Thursday Maura and I drove to Portsmouth, New Hampshire to visit the Strawbery Banke Museum, a collection of historic houses in the preserved Puddle Dock neighborhood. Maura and I met my parents, on their way back to our house from a short trip to Maine, and we explored the museum together.

Unlike similar historical attractions that recreate a village or a neighborhood at a specific time in the past, Strawbery Banke shows the whole history of the area from the first European settlement in the 17^th century up until the mid-20^th century. A few old buildings have been moved to Strawbery Banke from other places but most of the buildings are original and have been restored to an earlier appearance and configuration. Some house exhibits devoted to such topics as construction methods and local handicraft industries. Other houses have recreated rooms showing how they would have looked when they lived in at specific times in the past. Each house has been recreated as it looked in a different time. We didn’t visit every open building in Strawbery Banke but we did see houses recreated as they would have looked in the 18^th, 19^th and 20^th centuries. There are also recreated gardens and outbuildings with some of the houses.

We all had a wonderful time on our visit to Strawbery Banke. Maura and I both enjoy history, an interest we share with my parents, so I was not surprised. What made our trip extra special was the friendly and knowledgeable museum staff, both the docents on duty in some buildings and the costumed re-enactors in others. The staff members who were not re-enactors all seemed eager to pass on their knowledge and enthusiasm for the past. The historic re-enactors were just as knowledgeable and enthusiastic but also kept in character as they portrayed people who once lived in the houses where they were stationed. I was particularly impressed with Mrs. Shapiro, the woman of the house in an early 20^th century Ukrainian Jewish immigrant family.

I enjoyed the 20^th century exhibits most. I think that is because I’ve seen many house museums restored to their 18^th or 19^th century appearance but few homes furnished as they were at any time in the 20^th century. Both the Shapiro House, restored to the nineteen-teens and the World War II era Mardon-Abbot store were really fascinating. Both were staffed with costumed re-enactors but I think I would have still found them fascinating if they had not been.

During our trip Maura took advantage of a kids’ program, a scavenger hunt intended to highlight some of the open buildings. Stuffed cats were hidden in a number of the buildings for the kids to find. If they found them all they could win a prize. Maura found all of them and took home a Frisbee from the museum store. I’m happy to say that while the scavenger hunt determined what buildings we visited Maura is interested enough in history that she paid attention to things other than the cats.

After our visit we grabbed a late lunch at Geno’s, a chowder house on the waterfront a few blocks from Strawbery Banke. It was suggested to us by the museum’s parking lot attendant. We were not disappointed. The food was simple but delicious, the service was great and the deck overlooking the water was pleasant. My lobster stew was very good and I heard no complaints from anyone else. We all had strawberry rhubarb pie for desert and we all agreed it was the best we’d ever had in a restaurant.

For me the only problems with the day were in getting there and getting home. I ran into unexpected traffic on the way there and then got lost when I was leaving. It took me a while to find Interstate 95 and get headed back towards home so I reached Boston right at rush hour and spent far too long in the Central Artery Tunnel and on the Southeast Expressway. A GPS unit would have helped with this and I should have asked for directions. On a future trip I may plan on eating dinner in New Hampshire and coming back late.