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Henry L. Ferguson Museum

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The official Instagram account of the Henry L. Ferguson Museum, Fishers Island, NY.

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Join us Saturday, October 10th for "INVASIVE PLANT TRAIL WALK: WILDLIFE RETURNS TO CHOCOMOUNT COVE" - a guided walk along one of the HLFM Land Trust’s trails to explore native red maple and black cherry woodlands, open grassland, sandy beach, and marsh habitat – with wonderful views of Fishers Island Sound.

Attendees will see invasive plants firsthand and learn how replacing them with native species can restore a landscape and bring back wildlife – creating healthier, more diverse habitats. Through thoughtful land management, this northern link of our important island wildlife corridor now supports Black-capped Chickadees, Yellow Warblers, and the many birds that gather around the trail’s small coastal marsh. Find out how you can apply similar practices on your own properties.

DATE: Saturday, October 10, 2026
TIME: 1–2 PM (Meet at the Museum at 12:30 PM. We will arrange carpooling to Chocomount Cove Trail for those who need it.)
Light refreshments and a Q&A will follow the walk.
Please wear long pants and long sleeves for protection from thorns and poison ivy.

Trail walk is free, but attendance is limited to ensure a high-quality learning experience. Please reserve your place by emailing fiseagrass@fergusonmuseum.org.

This event is co-sponsored by the Fishers Island Seagrass Management Coalition and the Henry L. Ferguson Museum.

For more info, please visit the Museum website
https://fergusonmuseum.org/events/

#hlfm
#fergusonmuseum
#fishersisland
#fishersislandny
#finy
#nativeplants
#fishers_island_seagrass
#trailwalk by @fergusonmuseum

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9 days ago

There’s always more to discover at the Museum. Are you on our email list? Sign up for the Henry L. Ferguson Museum newsletter to hear about upcoming and ongoing exhibitions, talks, nature walks, children’s programs, and news from the Museum Land Trust.

Whether you’re on Fishers Island or following along from afar, it’s an easy way to stay connected—and find something to put on your calendar.

Subscribe at the link in our bio!

📸1. Race Rock Light, January 2012. Photograph by Gail Cypherd

#fishersislandny #fergusonmuseum #fishersisland #finy by @fergusonmuseum

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22 days ago

Did you know the Museum has a new newsletter? 🦅 Our Wildlife & Birding Monthly brings you the latest wildlife happenings on Fishers Island, with a first-person account each month of close encounters with our animal neighbors.

This month, Louise Packard shares what happens when your family grows to include the ospreys nesting across from your home. Plus, wonderful wildlife photography (a selection previewed here) by Todd McCormack, Andrea Ross, Jack Schneider, and others.

Take a look and subscribe thru the link in our bio. A little more island wildlife in your inbox—just once a month!

📸:
1. Todd McCormack
2. Todd McCormack
3. Jack Schneider
4. Todd McCormack
5. Terry McNamara

#fishersislandny #osprey #fergusonmuseum #fishersisland #fishersislandsound #finy #baldeagle #newengland #birdersofnewengland by @fergusonmuseum

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a month ago

Eelgrass meadows are biodiversity hotspots that provide critical habitat for fish and invertebrates; stabilize shorelines against waves and erosion; efficiently store carbon below ground; and even reduce human and wildlife pathogens in seawater – directly influencing human health. Join us and the Fishers Island Seagrass Management Coalition (FISM) at the Museum Sunday, September 20 at 4 pm for "UNDERWATER RAINFORESTS: EELGRASS MEADOWS SUSTAIN THE SEA" - an Illustrated Talk by research scientist Dr. Olivia J. Graham, who will share insights from over 10 years of work studying the health of eelgrass in the Pacific Northwest. Learn why eelgrass meadows are essential coastal habitats, how different stressors impact eelgrass health, and what her team’s research reveals about the future of these ecosystems. Don’t miss this opportunity to explore underwater “rainforests” and discover what a decade of research can teach us about the health and resilience of our coastal ecosystems - and how local communities can play a role in protecting and conserving eelgrass habitats.

