On Saturday, 19 May 2018 at the historic Meetinghouse at the
First Parish, East Derry there will be a PotatoFest celebrating the introduction
of the first white potato grown in New England by the Scots Irish settlers who
arrived here in the spring of 1719. Because of its local history, in 2013 the white potato became the official state vegetable of the state of New Hampshire.
This fun history related event is co-hosted by the Friends
of the Meetinghouse and the Historical Preservation Committee. Local history will be celebrated with
activities for all ages including potato stamping, potato creatures, potato haiku. There will be information tables about the
history of Nutfield (Londonderry, Derry and Windham, New Hampshire, settled by
the Ulster Presbyterians who fled Northern Ireland). Of course, there will be food and raffles,
too. The event will be family friendly, with lots of activities for the kids.
There will be lightning talks – 12 minute presentations
about history, historical preservation, and local agriculture all throughout
the time of the PotatoFest. Some of the speakers include Paul Lindemann of the Friends of the Meetinghouse, and Mark Mastromarino of the Derry History Museum. You just might learn something new about the local
history of Derry, or about the migration story of the Scots Irish.
The Friends of the Meetinghouse will also have information available
about the renovations on the historic building, the biggest historic preservation
project currently under way in the state of New Hampshire.
The Potato Shrine in the 1960s from the book Derry Revisited, by Holmes and Dugan, 2005 |
PotatoFest 19 May 2018
10am to 2pm
Meetinghouse at First Parish
47 East Derry Road
East Derry, New Hampshire
03041
(603) 434-0628
No comments:
Post a Comment