CMDR. David G. Farragut and his flagship, USS HARTFORD – the subject of historian A. Wilson Greene’s talk on May 22.

Historian A. Wilson Greene will present a lecture titled The Day the South Lost the War: The Fall of New Orleans on Tuesday, May 22 at 7:00 p.m., in the Cook Memorial Theater, New Bedford Whaling Museum.

The free public lecture is presented in partnership with the New Bedford Civil War Roundtable, New Bedford Historical Society, Friends of the New Bedford Free Public Library, and Fort Taber ~ Fort Rodman Military Museum.

The illustrated talk will focus on the combined Union naval and army operation in the spring of 1862 that resulted in the capture of the Confederacy’s largest city and most important port – New Orleans, Louisiana.

A complacent Confederate military placed unwarranted confidence in two large masonry forts more than sixty miles downstream from New Orleans to protect the key city on the Gulf Coast. A flotilla commanded by David Farragut and innovative mortar boats led by David D. Porter along with a newly-recruited army—primarily from New England’s maritime communities—arrived below the forts in April 1862. The result would be a dramatic conflict in which the Union navy eventually bulled its way past the Confederate bastions and steamed up to the New Orleans levees, giving the North a pivotal victory in the war.

Will Greene received his M.A. in History at Louisiana State University and spent sixteen years as historian and manager with the National Park Service, with assignments that included the Fredericksburg National Military Park (VA), Independence National Historical Park (PA), Chalmette National Historical Park (LA), Gulf Islands National Seashore (FL), Shenandoah National Park (VA), and the Petersburg National Battlefield (VA). He served as president and executive director of the Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites (now the Civil War Trust). Since 1995 he has been the Executive Director of the Pamplin Historical Park and the National Museum of the Civil War Soldier, Petersburg, VA.

A widely published author on the Civil War, Will has led more than 40 Smithsonian Institute tours and seminars covering all the major Civil War campaigns. He has spoken at over 100 Civil War Roundtables and has presented lectures for the Civil War Society, Blue and Gray Education Society, Campaigning with Lee Seminar, and many national symposiums and seminars.

At 3:00 p.m., the museum’s Volunteer Council will host a “Volunteer and Trustee Remembrance” in the Seamen’s Bethel, located adjacent to the museum on Johnny Cake Hill. Family, friends and associates are invited to join volunteers and the board of trustees as they gather in fond remembrance of departed members.

At 4:00 p.m. the 109th Annual Meeting of the Old Dartmouth Historical Society – New Bedford Whaling Museum takes place in the Cook Memorial Theater and includes a review of the past year’s activities, election of officers, and incoming members of the Board of Trustees, Class of 2015.

Immediately following the Annual Meeting, the 3rd annual graduation ceremony for the graduating apprentices of the New Bedford Whaling Museum Apprentice Program, Class of 2012 will commence in the Theater.

At 5:30 p.m. by an exhibition of new paintings titled Dora Atwater Millikin: New Bedford Harbor Today, opens in the Centre Street Gallery – Level II. A reception in the Jacobs Family Gallery follows the opening.

Mark Leary, Korey Martin and Dana Costa install custom doors and panels made by GNB Voc-Tech carpentry students for “Scrimshaw: Shipboard Art of the Whalers” opening May 13, 2pm.

Building the many and varied display cases needed for the world’s largest scrimshaw exhibit would have been a daunting task were it not for the students of Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School. Voc-Tech’s carpentry classes fabricated more than 29 custom doors and viewing panels for the new gallery, set to open to the public on Mothers Day, Sunday, May 13 at 2:00 p.m.

James Russell, museum president, lauded the students’ work, noting “How great is it that much of what we admire in the museum’s collection was made by master craftsmen! Today, skilled students from Voc-Tech are back at the museum, helping to build exhibits that house these masterpieces – to be enjoyed by New Bedford residents and visitors for years to come.”

The museum’s staff, designers and carpenters worked with GNB Voc-Tech’s coordinator of construction projects, Robert Gomes, and carpentry teacher, Donald Derosiers, on the exacting specifications for the elaborate cabinetry required to exhibit hundreds of rare examples of scrimshaw – the 19th century shipboard art of whalers. Students utilized the school’s state-of-the-art CNC (computer numerical control) milling machinery to create the seamless doorframes and panels.

