The Sippican Historical Society is sponsoring a lecture, "House Stories: The Meanings of Home in a New England Town," by Beth Luey. The lecture will begin at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 8, at Marion's Music Hall.

Luey writes about the history behind the doors of historic homes in New England towns. She tells the stories of those who lived or worked in 12 homes in Fairhaven, MA. She will speak about how she came to write the book, "House Stories," and will do a short reading from the first chapter, "The Minister and the Maid," which took place in the house she currently owns—in 1802.

Luey's storytelling is based on personal accounts taken from diaries and journals, as well as letters from churches, businesses, legal archives, local libraries and museums.

Luey taught in the history department at Arizona State University until her retirement in 2006, when she and her husband moved to Fairhaven. She has written several books about scholarly publishing and book history, but "House Stories: is her first venture into local history.

All lectures are free and open to the public.