2018
Annual Report
Folsom Tavern in the snow.
Dear American Independence Museum Family,
A hearty ‘huzzah’ for the aspirations and achievements of
2018! Your American Independence Museum is thriving, and
American Revolutionary history is alive in New Hampshire and
beyond.
2018 highlights include successful new genealogy workshops, a
new Folsom Tavern event rental program, new Holiday Teas, new
twists on Beer for History, and social media followers increasing
across the board. The Museum’s agship local event in July, the
American Independence Festival, achieved its best attendance
ever for the second year in a row and was complemented
nationally by an expanding Traveling Trunk program that
reached school children in Florida, Texas and California!
Laying a strong base for the future, in December our Executive
Director, Emma Bray, accepted a prestigious LCHIP grant
in December at the State House in Concord for restoration
of the 1721 Ladd Gilman House building. Don’t worry! 2019
construction will not interrupt museum operations and may
even enhance programming with on-site archaeology. This
physical shoring-up also gives your spirited and forward-looking
team a new platform for launching experiential programs for an
expanding community.
As you peruse this Annual Report, please take pride and
honor in what you have contributed — your fresh ideas, your
encouraging words, your bold actions, your generous nancial
gifts, your curious visits and your most interesting questions —
and know that your Board of Governors, Ambassadors, Staff
and Volunteers are deeply appreciative of your engagement with
the Museum. You make our work a joy, and we thank you!
Ozzie Ayscue
President, Board of Governors
✪
This Annual Report is dedicated to the memory of
Cleo P. Castonguay, a dedicated volunteer, active
community advocate, and longtime member of the
American Independence Festival Committee.
The American Independence Museum promotes awareness,
increases understanding and celebrates the freedoms of
American Independence so as to recognize the many facets of
the founding of our Nation, and to encourage and inspire civic
engagement today.
Our
Mission
Students practice quill pen writing during an education program
2018 Museum Engagement
Tours
Public Programs
School Groups
Off-Site
32.3%
13.5%
20.3%
33.9%
Year in Review
Museum Visitation
The American Independence Museum will be a premier center for
education, study and celebration of events, people, places and
ideas that played a role in the struggle for American Independence
and the founding of our Nation. History is living, exciting, relevant
and fun and should be enjoyed by all.
Our
Vision
Education Manager Abby Pietrantonio, re-enactor Mike Welch and children muster in the parade for
George Washington at the American Independence Festival.
2018 Income by Category
79.9%
17.4%
2.7%
1.7 %
1. 6 %
All numbers are from the museum’s most recent scal year
(January 1 - December 31)
2018 Expense by Category
72.9%
10.5%
13.3%
Museum Operations
Preservation Maintenance
Programs
Marketing
Fundraising
EDUCATION
Our Education department had
another full year of new and diverse
programming. The Traveling Trunk
continued its journey across the country
educating over 800 students. Thanks
to the generous sponsorship of Service
Credit Union, we were able to oer
this resource at no charge to schools.
In April, we welcomed adults from
the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute
(OLLI) to try their hand at colonial living
and crafts. We enjoyed a successful
partnership with Exeter Fine Crafts to
oer more hands on activities during our
Revolutionary Kids Summer Camp. We
launched Huzzah! Family Workshops,
continued our partnership with the
American Revolution Institute for Teacher
Workshops, rened our on-site school
programs, and ventured into classrooms
to continue to bring revolutionary history
to life outside our walls.
Year in
Review
2018
Students dress in Revolutionary clothing from
the Traveling Trunk
Education Manager Abby Pietrantonio speaks
to a classroom about colonial life
A young visitor learns how to use a ‘ball and
cup’ game at American Independence Festival
OLLI visitors try quill pen writing
Young visitors create American ags at
Revolutionary Story Time.
EVENTS
This year saw the return and growth
of many beloved public programs.
