Pioneer Valley History Network

DECEMBER

19 December 2015 — “A Dickensian Christmas with the Dickinsons”
The Emily Dickinson Museum, Amherst 

On this special family-friendly visit, revel in holiday traditions as we trace the history of Christmas celebrations in the two Dickinson households.

Evocative decorations, seasonal music, and new objects on exhibit will delight your holiday senses during A Dickensian Christmas with the Dickinsons, and the words of Emily Dickinson and her family will bring their Christmas experiences to life. A Museum guide will serve as your host for this special holiday trip through the Homestead and The Evergreens.

Each visit concludes with an intimate reading in The Evergreens from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, a Dickinson favorite, by award-winning author and Dickens fan Tony Abbott! Tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for museum members, and $5 for students grades K-12. Tickets can be purchased on the Museum website or by calling 413-542-2034.

12 December 2015 — Emily Dickinson Birthday Celebration,
bedroom open house, and book launch
The Emily Dickinson Museum, Amherst, 1 – 4 p.m.

Help us celebrate Emily Dickinson’s 185th birthday as well as the completion of her bedroom restoration on Saturday, December 12, from 1 to 4 pm. Tour the bedroom and the rest of the Homestead at your leisure, contribute to a crowd-sourced commemorative poem, and of course, enjoy coconut cake made from the poet’s own recipe.

As part of the celebration, the museum will be launching A Mighty Room, a new collection of poetry featuring 25 poets who were given the opportunity to write in Emily Dickinson’s bedroom. Several of the poets included in A Mighty Room will read from their work throughout the day, and the book will be available for purchase in the Museum store.  All are welcome to this free event, and no reservations are required.

6 December 2015 — Holiday Open House
Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson

HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE, with Gay Paluch playing holiday music on the piano and Linda Day, violin, for a sing-a-long. Keep Homestead Museum, Sunday, December 6, 35 Ely Rd., Monson, MA. No admission charge. Refreshments served. Information: 413-267-4137

The Keep Homestead Museum will be closed for the winter, starting December 8. In order to save fuel, no meetings or tours will be held until March 1, 2016. The trails are open daily before dusk, for hiking, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing; maps in the parking lot. For information: 413-267-5210

6 December 2015 — “Still Life”
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge St., Northampton, 3 p.m.

“(1944-2014) was an avant-garde German filmmaker and video artist whose work examined the ways images are used to inform, instruct, persuade and propagandize. Mr. Farocki made more than 100 films, many of them short experimental documentaries that explored contemporary life, and what he saw as its myriad depredations — war, imprisonment, surveillance, capitalism — through the visual stimuli that attend them. Ruminative, but with an undercurrent of urgency born of his longstanding social engagement, Mr. Farocki’s films sought to illuminate the ways that the technology of image-making is used to shape public ideology. His work, shown on European television, has also been the subject of major exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Tate Modern in London and elsewhere.

Writing about Mr. Farocki in 1992, The Los Angeles Times called him “surely one of the most challenging, speculative and distinctive filmmakers ever to confront an audience.” Mr. Farocki’s films were conspicuous assemblages, comprising found and archival footage including surveillance tapes, home movies and corporate training films. By juxtaposing such images, he sought both to highlight their curious commonalities and to put his finger on the political imperatives that lay beneath their flickering surfaces.

“Mr. Farocki, who was deeply influenced by Bertolt Brecht and Jean-Luc Godard, studied at the German Film and Television Academy in West Berlin. He began making films — from the very beginning, they were non-narrative essays on the politics of imagery — in the mid-1960s. On the whole, Mr. Farocki’s film seemed to say, under the strains of modern life, the objects bear up better than the people do.” — The New York Times, August 23, 2014

Program:
Harun Farocki: Still Life, 1997, 58 minutes
In his film Still Life Harun Farocki connects the contemporary advertizing of consumer objects to the 17th century Flemish tradition of still life painting. Weaving together scenes from shoots advertising cheese, watches and beer, juxtaposed with 17th century still life paintings, Farocki explores the similarities and differences between these two image making traditions. As the final film in the series, Still Life gets at the essential question of the series’ theme: how do we photograph objects?

