WINTER CARNIVAL
Scavenger Hunt!
presented by the Library Arts Center
Bears have come out of the woods and are downtown! Help us find their locations on this historical tour of downtown Newport designed for participants of all ages. Find all the bear names and enter a drawing to win $100 cash, a gold coin, or even one of the bears! All participants will receive a treat right out of the woods of Newport at the last bear’s location. (*while supplies last.)
HOW it WORKS:
1) FIND THE BEARS! Go on a hunt to find the 12 bears hiding all around downtown Newport! Travel around town by car or by foot, and go at your own pace. The Adorable Hand-painted Cardboard Bears will be in destinations all around town on Sat. Feb. 12 and Sun. Feb. 13 during the Newport Winter Carnival.
The contest is open to families, children, and adults of all ages!
2) Name the Bears! Show us that you have completed the hunt by filling out the online form below with the NAMES of all 12 bears (Names of bears may be found on their “nametags”.)
3) Prizes! All participants to successfully name all of the bears will win “sweet treat” prize at the last stop on the hunt. *while supplies last
GRAND PRIZE! ALL of the entrants with the correct bear names will be entered into a drawing to win $100!
We’re going on a BEAR HUNT!
BEAR
CLUES
Enter the bear names on the form below on this page, and you’ll be entered to win $100–that’s right!
All participants to find the names of all the bears will win a prize (while supplies last), and ALL participants will be entered to win the grand prize of $100 cash!
Here are your instructions & Clues below:
Follow the map and use the clues to find the BEARS located around the Historic District of Newport. The hunt is easily walkable, but is also drivable. Each BEAR has a name that is connected to the history in that location. Use the online entry form to record the name of the bears and then click submit, (or drop your paper entry form at the last destination at the end of the HUNT.)
Clue #1:
This building was originally a private home of a famous Newport family for whom a school and this building is named. “Read” the sign to find a bear!
Clue #2:
This building was built as a place for shops and offices by the same family who built the library. However the original wooden building was moved around the corner and down the street. It served as offices for the school district. This building now is where you can get your check cashed. The bear located here might have come from Maine, the same place as this business.
Clue #3:
This location moved from its original place on Belknap Ave. The business was the first to play an Aerosmith song on the airwaves in the whole United States. Newporters know this business by 4 initials. “Tune in” as you find this bear.
Clue #4:
You have to look closely as only a door is left at this location that was originally a large church.
If you reach an exercising business you’ve gone too far!
Clue #5:
This location used to be a jail and then a silent picture theater. A piano played music during the movie.
But now if you are looking for a cupcake just go inside! You will find delicious ones here!
Clue #6:
A huge golden bird used to perch on the top of this building that burned in the late 1990s. It was destined to be taken down but was saved. Porches used to be seen on every level but today you can get a good burger at this Irish-style pub.
Clue #7:
One of the bears can be found in what is now a parking lot for the Pub, but used to be the Streamline Diner that looked like a railroad car. This diner is still a working restaurant in Savannah, Georgia where it was moved. If the bear can’t be found he may have gone for a dip in the river located beside the parking lot.
Clue #8:
This location was built by a family member whose name is also associated with Towle School gym. His shop where he made horse harnesses was located here, which may explain why there were originally hitching posts in front of the building. Throughout history many different shops were here and enjoyed the big front porch. If you go into the shop that is there now, you may find antique things which were sold in those previous businesses.
Clue #9:
Newport is fortunate to have three bells made by the bell casting company of Paul Revere and Son. One of the bells used to be on top of this building and was the fire alarm for the town. It now sits outside this building; the other two are in churches in town, the Baptist Church and the South Church.
Clue #10:
This large parking lot, near the post office, used to be a “grand of New England Hotel.” It could brag of having long distance telephone service, electric lights, and a private bath in every room. A movie theater was also located on the north end of the building. It burned down on Christmas Day.
Clue #11:
If you are from Newport, you may have gone to a graduation located here, or heard concerts from here. But this structure is not the first in this location. A smaller green one was a center for musical concerts and has been located here, in the center of the common, and even on the little common.
Clue #12:
This park is dedicated to one of Newport’s most famous citizens. She wrote 17 books, headed up fundraising drives for the Bunker Hill Monument and to preserve Mt. Vernon. But she is probably most known for her poem “Mary Had a Little Lamb” and convincing Abraham Lincoln to make Thanksgiving a national holiday.
You’re almost “out of the woods”…keep your eye on the prize!
Well our “Out of the Woods” hunt for bears is almost over. The last bear can be found at the “Carriage House” across the parking lot. This location was used by members of the Richards family to house horse-drawn carriages in the days before cars were used. The building was converted in 1967 into a community arts center that hosts the Apple Pie Crafts Fair, Peeps Diorama Contest, art exhibits, art classes and community art events including this bear hunt. Look under the bear rug at this entryway to find a tasty prize right out of the woods in Newport while supplies last.
Did you
Find all the BEARS?
Entry Form
Bear Hunt
Prizes + Grand Prize!
Participants to finish the Scavenger Hunt will have a fun “sweet treat” prize waiting for them at the final destination.
The contest Grand Prize is a $100 cash prize! (wow!) Everyone who provides all of the correct bear names to the entry form on this page will be entered into a drawing to win the $$$. The winner will be drawn and notified by the Library Arts Center on Tuesday, Feb. 15th.
* Bear names may be entered on the entry form in ANY order.
** One entry per person, please.
***Be sure to check the box on the form if you’d like to be entered to win one of the bears once the contest is over.
Thank You!
* to the incredible Pam LaFountain for her creativity and historical research in developing the scavenger hunt clues, and for all the amazing work she does for the Arts Center!
* to artist and Library Arts Center Community Arts Coordinator, Heidi Lorenz, for creating the artful bears for this community scavenger hunt.
* to our wonderful area businesses for willing to “hang out” with the bears this weekend!
The Library Arts Center is grateful to you all!
About the
Library Arts Center
Community Arts Center in the heart of downtown Newport, New Hampshire
Non-profit Art Gallery, Studio, & Performance Venue
The Library Arts Center is a creative gathering space where friends, family, neighbors and visitors can connect and share in a celebration of artistic inspiration, creative vision, and community spirit—in the true sense of “community arts.”
In addition to presenting 6-8 outstanding exhibits annually, the Library Arts Center presents the following favorite community events:
- Peeps Diorama Contest
- Apple Pie Crafts Fair
- Gallery of Gifts: Handmade for the Holidays
- Community Scavenger Hunts
- Visiting Artists/Artists in Residence (like Chalk Artist Katie Runde in August ’21 + Ice Sculptor Tony Perham at this year’s Winter Carnival ’22
- Summer Performances for Kids – outdoor performance series
- Three Bridges Music Series – a celebration of Traditional Music
- Community Arts Night on the Newport Town Common
- and so much more!
Discover what’s new at libraryartscenter.org.