Master carpenter, Dana Costa, rebuilt and refitted existing museum cases and installed the Voc-Tech components with the assistance of Mark Leary and Korey Martin.

The exhibit opening caps the museum’s 23rd annual Scrimshaw Weekend, May 11-13, which attracts scrimshaw experts, collectors and fans from around the world. Titled Scrimshaw: Shipboard Art of the Whalers, the exhibit is curated Dr. Stuart M. Frank, Senior Curator, with the assistance of museum volunteers John Antones, Richard Donnelly, Michael Gerstein, Vasant Gideon, Judith Lund, Barbara Moss, Sanford Moss, Catherine Reynolds and James Vaccarino.

The largest permanent exhibit of its kind, Scrimshaw: Shipboard Art of the Whalers coincides with the launch of a major new book on scrimshaw, titled Ingenious Contrivances, Curiously Carved: Scrimshaw in the New Bedford Whaling Museum by Dr. Frank – a 400-page reference with more than 700 photographs by Richard Donnelly.

Admission to the Sunday opening of the scrimshaw exhibit and book launch: regular admission rates apply. In honor of Mother’s Day, mothers are admitted free when accompanied by at least one member of her family.

The Stone Fleet, which sailed from New Bedford, Nov. 16, 1861, by Benjamin Russell (1804-1885). It will be one of many images from the Whaling Museum discussed in “The Visual Culture of the Civil War Era.”

Keith Kauppila, Esq. will present an illustrated lecture titled The Visual Culture of the Civil War, on Thursday, May 3 at 7:30 p.m., Cook Memorial Theater, New Bedford Whaling Museum. A reception at 6:30 p.m. in the Jacobs Family Gallery precedes the lecture.

This lecture is part of the 2012 Old Dartmouth Lyceum series, and one of three Civil War related programs being offer by area organizations, including the New Bedford Historical Society, Friends of the New Bedford Free Public Library, New Bedford Civil War Roundtable, and Fort Taber~Fort Rodman Military Museum.

 Mr. Kauppila will discuss perspectives on painting inspired by the “War Between the States.” Several pieces from theWhalingMuseumcollection will be highlighted during this presentation. Mr. Kauppila has a deep interest in the visual and decorative arts and has been active on the museum’s collections committee. He currently serves on the Board of Governors at the Addison Gallery of American Art atPhillipsAcademy.

Other Civil War related programs include:

April 27:  “New Bedford’s Civil War” Professor Earl Mulderink, author of a new book published by Fordham University Press, titled New Bedford’s Civil War will present an illustrated talk on his research on Friday, April 27 at 7:00 p.m. at the Whaling Museum.  This free program is part of a national book tour and includes a book-signing. It is co-sponsored by the New Bedford Historical Society, Friends of the New Bedford Public Library, Fort Taber~Fort Rodman Military Museum, New Bedford Civil War Roundtable, and the New Bedford Whaling Museum.

May 22: “The Day the South Lost the War: The Fall of New Orleans” Historian A. Wilson Greene will present an illustrated lecture titled The Day the South Lost the War: The Fall of New Orleans on Tuesday, May 22 at 7:00 p.m. at the Whaling Museum. This free lecture focuses on the combinedUnion naval and army operation in the spring of 1862 that resulted in the capture of the Confederacy’s largest city and most important port. Presented in association with theNew Bedford Civil War Round Table, Mr. Greene has been Study Leader for more than 40 Smithsonian Institute tours and seminars covering all the major Civil War campaigns and has spoken to more than 100 Civil War Roundtables across the country.

Old Dartmouth Lyceum admission on May 3: $15 members; $20 non-members. For tickets, call (508) 997-0046 Ext. 100. The lectures on April 27 and May 22 are free.

The New Bedford Whaling Museum 2012 Speakers’ Series, of which the Old Dartmouth Lyceum is a part, is presented by BayCoast Bank, and sponsored in part by C.E. Beckman, and Hampton Inn Fairhaven/New Bedford.

