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Schools across Long Island participate in Raynham Hall’s virtual programs By Letisha Dass
B
efore the coronavirus pandemic, a visit to a museum such as Raynham Hall Museum entailed walking around a nearly 300-year-old Townsend family home while being led by a historian. History enthusiasts and students looked into the Townsend’s family rooms, enabling them to travel back in history to the 1700s. However, since the pandemic has led to the closure of in-person tours, Raynham Hall Museum has had to discover how to bring the museum’s in-person experience to the comfort of its visitors’ homes. To do this, Claire Bellerjeau, Raynham Hall Museum’s education and public programs director and historian, has led tours through Zoom. “We have done such an incredible job of shifting to virtual programs,” Bellerjeau said. New virtual programs, such as "Samuel Townsend: Colonial Merchant," have offered an opportunity for students to witness a show-and-tell of historical artifacts from long ago. Since the start of virtual tours in the spring, the museum has presented about 100 programs and tours for more than 3,000 students across Long Island. According to Bellerjeau, she has been able to lead three times the
number of programs now than on a normal in-person workday. “I was actually reaching a wider group of students during the virtual program,” said Bellerjeau. “I know that it is no replacement for coming to the museum, but we were really proud of the way that we were able to not just reach the same groups but actually reach new groups.” “Sure, we are a local house museum, but our story of the Revolutionary War and of the Culper Spy Ring, and even our story of the enslaved people that lived there, is a national story,” Bellerjeau said. “Understanding these topics is something that all students across America would benefit from.” Although Long Island is in Stage 4 reopening and the museum could potentially start tours within the home, the museum has decided not to, at least not yet. “We are choosing to protect our members and our visitors because we just don’t feel that it is safe to do it in the house yet,” said Theresa Skvaria, Raynham Hall Museum public relations director. For now, the museum will start holding a socially distanced meeting within its garden to talk about the home’s history. This new program for the museum will be called “Hangout with the Historian.”
Bayville Historical Museum 34 School St. Bayville, N.Y. 11709 (516) 628-1780
Oyster Bay Rail Road Museum 102 Audrey Ave. Oyster Bay, N.Y. 11771 (516) 558-7036
Raynham Hall Museum 20 W Main St. Oyster Bay, N.Y. 11771 (516) 922-6808
Sagamore Hill National Historic Site 20 Sagamore Hill Rd. Oyster Bay, N.Y. 11771 (516) 922-4788
Christina Daly/Herald Guardian
Above photo: Raynham Hall Museum is the former home of Revolutionary War Culper Spy Ring member Robert Townsend.
