The Bridgehampton Museum will host a new 5K run/walk on Sunday, Sept. 21, reviving the spirit of the long-running PotatoHampton race as a community fundraiser in honor of the late board member Peter Walsh.
The inaugural event will take place rain or shine, beginning and ending at the museum’s headquarters, the Nathaniel Rogers House, at 2539 Montauk Highway. The race will run from 8 to 10:30 a.m., with sign-in starting at 7 a.m.
Registration costs about $35, and participants are encouraged to sign up online in advance to receive a race bib and T-shirt while supplies last.
“The PotatoHampton was a 5K race, and I think eventually maybe a 10K race, that happened out here for many, many years that was put on by Dan’s Papers and, it ended a number of years ago,” said Museum Executive Director Conor Flanagan.
The revival of the race as a museum fundraiser was the vision of museum board member Peter Walsh, an avid marathon runner who also operated Coogan’s Restaurant in Washington Heights for many years.
Flanagan recalled Walsh’s enthusiasm for bringing the event back.
Flanagan recalled how Walsh in 2023 was “very excited and very energized about the idea of bringing PotatoHampton back and bringing it under the fold of the museum as a community event, maybe a small fundraiser, but more so just about a good active event to engage the community."
When Walsh died in April at age 78, Flanagan said, “He was very happy to hear that, and that was the last time we spoke.”
The museum board supports the event, including Amanda Moszkowski, a director for the Hamptons Marathon, whom Flanagan described as “the exact right person to help get it accomplished,” along with Board Vice President Harry Hackett III.
Flanagan said he expects a “fairly small” number of participants for the first event. He described it as a “nice little event that can grow over the next few years.”
“Rain or shine, unless there’s thunder or a big downpour, we’re hoping to keep it moving,” he said. “We're hoping that it's a great time.”
The Bridgehampton Museum is located in the Nathaniel Rogers House, a Greek Revival-style building that was the former home of miniature portrait artist Nathaniel Rogers.
Flanagan said, “Typically, if you wanted a giant painting on your walls they were fairly expensive so these miniature portraits were a lot more attainable but still fairly expensive. And someone like Nathaniel Rogers was able to make quite a bit of money doing that.”
Rogers renovated the home in Greek Revival style with large front columns, similar to many whaling captains’ homes in the area.
The Town of Southampton purchased the Nathaniel Rogers House in the early 2000s.
Since then, the house has hosted exhibitions focused on local artists and history, including the Bridgehampton racing track and a “really fun, potato-themed exhibition,” Flanagan said.
The museum also manages the Corwith House on the western end of town, which is currently used for outdoor programming.
For more information, visit https://www.bridgehamptonmuseum.org.