Kirk J. Nelson

Kirk J. Nelson will present an illustrated lecture titled New Bedford Glass and Its Context on Thursday, April 26 at 7:30 p.m. – part of the 2012 Old Dartmouth Lyceum lecture series on fine and decorative arts. A reception at 6:30 p.m. in the Jacobs Family Gallery precedes the lecture.

Mr. Nelson is executive director of the New Bedford Museum of Glass, located at 61 Wamsutta Street. He earned his MA degree and Certificate of Museum Studies from the Winterthur Program in Early American Culture at the Winterthur Museum and the University of Delaware. An expert on the development of the American glass press during the 1820s and 1830s, Mr. Nelson is an Honorary Fellow of the Corning Museum of Glass, former Curator of Glass at the Sandwich Glass Museum and former Curator of Art & Decorative Arts at the Bennington Museum. He has lectured and published extensively on a wide variety of glass-related subjects. His practical glass working experience includes Pairpoint Crystal, Inc. of Sagamore, Massachusetts, and the operation of a glass studio in East Sandwich.

In 1993, Mr. Nelson was one of five founding trustees to establish the Glass Art Center, Inc., which was affiliated with Bradford College in Bradford, Massachusetts. After the closing of the college the Center relocated to New Bedford and reincorporated in 2006 as the New Bedford Museum of Glass.

The museum collection consists of 7,000 objects documenting more than 3,000 years of glassmaking history. It covers many regions and periods, from ancient to contemporary, with special emphasis on the city of New Bedford, celebrated in the late 19th century as the “Art Glass Headquarters of the Country.” Rose Amber glass, Crown Milano, Royal Flemish, Burmese and Lava glass are just a few of the exotic lines developed in New Bedford.

The museum’s library holds more than 8,000 volumes in ten languages on glass related topics, including the Shirley Collection of the Mount Washington Glass Company – containing the firm’s original glass patents, trade catalogs, correspondence, photographs, and international awards.

Admission to the lecture and reception: $15 members; $20 non-members. For tickets, call (508) 997-0046 Ext. 100.

The 2012 Speakers’ Series is presented by BayCoast Bank, and sponsored in part by C.E. Beckman, and Hampton Inn Fairhaven/New Bedford.

Rich Wilson

Famed circumnavigator Rich Wilson will give an illustrated talk titled Race France to France, Leave Antarctica to Starboard: An American in the Vendee Globe on Thursday, April 19 at 7:30 p.m., Cook Memorial Theater, New Bedford Whaling Museum. A reception at 6:30 p.m. in the Jacobs Family Gallery precedes the lecture.

Wilson finished ninth in the world renowned Vendée Globe 2008-9 – the solo, non-stop, sailing race around the world.

The Vendée Globe race instructions are simple: “start at Les Sables d’Olonne (France), leave Cape of Good Hope (South Africa) to port, leave Cape Leeuwin (Australia) to port, leave Cape Horn (Chile) to port, leave Antarctica to starboard, finish at Les Sables d’Olonne; 26,000 miles, 100 days, solo, nonstop, without assistance, in 60’ sailboats.”

It wasn’t so simple. Wilson endured broken ribs, a facial gash, compressed vertebrae, hurricane force gales, an ascent up the 90’ mast, crushing fatigue, fear, and gear breakage in braving the course via the Atlantic, Indian and PacificOceans, Cape of Good Hope and Cape Horn, in his 60’ mono hull Great American III. A dedicated educator, Wilson connected his voyage to 250,000 students and 7 million readers by publication of a 15-part weekly series (written aboard ship) in 50 U.S. Newspapers, and by his website, www.sitesalive.com. Schools in 15 countries participated online.

Admission: $15 members; $20 non-members. For tickets, call (508) 997-0046 Ext. 100.

The 2012 Speakers’ Series is presented by BayCoast Bank, and sponsored in part by C.E. Beckman, and Hampton Inn Fairhaven/New Bedford.