The program will be introduced by Barton Byg, Professor of German at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Barton Byg teaches German literary and cultural studies as well as film studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He is founding Director of the DEFA Film Library and a founding faculty member of the UMass Interdepartmental Program in Film Studies. His publications focus on the cinema and cultural legacy of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR), the films of Danièle Huillet and Jean-Marie Straub, documentary film and Cold War culture. His recent interdisciplinary teaching has focused on such topics as landscape and film, color, modern poetry and the culture of memory.

He is currently teaching a course on Brecht and World Cinema at Hampshire College, which he has dedicated to the memory of Harun Farocki.

The fall Fast Forward season is curated by Magda Bermudez, a media-artist based in Northampton MA. She has taught summer courses in non-fiction film for undergraduate and high school students through Hampshire College’s Creative Media Institute, and teaches media-literacy at Amherst Cinema’s See Hear Feel Film program for third graders. In her own work she is interested in discarded formats, objects and places, and is currently making a series films about the history of the Swift River Valley. Ms. Bermudez received her BA from Hampshire College.

Our thanks to The Goethe Institute Boston for making this film available to us.

This event is free and open to the public.

5 December 2015 — “Lydia Maria Child & Anti-Slavery Work in Northampton”
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge Street, Northampton, 2 p.m.

Patricia Holland will speak on abolitionist Lydia Maria Child
who lived in Northampton from 1838 to 1841. Lydia Maria Child (1802-1880) was one of nineteenth-century America’s most popular writers and a thoroughly committed abolitionist.

Her literary career began with the publication of her 1824 novel Hobomok, A Tale of Early Times, which portrayed an interracial marriage between a white American woman and a Native American Indian man. In 1826, she founded the popular children’s magazine, the Juvenile Miscellany. Her 1829 book The Frugal Housewife (later renamed The American Frugal Housewife) was the first American domestic advice book to offer advice for average households aiming to make ends meet.

In the 1830s, Child joined the Boston abolition movement and published a wide range of works on the rights of African-Americans, Native American Indians and women including An Appeal in Favor of That Class of Americans Called Africans (1833); The History of the Condition of Women, in Various Ages and Nations (1835); and Evils of Slavery (1836). Despite being a household name in the mid-19th century, Child fell into obscurity in the 20th century.

Patricia G. Holland collected the correspondence of Lydia Maria Child for microform publication in 1980 and edited selected letters of Child for a book published by the University of Massachusetts Press in 1982. Lydia Maria Child biographer Carolyn Karcher attributes access to Child’s correspondence as the basis for full-length scholarly study of the life and work of Lydia Maria Child.  Patricia Holland then went on to collect the papers of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony for microfilm publication.

4 December 2015 — “A Coming of Age Story: Mercy Sheldon, Amos Amsden and a Young Nation”
History Bites Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity St., Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

4 December 2015 — “Pollinators in Crisis” 
Pioneer Valley Institute
Stinchfield Lecture Hall, Greenfield Community College, Greenfield, 7 p.m.

The Pioneer Valley Institute will hold its annual meeting on Friday, December 4, in Stinchfield Lecture Hall on the main campus of the Greenfield Community College. The brief business meeting will begin at 6:30 and includes the election of officers and Board members and a brief recap of the 2015 programs. Tom Sullivan will begin his presentation, “Bee Ready! Pollinators in Crisis” at 7 o’clock. The program is free and open to the public.

Landscape designer and owner of Pollinators Welcome, Tom Sullivan prepares us to meet the greatest pollination crisis on record with relevant ecological strategies.

As we face the tragic record losses of our nation’s beehives, awareness of how to provide habitat for the 378 plus bee species native to Massachusetts has grown in significance. High numbers of native bees were once the norm and we must protect them, their environment and their means of a making a living.

