Exhibits & Collections

Museum Collections | Exhibits | MVM Campus

"From Concept to Canvas: Selected Works of Stanley Murphy"

The exhibit showcases selections from a recent donation of Stanley Murphy sketches and studies to the Museum’s collection. Paired with the final paintings, these preliminary works serve to give the viewer a behind the scenes look into the process of a gifted and beloved Island artist. 

The show features some of the artist’s sketchbooks, grid studies in pencil, pen and watercolor, preliminary sketches, anatomical studies and self portraits.  A number of these works relate to the finished paintings that are on loan to the Museum for this exhibition. Viewers may leaf through a reproduction of one of Stanley’s sketchbooks and listen to excerpts of oral histories relating to some of the artist’s subjects. 

Also on display are a model made by Mr. Murphy of the Katharine Cornell theater in Vineyard Haven, which he used as he prepared to install the murals he was commissioned to paint for the space. 

This exhibit will run through Saturday, November 13th, 2010.

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"Those Who Serve: Martha's Vineyard and World War II"

Our new exhibit entitled: "Those Who Serve: Martha's Vineyard and World War II" offers a rare and captivating look at the experiences of Vineyarders during the war years 1941-1945. This exhibit brings to life stories of the horror and confusion of battle, the exhilaration of victory, and the shared sacrifice experienced by those on the home front. Using oral histories, photographs, and original artifacts generously on loan from private collections and from the Museum's archive and collections, this exhibit gives visitors an intimate look at the war from the perspective of those who were a part of it.

Highlights from the exhibit include:

• The stories and personal artifacts of Elmer, Leonard and Clifton Athearn, three Vineyard brothers who served their country
• The "anti-blackout" flight suit and oxygen mask worn by John Mayhew, who served as a naval fighter pilot in the Pacific theater
• A mural showing the Battle of Britain, painted by well-known local artist Chandler Moore
• The audio and written narratives of 18 people of the Vineyard describing their varied War-time experiences
• Listen to excerpts of oral histories featured in the exhibit: Tom Hale, an ambulance driver with the British 8th Army in Africa, Italy and Germany, sing "Lili Marlene," a song that meant much to the troops during the travails of WWII; Nelson Bryant, a Private 1st Class with the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division, speak of being wounded during the patrol three days after parachuting into Normandy on D-Day; and Ann Lesnikowski, who was part of the WASPs (Women Air Force Service Partol), speak about the types of planes she flew and her responsibilities as part of her military duty.

Check out the NPR interview with Linsey Lee, Oral History Curator and Martha's Vineyard Museum.

This exhibit will run through Tuesday, September 7, 2010.

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"Laura Jernegan: Girl on a Whaleship"

In her journal, Laura mentiions the "cutting in,"

(butchering) of whales on board ship after the hunt.

In 1868, six year old Laura Jernegan of Edgartown set out on a voyage around the globe on the bark Roman, a whaling ship captained by her father.  This exhibit uses Laura’s experience to illuminate the story of New England whaling in the 19th century.  It complements the launch this summer of our NEH-funded website of the same name.

Visitors to the exhibit will see Laura’s journal, a model of the Roman, whale-hunting equipment, a log book from the whale ship Iris (illustrated above), a new interactive children’s gallery, and much more.

This exhibit opened on Friday, June 18, 2010.

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"Your Town, Our Island "

The Island's six towns represent distinct and varied geographies, histories and communities. More than simply a location, each town instills a sense of belonging and pride in its residents. Through objects, photographs and oral histories, visitors can learn more about the unique story of the towns and how those stories relate to the greater Island story.

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"When This You See, Remember Me:

Samplers from the Museum Collection"

In the 1700s and 1800s , the creation of samplers signified a rite of passage for young girls. The sampler was a way to show off skill, record important family information and convey morality through a verse or two. Through the Museum's collections, visitors will get the chance to learn about the girls behind the needlework.

This exhibit will open on Saturday, November 27, 2010.

Museum Collections:
The Martha's Vineyard Museum campus accomodates both the Island's largest museum and the only research library dedicated to the history of the Vineyard.

The objects collections of the MVM, donated or purchased over the past 80 years, includes over 30,000 items relating to all aspects of life on Martha’s Vineyard.  Specific collection categories include: agricultural tools, archaeological material, paintings, prints and sculpture, baskets, coins, costumes, decoys, hunting and fishing and shell fishing tools, ethnographic material brought back from the all over the world by Vineyard whalers, armament, guns and swords,   furniture and household equipment, medical and scientific tools and equipment, musical instruments, fossils and botanical samples, maritime-related tools, sailor’s artwork such as scrimshaw and inlaid work, ship models, shipwreck salvage materials, Wampanoag tools, woodworking tools, toys, a whaleboat, Nomansland fishing boat, wagon, sleigh, fire engine and an 1854 first order Fresnel Lens used in the Gay Head Aquinnah lighthouse for almost 100 years.

The Library and Archive collection spans every period of the Island's complex history. Beyond the 5,000 book research library, the MVM's paper collection contains materials from the 17th century through the 21st century. These collections include such items as: manuscripts, ship logbooks, postcards, Island business account books, legal papers and land deeds, family correspondence, Island organizational records, ship account books, and scrapbooks. Additionally, the library holds 500 Island maps and 400 nautical charts. The Library collection also contains an extensive photo collection of historic images of Vineyard tourism, homes, individuals, and communities. More information about the Library and Archives can be obtained through the Library/Archives section of the MVM website.