When: Sunday, September 20, 2026
Time: 4-5 pm
Place: At the Museum, 2nd floor and virtual, via zoom

Eelgrass. photo courtesy of Annie Crawley

This program is co-hosted by the Fishers Island Seagrass Management Coalition and the Henry L. Ferguson Museum

For more info and zoom link if you are unable to attend in-person, please visit our website
https://fergusonmuseum.org/events/

#hlfm
#fergusonmuseum
#fishersisland
#fishersislandny
#finy
#eelgrass
#fiseagrass
#fishers_island_seagrass by @fergusonmuseum

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a month ago

Fall is one of the best times to go birding on Fishers Island with lots of species making their way south for the winter. Join us at the Museum this Sunday, September 20 from 9-11 am for a guided MIGRATORY SONGBIRD TRAIL WALK led by DPNC Outreach Coordinator Lauren Michael. We'll explore the HLFM Land Trust’s woodlands – which provide great habitat for migrating songbirds such as warblers, vireos, tanagers, thrushes, and more. This program is great for birders of all skill levels. Please dress for the weather and don’t forget your binoculars! Meet at the Museum’s parking lot at 9AM and we’ll drive to the first site from there. (If you don’t have a car, you can carpool with others.)

This Penni Sharp Nature Walk is sponsored in loving memory of Penelope “Penni” Sharp, birder, botanist & HLFM president from 2003 until 2014.

PHOTO CREDIT: Blue-headed Vireo photo by Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren, Wikimedia Commons.

For more info on this and other events, please visit our website
https://fergusonmuseum.org/events/

#hlfm
#fergusonmuseum
#fishersisland
#fishersislandny
#finy
#migratorySongbirds
#naturewalk by @fergusonmuseum

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a month ago

Mushrooms are increasingly being marketed as a solution for decomposing our waste and even our bodies. How effective are these methods, and what does the science actually support? Join us and Lighthouse Works at the Museum this Sunday, September 13 from 2-3 pm for "MOLDY TOMBS, FECES, CORPSES, AND THE BUSINESS OF FUNGAL DECAY" - an Illustrated Talk by sculpture artist Sam Shoemaker, a current LW Fellow, whose work is a collaboration between himself and living fungi. Based on his extensive experience with mushrooms, this lecture investigates the companies leading this emerging market, examining what they promise and where enthusiasm for fungal sustainability runs up against the limits of biology. Along the way, the lecture takes several anthropological detours through the history of our relationship to fungal decay.

This event is co-sponsored by the Henry L. Ferguson Museum and Lighthouse Works.

For more info and zoom link if you are unable to attend in-person, please visit our website
https://fergusonmuseum.org/events/

#hlfm
#fergusonmuseum
#fishersisland
#fishersislandny
#finy
#FungalDecay
#Mushrooms
#mushroomcultivation
#tothelighthouseworks by @fergusonmuseum

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a month ago

A pod of SIX dolphins spotted just outside of West Harbor! The waters of Fishers Island are alive with exciting things—if you capture something cool—animal, fish, plant, or even dramatic weather—email it to us at photos@fergusonmuseum.org. Everyone can help document and expand our understanding of this varied natural world—and the new things that seem to surface all the time.

Credit: Jonathan Farrar
#citizenscientist #fishersisland #dolphins #fishersislandsound taken in Fishers Island Sound by @fergusonmuseum

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2 months ago

Join us at the Museum this Sunday, August 30 at 4 pm for "THE BLUE HUMANITIES: REIMAGINING AMERICA’S MARITIME HISTORY" - an Illustrated Talk by Associate Professor of History at the University at Albany, State University of New York, Christopher L. Pastore, who will give a fast-paced tour through America’s maritime history and explore how and why sea stories have changed over time. During the early twentieth centuries maritime topics drew considerable interest, but by the second half the ocean’s past had fallen from favor. More recently, historians, geographers, and literary scholars have breathed new life into salty subjects, filling shelves with books organized around the idea of the “blue humanities.” Intended for fishermen, sailors, and beach combers alike, this lecture explores why the field has faced this ebb and flood—and provides a winter reading list in the process.

