Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association to Open Properties for 2023 Season

June 14, 2023

NANTUCKET, MA—On June 12, 2023, the Maria Mitchell Association Aquarium, Hinchman House Natural Science Museum, Historic Mitchell House, Loines Observatory, and the MMA Research Center will open for the 2023 summer season.

 

The Historic Mitchell House, located at 1 Vestal Street, will be open for tours Monday – Friday, 10:00AM–4:00PM, and 10:00AM – 1:00PM Saturdays. Built in 1790, this traditional Quaker house was acquired by the Mitchell family in 1818. The home became a museum in 1903 when the Maria Mitchell Association’s founders acquired the house to preserve the legacy of one of Nantucket’s most celebrated daughters. The house contains many stunning artifacts from the Mitchells’ daily life in the nineteenth century, including many of Maria’s personal items such as beer mugs, opera glasses, and her Dollond telescope. The House is well known for the remarkably preserved example of faux-wood grain painting in the kitchen from the 1850s.

 

The Maria Mitchell Association Aquarium, located at 28 Washington Street, will be open Monday–Friday, 10:00AM –4:00PM, and 10:00AM–1:00PM on Saturdays. Located on the waterfront of Nantucket Harbor, the MMA Aquarium displays local Nantucket species and is an immersive place to learn about the amazing marine life of the island. Displays are consistently evolving and range from crabs and shellfish to fish and eels. All the hungry creatures at the Aquarium are fed daily during our Feeding Frenzy program where you learn about and observe unique feeding behaviors of our animal ambassadors. All ambassadors of the MMA Aquarium are locally collected and are re-released into the wild at the end of the season during the annual “Release Day" event.

 

The Hinchman House Natural Science Museum, located at 7 Milk Street, will be open Monday–Friday, 10:00AM –4:00PM, and 10:00AM–1:00PM on Saturdays. An exciting space for inquisitive minds of all ages, the Natural Science Museum is a cross between a classic natural history museum, a small zoo, and a science center. It is a beloved place to learn about the plants, animals, and birds of Nantucket. All the hungry creatures at the Museum are fed daily during our Ravenous Reptiles program where you learn about the unique adaptations of turtles, frogs, snakes, and more.

 

The Loines Observatory, located at 59 Milk Street Extension, will be open on Monday, Tuesdays, and Wednesday nights from 9:00PM – 10:30PM hosting two public Stargazing Open Nights sessions, and on Fridays 9:00PM – 9:45PM for one family-centered Stargazing Open Night program — weather dependent. When a special natural occurrence is forecast in the night sky – meteor showers, a new comet, lunar eclipse – the Loines Observatory is the place to be. During Stargazing Open Nights, visitors can view a variety of astronomical objects in the night sky through our   8-inch Alvan Clark refractor and our modern 24-inch research telescope. MMA staff will lead constellation tours and patrons can learn about the innovative research conducted by our astronomers and interns – a fantastic opportunity for all your astronomy related questions to be asked and answered.

 

The Maria Mitchell Association Research Center, located at 2 Vestal Street, will host Biological Collections Open Hours from 10:00AM – 12:00PM on Saturdays throughout the summer season. At Open Hours, visitors learn about the biological collections and their importance to science and examine different specimens during each session. From specimens of birds and mammals to insects and plants, you never know what will be on display! This program is FREE to all visitors and preregistration is not necessary. The Research Center is accessible outside of the Biological Collections open hours by appointment.

 

The MMA Properties passes can be purchased for the Aquarium, Hinchman House Natural Science Museum, Loines Observatory, and the Historic Mitchell House. A property pass includes admission to the three museum sites and a Stargazing Open Night. The cost of a property pass is $12 for children, $22 for adults. Admission to Maria Mitchell Association properties and Open Nights is free to MMA Members.


The Maria Mitchell Association was founded in 1902 to preserve the legacy of Nantucket native astronomer, naturalist, librarian, and educator, Maria Mitchell. After she discovered a comet in 1847, Mitchell’s international fame led to many achievements and awards, including an appointment as the first female professor of astronomy at Vassar College. Maria Mitchell believed in “learning by doing” and today that philosophy is reflected in the MMA’s mission statement, programs, research projects, and other activities. The Maria Mitchell Association operates two observatories, a natural science museum, an aquarium, a research center, and preserves the historic birthplace of Maria Mitchell. A wide variety of science and history-related programming is offered throughout the year for people of all ages.

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For Immediate Release

June 5, 2023

Contact: Ava Rollins,

mmosscrop@mariamitchell.org

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Maria Mitchell In Her Own Words

By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • June 16, 2025
June 1851 My Dear Sister . . . . Mrs. Dassel has painted me kneeling at my telescope. It looks like Adeline Coffin and is of course not handsome. If thee was here thee would have Mitchell’s {William Mitchell Barney, son of Sally and Matthew Barney} painted at once. She has a head of a child N. P. Willis that is very lovely. She has taken a room at the Atheneum and put up about a dozen pictures – very beautiful – Isabel is lovely. She has not tried to make a portrait, but a very pretty picture . . . . She is now engaged on Abra’m Quary – he is much flattered by it and it will be a fine portrait. I think we shall buy it or a copy for the Atheneum . . . . She will paint father also for herself – having made a pencil sketch . . . .We like her very much . . . . The above is from a letter sent by Maria Mitchell to her eldest sister, Sally Mitchell Barney. In it, Maria details what everyone in the Mitchell family is up to. She includes some details about Herminia B. Dassel, an artist who came to Nantucket to paint the last Native Americans and also took an interest in the famous Mitchell family. This was of course four years after Maria’s discovery of the comet. At the time of this letter, Maria was still the librarian for the Atheneum and the portrait of Quary that she mentions possibly buying for the Atheneum, she did buy as it hangs in the Atheneum by the front door today. Another Dassel portrait of Quary is in the collection of the Nantucket Historical Association and the portrait of Isabel Draper is currently on display at the NHA’s Whaling Museum – on loan from a museum in Rhode Island. The portrait Maria states she posed for at the start of the letter is in the collection of the MMA. It was given to us in the early 1990s by Sally’s great granddaughter – the granddaughter of Mitchell whom she mentions above as well. Maria and Dassel would become good friends – Maria was named the godmother of Dassel’s daughter. And the sketch of William made by Dassel that Maria states would become a portrait? It likely did come to fruition. It made its way down a side of the family but was unfortunately lost, likely sold as part of a family estate though we do have a photograph of it and one can tell it is the brush work of Dassel. JNLF

At Long Last!

By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • June 9, 2025
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