Captain Sean S. Bercaw

Captain of the Amistad, former Naval Officer and Master Mariner, Sean S. Bercaw has sailed over 160,000 nautical miles under sail. He shares the fascinating narrative of sailing the Amistad reproduction, in 2010, into the Cuban waters where the 1839 story – which was the subject of the 1997 Steven Spielberg movie, Amistad – began. The revolt of the Amistad’s African captives, their takeover of the ship and the ensuing court battle is an inspiring human story that, in a case successfully argued by former President John Quincy Adams, culminated in their freedom being granted by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Admission: $15 members; $20 non-members. For tickets, call (508) 997-0046 Ext. 100.

The 2012 lecture series is presented by BayCoast Bank, and sponsored in part by C.E. Beckman, and Hampton Inn Fairhaven/New Bedford.

In making the announcement, museum president James Russell applauded the Jessie Ball duPont Fund for investing in education in New Bedford and for strengthening the museum’s capacity to provide high quality public programs. Sustaining these programs is a top priority for the Museum’s Board of Trustees and Docent Volunteer Corps. He noted that the Museum’s educational mandate can continue without interruption in 2012.

Additionally Mr. Russell noted how gratifying it is that the work of the museum’s educators is getting recognized at a national level. It is a testament to the quality of their programs.

James Lopes, vice president of education and programming, said, “ The duPont grant will allow us to continue our educational mission and to expand access to our programs through the website, utilizing the museum’s vast collections. We restored Paul Cuffe to the forefront of regional history and we foster community-wide reading through popular public programs like the Moby-Dick Marathon with duPont’s help.”

The award provides substantial support to the museum’s youth apprenticeship program, a skills-development and professional work experience program for qualifying high school students in New Bedford that includes paid stipends to students totaling more than $44,000 per year.

Dr. Mary Louise Francis, Superintendent of New Bedford Public Schools, called the museum “an important strategic partner in education and particularly for my school district, noting that it provides “a unique immersive educational experience unparalleled in the region.”

In 2011, the Museum welcomed 3,431 New Bedford students K-12 free of charge from 36 schools and student organizations for standards-based programs in science and history. All New Bedford students will receive free admission to the museum under the grant.

The Museum’s 85 active docents and volunteer corps contributed 23,321 hours – valued at more than $350,000 – to educational programming, student and public tours, community events, exhibitions, research and operations. They welcomed more than 90,000 visitors to the museum last year.

According to the New England Foundation for the Arts CultureCount Database, the museum generates an $8 million impact in cultural economic development for New Bedford. It regularly hosts community meetings and forums on a wide range of public issues and welcomes dignitaries and elected officials, showcasing the city’s illustrious maritime past to business leaders and economic development prospects.

Portuguese King João V with Chocolate, dated 1720, courtesy of the Instituto Português dos Museus, Lisbon, Portugal, illustrates the importance of chocolate in the royal courts of Europe. Four lectures by chocolate historians and demonstrations of early American chocolate-making are part of "Valentine's Day II - Chocolate Day," Feb.25 (used with permission).

Mocha Dick is purported to have been a real sperm whale that terrorized whaling crews in the 1830s. Some scholars believe he was the inspiration for Herman Melville’s great white whale, Moby-Dick. Beyond this obscure reference to mocha, is there any connection between 19th century American Whaling and chocolate? It turns out there is. Chocolate will be the subject of Valentine’s Day II – Chocolate Day, with four free public lectures by chocolate experts, demonstrations in colonial chocolate-making and sampling on Saturday, February 25, 2012 from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Whaling Museum.

Chocolate became a highly regarded addition to ship’s fare on whaling and merchant vessels according to a recently published book, Chocolate: History Culture and Heritage. Three of the book’s contributing authors will present illustrated lectures and demonstrations on chocolate. Learn where chocolate comes from, how it came to colonial New England, and how cocoa was made in early America.

The day’s activities are sponsored in part by American Heritage Chocolate® – part of the historic division of Mars, Incorporated – which manufactures chocolate products using authentic colonial recipes made only from ingredients available during the 18th century, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, chili pepper, orange and vanilla. To ensure historical accuracy, Mars conducted extensive historical research on chocolate, working with the University of California at Davis. Over 150 researchers and historians from historic sites and universities across the globe contributed to the 1000-page textbook – considered a definitive reference on the history of chocolate and its development as a global industry. Edited by Louis E. Grivetti and Howard-Yana Shapiro, and published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., copies of the book, signed by the authors, will be available at the Museum store. American Heritage Chocolate will also be available for sale.

