The Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum

05/30/2026

Up next at the RJD! Opportunities to support the museum, show up for your community, and connect to our house and gardens can be found throughout the month of June.

June 12, 7pm-10pm: Luminosity ✨ Last days to purchase tickets!
June 16, 6:30pm: Garden Tour led by Rick Finneran; free!
June 17, noon: Family Storytime with The New Bedford Free Public Library; free!
June 30, 4:30pm - 8:30pm: Slice of History Civics Fair, free!

See you soon. 🌹

05/29/2026

05/26/2026

Join our growing list of sponsors for Luminosity!

🕯️EMBER LEVEL
AAO Consulting LLC
Diana Henry Realty
Gibson Sotheby's International Realty - Dartmouth
Howe Allen Real Estate
Meridian Printing

🔥FIREFLY LEVEL
Bartlett Tree Experts
Eversource
Mark M. Duff II
Nat Brayton
Stewart Young

✨SPARKLER LEVEL
Alera Group - Sylvia Group
BayCoast Bank
Demers Landscaping
LandVest, Inc.
Tidal River Clothing Co

With catering sponsored by Servedwell Hospitality, photography by Illuminate Us Media, and a performance by Ten31!

Sponsors receive tiered benefits, including tickets to the party, promotion, and acknowledgements. Learn more here: https://app.dvforms.net/api/dv/007208

💡 Luminosity is this year’s annual garden party at the Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum to raise mission-supporting funds. Join us on June 12th, 7pm - 10pm!

05/19/2026

Luminosity is this year’s annual garden party at the Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum to raise mission-supporting funds. Guests will gather in the newly illuminated historic garden to enjoy performances, refreshment and the historic ambiance of the estate. As the sun sets, the gardens will begin to glow with newly installed landscape lighting, a recent improvement made to increase public access to the property. Sparkles, silver, and gold dress and accessories are encouraged. Your ticket fee includes a donation to the Museum, as well as performances, food and beverages. Proceeds from this event support the upkeep and accessibility of the RJD gardens.

Tickets are available to purchase online (rjdmuseum.org/luminosity) or by calling the museum at (508) 997-1401. They are available in a three tiered pricing range. You are encouraged to purchase your ticket at the price that you are able to afford.

05/18/2026

The RJD is hosting our first Slice of History event in honor of Civic Season! Civic Season, pioneered by Made By Us, is observed during the time between Juneteenth and the Fourth of July. We are celebrating by hosting a Civics Fair!

Drop by our beautiful house and gardens on June 30th from 4:30pm - 8:30pm for a “slice of history” as well as a slice of pizza! Engage with your community all while learning about local history. Community organizations will be present to distribute information on everything from voter registration to local history. The fair will also feature a program of guest speakers talking about community engagement. Contributing organizations and speakers will be annouced at a later date.

Come to learn, come to hang out in the garden, come to be informed, or come for free pizza. However you want to show up, we welcome you!

If you are a local organization who wants to contribute by tabling at the event, reach out to Lauren at [email protected] by May 30th.

05/11/2026

We are looking forward to our annual garden party! This year we are celebrating with a party full of LIGHT! Join us at Luminosity on June 12th.

The Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum hosts its annual Luminosity garden party June 12 to support its historic gardens. See link below ⬇️

📸 Provided by Rotch-Jones-Duff House

05/08/2026

Join Waterfront Historic Area LeaguE (WHALE) and the Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum as we bring back "Living the Old House Dream" series for AHA! New Bedford ! Preservation Celebration on May 14. The program will be an encore presentation by Laura Parrish, who will share how she undertook her own historic home projects, without having a background in preservation or restoration. Her view is "can, you can" and the importance of community.

Laura purchased 100 Madison Street, "The Whalehouse" in 2015 and over the next several years, restored the house to its original splendor. The doors, windows, mantels, floors and radiators are all original to the house, which was originally built in the whaling days for Abby Taber Hunt, the daughter of whaling merchant Henry Taber. Later the property became the home of Catherine Melville Hoadley, the sister of Moby Dick author Herman Melville.

Laura will share her experiences with this iconic local property and her new endeavor at the Crowell Farm in Sagamore and some new exciting initiatives around historic homes!. Follow Laura and her work on her Instagram, and .

05/07/2026

Everything's coming up roses 🌹

The rose garden is looking healthy and strong. We will soon see buds, and then this whole space will be overflowing with beautiful roses of every color.

05/04/2026