Strawbery Banke Museum Announces 2026 Gala to be held Aug 29 Celebrating America’s 250th and Honoring Martha Fuller Clark
Strawbery Banke Museum Announces 2026 Gala Celebrating America’s 250th and Honoring Martha Fuller Clark
PORTSMOUTH— Strawbery Banke Museum will host a special fundraising gala in 2026 celebrating the United States’ 250th anniversary and honoring longtime preservation leader Martha Fuller Clark.
The event, titled America’s 250th Celebration: An Evening of Food and Drink that Shaped the Nation, will take place Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026, on the Museum’s historic campus in Portsmouth.
To focus fully on this milestone celebration, the Museum’s longstanding food and wine event Vintage & Vine will pause in 2026. The popular event has brought together supporters, volunteers, and community partners for many years and has been a cornerstone of the Museum’s fundraising efforts.
The 2026 gala will recognize Martha Fuller Clark, former N.H. state senator and a longtime champion of historic preservation, for her decades of leadership and dedication to Strawbery Banke Museum and the history of Portsmouth.
Created specifically for the nation’s semiquincentennial year, the gala will celebrate the culinary traditions that have shaped American life while raising funds to support the preservation of the Museum’s historic buildings, landscapes, and educational programs.
Guests will gather under a central tent before exploring the Museum’s historic waterfront neighborhood, where food and drink experiences inspired by American culinary history will be featured throughout the grounds. The evening will highlight the traditions, ingredients, and cultural influences that have shaped the nation’s table across more than two centuries.
“Vintage & Vine has been a vibrant part of Strawbery Banke for many years, bringing together friends, partners, volunteers, and supporters in joyful and generous ways,” said Linnea Grim, president and CEO and Thomas W. Haas Endowed Chair. “As we look ahead to the nation’s 250th anniversary, we felt it was important to pause and create a one-time celebration that reflects the significance of this historic moment and honor the remarkable contributions of Martha Fuller Clark, whose leadership has been critical to preserving and sharing our history.”
Additional details about the gala, including ticket information, will be announced in the coming months.
About Strawbery Banke Museum
Strawbery Banke Museum, a Smithsonian Affiliate, is a nearly 10-acre history museum in downtown Portsmouth, NH, interpreting over 350 years of history—from Indigenous peoples to the present day. The Museum features historic houses on their original sites, heirloom gardens, traditional crafts, and costumed roleplayers sharing stories of Puddle Dock residents. Strawbery Banke welcomes visitors, members, schoolchildren, and volunteers year-round for daily programs, exhibits, skating, and signature events. Funding is provided in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services; the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy Demands Wisdom; and the New Hampshire Land and Community Heritage Investment Program.
PORTSMOUTH— Strawbery Banke Museum will host a special fundraising gala in 2026 celebrating the United States’ 250th anniversary and honoring longtime preservation leader Martha Fuller Clark.
The event, titled America’s 250th Celebration: An Evening of Food and Drink that Shaped the Nation, will take place Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026, on the Museum’s historic campus in Portsmouth.To focus fully on this milestone celebration, the Museum’s longstanding food and wine event Vintage & Vine will pause in 2026. The popular event has brought together supporters, volunteers, and community partners for many years and has been a cornerstone of the Museum’s fundraising efforts.
The 2026 gala will recognize Martha Fuller Clark, former N.H. state senator and a longtime champion of historic preservation, for her decades of leadership and dedication to Strawbery Banke Museum and the history of Portsmouth.
Created specifically for the nation’s semiquincentennial year, the gala will celebrate the culinary traditions that have shaped American life while raising funds to support the preservation of the Museum’s historic buildings, landscapes, and educational programs.
Guests will gather under a central tent before exploring the Museum’s historic waterfront neighborhood, where food and drink experiences inspired by American culinary history will be featured throughout the grounds. The evening will highlight the traditions, ingredients, and cultural influences that have shaped the nation’s table across more than two centuries.
“Vintage & Vine has been a vibrant part of Strawbery Banke for many years, bringing together friends, partners, volunteers, and supporters in joyful and generous ways,” said Linnea Grim, president and CEO and Thomas W. Haas Endowed Chair. “As we look ahead to the nation’s 250th anniversary, we felt it was important to pause and create a one-time celebration that reflects the significance of this historic moment and honor the remarkable contributions of Martha Fuller Clark, whose leadership has been critical to preserving and sharing our history.”
Additional details about the gala, including ticket information, will be announced in the coming months.
About Strawbery Banke Museum
Strawbery Banke Museum, a Smithsonian Affiliate, is a nearly 10-acre history museum in downtown Portsmouth, NH, interpreting over 350 years of history—from Indigenous peoples to the present day. The Museum features historic houses on their original sites, heirloom gardens, traditional crafts, and costumed roleplayers sharing stories of Puddle Dock residents. Strawbery Banke welcomes visitors, members, schoolchildren, and volunteers year-round for daily programs, exhibits, skating, and signature events. Funding is provided in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services; the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy Demands Wisdom; and the New Hampshire Land and Community Heritage Investment Program.
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Strawbery Banke Museum
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Veronica Lester Director of Marketing
- March 16, 2026
- (603) 766-2496
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