How Friends of Ruth Blay Came Together

When our community was challenged to come up with ideas to mark Portsmouth’s 400th anniversary in 2023, Knate Higgins - educator, producer, and beloved local drag queen, was inspired. Knate wanted to see Ruth memorialized, ideally with a grave marker that, while telling about a N.H. woman who was a victim of her gender, class, social status and the harsh provincial laws of her time, would also serve as a place where those who’d lost a child could go to reflect, grieve and find solace.

He rallied fellow community advocates and together they formed a nonprofit, Friends of Ruth Blay. During the COVID lockdown there were backyard & Zoom meetings, countless texts & phone calls. More locals with specific superpowers were recruited. With this, the quintessential scaffolding behind a community initiative, in place, “History Through Art” was born. Its goal is to create awareness about some of the women who stand out in the Seacoast’s storied history through public art installations.