NRF promotes and invests in the architectural heritage of the Newport community, the traditional building trades, and Doris Duke’s fine and decorative arts collections, for the enjoyment, education and inspiration of all.
As a leader in the preservation of early American architecture, NRF supports research and education in areas directly related to its collections and issues of critical concern to the field of historic preservation.
Tour Doris Duke’s art-filled mansion and enjoy panoramic ocean views from the extensive grounds, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. Open April to November.
Experience the only museum in the world specializing in 18th-century Newport furniture and related decorative arts.
Explore 40 acres of open space, a tribute to the agrarian heritage of Aquidneck Island. The site is open daily from dawn to dusk for public enjoyment.
Newport Restoration Foundation holds one of the largest collections of period architecture owned by a single organization anywhere in the United States.
Celebrate excellence in historic preservation efforts within the City of Newport, Rhode Island.
Live amidst history by renting one of our many historic properties.
Help us to continue a lived-in legacy by becoming a Restoration Partner today.
Historic preservationists do not want to freeze time. Preservation is not about resisting change, rather it’s about managing change so that as communities evolve they do not lose their special places along the way. All old buildings - from the plainest barn to the most elaborate mansion, from a 1750s Georgian house to a 1950s ranch house – deserve to be preserved. This is how we hold onto our heritage and keep our community’s character.
Until recently, very little was known about this wonderful, but mysterious, painting in Rough Point’s collection. NRF's Laird Graduate Intern in Museum Studies, had the opportunity to dive deeply into research on both the house and its collection, and I found out there's more to this painting than originally thought.
This season, we are celebrating a family reunion of sorts. After 17 years, Nanaline, Doris, and James B. Duke are together again at the top of the grand staircase at Rough Point.
These sites will you help you understand how to address the flow of air and moisture through your home's "envelope" (its roof, exterior wall, and foundation). Take some easy steps to save money, help the planet, and improve the comfort of your home.
Information on efficient heating systems compiled by NRF for Historic Homeowner Workshops in 2009, 2010 and 2011. The workshops are a project of the Collaborative for Common Sense Preservation (the Newport Restoration Foundation, Preserve Rhode Island, and Historic New England.)
Today we often agonize over the color to paint our houses. What was the original color, what is appropriate for the style, what do I like? Light, dark, the choices are truly infinite today. When your color choice is finally made,
Roofing materials have seen radical changes over the years; yet one common material has remained the same almost from the start of New England’s history.
Following a recent lecture on Newport architecture, I felt compelled to do a bit of research to back up my knowledge that glass is not a flowing, “supercooled liquid” at all. The characteristics of historic glass are all due to its methods of manufacture, but the nature of the material itself required confirmation from the experts.
Without the Historic District Commission there would have been no official guidance for preservation and perhaps more importantly nobody to prevent demolition.
