Historic Stonington

Behind Stonington's Door: Step Inside - A Walking Tour of Historic Homes
2025-10-11 10:00 - 16:00 (America/New_York)
Tickets are $40.00 in advance, $50.00 at the door.
Walking Tour: Saturday, October 11, 2025, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
Rain or Shine.

Offices and Library Closed
2025-10-13 08:00 - 17:00

Let's Build It! Historic Stonington
2025-11-08 12:30 - 17:00
“Let’s Build It!” is a family friendly event where teams use building blocks to construct a 3D map of historic Stonington. Hosted by Historic Stonington and the Stonington Community Center (COMO), it is scheduled for Saturday, November 8, 2025, from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at the COMO Gym. Participants aged 7 and up work together to recreate landmarks and celebrate the town’s history.

Event details

What: “Let’s Build It! Building Block Workshop”

Who: Hosted by Historic Stonington and the Stonington Community Center (COMO)

When: Saturday, November 8, 2025, from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM DOORS OPEN AT 12:30!

Where: COMO Gym, 28 Cutler St, Stonington, CT

What to expect: Teams of up to 4 people will build iconic Stonington landmarks on a giant map, guided by architect Stephen W. Schwartz.

Cost: The event has a nominal fee for teams, with tickets available online.

Registration: the como.org/como-events/

How to participate

Form a team: Teams can have up to four members.

Gather your team: Participants must be age 7 or older.

Get tickets: Visit the COMO website for registration details and to purchase tickets.

Build: Attend the event at the COMO Gym on November 8, 2025, where your team will receive a historic landmark to recreate.

Deck the Walls Preview Party
2025-12-04 18:00 - 20:00 | Captain Palmer House
A kick-off to the holidays preview party for Deck the Walls, where you will have the exclusive opportunity to preview and purchase wreaths before the auction opens!
Captain N.B. Palmer House on December 4, 2025 6pm – 8pm

Deck the Walls Auction & Open House
2025-12-05 10:00 - 14:00, 2025-12-06 10:00 - 14:00 | Captain Palmer House
Deck the Walls Auction and Open House is being held on December 5 and 6 from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm! This event is FREE

The Nightcap Before Christmas
2025-12-17 17:00 - 19:00 | Captain Palmer House
Join us for our annual holiday cocktail tasting – the Nightcap Before Christmas! On Wednesday, December 17th from 5pm to 7pm, at the Captain Nathaniel B. Palmer House.
Our Librarian Chelsea Mitchell will guide you through a tasting of drinks popular during the American Revolution.
Tickets are $25 each and are available on our website. Let’s party like its 1775!
Please note this event is 21+.
There are only 30 spots available for this very popular event, so be sure to reserve your tickets now!

Changing Course with author Peter J. Emanuel Jr.
2026-01-22 18:00 - 19:30 | Captain Palmer House
Looking for something to break up the dreary winter nights? Come join us for a fascinating talk with local author and historian, Peter J. Emanuel Jr. Some of you might recognize him as a former music and history teacher at the Williams School. Emanuel’s book, “Course Change” explores the role of the New London whaleship, Stonington, as it unwittingly becomes embroiled in an international conflict.
The Stonington, a whaleship from New London, Connecticut, is sailing a course for home after being at sea for more than three years. When it pulls into San Diego, California in September 1846 for food and supplies, the crew learns that war has broken out between the United States and Mexico. The town is under siege by Mexican forces, leaving the US inhabitants no escape route but the sea. In response to their desperate situation, the Stonington’s captain allows them to take refuge aboard his ship. Thus begins the first step in what would become the Stonington’s months-long tour of duty as a member of the US Navy’s Pacific Squadron.
Using the logbook of the whaleship Stonington together with other primary and secondary sources, historian Peter J. Emanuel, Jr. tells the story of a whaleship unlike any other in the annals of whaling. Sail along with the Stonington as it assists in the retaking of San Diego, then serves as a supply ship, a troop ship, and even a gun ship for the US Navy.
This program is free and open to the public. It takes place Thursday, January 22nd at 6pm at the Captain N.B. Palmer House.

