Nathan Merrill, Stratham Heritage Commission Chair
Monica Reuss, American Art Specialist

While well known as a visitor to the Isles of Shoals and for his captivating paintings of them, it is largely unknown that Childe Hassam was a frequent summertime guest at the Whitcomb farm (today’s Stuart farm) in Stratham between 1900-1918. Recent research has uncovered over thirty of Hassam’s works created in Stratham, many of which depict scenes that had previously been unidentified. Residing in museum collections across the country, they have rarely been seen together. This program will highlight Hassam’s importance to American Impressionism and present images of Hassam’s local paintings, watercolors & etchings done in the early 20th century alongside historical and contemporary photographs of the same views. The locales include Stratham Hill, the old Winnicutt mill pond, the Squamscott River drawbridge, multiple scenes around Stuart Farm, including several riverside views of Newfields village, and views of Portsmouth.