Kittery 375th Events

Town of Kittery 375th Celebration Events

Thank you for joining our year of celebration.  Here's a look back at our exciting line-up of events.
 
Taste of Kittery | October 9, 2021 | Post Office Square

The fun of the 375th Celebration kicked off with the Taste of Kittery.  This foodtastic event showcased Kittery’s vibrant restaurant community with a delicious mix of sips and bites, music and fun.  This exciting event featured a long list of local restaurants and breweries and even featured a one-of-a-kind 375th Celebration brew, courtesy of Woodland Farms.

Woodland Farms Launched Fort Foster Lager | October 2021

Woodland Farms created a series of different brews showcasing Kittery landmarks in celebration of the Town's 375 Celebration.  First up was Fort Foster Lager made available both on draft and in cans, locally.

Isles of Shoals: Then and Now | February 9, 2022 | Kittery Community Center - Star Theatre

Then and Now Isles of Shoals historian, Ann Beattie, shared the storied history of the Isles of Shoals, once the cod fishing capital of the world. Joe Watts, the CEO of the nonprofit Star Island Corporation and a Kittery resident, was also on hand to answer any questions about Star Island today.

Four Centuries of New England Garden History | April 13, 2022 | Kittery Community Center - Star Theatre

The Kittery Historical and Naval Society presented this lecture by celebrated horticultural historian, lecturer, and author, John Forti.  Mr. Forti is the author of ‘The Heirloom Gardener: Traditional Plants & Skills for the Modern World’ and Executive Director of Bedrock Gardens in Lee, New Hampshire. He has served as Director of Horticulture at Plimoth Plantation, Curator and Director of Historic Landscapes at Strawberry Banke Museum, and as Director of Horticulture and Education of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. 

The Men of the USS Thresher - Lunch & Learn | April 21, 2022 | Kittery Community Center - Star Theatre

Local historian D. Allan Kerr hosted this Lunch & Learn about the Men of the USS Thresher. The 129 individuals lost in the world’s worst submarine disaster almost 60 years ago were seemingly ordinary men charged with an extraordinary task — manning and maintaining the USS Thresher, perhaps the most advanced naval vessel of its time. During this talk, Kerr attached names and faces to some of these casualties of the Cold War (including Kittery residents), to hopefully gain new appreciation for their sacrifice.

William Dean Howells Lecture | May 4 , 2022 | Kittery Community Center - Star Theatre

Mark Twain called William Dean Howells, the author of 140 books and editor of the Atlantic Monthly, “the boss” because beginning in the 1870s and extending into the new century, he shaped a canon of American literature that continues today. Of the many, many places Howells' lived, he loved none more than his gambrel-roofed house in Kittery Point. Susan Goodman, author of William Dean Howells: A Life, hosted this lecture to discuss “Literature and Life” (to borrow one of his titles) and his connection to Kittery.

Historic Home Tour: William Dean Howells House | May 10, 2022 | Kittery Community Center - Star Theatre

Of all the many places William Dean Howells lived, none so captured his imagination or felt as much fully home as the gambrel-roofed house looking out toward the sea in Kittery Point.  On May 10, as part of our town’s 375th anniversary celebrations, the house and grounds were opened to the public for two tours: Each tour focused on Howells’ life and work.  Dr. Susan Goodman, a biographer of Howells and the University of Delaware’s H. Fletcher Brown Chair of Humanities Prof. Emerita, was our guide and encouraged participants to share their own memories and knowledge of Kittery.

READ ME: A Shared Reading Experience | Staring June 3, 2022 | Rice Public Library

The Rice Public Library partnered with Maine State Library on a program called Read ME. Read ME is designed to connect adults across our community with books written by up-and-coming Maine authors and with other reading adults throughout town. Through this shared experience of reading the same book at the same time as others in town, we encouraged adults to read for enjoyment and to make connections with others in the community.

  • The nonfiction title selected for the program was Phuc Tran’s ‘Sigh, Gone: A Misfit’s Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In.’ 
  • The novel selected for the program was Meredith Hall’s ‘Beneficence.’ 

Town of Kittery Independence Day Celebration | June 25, 2022 | Thresher Memorial Park

General Whipple was born in Kittery in 1730, and went on to become a merchant sea captain, brigadier general in the New Hampshire militia, and a member of the Continental Congress.  At this Celebration, General Whipple gave a reading from the Declaration of Independence, which he signed in 1776.  The event also featured Revolution-era reenactors from Capt. Henry Dearborn's Company, the Piscataqua Rangers Junior Fife and Drum Corps, and the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Color Guard. 

Kittery Seaside Gardens Tour | July 9 | Various Locations 

The Kittery Historical & Naval Society hosted a one of a kind garden tour that included nine sites from John Frost’s book Colonial Village, including the Lady Pepperrell Mansion, the Kittery First Congregational Church cemetery, the Follett house, the Hooke house, the historical demonstration gardens at Ft. McClary, the Sir William Pepperrell Mansion, the Bray House, the 1798 house (and one Moore’s Island garden), and the Kerswell Ordinary.

Helping Others Through Fireworks | August 6, 2022 | Various Locations

Sponsored by the Wood Island Life Saving Station Assoc, we celebrated the Town of Kittery's 375th birthday, alongside the U.S. Coast Guard's 232nd birthday with a food drive and fireworks display!  While we celebrated these exciting milestone birthdays, we continued the tradition of helping others by donating non-perishable food items to help support our local food pantries, Footprints and Gather. 

Kittery Arts Festival | July 14, 2022 - August 18, 2022 | Various Locations

The Kittery Arts Festival, sponsored by Kennebunk Savings, showcased live music, theatrical performances, art workshops, dance performances and so much more.  Events were scheduled every Thursday and took place throughout town at the Kittery Community Center, Fort Foster, John Paul Jones Park, and the Kittery Foreside.

Events included:

  • Plein Air Painting with the Kittery Art Association at Fort Foster
  • "What is Magic" Show & Workshop with Sages Entertainment at the Kittery Community Center Frisbee Lawn
  • Seacoast West African Dance & Drum with the Dance Hall at John Paul Jones Park
  • Teen Cabaret Variety Show with the Seacoast Repertory Theatre at the Star Theatre
  • An Evening with the Jason Anick Acoustic Trio with the Dance Hall at John Paul Jones Park
  • Let's Get Creative: A Make & Take Art Event at the Kittery Community Center

375 Birthday Bash | September 3, 2022 | Kittery Community Center - Frisbee Lawn

The 375 Birthday Bash, hosted by the Kittery School Department and sponsored by Kennebunk Savings was a celebration filled with carnival games, bounce houses, an obstacle course, dessert walk, pony rides, PNS STEM activities, live music, tasty food and tons of fun for the whole family.

Maritime Concert with David Coffin | September 8, 2022 | Rice Public Library

Renowned American Sea Shanty performer, David Coffin hosted a maritime concert at the Rice Public Library.  From the singing of traditional sea chanteys to hoist the anchor and set the sails to the dance songs sailors sang in the doldrums, this event was an interactive, singalong performance that couldn't be missed.

2nd Annual Taste of Kittery | September 24, 2022  Post Office Square

What better way to close out Kittery's 375th Celebration than the way it began - with the Taste of Kittery!  This foodtastic event, sponsored by Kennebunk Savings, showcase Kittery’s vibrant restaurant community with a delicious mix of sips and bites, music and fun for the whole community.