In his one and a half hour talk, Tom reveals the basic needs of these most efficient pollinating insects and addresses the causes of this crisis and what actions we must take. Tom zooms in on bee families, bee behaviors, bee-scaping practices and essential resources for creating the healthy spaces wild pollinators deserve and must have in order to survive.

3 December 2015 — Amherst Art Walk poetry reading with Tom Daley
The Emily Dickinson Museum, Amherst, 5 – 8 p.m.

You’ll be able to pick up your calendar late on December 3, as the Museum hosts poet Tom Daley for our monthly Amherst Art Walk poetry night from 5 to 8 pm. Daley will read from his new collection, House You Cannot Reach-Poems in the Voice of My Mother and Other Poems, beginning at 6:45 pm in the Homestead parlor. $5 “Twilight Highlight” tours of the Homestead will also be offered from 5 to 6:30 pm.

Tom Daley was last at the Museum for the 2014 Amherst Poetry Festival, where he performed his Dickinson-themed play Every Broom and Bridget. A machinist for over two decades, Daley now leads writing workshops in the Boston area and online. Recipient of the Dana Award in Poetry and the Charles and Fanny Fay Wood Prize from the Academy of American Poets, his poetry has appeared in Harvard Review, Massachusetts Review, Fence, Denver Quarterly, Crazyhorse, Barrow Street, Prairie Schooner, Witness, and Poetry Ireland Review.

Thursday, 3 December 2015 — “Celebracion: Film Festival, Food, Families, and Fun”
Sponsors: Springfield City Library, S.T.C.C. & WGBY
Venue: Chestnut Middle School, Springfield, 5:30 p.m.

Jean Canosa Albano, Manager, Springfield City Library; Vanessa Pabon, Community Engagement Director, WGBY

Latino Youth Media Institute staff will work with residents to collect oral histories from 4 to 8 people from July 1 to October 1. After production, a film festival will premiere the videos as part of a family event featuring performances, demonstrations, and food ways from the varied aspects of the Springfield Latino community.

NOVEMBER

22 November 2015 — “Northampton’s Poor Farm & the City’s Most Accessible Conservation Area: Barrett Street Marsh”
Historic Northampton
Weinstein Auditorium, Wright Hall, Smith College, Northampton, 2 p.m.

With naturalist Laurie Sanders.
Just a ten minute walk from downtown Northampton, the Barrett Street Marsh is not only one of Northampton’s oldest conservation areas, it is also one of its most accessible. Located behind Barrett Street, the bike path, Super Stop & Shop and other businesses on King Street, this 15-acre marsh is the last remnant of what was once a much larger wetland that extended across King Street and all the way to North Street. During the last 200 years it has been ditched, drained, filled, farmed and manipulated dozens of times.

And yet, in spite of that history of alternation, during the last 40 years it has become one of the best places to see wildlife in the city. “I have had some of the most extraordinary wildlife experiences in the Barrett Street Marsh,” said Laurie Sanders. “Each year thousands of birds use this island of green as a stopover during their spring and fall migrations,” she said. It is also one of the closest places to downtown to watch beavers and muskrats, and in the last decade, even black bear have been seen in the marsh. Beyond its value to wildlife, this often overlooked and underappreciated area has played an interesting and important role in Northampton’s history.

To register for the lecture, email info@historicnorthampton.org

A donation is requested for each lecture: $5 from members and $10 from non-members

This lecture series has been funded by a generous anonymous donor
with additional support for the venue from Craig Della Penna.

Weinstein Auditorium is located in the basement level of Wright Hall. Wright Hall is a two-story modern building built in 1961 and located in center campus of Smith College. Wright Hall is recognizable for its glass, metal and cement facade and is near Neilson Library, set back from the library’s northeast side. Parking options include the Smith College parking garage on West Street and the parking lot off of Green Street. The building is wheelchair accessible.

