John R. Tschirch is the Newport Historical Society's architectural historian and visiting curator of Urban History, He is the author of Gods and Girls: Tales of Art, Seduction and Obsession (2019) and A Walking History of Bellevue Avenue, Newport, Rhode Island (Walking History of America) (2013). John is presently an instructor in design history for Rhode Island School of Design CE, which presented him with the 2010 Excellence in Teaching Award, and he is adjunct faculty in art history at Bristol Community College, where his students provide endless inspiration and amusement. He is also the creator and author of a monthly design history blog called John Stories: Confessions of the Globetrekking Architectural Historian, John Tschirch, featuring his photographs and commentary on historic places.