Two Rhode Island history organizations have received a 2019 Leadership in History Award of Excellence from the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH).
Little Compton Historical Society won the award for ‘Remember Me: Little Compton's 46 Historic Cemeteries.’
Lippitt House Museum won the award for the special installation ‘Back To The Work: Encounters with Historical and Contemporary Voices.’
Lippitt House Museum Director, Carrie Taylor, and Little Compton Historical Society Executive Director, Marjory O’Toole, traveled to Philadelphia, to accept the awards. The AASLH Leadership in History Award is the most prestigious recognition for achievement in the preservation and interpretation of state and local history.
Ms. O’Toole said, “We were particularly pleased that the Remember Me project received this award because it was such a community effort, combining preservation work with deep historical research and public programming. One hundred volunteers each attended a gravestone cleaning workshop and pledged to clean 10 gravestones. Over 1,000 gravestones have been cleaned in the last year as a result of their efforts, and they are continuing their work”.
The project culminated in a published guidebook Remember Me: A Guide to Little Compton's 46 Historic Cemeteries coauthored by O’Toole, Melinda Green and Helen Richmond Webb.
The fully illustrated book shares information about each of Little Compton's 46 historic cemeteries. The book includes a map, explains which cemeteries are open for public visitation, and provides thoroughly researched histories of each site. It features more than a hundred photographs depicting the cemeteries and dozens of notable gravestones, many of the photos were taken by Board President Bart Brownell.
The guidebook is available at the Historical Society’s Wilbor House Museum, in retail shops near Little Compton and on Amazon.

About Little Compton Historical Society
The Society was incorporated in 1937 to preserve the history and cultural heritage of Little Compton for the enrichment and enjoyment of the general public. It preserves the c. 1690 Wilbor House Museum and offers a variety of tours, exhibitions, educational programs, and local history publications.
For more information please visit littlecompton.org.