Revolutionary Story Time continued to
bring in more of our youngest visitors
for a monthly dose of stories, play
time, music and crafts. We helped
visitors discover their roots with our
rst geneology workshop series in
partnership with New England Historic
Genealogical Society. The American
Independence Festival had another
record year for attendance, income,
and engagement thanks to partnerships
with Exeter Parks & Recreation and the
Exeter Area Chamber of Commerce.
The generosity of longtime supporter
Hoee, Phoenix, Gormley and Roberts,
P.A. enabled Beer for History to expand
to four events and welcome over 200
participants, many of who tried their
hand at tavern trivia. We revamped
our Ghosts of Winter Street Cemetery
program and sold out every tour. We
rounded out the year with our annual
participation in the Town of Exeter’s Ring
in the Season events and launched our
new colonial-inspired holiday teas.
Guests sample beers from Neighborhood Beer
Co. at Beer for History.
Volunteers at the new holiday colonial tea event.
John Stark inspects the troops at the American
Independence Festival
BUILDING STEWARDSHIP
A building assessment was completed by Preservation Timber Framing in spring
2018 and a list of prioritized building needs was outlined. The sta, Board and
Trustees agreed to move forward with plans to mitigate water inltration in the
basements of Ladd-Gilman House and the attached oces. The work will be
extensive and includes plans to excavate an old masonry skirt, repoint the
foundation, install proper drainage, and relay our driveway and entrance walkway
stones. We applied for a matching grant from the State of New Hampshire through
their Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP) and learned in
December that we received our full request of $80,000. Work will begin in spring
2019 and we are thrilled to have this opportunity to steward our historic resources
as we look forward to the 300th anniversary of the Ladd-Gilman House in 2021.
In addition, Folsom Tavern was added to the State Register of Historic Places,
ensuring protections for the property for years to come. Folsom Tavern celebrated
this new listing by receiving a fresh coat of stain before the winter weather hit.
VISIBILITY
In early 2018, the museum participated in eorts to bring the Small Business Revolution
to Exeter. Later in the spring, we welcomed the Granite State Ambassadors on site
to learn more about our museum. We also presented to groups in New Hampshire,
Maine and Massachusetts. Our Executive Director was invited to be on the advisory
panel of Rev250, a consortium of local partners dedicated to celebrating the 250th
anniversary of Revolutionary War events. We received wonderful press coverage for our
events throughout the local papers and our social media presence and followers grew
dramatically, especially on Instagram.
Sta and volunteers march in the Exeter Memorial Day parade.
COLLECTIONS AND
EXHIBITIONS
This year marked the launch of our rst
specialized architectural tour, which
was oered on select days throughout
the season. It provided visitors with the
chance to explore the unique architectural
history of our two historic buildings,
including a peek into our attics and
basements. We also launched the rst
round of Exhibits Visioning work in the
Treat Room and Folsom Tavern. We are
continuing eorts to turn our temporary
children’s exhibit in Folsom Tavern
into a more permanent children’s play
space. Our seasonal exhibition “Global
Perspectives on the Revolutionary
War” highlighted the global aairs and
entangling alliances at play during the
Revolutionary War. We were grateful for
our most recent collection acquistion, a
Revolutionary-era gunpowder receipt from
Exeter.
AIM received an $80,000 grant from the Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP)
for work on Ladd-Gilman House. Pictured left to right: LCHIP Executive Director Dijit Taylor, Governor
Chris Sununu, Emma Bray, LCHIP board chair Amanda Merrill. Photo by Perry Smith.
Visitors looking over exhibits.
Receipt for Payment of Gunpowder’ to
Nathaniel Folsom of Exeter, 1777.
Gift of Douglas and Elizabeth Aykroyd.