Timothy D. Walker, Ph.D., will present A History of Chocolate: Where it comes from and how it was made in early New England at 12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. in the Cook Memorial Theater.

Dr. Walker is an Associate Professor of History, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, where he is also the Fulbright Program Advisor for faculty and students. He has served as Associate Director of the Center for Portuguese Studies and Culture, is a member of the graduate faculty of the Department of Portuguese Studies, and is an Affiliated Researcher of the Centro de História de Além-Mar (CHAM), Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal. A New Bedford resident, Dr. Walker was recently named a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellow.

Christopher Kelly will present: Chocolate at Sea: Use Aboard Whaling and Merchant Ships in the 19th Century, 1:00 p.m. in the theater.

Christopher Kelly is a writer, musician, and filmmaker from southeastern, Massachusetts. A graduate of UMass Dartmouth’s History program, he spent 2006-2007 conducting research on the use of chocolate aboard nineteenth century New Bedford whaling voyages that ultimately culminated in a chapter in the book, Chocolate: History Culture and Heritage. He currently lives in Providence, Rhode Island.

Rodney Snyder will present Chocolate is American History at 2:00 p.m. in the Cook Memorial Theater.

Rodney Snyder is the Chocolate History Research Director for The Historic Division of Mars. He has been researching cocoa for Mars, Incorporated for more than 25 years. In his quest to locate the best tasting cocoa beans, he has visited all of the major cocoa growing regions such as West Africa, South America, the Caribbean, and South Asia. After having roasted every type of cocoa, he can identify the origin of cocoa beans by their flavor and aroma. He is the author of From Stone Metates to Steel Mills: The Evolution of Chocolate Manufacture, a chapter included in the book.

Admission is free to Valentine’s Day II – Chocolate Day, which takes place in the Jacobs Family Gallery and the Cook Memorial Theater. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Regular admission rates apply to the Museum galleries. Chocolate Day wraps up a week of school vacation week activities.

The 16th annual Moby-Dick Marathon celebrates the 160th anniversary of Herman Melville’s literary masterpiece with a 25-hour nonstop reading of the book during a weekend of activities and events, January 6 – 8, 2012, including a performance by the critically acclaimed American tenor, Jonathan Boyd. Admission is free.

On Friday, January 6 at 5:30 p.m. the weekend kicks off with a ticketed buffet dinner and cash bar in the Jacobs Family Gallery. For tickets to the dinner ($25), call (508) 997-0046 ext. 100.

Dinner will be followed by a free public lecture titled “Moby-Dick in American Popular Culture,” presented by Dr. Timothy Marr, at 7:15 p.m. in the Cook Memorial Theater. Co-editor of “Ungraspable Phantom: Essays on Moby-Dick,” Professor Marr teaches American Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He serves as an executive member of the Melville Society Cultural Project and is a contributor to the Melville and the Digital Humanities project of the Melville Electronic Library.

On Saturday, January 7 at 10:00 a.m., “Stump the Scholars II,” returns by popular demand – a free program in which the audience is invited to pose questions to Melville Society scholars on all matters Moby-Dick in the Cook Memorial Theater. Patterned after NPR’s popular quiz show, “Wait, wait, don’t tell me,” prizes will be awarded to those who can stump the scholars.

At 11:30 a.m. in the Bourne Building, Melville Society members will read many of the 80 brief Extracts related to whales and whaling, which Melville included before Chapter 1.

At noon, the Moby-Dick Marathon begins with “Call me Ishmael” – the most famous opening line in American literature. With more than 150 scheduled readers, the marathon will continue through the night, ending early Sunday afternoon. All reading slots have been booked. The public is cordially invited to come and go at any time during the marathon, or stay for the entire 25 hours and win a prize.

