CAROL CADOU
“Celebrating America250: Preserving a Future for our Nation's Past”

MONDAY, February 16, 2026

The Lyceum, 201 South Washington Street, 7 P.M. light refreshments, 7:30 lecture

As America celebrates 250 years of independence from Great Britain, our historic house museums offer tangible connections to the nation’s past.  Of varied size and age, each one provides a three-dimensional experience that cannot be replicated by technology. This illustrated lecture will focus on the Bush-Holley House in Cos Cob, CT as a classic case study in historic preservation efforts, rich stories unlocked by buildings and objects, and the enduring need to preserve historic places.

Carol Cadou is the Executive Director and CEO of the Greenwich Historical Society.  She has also served as the Executive Director of the National Society of the Colonial Dames in America and the Charles F. Montgomery Director and CEO of Winterthur Museum.  Carol spent nineteen years at George Washington’s Mount Vernon—first as Curator and eventually as Senior Vice President for Historic Preservation and Collections.  

Prior to Mount Vernon, Carol was the Curator for the Maryland State Art Collection and the Curator of Education at Historic Charleston Foundation.

She is a graduate of Wellesley College, the Sotheby’s American Arts Course, and the Winterthur Program in American Material Culture.  In 2019, Carol received her MBA from Ohio University.

Her publications include The Installation of Historic Architecture at Winterthur Museum, The George Washington Collection: Fine and Decorative Arts at Mount Vernon, and Stewards of Memory: The Past, Present, and Future of Historic Preservation at Mount Vernon. Carol’s most recent publication project, Great American Treasures: Women Preserving History Since 1891, will be on shelves for America’s 250th celebration. 

SUN, Sept 28:  Patty Sheetz, Architectural Walking Tour, How to Read a Church

MON, Oct 20:  Catesby Leigh, The Federal Architecture Wars

MON, Nov 17:  Patrick Mullins, Riotous Prints and Seditious Pots: Political Radicalism in the Fine and Decorative Arts on the Eve of the American Revolution

MON, Jan 19:  Andrea Tracey, America’s Diplomatic Treasures Abroad

MON, Feb 16:  Carol Cadou, Celebrating America250: Preserving a Future for our Nation's Past

MON, Mar 16:  Jeffrey Ricketts, The Antiques and Architecture of Brick Meeting House, Maryland, 1700-1870

MON, Apr 20:  Emilie Johnson, The Experience of Boarding in Late Eighteenth America

MON, May 18:  Bradley Brooks, Americana in a Far Country: Ima Hogg and the Bayou Bend Collection

The Alexandria Association offers enriching opportunities beyond its monthly programs. Study tours abroad included Georgian houses in Ireland and Scotland as well as U.S. homes and gardens in Philadelphia, Norfolk and Annapolis. Stay tuned for information about future trips.