Submitted by Jane Raunikar, Connecticut River Museum
(October 19, 2022) — The Connecticut River Museum in Essex has appointed Elizabeth D. Kaeser as Executive Director. She will begin December 1, 2022. She currently serves as the Director of Institutional Giving at Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site, a National Historic Landmark in Philadelphia, where visitors make connections between past and present, and encounter questions about equity, justice, and the law.
Prior to that, at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum in New York City, which uses stories to spark discussion of the vital role immigrants and migrants play in shaping America’s identity, she was a senior educator and one of the longest-tenured museum interpreters. Other cultural institutions where Kaeser has worked include the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Hudson River Museum and the Merchant’s House Museum.
Kaeser grew up in West Hartford and is a Conard High School graduate. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in History from Vassar College and a Master’s degree in Museum Studies from New York University. She will replace Olivia White, who has been acting as Interim Executive Director since March.
The Connecticut River Museum is located on the Essex waterfront at 67 Main Street in Essex and is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The Museum, housed in the historic Steamboat Dock building, offers exhibits and programs about the history and environment of the Connecticut River. For more information, call 860-767-8269 or go to www.ctrivermuseum.org.