The People | Who make it possible
Brendan Andrews Marissa Milley
Interns
James Benenson III
David Burnham
Stephen B. Jeries
Paul Marcus
American Independence Center Trustees
Ozzie Ayscue, President
Paul Staller, Vice President
Robert A. Casassa, Secretary
Brian Lortie, Treasurer
Rebecca B. Dunham
William C. Fredericks
Julie D. Gilman
William Jordan
Kathleen Mahoney
Paul Marcus
Diane Devine Mizusawa
Hugh L. Robinson II
Catherine V. Salterio
Terence Waldron
Board of Governors
Sara Castallez
Bookkeeper
Rob Levey
Marketing &
Advancement Consultant
Rachel Passannante
Curator &
Visitor Services Manager
Abigail Pietrantonio
Education Manager
Victoria Su
Public Programs &
Engagement Manager
Peter Taylor
Property Manager
Museum Staff
Linda Biagini
Ronald C. Brown Jr.
Susan Y. Desjardins
M. Jacqueline Eastwood
Donna Goodspeed
Charles Goss
Jessica Hammond
Dave Hobson
Sally Hollaman
Julie LaNigra
Peter Lennon
Eric MacDonald
Sean Mahoney
Karen McDonnell
Amy McLaughlin
Bruce Montville
Agostinho N. Nunes
Renée Plummer
Russell Prescott, Sr.
Florence Runer
Sally Brown Russ
Joseph Taggart
Charlie A. Tarbell
Ambassadors
Dr. Hollis Merrick III
Emma Stratton Bray
Executive Director
The Volunteers | Who make it happen
Douglas Aykroyd
Elizabeth Aykroyd
Sarah Bailey
Lisa Bald
Raymond Barrett
Sharon Beals
Brian Beck
Emily Belanger
Tricia Berger
Rhonda Bernstein
Linda Biagini
Greg Bisson
Bernadette Blake
Charles Blake III
Chuck Blake
Geo Brackett
Edward Bray
Bill Bringhurst
Donna Buxton
Michaela Buxton
Jessica Caldwell
Madalyn Caldwell
Mary Ann Cappiello
Cate Casassa
Cleo Castonguay
Abigail Castrucci
Don Clark
Candy Dietz
Beth Dupell
Allison Field
Dot Fisher
Sharon Fontaine
Michael Garvish
Greg Gilman
Nick Grey
Christy Slavik Hamilton
Dana Holleran
Ella Horvath
Dawn Jelley
Bill Jennison
Michelle Johnson
John Kane
Mary Ann Kane
Rebecca Karo
Nancy Koberstein
Everett Law
Sarah Lu
Pat Mann
Jessica Martin
Gretchen McBride
Dee McClave
Bob McNichol
Carol Miller
Dennis Miller
Julia Miller
Robin Millward
Bob Mitchell
Bruce A. Montville
Greg Morin
Peter Morrissey
Austin Paiva
Frances Parker
Sumner Parker
Kathy Passerini
Neil Pietrantonio
Prime Asia Leather
Ron Raiselis
Barbara Rimkunas
Jennifer Roy
Leigh Sloss
Serena Soterakopoulos
Barb Stratton
Jim Stratton
Penny Stratton
Richard Stratton
Arron Sturgis
Barrett Su
Chuck Su
Weston Su
Tangled Strings
The Friday Walking
Group
Paul Timmerman
Barbara Tosiano
Sarah Tremblay
Janet Tucker
Bobbi Vandenbulcke
Dave Vaught
Sally Watkins
David Welch
Mike Welch
Jennifer Wheeler
Nancy Wike
Tim Wol
Our volunteers are at the heart of our work. They assist with collections, tours,
gift shop sales, the American Independence Festival, public programs, mailings
and more. Investing countless hours into museum operations, our volunteers are
a wealth of knowledge and inspiration for us all. In addition to our governance
members and interns, our 2018 volunteers were:
Volunteers
AIM volunteers with Visitor Services Manager Rachel Passannante
SPECIAL PROJECTS
Gifts for special initiatives — from our
Master Landscape Plan to our Collections
Fund and more.