Donating an Item to the Collection:
The Museum welcomes and encourages the donation of material that relates to Martha's Vineyard History. If you are interested in donating an item, we encourage you to look at our Collection Development and Acquisitions Policy statement. The document provides the reader with an over-view of the types of materials that we seek to collect as well as an over-view of the steps taken to acquire an object. The Museum also recommends that you directly contact the Curator Bonnie Stacy for three dimensional objects, paper objects and photographs. If the Museum decides to accept your donation, a donor form will need to be filled out. The donor form serves as a permanent record of the gift. The donor of an item is responsible for providing an appraised value - the Museum is legally prevented from providing appraisals. If the donor wishes to provide a monetary value for the gift, this figure will go on the donation form and serves as the receipt which can be used as a tax deduction.

Research and the MVM Collections:
Specific collection items are available for research purposes through an appointment with the Curator Bonnie Stacy . The MVM encourages on-site research visits. Please consult our Staff Directory.

Application for Permission to Photograph, Publish or Display Images of Collection Items Belonging to the MVM

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MVM Campus Map

Key:

1. Gate House-- Enter a campus dedicated to the history of Martha's Vineyard.

2. The Cooke House-- Visit the c.1740s Colonial home lived in by four generations of the Cooke family.

3. Herb Garden-- Take in a fragrant blend of culinary and curative plants.

4. Gale Huntington Research Library & Archive-- A collection of primary source materials from the 17th  to the 21st century.

5. First Order Fresnel Lens-- View 1,000 individual prisms that illuminated the Gay Head Lighthouse from 1854 until 1951.

6. Tryworks-- View a replica of the oil processing station found on the deck of a working whale ship.

7. Carriage Shed-- Visit cessels and vehicles like a whaleboat, pieces of the Martha's Vineyard Railroad, and more.

8. Pease House Galleries & Museum Gift Shop-- A place to experience the history of the Island.

9. Ventilator/ Lightning Rod-- Examine a 1900s lightning finial for evidence of being struck.

*10. Anchor (not marked on map, located along Cooke Street near the Gate House)-- Study the 1900s anchor from the Schooner Liberty, an Edgartown fishing boat.

Exhibits

The Cooke House:
Thomas Cooke House, Open mid-June through Columbus Day weekend.
This Colonial house (c. 1740) was built by and lived in by members of the Cooke family for four generations.
The house is the only example of its style and period on the Island that has not been modernized. The Cooke House has 11 rooms of exhibits of Vineyard history.
Topics presented include:

Pease House Galleries, Open All Year:
10,000 Years on Martha's Vineyard
The Wampanoag Gallery explores the presence of the Island’s first inhabitants. It displays spearpoints that are thousands of years old, a 3,000 year -old soapstone vessel, a 700 year- old ceramic vessel,  woodworking and other tools.  The exhibit also addresses the physical and environmental changes to this area and the adaptations made by the Wampanoag to environmental as well as the deleterious effects of English colonization. Information about the Wampanoag Tribe today is available.

The Fresnel Lens Tower:
Fresnel Lens is Located in the Lighthouse Tower on the MVM Campus, Open All Year
This lens was designed and manufactured in France in 1854 and consists of over 1,000 individual prisms. It was exhibited in the Paris Exposition of Industry in 1856 and was subsequently purchased by the United States government. The present lighthouse tower was constructed by the Society in 1951 when the original, Fresnel Lens from the Gay Head Lighthouse was removed by the Coast Guard. In a bid to save the lens, Island school children helped raise money to relocate the lens to the MVM campus. Visitors may view the actual lens as well as information on the history of the lens. Visitors may view the lens and its original clockwork mechanism as well as historic images and information about its history.

Vineyard Voices' Gallery:
Pease House Galleries, Open All Year
This gallery is located in the Frances Pease House and features oral testimonies and photographs of Islanders. These materials are drawn from ongoing oral history project conducted by the MVM's Oral History Center. The MVM has over 1,200 interviews of Island residents. Visitors can read excerpts of oral history transcripts. But, they can also listen to actual testimony and watch video from our video testimony collection. New "voices" are added periodically to the exhibit. More information about the MVM oral history project can be obtained through the MVM's Oral History Center.

Kids' Space:
Pease House Galleries, Open All Year
This gallery is dedicated to the artwork and research projects of Island school children of all ages. New materials appear in this gallery each year. Educational Programs are also held in this space.

The Carriage Shed:
Open All Year
This building contains vessels and vehicles such as a restored 1856 fire engine, an Island-built whaleboat, a Nomansland boat, a sleigh, a hearse, a wagon, a Hawaiian dugout canoe and surfboards. There are quarter boards from famous shipwrecks, pieces of the Martha’s Vineyard Railroad, historic murals, whalebone weighing frame and many other interesting items on display.

The Tryworks:
Open All Year
This outdoor exhibit is a replica of a "trying out "station was located on the deck of a working whale ship. Two enormous kettles were enclosed in a brick heating unit. The tryworks served as a processing station for the rendering of whale oil. On board a ship, a whale's blubber was boiled, or "tried", to extract the oil.

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