All in the ‘family’
Summer fun abounds at Seward House
Come to Seward House in 2008 for a summer of learning and family fun. Tours, lectures and the museum’s annual garden party will make this a summer to remember.
The Seward House Brown Bag Lecture Series begins Wednesday, June 25. Throughout the summer, visitors are invited to bring their lunch and enjoy talks covering a variety of historical topics, including the Seward family on Owasco Lake and Francis B. Carpenter’s painting “The First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation.” Lectures are at noon on the following Wednesdays: June 25, July 9 and 23, and Aug. 6 and 20. Admission is free and no registration is required.
On Saturday, July 12, Seward House hosts a garden party and open house from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visitors can enjoy selfguided tours through 15 historic rooms, then stroll into the garden for refreshments, children’s crafts and Victorian lawn games. Admission is free.
Throughout the year, Seward House offers a special tour, “Speaking for Themselves: Women of Seward House,” focusing on the women of the Seward family.
“The Seward women were deeply interested in a number of reform movements like abolitionism, women’s suffrage and education reform,” said Jennifer Haines, curator of education and outreach. “Using original family correspondence, we can hear their words and discover the significant contributions they made during their lives.”
“Speaking for Themselves” is held the first Saturday of each month – June 7, July 5, Aug. 2 and Sept. 6 – at 1 p.m. The cost is the regular museum admission: $6 for adults; $5 for AAA/seniors; $2 for students; and free for children under 12. To register, call (315) 252-1283. Group tours can also be arranged.
Seward House, a designated National Historic Landmark, is located at 33 South St. in Auburn. It was the home of William Henry Seward (1801-72), governor of New York, a state and U.S. senator and secretary of state to Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson. As secretary of state under President Johnson, Seward negotiated the purchase of the Alaskan territory, derided by critics as “Seward’s Folly.”
Regular hours are Tuesday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Extended summer hours begin July 1: Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday 1 to 4 p.m. Please call (315) 252-1283 or visit www.sewardhouse.org for further information.