Full Steam Ahead: Connor Flanagan at the Helm of the Bridgehampton Museum

In the fall of 2023, Connor Flanagan assumed the helm of the Bridgehampton Museum as its new executive director. Now, just past the one-and-a-half-year mark of his tenure, if there is a philosophy that seems to embody Flanagan’s management style, it’s this — “Build it and they will come.”

And build it he has — from exhibit programming, hands-on workshops and food events, to defining the focus of the museum’s showcase properties — the Corwith House near the Candy Kitchen and the newly renovated Nathaniel Rogers House at the corner of Ocean Road and Montauk Highway.

Flanagan, 32, is the museum’s third executive director in as many years, following the 2021 retirement of longtime director John Eilertsen and the departure of Eilertsen’s replacement, Nina Dec, in the summer 2023.

He comes to Bridgehampton after serving as the assistant director of the Southampton History Museum for several years under its previous executive director Tom Edmonds. During his time in Southampton, Flanagan oversaw the creation of several innovative visitor experiences, including blacksmithing and a popular ghost hunting program, both of which he now offers in Bridgehampton. The next ghost hunting adventure with Long Island Paranormal Investigators is at the Rogers House on Saturday, April 12, with sessions at 8 p.m. and 9:30 p.m., and “Beer & Blacksmithing” with Ricky Bottenus returns to the Corwith House on Saturday, June 14, from 4 to 8 p.m.

While the Corwith House, once home to a farming family, has long been the center of activity for the museum, as it tells the story of Bridgehampton’s agricultural roots, the Nathaniel Rogers House, which opened to the public in May 2023, now serves as the museum’s official headquarters.

Owned by Southampton Town and operated under the stewardship of the Bridgehampton Museum, the property was purchased in 2003 with $2.5 million from the town’s Community Preservation Fund coffers and another $500,000 raised by the Bridgehampton Historical Society (the former name of the Bridgehampton Museum). At the time of its purchase, the home was in rough shape and more money followed, both from the CPF and in donations, to finance its renovation and restoration.

Now completely reborn, it resembles a vintage 19th-century whaling captain’s home. But the Nathaniel Rogers House is not what it first appears to be. At 6,000 square feet with two-story columns stretching along its front façade, the building was originally constructed in the federal style in 1824 by Abraham Topping Rose with just two rooms downstairs and two rooms upstairs. It underwent a dramatic remodeling and expansion in 1840 when Nathaniel Rogers, a renowned painter and shipbuilder, transformed it into the Greek Revival structure we see today.

Rogers expanded the house greatly by building off the front, adding the columns, a cupola (which flew the coop during the hurricane of 1938), an outdoor summer kitchen and four large rooms. After Nathaniel Rogers’ time, the building subsequently operated as an inn before serving as home to James B. Hopping and his family for more than half a century beginning in the 1950s.

But it is Rogers’s tenure that defines the focus of the museum’s programming there. In other words, the Nathaniel Rogers House is not a historical museum, notes Flanagan, rather it is an artist’s home that has been preserved. For that reason, the programming there will shine a light on the literary, artistic and cultural traditions of Bridgehampton and surrounding locales.

“The fun part is, it’s a blank canvas. This building didn’t have a set up yet, so we could do what we wanted,” Flanagan explained. “So we’re going to talk about art history and have exhibits that show the work of local artists.”

Among them are the late Claus and Helen Hoie, accomplished artists who left many of their works to the museum. Now part of the permanent collection, a rotating selection of those works are on view in a room dedicated to the Hoies.

Also available at the Rogers House is gallery space for artists who live and work on the East End today. Currently on view is “Eric Dever: The Warhol Montauk Paintings” and “Joel Perlman: Finish and Form,” a pair of shows running through April 20 that mark the first in the museum’s initiative focusing on local artists.

Another room in the museum is given over to documentation of the long tradition of car racing in Bridgehampton, including at the former Bridgehampton Race Circuit (now The Bridge Golf Club) in the hills north of the hamlet. Currently in the works, under supervision of collections manager Tim Malyk, is the construction of an accurate miniature replica of the famous race track. There is also a room depicting the evolution of the Rogers House over the years, while another focuses on the region’s maritime history. Upstairs is an archive area with table space to work for those interested in doing research and also helping to keep things organized and running smoothly is museum assistant Kaylee Mendelman.

“I’m not interested in just teacup exhibits and old chests,” admitted Flanagan, when asked to share his overall vision for the Bridgehampton Museum. He credits his partnership with a vibrant board made up of members representing a range of ages and backgrounds who have given him the freedom to get creative in terms of programming.

“They wanted stuff to happen,” he said.

And now, with the restoration of the Rogers House complete, Flanagan sees his mission as bringing the program offerings into sharp focus, thereby bringing in the public as well.

“My M.O. is, even if no one comes, I want to make sure something is happening every week,” he said. “We’ll just figure it out, whether it’s five people or 40 people coming.”

He’s already off to a good start. Flanagan reports that in 2024, the Bridgehampton Museum presented a total of 53 programs from March until early winter, with the lion’s share of them occurring in the summer.