Ladd-Gilman House Rehabilitation
Land & Community Heritage Investment
Program (LCHIP)
Samuel P. Hunt Foundation
Society of the Cincinnati in the State of
New Hampshire
Georey & Anne von Kuhn
$1,500 Governors Lane Steps
Donna Buxton
Mr. and Mrs. Christopher C. Child
Foy Insurance Group
$1,000 and more
In memory of Philip J. and Janice A. Burne
Mr. Todd A. Burne
Up to $1,000
Robin and David Millward
$2,500 or more
Ozzie Ayscue and Kathleen Mahoney
The Bauman Family Foundation
Susan Desjardins and Peter Lennon
Stephen and Kimberlea Jeries
Dr. and Mrs. Hollis Merrick III
Eric and Deanna MacDonald
$1,000 - $2,499
David Burnham
M. Jacqueline Eastwood and
Michael E. McClurken
Roger and Patricia Hindman
Sean Mahoney
John and Catherine V. Salterio
Paul Staller and Deidre O’Byrne
Joseph and Wendy Taggart
$500 - $999
Douglas and Evelyn Chamberlain
Charles L. Goss and Beth Carroll Goss
Randall Hammond and Andrew Thomas
Peter Ladd
Paul Marcus and Moying Li
Hugh L. and Elizabeth Robinson
Oliver and Ana Schwab
Alfred L. Shapleigh III
Roger and Vail Tyler
Joel and Julie Williams
Franklin Wyman III
$250 - $499
J.D. Bernardy
Kevin Boucher
Robert A. Casassa and Sara McCarthy
Casassa
GENERAL OPERATIONS
Support of general operations through
membership and gifts to our 1776
Annual Fund
We are grateful for the ongoing
support of our donors, members and
benefactors in 2018. Their gifts support
the growth and preservation of the
American Independence Museum.
Ongoing
Support
Gardens in bloom at the Ladd-Gilman
House, summer 2018.
$250 - $499
Dr. Louis F. Clarizio
Sally Crawford and Peter Wells
Bob Davidson
William and Rebecca Dunham
Newell and Kate Flather
Peter and Roberta Garrison
William Greer and
Margaret Jewett
John A. Grieco, Jr. / The
Making of America
Wendy Stanley Jones
Frederick and Diane Kollmorgen
Frederic Little and Claudia L.
Ordonez
Christopher Matteson
Ben and Amy McLaughlin
John and Nancy Merkle
John Munkho
Frances and Sumner Parker
Samuel D. Perry
Russell Prescott
Pam and Mike Ryan
Michael and Christine Studley
LT & Mrs. Ryan B. Weddle, USN
Eric Whittall and Marybeth Marx
$100 - $249
Justin Abelow
LTC Douglas Aykroyd and
Elizabeth Aykroyd
William Bartlett
Peter W. Boardman
Marc and Janet Bono
Don and Mary Jo Briselden
Edward and Cindy Bush
Thomas Crosby Chadwick
Jonathan and Lori Cilley
Stephen Connelly
William and Prudence Crozier
Heidi Dunham
Judith C. Farrell
Dr. Henry H. Ferrell &
Gwendolyn English
Allison Field
David and Barbara Fittro
Dot Fisher
Folsom Family Association
Bradbury and Barbara Foss
Alexander Gaston
Vicki and Norm Geis
Harry and Margaret Hampton
Sally Hollaman
Col. Lawrence Howard and
Edith Howard
Stephen and Julie Johnson
William Jordan
John and MaryAnn Kane
Beverly Levey
Brian and Lisa Lortie
Paul Lynsky
Dr. Susan Reid MacLennan and
Douglas A. MacLennan
Rick and Linda Mahoney
Gretchen McBride
Sean McCoy
Thomas McGovern and
Helen Crowe
Diane Devine Mizusawa
Michael and Gloria Morison
Dawn Padeld
Kathy Passerini
William Ford Peck
Carl and Nancy Peterson
Martin and Pamela Poulin
Erskine Ramsay II
Jonathan and Phyllis Ring
Richard Sage
James Shirley
Stacy and Jesse Smith
Lois Swick
Charles Tarbell
David Vaught and Anita Kydd
Joyce Walker
John W. Weeks, Jr.