21 November 2015 — “At Camp in the Field”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield, 6 to 7:30 p.m.

Springfield Armory NHS. On Saturday, November 21, 2015 Springfield Armory National Historic Site debuts At Camp in the Field: Life of the Civil War Soldier exhibit with an evening reception from 6:00- 7:30 pm in the Armory Museum. From educators and students to visitors of all ages, this exhibit is for you. View previously unseen Civil War artifacts from the Springfield Armory collection. See historic civil war rifles, bayonets, knapsack, and frock coat.  Read soldiers’ letters written in their own hand that stirs up the challenges, humor, and heartache experienced in Civil War camps. Museum admission is free of charge.

Chief of Interpretation, Joanne M. Gangi-Wellman, offers that “Many exhibits about the Civil War focus on weapons and battle images. There will be some of that in our exhibit but what is unique is moving in close to the men living in camps for months or even years: a city within a community.”  The exhibit answers such questions as what did the men do all day? What did they eat?  What dangers and challenges did they face each day? Visitors will see original letters, a service uniform, and writing kit, surgical implements, and much, much more.

Federal Lt. George Marden, of Berdan’s Sharpshooters, will be introduced to you.  When asked why Rob Wilson, retired teacher and director of the Veterans Education Project, wants his grand-father Lt. Marden’s letters read, he replied; “Camp is a crucible that tested the soldiers.  His observations of how camp challenged him are a window into the psychology of war and camp, and a commentary on the issues of the day: slavery, religion and death.”

A booklet of Mr. Marden’s letters will be made available to students or those visitors touched by this soldier’s observations and commentary.

Civil War camp experiences were shaped by scarce knowledge of how disease is spread, and living in close quarters with poor hygiene. Sickness and death also resulted from occasionally spoiled and insufficient food supplies. Of the approximately 700,000 men who perished during the Civil War, about two-thirds died from disease and infection.

Imagine yourself in camp. Lt. Marden’s wrote; “there is a bit of a breeze, and it is quite spicy.Whatever quarter it blows from it comes laden with the odor of the dead horses, mules, butcher’s offal, the debris of camps and hospitals…” Similarly, a Confederate infantryman, Pvt. Sam Watkins wrote that “our principal occupation at this place was playing poker, chuck-a luck and cracking graybacks (lice)…The boys would frequently have a louse race…The lice were placed in plates—this was the race course—and the first that crawled off was the winner.”

During the six month run of the Civil War exhibit, Curator Alex Mackenzie will showcase Civil War artifacts never before displayed. This will be an expansion of the special exhibit and offers a chance for the public to get a glimpse behind the scenes from the collection and to hear the stories about the objects in storage. Questions will be answered as to how the Armory acquired the pieces and information about their backgrounds.

Save these Saturday at 2:00 pm dates:              January 9th, February 20th, and March 5th     

The Springfield Armory National Historic Site it is the location of the nation’s first armory (1794 – 1968) and was established by George Washington. The site includes historic grounds, buildings, and the world’s largest historic American military firearms collection. There is ample parking and the building is wheelchair accessible. The Museum is open Wednesday – Sunday 9am-5pm November until Memorial Day.  For further information call (413) 734-8551, check the website at www.nps.gov/spar  or go to www.facebook.com/sparnhs.

Saturday, 21 November 2015 — Beaver Moon Gathering
Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls, noon – 3 p.m.

The Annual Beaver Moon Gathering, co-sponsored by the Nolumbeka Project and DCR, will be held in the Great Hall. A brief opening focused on “Giving Thanks” will begin at noon, followed by the keynote presentation by Billy “Iahteho:tas” Myers of the Kanien’ ke’ha (Mohawk) Bear Clan. He will talk about the challenges faced by American Indians in the 21st century while remaining connected to their nation, history, ceremony and commitment to the environment.

The Great Falls Discovery Center is located at 2 Avenue A in Turners Falls, MA. Please call with any questions, (413) 863-3221.