PHOTO CREDIT: Winslow Homer, Boys in a Dory, 1873, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

For more info and zoom link if you are unable to attend in-person, please visit our website
https://fergusonmuseum.org/events/

#hlfm
#fergusonmuseum
#fishersisland
#fishersislandny
#finy
#maritimehistory by @fergusonmuseum

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2 months ago

Stone walls are a reminder of the extensive livestock farming that dominated Fishers Island's economy for most of its post-settlement history. One of these rocky pieces of history has been meticulously revealed thanks to the hard work of Museum volunteer Charlotte Richardson McCance. We are so grateful to Charlotte for her dedication to maintaining trails on Fishers Island, including along this stone wall, which connects Chocomount Trail to Chocomount Hill Trail just across the street. Charlotte has battled invasive plants, thorns, brambles, and poison ivy to showcase this 100+ year-old stone wall and surrounding native ferns.

#hlfm #hlfmlandtrust #fishersisland #06390 by @fergusonmuseum

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2 months ago

Join us at the Museum next WEDNESDAY August 26th at 2 p.m. for "INNOVATIVE ANIMAL ADAPTATIONS" to discover the world of biomicry and learn about human inventions that were inspired by animals and plants in the wild. This is a Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center (DPNC) FAMILY PROGRAM for ages five and up. Attendees will explore hands-on activities to replicate some of the incredible adaptations that animals have perfected over millions of years. Meet DPNC ambassador animals and observe their innovative adaptations! Attendance is limited so advance registration is recommended. RSVP: (631) 788-7239 or info@fergusonmuseum.org (Note the name and date of the specific program and the name and age of the attendee/s). Suggested donation $10.

PHOTO CREDIT: Belted kingfisher by Courtney Celley, USFWS

For more information about Museum programs, please visit:
https://fergusonmuseum.org/events

#hlfm
#fergusonmuseum
#fishersisland
#fishersislandny
#finy
#biomicry
#animaladaptations by @fergusonmuseum

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2 months ago

Join us at the Museum this Sunday, August 23 at 4 pm for "EVOLVING LANDSCAPES: OLMSTED, DESIGN, AND THE ARNOLD ARBORETUM" - an Illustrated Talk by William (Ned) Friedman, Director of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, who will take us on an exploration of Frederick Law Olmsted’s design legacy embodied at one of his most renowned and best-preserved landscapes: the Arnold Arboretum – a world-leading scientific research enterprise dedicated to the study of woody plants and and a crown jewel in Boston’s Emerald Necklace – a public park that is free and open 365 days a year.

We will learn about the design history of the Arboretum, from its origins under Frederick Law Olmsted to decades of evolution that involved contributions by the Olmsted Brothers, including lessons learned in modern times about how to manifest their visions in our contemporary world. This talk will connect past to present, culminating in a reminder that we can learn from legendary designs and also make them relevant for our times.

Reception to follow. Space is limited for in-person talk, registration is required. Please register by contacting the Museum at 631-788-7239 or info@fergusonmuseum.org.

PHOTO CREDIT: Arnold Arboretum Oak Collection, Fall courtesy of Ned Friedman

For more info and zoom link if you are unable to attend in-person, please visit our website:
https://fergusonmuseum.org/events/

#hlfm
#fergusonmuseum
#fishersisland
#fishersislandny
#finy
#ArnoldArboretum
#FrederickLawOlmsted by @fergusonmuseum

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2 months ago

Have you visited Clay Point Road Trail yet this summer? If so, maybe you've noticed our fabulous collaboration with the @fishersislandlibrary — a StoryWalk on the trail! Michael Rosen's "We're Going on a Bear Hunt" is a classic children's book about a family splish-splashing and stumble-tripping on their way to find a bear. What happens when they do? You'll have to walk the trail to find out, or visit the Library to borrow a copy of the book. Here, our summer youth employees (Trail Dogs) take a break from trail maintenance to enjoy the story.

#hlfm #hlfmlandtrust #fishersisland #06390 by @fergusonmuseum

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2 months ago