Gerry Weidema and
Joseph Simeone
Col. William Wood
Gussie Wilson
Capt. Richard T. Wright, USN
(Ret)
Chris and Jolie Yonker
Up to $100
Peg and Rich Aaronian
Steve and Barbara Armstrong
J. Aubry
Paul and Mary Avery
Raymond Barrett and
Mary McEvoy
Len and Rita Benjamin
Patricia Berger
David and Barbara Bohn
Karen Boodey
Phillip and Cynthia Boyle
Bozenski Family
Grant Brooks
Nikki Brown
Ronald and Karen Brown
Stacey Brunette
Anne and Bill Campbell
Kevin and Betsy Cochrane
Terry Cook
Nancy County
Cody Cramer and Dana Zulager
Penney Crawford
Elisabeth S. Cross and
Chuck Tilgner
Richard M. Cutter
Rebecca Dillman
Cheryl and John Douglass
Peter and Susan Dow
Jay Drawdy
David W. Eaton
James Ekstrom
Exeter Chapter DAR
Jerey Garstka
James and D.B. Garvin
Michael Gatto
L. Gilman
Greg and Julie Gilman
Quentin Gilman
Edward Hale
David and Hedy Hall
Liz Hamlet
Terrie Harman
John and Leslie Haslam
Deborah Hickey
Pam Hicks
Ruth Hooten
Brian and Heather Inyart
Dawn Jelley
Dorothea and David Jensen
Bill Jennison
Jerey and Olivia Kepner
Elizabeth Komiserak
Helen and Richard Kruppa
Paul and Kristine LaChapelle
Jacob Lambrecht
Up to $100 Cont.
Judy and Gary Lamphere
Lapoint Family
Jessica Lepler
Warren and Jean Little
Susan Lohse
Jeannette Lund
Col. Donald Lynde and
Barbara Lynde
Patricia Mann
Rev. Brian Marsh
Edda and Sandy Martin
Karen and Henry McFarland
Joseph McDowell
Gean McLane
Dale and Jan McLean
Bob and Bernadette McNichol
April Melo
Robin and David Millward
Dane and Kimberly Morrison
Joseph and Nancy Mulqueen
Sherri Nixon
Emanual Pacheco
Lt. Col. Scott R. Papp and
Joy Papp
Matthew Parker
Thomas and Alice Pickering
Christopher Peabody
John Pileggi
Susan Pizon
Rob Pratt
David and Tracy Priestley
Maureen Quilliam
Mary B. Remensynder
Tina Rimal
Peter Robinson
Ian Rohrbacher
Judith and Ed Rowan
Bradford Rowell
Florence and Harry Runer
David Saums
Doug and Stella Scamman
Susan Scannell
Dean and Sheryl Scott
Herb and Ann Sears
John and Jennifer Segal
Cli and Sara Sinnott
Jean and David Smith
Peter and Heather Smith
Jonathan and Karen Springer
Richard and Penelope Stratton
Jim and Barbara Stratton
Christina Sullivan
Corey Sulzen
Kritsen Sweet
Patricia Thayer
Jo Thomas
Jerey and Coralee Thomson
Margaret Tilton and Rob
Leatherbee
Paul Timmerman
Mike Toth
Janet Tucker
Richard Violette
James and Alexandra Walker
Paula Walsh
Bonnie Ward
Sally Ward and Malcolm
Wesselink
Lowry Watkins
David Welch and Sharon Beals
John and Sheila Welch
Bennett Wethered
David & Leslie (Gilman) Wheeler
Jonathan and Alice Woods
Nancy Wynn and Robert Dennis
Cynthia Young
Laurie and Anthony Zwaan
IN-KIND
SUPPORT
Ozzie Ayscue & Kathleen
Mahoney
Becky Barsi
Linda Biagini
Neva Cole
Destinee DiPrima
Earth Eagle Brewings
Exeter Fine Crafts
Exeter Parks and Recreation
Jessica Grin
Hippie Chick Bakery
Bill Jennison
John and MaryAnn Kane
Massage Envy
J. Smoot and Karen
McDonnell
Bob McGrath
Mitchell Comics
Neighborhood Beer
Company
Chetana Palmer and Stephen
Osborne
Michael and Patricia
Passannante
Porches of Exeter and the
Bungalow Club
Catherine and John Salterio
Sea Dog Brewing
Joe and Sue Stagnone