21 November 2015 — Meadow City Historians
Damon Education Center, 46 Bridge St., Northampton, 10 a.m.

Are you currently researching local history? You are invited to attend the inaugural meeting of Meadow City Historians on Saturday, November 21, 2015 at 10 am in the Damon Education Center at 46 Bridge Street, Northampton.

This new group is open to all people who are doing research on any aspect of local history related to Northampton, Mass. We welcome both amateurs and professionals, part-time and full-time researchers, and both local residents
and out-of-towners. The single requirement is that your research relates in some way to the history of Northampton, very widely defined and extending from pre-history to the present day. And yes, it does include genealogy, family history, natural history and work on Northampton Timelines.

Goals of Meadow City Historians:
* To support each other’s work
* To share research and learn what other people are working on
* To encourage a standard of research where evidence is clearly documented
* To bring together people who might be willing to work on topics that Historic Northampton is interested in having researched for upcoming projects, publications or exhibitions
* To create research task forces in which a group tackles a particular question together
* To provide opportunities to share work through lectures, blog posts, pamphlets, books and exhibitions
* To preserve research so that later generations can build on it

For full Agenda, visit: http://www.historicnorthampton.org for the meeting agenda.

RSVP encouraged. Please RSVP to info@historicnorthampton.org and let us know if you plan to come. If you can’t make the first meeting but would like to participate later, or live too far away to attend on a regular basis, tell us how best to reach you and your main research interests so we can add you to the mailing list. It’s OK to just walk in – but the RSVP helps us plan how much to bring in the way of beverages and goodies.

20 November 2015 — “Reading the Rural New England Economy through Account Books”
History Bites Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity St., Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

David Bosse, Librarian, Historic Deerfield

18 November 2015 — “Maintaining Your Old House”
Storrs Library, 693 Longmeadow Street, Longmeadow, 6:30 p.m.

Are you the owner of an historic home, full of character, charm and in need of tender loving care?

If so, please join Storrs Library, the Longmeadow Historical Society and the Longmeadow Historical Commission for a presentation about owning, maintaining and restoring historic homes.

The guest presenter is Carissa Demore, Preservation Services Manager at Historic New England. Historic New England, previously known as the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities, is a charitable, non-profit, historic preservation organization headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

Please register online at: longmeadowlibrary.org or call the reference desk at 565-4181, X 1620.

18 November 2015 — “The Iron Horse Comes to the Pioneer Valley”
Chicopee Historical Society
Bellamy Homestead, 91-93 Church St., Chicopee, 7 p.m.

Dennis Picard has been a museum professional in the “Living History” field for more than 30 years. He began his career at Old Sturbridge Village spending twelve years in various positions including “lead interpreter.” Many of the programs he researched and designed are still offered today.

Mr. Picard’s presentation will deal with the Pioneer Valley’s 19th century rail transportation explosion!

For more information on the Chicopee Historical Society or to become a member, please email: the chicopeehistoricalsociety@gmail.com

18 November 2015 — “Anna de Naucaze & Ye Rose Tree Inn”
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge Street, Northampton, 7 p.m.

CANCELED

Elizabeth Kent presents her research on Anna de Naucaze & Ye Rose Tree Inn conducted in 2011 as a Smith College
Praxis intern at the Sexual Minorities Archives.

From 1908 to 1923, the unconventional, mysterious, yet respected Madame de Naucaze left her mark on Northampton, Massachusetts. On December 17th, 1908, Anna de Naucaze opened Ye Rose Tree Inn for business with her partner Marie Von Veltheim. Though Von Veltheim was the cook for the inn, she was much more than that – evidence indicates that de Naucaze and Von Veltheim had a partnership that was romantic in nature. Through newspaper articles and eyewitness accounts (such as that shown below of Agnes Betts), as well as de Naucaze’s own magazine, 4 ALL, we see instances of de Naucaze having romantic relationships with other women in addition to transgressing gender norms through her dress, personal writings, and profession.