On Saturday at approximately 1:30 p.m., marathon participants will walk next door to the historic Seamen’s Bethel (est. 1832) – located at 15

Tenor Jonathan Boyd will sing at the marathon, Jan. 7. Boyd stars in Jake Heggie's new opera, Moby-Dick, which premieres at the San Diego Opera in February. (photo: www.uzanartists.com)

Johnny Cake Hill for the reading of Chapters 7, 8, and 9, titled “The Chapel,” The Pulpit,” and “The Sermon” – all three chapters take place in the original “Whaleman’s Chapel.” This segment will feature a performance by Jonathan Boyd, the critically acclaimed American tenor starring in the San Diego Opera’s co-production of Jake Heggie’s “Moby-Dick,” a new opera hailed “a triumph” by the Dallas Morning News. Boyd has made recent notable debuts at Opéra de Nice and Opéra de Toulon, and has performed with opera companies throughout the United States. He will sing the hymn from Chapter 9.

Readers and guests are also invited to “Chat with a Melville Scholar” from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the Wattles Family Gallery or take a guided tour of the “Imagining Moby!” exhibit with Dr. Robert Wallace, Northern Kentucky University.

Chapter 40, “Midnight, Forecastle” will be performed in the Cook Memorial Theater by members of Culture*Park, a theater and performing arts collaborative.

The Museum’s website www.whalingmuseum.org will provide live streaming of the marathon throughout the weekend. Tweet the marathon with hashtag #MDM16.

Three related exhibits during the marathon include, “Imagining Moby!,” “Visualizing Melville” and the 1956 Moby-Dick publicity panels. “Imagining Moby!” showcases the collection of Melville scholar, Dr. Elizabeth A. Schultz, including works by Leonard Baskin, Richard Ellis and Rockwell Kent in the Centre Street Gallery, Level 2. “Visualizing Melville” pairs items from the Museum’s collections with Melville’s vivid text, including “Quakers with a vengeance” and “a heathenish array of monstrous clubs and spears” in the Changing Gallery, Level 2. The 1956 Moby-Dick publicity panels feature movie memorabilia displayed in the windows of the Research Library.

Images related to the book will also be projected in the Cook Memorial Theater throughout the marathon, presented by the Museum’s youth apprentices.

A midwinter tradition, attracting hundreds of Melville fans from around the world, the marathon marks the anniversary of Melville’s January 1841 departure from the port of New Bedford and Fairhaven aboard the whale ship, Acushnet.

Refreshments will be available throughout the Marathon.

This year’s marathon is a program of MOBY! – a partnership of the New Bedford Whaling Museum, the Zeiterion Performing Arts Center and New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park to celebrate the iconic tale of the ‘Great White Whale’ and is funded through a grant from the Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations (ECHO), administered by the United States Department of Education, Office of Innovation and Improvement.

Moby-Dick Marathon Weekend Schedule of Events

Friday, January 6

5:30 p.m.: Ticketed buffet dinner and cash bar, Jacobs Family Gallery.

7:15 p.m.: Public lecture, “Moby-Dick in American Popular Culture,” with Dr. Timothy Marr, Cook Memorial Theater.

Saturday, January 7

10:00 a.m.: Stump the Scholars II, Cook Memorial Theater.

11:30 a.m.: Moby-Dick “Extracts,” Bourne Building.

12:00 noon: Moby-Dick Marathon begins, Bourne Building.

1:30 p.m. (approx.): Chapters 7– 9 in the Seamen’s Bethel with tenor Jonathan Boyd.

2:30 p.m. (approx.): Marathon continues, Jacobs Family Gallery.

3:00-5:00 p.m.: Chat with a Melville scholar, Wattles Family Gallery.

3:00-5:00 p.m.: “Imaging Moby!” tour with Dr. Robert Wallace, Centre Street Gallery.

7:00 p.m. (approx.): Chapter 35 to Chapter 40. “Midnight, Forecastle” performed by Culture*Park, Cook Memorial Theater.

8:00 p.m. (approx.): Marathon continues, Jacobs Family Gallery.

Sunday, January 8

1:00 p.m. (approx.): Marathon concludes with the Epilogue.

Ongoing related exhibits: “Imagining Moby!,” “Visualizing Melville” and the 1956 Moby-Dick publicity panels. Moby-Dick slide show, Cook Memorial Theater.