Strawbery Banke Museum
Victoria and Charles Su
TENNEY Mountain
Operational Company, LLC
Terence Waldron
Thrive for Women
Throwback Brewery
Town of Exeter
Trapp Family Lodge
Trends Gift Gallery
von Trapp Brewery
David Welch and
Sharon Beals
$10,000 and more
Fullwood Foundation
Massachusetts Society of
the Cincinnati
McIninch Foundation
Society of the Cincinnati
in the State of New
Hampshire
Vesper Foundation
William W. Treat Foundation
$1,000 - $9,999
Exeter Rotary Club
The Madelaine G. Von
Weber Trust
New Hampshire State
Council on the Arts
Up to $1,000
New Hampshire Humanities
Council
Library Members
Chester Public Library
Colby Memorial Library
Durham Public Library
East Kingston Library
Exeter Public Library
Grin Free Public Library
Hampton Falls Free Library
Kelley Library
New Durham Library
Mary E. Bartlett Library
Smyth Public Library
Tuftonboro Library
Whipple Free Library
Wiggin Memorial Library
$5,000
Service Credit Union
$2,500
Hoee, Phoenix, Gormley, & Roberts, P.A.
Attorneys at Law
Chinburg Builders, Inc.
Exeter Hospital
RiverWoods
$1,500
Foy Insurance
People’s United Bank
Runer Real Estate
$500-$999
Buxton Water
Historic Motor Sports
Mitchell and Monti International, LLC
Karin Behrens-Bouvier - Edward Jones
Business
Partners
2018
Foundations
& Non-Prots
2018
Business partners gather outside the Ladd-
Gilman House. Left to right: (back row): AIM
Board President Ozzie Ayscue, Bob Mitchell
of Historic Motor Sports and Mitchell & Monti
International (middle row): Je Foy of Foy
Insurance, Donna Buxton of Buxton Water,
Florence Runer of Runer Real Estate (front
row): Karin Behrens-Bouvier of Edward Jones
Investments, and Emma Bray.
We greatly appreciate all supporters of the museum and we have made every eort to
ensure the accuracy of this listing. Please notify us of any inaccuracies or omissions by
calling 603-772-2622. We regret any errors.
2,901
up 9
%
685
up 167
%
761
up 13
%
Connect with us!
One Governors Lane, Exeter, NH 03833 • 603.772.2622
www.independencemuseum.org • [email protected]
@aimuseum
@americanindependencemuseum
PROGRAMS
FINANCIAL
OPERATIONS
COLLECTIONS &
BUILDING
VISIBILITY
SOCIAL MEDIA
11
3
1
57
15
+
19,791
website
visitors
press
releases
distributed
naturalization
ceremony
attended
colonial Exeter residents brought
to life on the Ghosts of Winter
Street Cemetery Tour
interviews filmed with Society of the
Cincinnati in the State of New Hampshire
members for new digital interactives
15
grant
applications
submitted
67
first
time
donors
pieces of 18th century clothing
our Education Manager wears to
present school programs
15,427
number of round trip
miles traveled by both
Traveling Trunks
1,050
guests who visited the
museum during the American
Independence Festival
1
new cloud-based
donor database
implemented
4
new Board of
Governors
members
$
80,000
awarded in a matching LCHIP grant
to support the rehabilitation of the
ca. 1721 Ladd-Gilman House
9
gallons of stain
needed to coat
Folsom Tavern
17
new interpretive
panels installed
in museum
19 9
items
cataloged into
the collection
4
new Museum
Ambassadors
By the
Numbers
2018
