The Museum of Newport History is a

history museum A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...

in the Old Brick Market building in the heart of

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay * Newport (Vietnam), a United States Army and Army of t ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It is owned and operated by the

Newport Historical Society The Newport Historical Society is a historical society in Newport, Rhode Island that was chartered in 1854 to collect and preserve books, manuscripts, and objects pertaining to Newport's history. History of the society Although the society w ...

at 127 Thames Street on Washington Square. The building, designed by noted 18th-century American architect Peter Harrison and built in the 1760s, is a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

Description

The Brick Market is a three-story brick structure with a low hip roof. Its ground floor has round-arch openings, which were historically open but have mostly been glassed over. The upper level bays are separated by large pilasters with Ionic capitals, with a dentillated cornice below the roof. The second floor windows are rectangular sash, topped by alternating gable and segmented-arch pediments. The third floor windows are square, with a simpler molded surround. The interior has been extensively altered over time, with little historic material surviving.

History

The Brick Market was designed by Peter Harrison, a major architect working in the British colonies during the 18th century. Harrison based the Georgian design on a part of the 17th century design of

Somerset House Somerset House is a large neoclassical architecture, neoclassical building complex situated on the south side of the Strand, London, Strand in central London, overlooking the River Thames, just east of Waterloo Bridge. The Georgian era quadran ...

Inigo Jones Inigo Jones (15 July 1573 – 21 June 1652) was an English architect who was the first significant Architecture of England, architect in England in the early modern era and the first to employ Vitruvius, Vitruvian rules of proportion and symmet ...

, altering the building material from stone to brick, and replacing Jones' Corinthian capitals with those of the

Ionic order The Ionic order is one of the three canonic classical order, orders of classical architecture, the other two being the Doric order, Doric and the Corinthian order, Corinthian. There are two lesser orders: the Tuscan order, Tuscan (a plainer Doric) ...

. Construction of the building was authorized by the city in 1761 and begun in 1762, but the merchant proprietors ran out of money after finishing just the first level, and the city took the project over, roofing that level. The building was not completed until 1772. As a traditional British style

market house A market house or market hall is a covered space historically used as a marketplace to exchange goods and services such as provisions or livestock, sometimes combined with spaces for public or civic functions on the upper floors and often with a ...

(like Boston's

Faneuil Hall Faneuil Hall ( or ; previously ) is a marketplace and meeting hall near the waterfront and Government Center, Boston, Massachusetts, Government Center, in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Opened in 1742, it was the site of several speeches ...

), the building's first level was an open-air arcade that served as a marketplace for various goods. Profits from the building went into a city fund for the establishment of a granary. The upper levels of the hall have seen a variety of uses. In the later years of the 18th century it housed a printing operation, and was eventually converted into a theatre. In 1842 it began to be used as town hall, and the third floor was removed, replaced by galleries around the sides and rear. It served as Newport's city hall between 1853 and 1900. In the late 1920s the building was subjected to an extensive rehabilitation under the auspices of restorationist

Norman Isham Norman Morrison Isham (1864–1943) was a prominent architectural historian, author, and professor at Brown University and Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). He was an ardent preservationist and a pioneer in the study of early American ar ...

. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1968, and designated a

in 1968. It is also a contributing element of the Newport Historic District, also a National Historic Landmark. The building is now owned by the

. It houses a museum detailing Newport's history from pre-colonial times to the

Gilded Age In History of the United States, United States history, the Gilded Age is the period from about the late 1870s to the late 1890s, which occurred between the Reconstruction era and the Progressive Era. It was named by 1920s historians after Mar ...

and beyond. Exhibits include the printing press of James Franklin, the figurehead from the yacht ''Aloha'', and a sword given as a gift by the

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (), was a French military officer and politician who volunteered to join the Conti ...

Daniel Lyman Daniel Lyman (1756–1830) was a New England soldier, chief justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court and member of the secessionist Hartford Convention. Lyman was born in Durham, Connecticut, to Thomas Lyman. While attending Yale College, Ly ...

References

External links

* *
Official Shop Website
*

Images

File:Historic American Buildings Survey, Jack Boucher, Photographer, June, 1971 VIEW OF SOUTH FACADE FROM SOUTHWEST. - Brick Market, 127 Thames Street, Newport, Newport County, RI HABS RI,3-NEWP,26-2.tif, View of the South Facade in 1971 File:Historic American Buildings Survey, Jack Boucher, Photographer, June, 1971 VIEW OF EXTERIOR FROM SOUTHEAST. - Brick Market, 127 Thames Street, Newport, Newport County, RI HABS RI,3-NEWP,26-3.tif, View of Exterior from Southeast, 1971 {{DEFAULTSORT:Museum Of Newport History Market houses Museums in Newport, Rhode Island History museums in Rhode Island Historical society museums in Rhode Island Commercial buildings completed in 1762 National Historic Landmarks in Rhode Island Landmarks in Rhode Island Educational buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Rhode Island Georgian architecture in Rhode Island Historic American Buildings Survey in Rhode Island Brick buildings and structures in the United States National Register of Historic Places in Newport, Rhode Island Historic district contributing properties in Rhode Island

Description

History

See also

References

External links

Images