Scheduled Events
Inviting guest speakers to Derry to celebrate the work of America's foremost poet is a tradition at the farm. Lectures are held in the Farm's barn theater beginning at 2:00 pm and are open to the public free of charge.
Programs are made possible by grants from the New Hampshire Humanities Council and are sponsored by the Division of Parks and Recreation, the Robert Frost Homestead Trustees, and the Friends of the Robert Frost Farm.
The Frost Farm, a national historic landmark, is located on NH Route 28, 1-3/4 miles south of the traffic circle in Derry, NH.
For more information, call (603) 432-3091.
Programs are free (except appraisals) and open to the public.
The Robert Frost Farm
Literary Series
Summer 2013
SUNDAY JULY 14th 2 PM: “New Hampshire’s One Room Schools”
STEVE TAYLOR will explore the lasting legacies of the one-room school and show how they echo contemporary schools. He will separate the romance from the reality of the hundreds of one-room schools that were the backbone of primary education for generations of New Hampshire children a century ago. Taylor has a long history as a champion of New Hampshire's farmers and farm culture. He was NH Commissioner of Agriculture for 25 years and served as an ex officio member of the University System Board of Trustees. With his three sons, he runs the Taylor Brothers Sugarhouse and Creamery in Plainfield. Additionally, he travels around NH giving presentations through the NH Humanities Council, so we can all learn about the Granite State's rich rural history.
SUNDAY JULY 28th 2 PM: “Rob Frost’s Most Important Day / A forgotten Frost poem”
RICK HOLMES, historian and ROBERT CRAWFORD, poet will share an exciting find; an important poetic work of Frost that has been seemingly forgotten for over a century. In connection with this discovery, they will speak on why March 2, 1906, is arguably the most important day in the literary career of Derry chicken farmer Robert Frost. Without the events of that day, Frost’s life might have traveled down a different road then the one that would eventually lead him to become “America’s poet.” Rick is Derry’s official town historian, founder of the Derry Museum of History and author of six books on local history. Robert is the co-founder of the Hyla Brook Poets. His second published book of poetry, The Empty Chair, was recently awarded the prestigious Richard Wilbur Award. Both Bob and Rick are trustees of the Robert Frost Farm.
SUNDAY August 4th 2 PM: “Antiques and Collectibles Appraisals"
HERC PAPPACHRISTOS is back by popular demand. Come join the fun and have your treasured items assessed by an expert whose afternoon of appraisals has become an anticipated regular summer series event. Herc is an appraiser and auction manager with Grogan & Co. of Dedham, MA and has been active in the antique world for over twenty-five years. He is also a member of the Frost Farm board of trustees. There will be a $5.00 fee for each appraised item.
SUNDAY August 18th 2 PM: “Fact, Dream and Labor: Robert Frost and the New England Attitude”
SYDNEY LEA, our second featured poet in the 2013 series will be approaching Frost from the perspective of one quintessential New England poet looking at another. Mr. Lea is Poet-Laureate of Vermont, a fitting tribute to the excellence of the ten poetry collections he has published to date. His is also a novelist, essayist, literary scholar and teacher, having taught at Dartmouth, Yale, Wesleyan and Middlebury Colleges. His article, “Robert Frost and the End of Poetry” recently appeared in the New England Review.
SUNDAY August 25th 2 PM: “The Frost Place: Robert Frost in Franconia”
MAUDELLE DRISKELL, executive director of the Frost Place, will talk about Frost’s Franconia home where he resided from 1915 until 1920. She will also discuss the significance of that brief residence during which Frost managed to publish three highly-acclaimed books, securing his place as one of America’s finest poets. Ms. Driskell holds an MFA in poetry from Warren Wilson College. She is the recipient of the Ruth Lilly Fellowship, awarded by Poetry magazine and the Modern Language Association. Her work has appeared in Poetry, Kenyon Review, CAIRN, New Orleans Review, Cortland Review, Inch, All Shook Up, and The Made Thing among others. She is a past winner of the Agnes Scott Writer’s Festival, and she has been a featured reader in The Hyla Brook Series, and a featured reader of the New Hampshire Poetry Society.
The 2013 Robert Frost Farm Summer Literary Series is funded by The New Hampshire Humanities Council, The Robert Frost Farm Board of Trustees, and Friends of the Robert Frost Farm. Programs are free (except appraisals) and open to the public. For more information, call 603-432-3091.