Afternoon Tea & Presentation by Marilyn Harris as Abigail Adams
2026-08-09 16:30 - 17:30 (America/Chicago) | Smith’s Castle, 55 Richard Smith Drive, North Kingstown, RI, 02852
Tea & Presentation in the Updike Dining Room
The Declaration: Not Just Jefferson
Tea * Fruit * Scones
Tea Sandwiches * Sweets
Marilyn Harris, Docent & Castle Historian, will share observations about the sources of Jefferson’s ideas and words in the Declaration as might have been made by Abigail Adams in letters to her “Dear Friend” & Husband, John.
Limited Seating (24) – Reservations Required – $35/person
Buy Tickets!

African American Responses to the American Revolution in Rhode Island
2026-09-12 09:30 - 10:30
Keith Stokes, Rhode Island Historian Laureate
How did the enslaved feel about the phrase “All Men Are Created Equal”? Come join Rhode Island’s Historian Laureate for a talk about the African American response to the onset of the Revolution, the oral history, and the cultures that kept this “unwritten” history alive, despite the upheavals and deliberate attempts at erasure.
Free for members. $10 for non-members.

Afternoon Tea & Presentation by Janet Dionis, Block Island Historian
2026-09-13 16:30 - 17:30
Threads of Time: Unravelling the History of Block Island Shipwrecks through Quilts and Their Makers
The wrecks of three ships, the Warrior, the Spartan, and the Larchmont, are all connected in an unusual way—calico. A study of Block Island quilts and the discovery of a quiltmaker’s diaries add richness and dimension to the history of these maritime disasters.
Tea & Presentation in the Updike Dining Room
Tea * Fruit * Scones
Tea Sandwiches * Sweets
Limited Seating (24) – Reservations Required – $35/person
Buy Tickets!

East Greenwich in the American Revolution
2026-09-15 18:00 - 19:00
Matt Carcieri East Greenwich Historian gives a talk on East Greenwich’s response to the American Revolution. Through a focus specifically on the events of 1775 in to 1776, the talk will reveal the daily experiences of the residents of East Greenwich and the Revolutionary Rhode Island in the early years of the conflict.

A Tribute to the 1st Rhode Island Regiment
2026-09-19 13:00 - 15:00
FREE ADMISSION · SUGGESTED DONATION
LIVING HISTORY
Valerie Tutson
Rhode Island Black Storytellers
Tutson will perform a presentation portraying the wife of Caesar Updik, and tell their lives of upheaval and uncertainty during the war and on his return as a free man to Rhode Island.
Jason Roomes
Trustee & Direct Descendant
A historical re-enactor and direct descendant of two separate patriots of color, Roomes will discuss the formation of the Regiment and his own family’s role in the Revolution.
[Handwritten historical document, North Kingstown, dated Feb 24, 1778, addressed to Beriah Brown, signed Nathaniel Hall — text is in cursive and partially illegible]
FEATURED TALK
John Dower
Historian & President Emeritus
Dower will offer a presentation on the lives and sacrifice of Caesar and Moses Updike, two enslaved servants of Smith’s Castle who enlisted and served in the 1st Rhode Island Regiment.
Military drill demonstrations and salute by Revolutionary reenactors Varnum Continentals & 2nd Rhode Island Regiment

Early Reparations in the Wake of the Revolutionary War
2026-09-26 09:30 - 17:00
Historian Robert A. Geake will offer a presentation entitled “Early Reparations in the Wake of the Revolutionary War: The Struggle for Widows and Heirs of Patriots of Color for Recognition and Reward.”

Afternoon Tea & Presentation by Janet Dionis, Block Island Historian
2026-12-13 14:30 - 17:30
December 13th Christmas Tea. Sunday at 2:30 pm – with Ladies of the Greene Colonial Fashion Show.
The “Ladies of the Greene” is a volunteer living history group associated with the Nathanael Greene Homestead, dedicated to educating the public on 18th-century civilian life during the American Revolution. SOLD OUT

Tea & Presentation in the Updike Dining Room
Tea * Fruit * Scones
Tea Sandwiches * Sweets
Limited Seating (24) – Reservations Required – $35/person
Buy Tickets!