Blood Chits, Short Snorters, and Nose Art: Robert Bindo Fain in the South Pacific
2026-03-04 18:00 - 19:30 | Mystic VFW, 60 Stonington Rd., Mystic, CT, 06355, United States
Join brothers John and Scott Fain on Wednesday, March 4th at 6pm at the Mystic VFW, for a presentation about their father, Robert Bindo Fain (1923-1991), and his experiences in the South Pacific during World War II. A Mystic native, Fain was drafted into the Army Air Forces and served on board a B-25 bomber. He flew in 57 missions and collected dozens of photographs, military records, and artifacts that tell the story of his experiences as a gunner in the South Pacific theater from 1943 until 1945. Many of these photographs depict “nose art”, decorative painting usually on the fuselage of World War II era airplanes, depicting women from popular culture. Fain was shot down twice and awarded the Purple Heart. He later worked for the Cottrell Company and as a machinist at Electric Boat.
Due to the graphic nature of the artwork shown and discussed in this program, we recommend this program for mature audiences only. You have been warned!

This event is free and open to the public, and is generously co-hosted by the Mystic VFW.

Let's Build It! Building Blocks Event
2026-03-28 12:00 - 17:00 | Stonington Community Center, 28 Cutler Street, Stonington, Connecticut, 06378
Save the Date!
Join Historic Stonington, the COMO, and Architect Stephen W. Schwartz, AIA as we build 50 iconic buildings on a giant map of Stonington!
This is a family-friendly event for Ages 7+. All children must be accompanied by an adult.
View the final map between 3-5 PM
Doors open at 12:00 PM.

American Ramble: Celebrating 250 years of American music
2026-04-12 15:00 - 16:30 | Westerly Armory, Railroad Avenue, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
Join us on Sunday, April 12th at 3pm at the Westerly Armory for a special America 250 event, American Ramble. Celebrating 250 years of American music, this free public concert will also commemorate the 125th anniversary of the Westerly Armory. The Westerly Band will play a wide selection of American favorites, including traditional folk music, military marches, songs by Elvis Presley, and movie themes by John Williams – to name a few! This event is sure to have you tapping your toes and feeling nostalgic.

Rollie McKenna Community Photo Contest
2026-04-16 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-04-17 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-04-18 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-04-19 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-04-23 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-04-24 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-04-25 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-04-26 10:00 - 14:00 | Lighthouse Museum, 7 Water Street, Stonington, CT, 06378, United States
Come down to the Lighthouse Museum between 10am and 2pm to vote for this year’s entries in the Rollie McKenna Community Photo Contest! The museum will be open with free admission, Thursday to Sunday, April 16th to the 26th. This year’s theme is “America the Beautiful”, and is sure to be an event you don’t want to miss!
This event is generously sponsored by ABC Photo Lab of Mystic.

Cemetery Clean Up Day
2026-04-25 10:00 - 12:00 | Quiambaug Cove Professional Center, 107 Wilcox Road, Stonington, CT, 06378, United States
Always wondered about Stonington’s numerous historic cemeteries? Want to do your part to help preserve the final resting places of Revolutionary War veterans and their families?
The Stonington Cemetery Commission has partnered with Historic Stonington, the Abigail Hinman Chapter of the DAR and the America 250 Committee to host a Headstone Cleaning Workshop on Saturday, April 25th from 10am to 12pm at the Thomas Miner cemetery on Wilcox Road, across from the Quiambaug Cove Professional Center. All cleaning materials will be provided, all you have to bring along is a pair of work gloves and some water to stay hydrated. Members of the Cemetery Commission will provide a short demonstration on best practices for headstone cleaning, and talk briefly about the people who are buried in the cemetery before work commences. This is a great way to get involved in your local community, while also paying respect to the brave men and women who have gone before us.
No registration is necessary. Parking will be available in the QCPC parking lot across the street from the Avalonia parcel where the cemetery is located, off Wilcox Road.
