SPEAKER SERIES
Windows Into Orleans' Past
2024 Speaker Series
Thursdays at 7 pm at the CHO Meetinghouse in November (7th. 14th, 21st) and December (5th, 12th,19th)
Admission is free; donations appreciated
Paintings, postcards and photographs of Orleans’ past will be featured in a new weekly series of history
presentations by local speakers starting November 7 at the Centers for Culture and History in Orleans (the CHO)
November 7: Commercial Fishing on Cape Cod Bay
What was it like when fishing was the lifeblood of the Outer Cape and most Orleans men went to sea? Captain Bill Amaru tells the story of this first--and present--commercial venture.
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November 14: A History of the Railroad to Orleans and Beyond
Railroad enthusiast and modeler Jay Stradal talks about when and how the railroad to Orleans was completed, how it operated, and why it transformed the town’s economy.
November 21: Postcards from Orleans’ Past
Travel back in time as picture postcards are shown as reminders of places and town life in “the old days.” Learn why cards were popular, how they were used and why speaker Stan Snow collected them.
December 5: The Orleans Packet Trade and Other Maritime Ventures, 1640-2000
Bill Amaru describes the once-flourishing packet-shipping industry through which all goods and many services were traded. He travels back even earlier to the saltworks, fishing ventures, winter ice cutting and other businesses that dotted our coastline.
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December 12: Kent’s Point: A Place of Beginning and Belonging
Come and unwind 12,000 years of history on 22 acres. Be part of a conversation led by Bill Wibel about Kent’s Point--the previous home to indigenous people, former location of Charlotte and Bill Kent’s home and now a beloved Orleans conservation area.
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December 19: History and Evolution of the Cape Cod-style House
Architect Thad Siemasko of SV Design, Inc., provides insight into the history, design and evolution of this still-popular and easily recognized home style and other architectural trends from the Cape’s past.