First Fridays
Our 21+ after-hours First Fridays feature fun entertainment amongst fine art collections and artifacts, complete with signature cocktails or mocktails and delicious complimentary lite bites on the first Friday of every month.
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Known for their deep rhythmic sensibility and collaborative spirit, Texas Street Revival balances tight arrangements with moments of improvisation, creating music that feels both intentional and expansive.
Experience an evening where art and music collide. All museum galleries will be open from 5:00 to 8:00 PM, with live music by Boo City at 6:00 PM in the Harbor View Gallery. Explore after hours with a lively atmosphere, lite refreshments, and a cash bar.
This isn’t a typical concert—expect an interactive, community-driven experience where the audience becomes part of the music. Help shape the setlist, react to short musical ideas, or influence the direction of a tune. Your energy becomes part of the performance, making each show unique and alive.
With sweeping views of the New Bedford harbor, The Jethros will light the fuse for a sparkling celebration—delivering big sounds, feel-good rhythms, and irresistible energy that will have you on your feet and dancing all night long.
Kick off your Labor Day weekend at the New Bedford Whaling Museum with an evening of art, culture, and high-energy live music as part of our popular First Fridays series. Enjoy full Museum access and explore the galleries at your leisure before the music begins. Live Music performance by The Catnip Junkies Band starts at 6:00 PM in the Harbor View Gallery.
Celebrate hip hop at the New Bedford Whaling Museum’s First Friday! Curated with 3rd EyE Unlimited, the night features a live DJ, dance, spoken word, and art in the Harbor View Gallery. Join us for an evening of rhythm and local talent on the waterfront.
Close out the 2026 First Fridays series with the ocean-inspired sounds of The Whale Guitar and Sharks Come Cruisin’. Enjoy energetic sea shanties, a cash bar, and light bites in the Harbor View Gallery. Don’t miss this celebration of maritime community!
Local History Guild
Join informal conversations with experts, aficionados, librarians, archivists, curators, historic preservation specialists, historians, and collectors. Topics run the gamut from commercial fishing to historic houses, to the latest acquisitions, collections, or publications. Each moderated conversation is roughly an hour long. Each program will be recorded and will be available on the Museum's YouTube page within 4 weeks. Free and open to the public on Zoom.
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This program made possible in part by:
The Portuguese and Lusophone-World Lecture Series
The Portuguese and Lusophone-World Lecture Series is a program dedicated to exploring and celebrating the rich cultural, historical, and linguistic heritage of Portuguese-speaking communities worldwide. Through a diverse array of lectures, film screenings, panel discussions, and cultural events, the series fosters a deeper understanding of the Lusophone world's influence and contributions.
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Join us in celebrating the annual Moby-Dick Marathon, the Museum’s world-renowned tribute to Herman Melville’s epic tale of obsession, adventure, and the sea. Each January, readers and Melville enthusiasts from around the globe gather in New Bedford—the very port where Melville himself once set sail—to take part in a 25-hour, cover-to-cover reading of Moby-Dick.
This extraordinary event transforms the Museum into a stage for literature, history, and community. Visitors can immerse themselves in Melville-inspired programs, including thought-provoking conversations with scholars, dramatic performances, hands-on activities for all ages, and behind-the-scenes experiences that bring Melville’s world vividly to life.
The Marathon commemorates Melville’s 1841 departure aboard the whaleship Acushnet—the journey that would inspire one of America’s greatest novels. Thirty years on, the celebration continues to grow, uniting generations of readers, performers, and maritime enthusiasts in a shared quest for the elusive white whale.
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Each January, the New Bedford Whaling Museum hosts a celebrated live reading of Moby-Dick. The annual Marathon draws global enthusiasts—both in-person and online—to share in this remarkable literary tradition.
Sailor Series
The Sailors’ Series illustrated lectures present a wide variety of experiences and adventures by individuals with lifelong commitments to sailing, boats, and the sea.
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The New Bedford Whaling Museum welcomes author Will Sofrin to share the extraordinary story of the USCGC Eagle. Discover how this 1936 German vessel, originally the Horst Wessel, was seized as a war prize and transformed into a training ship for US Coast Guard officers.
Experience an evening of endurance at the Whaling Museum’s Sailors’ Series! Captain Jerome Rand shares the gripping tale of his solo, non-stop circumnavigation aboard the Mighty Sparrow—a 271-day, 29,805-mile voyage around the globe without touching land.
AHA!
AHA! (Art, History, Architecture) provides a free platform for New Bedford’s creative community to showcase their talents collectively; making arts, culture, and creative expression accessible to all.
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UMass Dartmouth Ecology students present their capstone projects on the biggest emerging issues expected to impact marine and coastal biodiversity conservation in the near future.
