Spark! Places of Innovation

Spark! Places of Innovation is a traveling exhibit from the Smithsonian’s Museum on Main Street program. It features stories from over 30 rural communities across the nation that explore the relationship between place and creativity. For every community, there is a unique combination of history, resources, leadership, collaboration, and opportunity that resulted in invention and innovation—socially, artistically, technologically, or culturally. 

New Hampshire Humanities (NHH) is partnering with Vermont Humanities and the Smithsonian’s Museum on Main Street program to bring Spark! Places of Innovation to six small towns in New Hampshire and Vermont from June 2026 – March 2027. Three towns in each state will host the exhibit for just under six weeks each, with support from their state humanities council.   

Tour Schedule

Rockingham Memorial Library, Bellows Falls, VT
June 16 - July 27, 2026

Barnet Public Library, Barnet, VT
July 30 - September 8, 2026

Swanton Public Library, Swanton, VT
September 30 - October 16, 2026

Berlin Historical Society, Berlin, NH
October 21 - December 10, 2026

FEATURED PROGRAMS IN BERLIN
(at the White Mountain Community College Fortier Library)

November 4 at 6 pm:
Ingenuity and the Androscoggin
Presented by Rachel Dandeneau

Wednesday, November 18 at 6 pm:
Yankee Ingenuity: Stories of Headstrong and Resourceful People
Presented by Jo Radner

Wednesday, December 2 at 6 pm:
A Century of Industrial Progress in Berlin
Presented by Ray Danforth

Mariposa Museum, Peterborough, NH
December 17, 2026 - February 8, 2027

Canaan Historical Society, Canaan, NH
February 15 - March 26, 2027

 

Questions? Please contact programs@nhhumanities.org