“We had a minimum of one program a week, sometimes two or three,” he said, noting that that included the blacksmithing workshop at the Corwith House, which turned out to be quite popular. “It’s exciting, but only six people can take part. It sold out, so we ended up doing two extra events.”

The museum also offers loads of art classes, including the six-week watercolor workshop with Quincy Egginton that begins this week, and plein air painting for all skill levels taught by Howard Rose that will meet at various scenic locations across the South Fork. The first session will be held at The Bridge Golf Club on May 10, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and in the months ahead, for $20 per session, plein air painters can also meet up with Rose at The Arts Center at Duck Creek in Springs, The Madoo Conservancy in Sagaponack, Bridge Gardens and the South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton and The Carl Fisher House in Montauk. Come September, the museum will host an exhibit of works created by students during the program.

“Howard Rose is a really funny, cool, dynamic guy. He makes the classes fun,” said Flanagan. “This past year was great. We had a woman who was a Ph.D. art teacher, but she was taking this for fun. There was another woman who had never had picked up a brush in her life and they were working next to each other.

“What’s fun is creating these new communities,” he added. “I saw an Instagram post of some of the students who met up on their own to paint at the beach. I want to expand on that. If you can’t make it to art class, that’s cool. If you want to come here on your own and paint outside, awesome. If you find a place to paint, but you’re nervous about painting there, call me and I’ll find out if we can go there. Sometimes it’s better for an organization to ask.”

Now that he’s settled into his new office at the Rogers House and heading into his second summer season, it would seem that when it comes to the Bridgehampton Museum, Flanagan knows exactly where this ship is headed.

“The first six months were sort of figuring out what institutionally were the hiccups we had to fix, and the next six months were for planning and executing our new series of programming,” he explained. “We did a really great job last year, so we said, ‘How can we expand on that? How can we make small changes to work out better?’ Which is why we’re doubling down on our programming. A lot of people had a lot of fun last year.

“History and culture are more than an archive and old books,” he added. “Building on the cultural aspect, blending in historical lectures with workshops and hands-on crafts, and more community-centered art programming is exactly what our mission is.”

- with additional reporting by Christine Sampson

Bridgehampton Museum events coming up:

Saturday, March 29 —2 p.m. “All That Remains ” a book talk by journalist Steve Wick at the Hampton Library, 2478 Main Street Bridgehampton. Wick’s book is a first person account that chronicles the lives of the people in the last migrant labor camp in Cutchogue. Co-sponsored by the Bridgehampton Museum and Bridgehampton Childcare and Recreational Center.

Saturday, April 12 — 5 p.m. “Agent of Change: Kurt Vonnegut, the Civic-Minded, Darkly-Comic Writer” at the Nathaniel Rogers House. Presented with Canio’s Books, Suzanne McConnell, who was a student of Vonnegut’s will trace the passions that fueled his writing.

Sunday, April 13 — 11:30 to 1 p.m. Weekly Writers Group meets at the Nathaniel Rogers House. Starts with a 20-minute writing prompt to get ideas flowing, then sharing of personal work. Or just listen and offer feedback. No pressure or rules in this safe, supportive space. All forms of writing are welcome. Text Mariah the group leader at 934-222-4547 for more information.

Saturday, April 19 — 5 p.m. “Our Island’s Story: The Natural History of Long Island” with Tara Rider, Ph.D. at the Nathaniel Rogers House. What’s intriguing about Long Island and its surrounding waters is that so much of the story happened in the last 12,000 years, when humans were here. This talk will focus on the features that make Long Island’s geology distinctive and have shaped the peoples who have inhabited this island. Co-sponsored by the South Fork Natural History Museum & Nature Center.

Saturday, April 26 — 2 p.m. “Poems To Be Said, Songs To Be Sung,” a solo reading of original poems and songs by Peter Mallon Walsh at the Hampton Library, 2478 Main Street Bridgehampton. Walsh is a writer, performer and former owner of the legendary New York City watering hole Coogan’s, which is the subject of the best-selling book by Jon Michaud, ‘Last Call at Coogans’s: The Life and Death of a Neighborhood Bar.” A curated collection of poetry books by Canio’s Books will be available for sale at the event.

Saturday, May 10 — 5 p.m. “Growing Up Literary: George Plimpton’s Son Reflects” at the Nathaniel Rogers House. Presented in partnership with Canio’s Books, author and essayist Taylor Plimpton, son of Paris Review founding editor George Plimpton, reminisces on growing up among giants of the written word like Peter Matthiessen and next-door neighbor Kurt Vonnegut in Sagaponack, one of the most remarkable literary hamlets in the world.

Saturday, May 17 — 5 p.m. “Searching for a Better Life: Looking Back at the African American Migration to Bridgehampton” with Pat Turner Ph.D. at the Nathaniel Rogers House. Co-sponsored with Canio’s Books and the Eastville Community Historical Society, Turner’s family migrated to “the Turnpike” in 1930, and she will share stories of the people and institutions that forged Bridgehampton’s resilient Black community.

The Bridgehampton Museum’s Nathaniel Rogers House is at 2539 Montauk Highway in Bridgehampton. For more information on all the upcoming programs, visit bridgehamptonmuseum.org.