Coming to RI: Renovations are Underway!

Last week we began long-awaited renovations to our time-traveling Coming to Rhode Island exhibit, which will reopen in November. The updates will include:

• A totally transformed “time tunnel” to guide visitors’ adventure through the story galleries. 
• A new interactive gallery that shares the story of an Irish immigrant who worked on the construction of Fort Adams. 
• And a completely reinvented “Story Center” with an array of intriguing new hands-on activities that explore culture and diversity.

While there are a lot of changes in store, the new Irish gallery will replace only the French Canadian mill gallery – so no worries, the beloved English farmhouse, Cape Verdean packet ship and Dominican bodega will return in their current forms!

Before we could begin to install the new exhibit elements, the first step was demolition of the departing time tunnel, Story Center and gallery. Take a look at some scenes from the process!

BEFORE: Members of the exhibits team (Exhibit Developer Jessica Neuwirth, Exhibit Designer & Fabricator Chris Sancomb, Director of Exhibits Robin Meisner) looking like they mean business at the beginning of demo.

Taking apart the Story Center and time tunnel.

Crew members James and Mark disassemble the mill...

...and then the mill house.

The time tunnel and mill, almost fully dismantled.

AFTER: The entryway, nearing the end of demolition. It looks quite different, doesn’t it?!

Stay tuned for more stories and photos of reinventing Coming to Rhode Island.