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HOMESTEADING WORKSHOPS
Homesteading is a term for a "lifestyle of self-sufficiency" which describes the life of the Mather family back in 1778 when Deacon Joseph and Sarah Mather built the Homestead. Their surrounding 100 acre farm provided everything an 11 person family needed to be self-sufficient. They raised animals, grew vegetables and other crops, cooked, sewed and embroidered their clothing, canned fruits and vegetables, made candles ... and more. Our workshops give participants knowledge and hands-on experience with activities that would have been undertaken by Homesteaders. Join us!
UPCOMING WORKSHOPS
Apr 24, 2025, 6:30 PMJoin us for our third annual Night at the Mather Tavern! Featuring wine historian Charles Ludington. Food by Fine & Dandy. Tavern Food + Tavern Drink + Tavern History + Tavern Games = Tavern Fun! Colonial cocktails at 6:30 pm. Program begins 7:00 pm.
Multiple DatesApr 28, 2025, 9:30 AM – 10:30 AMRefresh 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.
May 03, 2025, 2:00 PM – 4:00 PMJoin paper flower artist Meghan Hershfield, creator of The Green Paper Flower, for a hands-on workshop. Working with hand-dyed tissue paper, craft paper, floral wire and tape, you will make your own realistic gorgeous paper dahlia! (This workshop is for adults - we will plan one soon for kids!)
May 04, 2025, 3:00 PM – 5:00 PMJoin us for fun and learning at the homestead featuring Christine's Critters plus resident literary guru Samantha Gault. First up, a discussion of "My Side of the Mountain" with interactive fun! Then, a one hour program by Christine Peyreigne featuring live hawks, falcons, owls and reptiles.
May 14, 2025, 8:30 AM – 3:30 PMField 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.
May 15, 2025, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PMSamantha 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.
May 17, 2025, 10:00 AM – 11:00 PMAs part of a program marking the 250th Anniversary of the founding of the United States, The Sons of the American Revolution have established an initiative to plant 250 Liberty Trees across the nation. The Mather Homestead will receive an elm! Join us for a dedication ceremony + bagels & coffee.
May 22, 2025, 11:30 AM – 2:00 PMJoin us for our fifth annual garden tea supporting preservation of the Mather Homestead and property. We will be joined by Fred Landman of Sleepy Cat Farm in Greenwich who will take us on a tour of the property he created as “a garden of which the house could be proud.” RAINDATE Friday May 23
May 31, 2025, 5:30 PM – 9:30 PMJoin the junior board for a summer kick off celebration in the garden featuring cocktails & heavy hors d'oeuvres from Ardens Rowayton + dancing under the stars! To benefit preservation projects at the Mather Homestead.
Jun 10, 2025, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PMArtists 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!
Jun 11, 2025, 7:00 PMWith 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.
Jun 12, 2025, 10:00 AM – 1:10 PMJoin us for a trip to Sleepy Cat Farm, home of Fred LandIn 1994, Landman purchased a Georgian Revival home on 13 acres. Landman worked with Greenwich architect Charles Hilton and noted landscape architect Charles J. Stick to create a “a garden of which the house could be proud of.”
Jun 25, 2025, 12:00 PMBring your lunch and an appetite for learning as we explore the beautiful Mather Gardens past and present. Executive Director Heather Raker and Volunteer Gardner Andy Huntington will share the property’s rich history from Native Americans to colonial farmers to modern summer escape and now museum. J
Jun 26, 2025, 7:00 PM – 9:00 PMJoin us in celebration of Juneteenth and the Fourth of July for a discussion of Frederick Douglass' speech: "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?" This speech was delivered on July 5, 1852 as an address to the Rochester Ladies' Anti-Slavery Society.
Jun 29, 2025, 4:00 PM – 5:30 PMJoin us for ICE CREAM and National Parks family fun! Upon arriving at the Homestead, you'll get your Mather passport book. Then, head to the various National Park stations where you'll learn about the national parks while playing games and having fun! For people of all ages. FREE for members!
Jul 31, 2025, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PMWe’re spicing up our literary evening with music! We’ll discuss the lyrics of Bob Dylan, considered one of the greatest lyricists of all time, and hear his music played by Parkway Ramblers!! We'll also discuss his beat poet influences - Kerouac, Ginsberg - plus Guthrie!
Date and time is TBDThis exhibit will look at Bertha Mather's legacy as preservationist of home, family and community. To open Spring 2025
by appointmentLearn about the life and legacy of Stephen Tyng Mather (1867-1930), the first Director of the National Park Service and the owner of the Homestead from 1906 to 1930. Exhibit geared towards adults PLUS "kids corner" for kids of all ages. Open hours Thurs. 6 to 7:30, Sat. 11 to 1, Sun. 1 to 3
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