The Children’s Hour: Three Centuries of Children’s Books and Texts from the Collections of the Newport Historical Society

This year the Rhode Island Center for the Book’s Art of the
Book Program celebrates literature created for the young and young at heart.
The Newport Historical Society is pleased to join this initiative as they debut
their latest exhibit The Children’s Hour:
Three Centuries of Children’s Books and Texts from the Collections of the
Newport Historical Society.

The Children’s Hour,
which debuted at the Museum
of Newport History on
October 1, 2013, presents a selection of 18th, 19th and 20th  century children’s books and printed
materials from the Society’s extensive collection. Highlights include the works
of 19th-century Newport
authors Susan Coolidge (What Katy Did),
Laura E. Howe Richards (Captain January)
and Clement C. Moore (A Visit from St.
Nicholas). Children’s educational materials will also be exhibited such
as 19th and 20th century primers, a penmanship book and a unique 1803 “game”
comprised of pictures and sight words.

“We are so pleased to again be a part of the statewide Art
of the Book program facilitated by the Rhode Island Center
for the Book,” explains NHS Collections Assistant Jennifer Robinson who is
curating the exhibit. “It has provided a great opportunity to present materials
from our collection which have rarely been displayed to the public. Children’s
books have a universal quality – and I think visitors will find it interesting
to compare our examples to stories they might remember from childhood.”

Founded in 2003, The Rhode Island Center for the
Book is an affiliate of The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress in
Washington, D.C. Institutions participating in 2013 Art of the Book Program include:
The John Carter Brown Library at Brown University, Pettaquamscutt Historical
Society, Providence Athenaeum, Providence Library, Redwood Library and
Athenaeum, Rhode Island Historical Society, Rhode Island School of Design
Library and Western Rhode Island Civic Historical Society.

The Children’s Hour:
Three Centuries of Children’s Books and Texts from the Collections of the
Newport Historical Society runs at the Museum of Newport History,
located in the Brick Market: Museum & Shop, 127 Thames Street, Newport,
RI beginning October 1, 2013
through January 2014. Museum admission is free, suggested donation is $4 per
person. The museum is open daily at 10am, closed major holidays. For additional
information call: 401-841-8770.