Deborah & William Hillyard
Deborah & William Hillyard
Deborah & William Hillyard
Deborah & William Hillyard
Deborah & William Hillyard
Redwood Library and Athenĉum
Newport Art Museum & Art Association
Griswold House, 76 Bellevue Avenue, which was designed by Richard Morris Hunt in 1862, is home to the Newport Art Museum & Art Association.  There are additional exhibition areas adjacent to the main building in the Cushing Gallery.  Essentially, the gallery is dedicated to the visual arts of Newport and Rhode Island from colonial days right up to the present.  There are many works relating to Rhode Island and New England from various artists including Dale Chihuly, who attended the Rhode Island School of Design, George Inness, John Frederick Kensett, William Trost Richards, John La Farge, Gilbert Stuart, Catharine Morris Wright, and Fairfield Porter as well as many contemporary artists.  They also have special exhibitions dedicated, mainly, to local artists.  When we visited, there was an exhibition of hand made rugs from local artist Meg Little. 
To the right is a drawing of the library by Pierre du Simitiere showing how it looked in 168.  Here are a number of other historical pictures of the library from theHistoric American Buildings Survey. 
The Cushing Gallery. Credit
Public Library and Surrounding Area
To the left is a picture of the somewhat prosaic Public Library building.  On the other hand, we have purchased a huge number of excellent books from their "Friend's Bookshop" over the years.  As compensation, the church shown on the right is situated just across the road, and is very attractive. 
The Redwood Library and Athenaeum is a private subscription library located at number 50 Bellevue Avenue.  It was founded in 1747, and is the oldest library in its original building in the USA.  The original collection of books was purchased in London, and the Harrison Room, which is the original section of the library, still houses those books.  It appears that during the American Revolution, British officers who were housed in the building stole many of the books, although most have been returned over the years. 
Two more churches with prominent steeples seen when looking down the road from the public library. 
The Samuel Whitehorne House
The James Boone House
The Whitehorne house is a Federal mansion on Thames Street that was built between 1810 and 1811 for Samuel Whitehorne.  The interior boasts an important collection of early American furniture that was donated by Doris Duke, who was the owner of the Rough Point mansion.  The garden is also notable and contains examples of many plant that would have been found during the Federal era, including several antique roses and fruit trees. 
The James Boone House is another Federal era house at number 422 Thames Street, and is next door to the Whitehorne House.  It was built around 1795, and at the time of its purchase by the Newport Restoration Foundation (NRF) in 1969 it had lost virtually all of its period detailing.  In any event, the NRF restored it between 1973-74 based on fragments of the original interior that did remain.  There appears to be little or nothing known about the owner, James Boone. 
The Main Entrance

Museums, Galleries & Libraries

Vacations

- Rhode Island - Newport
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