On our way home we stopped at the most adorable place and had something to eat. It is called ‘Rose Tree Inn’…The most fascinating part of the whole affair is ‘Madame.’ There is a mystery surrounding her, and she has short gray hair and never wears anything but a suit and white stiff collars just like a man and never takes her coat off. No one knows whether it is a man or woman. Some say she is fleeing from justice, that she married a Frenchman and were greatly in debt so left France and came to America. All Smith is crazy over Rose Tree Inn. — Agnes Betts, Smith College student, detailing her visit to
Ye Rose Tree Inn in a letter to her mother dated October 11, 1912

While much information on de Naucaze is located in Forbes Library and the Smith College Archives, her history has yet to be adequately presented or preserved. Anna de Naucaze clearly transgressed gender norms, something especially uncommon for her time period, which makes her story an important piece of Pioneer Valley queer history before the New York City Stonewall demonstrations of 1969. Although the Pioneer Valley, especially Northampton, has a rich and well known post-Stonewall queer history, little is known about pre-Stonewall figures such as Anna de Naucaze. Preserving histories such as de Naucaze’s is paramount to expanding and educating others about a queer history that extends into the past beyond Stonewall.

Elizabeth Kent holds a Master of Arts from Brandeis University in Women’s & Gender Studies and a Bachelor of Arts from Smith College with a major in the Study of Women & Gender. Throughout her education, Kent focused on queer studies, conducting research on LGBTQ history and focusing on trans representation in the media for their Master’s thesis. As a 2011 Praxis intern at the Sexual Minorities Archives, Kent conducted extensive research at area repositories for information on Anna de Naucaze & Ye Rose Tree Inn. Kent continues to live and work in the Pioneer Valley.

16 November 2015 — “Reflecting, Writing & Sharing Our Thoughts on Family & Home”
Historical Lecture Series: Where the Heart Is
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

The culmination of our fall historical series will be an interactive workshop which invites participants to share, write, and develop their own reflections on what it means to be home and what it means to be a family.

Renee Denenfeld will facilitate this session by sharing readings, providing prompts and creating an atmosphere for participants to build community that can last beyond the evening. All experience and ability levels welcome.

Admission is $7 general or $5 for members.

15 November 2015 — “New England Meeting Houses and Ministers”
Longmeadow Historical Society
at the First Church of Christ, 763 Longmeadow St., Longmeadow, 2 p.m.

Dennis Picard has been a museum professional in the Living History field for over 30 years. He began his career at Old Sturbridge Village where he spent 12 years in various positions in including “lead interpreter” where he researched and designed many public programs which are still offered today. Mr. Picard, with his background in sociology and museum experience, has authored many articles on the lifestyles and folkways of New England and has served as a consultant for many Historical Societies and Museums.

This lecture is sponsored by the First Church of Christ, Longmeadow as part of their year-long 300th Anniversary celebration, 1716-2016. The event is being co-sponsored by the Longmeadow Historical Society.

14 November 2015 — “Citizen Soldiers: Myth and Truths Behind the Jones Act, Puerto Rico and World War I”
Holyoke Public Library at 250 Chestnut Street, Holyoke, 4 p.m.

Join us!

Conversation with Author Series: Dr. Harry Franqui-Rivera

Dr. Harry Franqui-Rivera is a historian and Research Associate at the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College, City University of New York.  He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, a Masters in History from Temple University in military/diplomatic history, and a B.A. from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez.  He also received a G.E.D. from the Departamento de Instrucción Pública de Puerto Rico.

He specializes in Caribbean, Latino and Latin American History and focuses on the 19th – 20th centuries. Among other interests, he addresses the issues of nation building, national identities, military institutions, the condition of Puerto Rican veterans and their impact in society, and imperial-colonial relations.

Dr. Franqui-Rivera is also a public intellectual, cultural critic, and blogger. He blogs about current issues, from geopolitics, local and national politics and economics to social and cultural matters, and publishes in online magazines.

His book manuscript Fighting for the Nation: Military Service and Modern Puerto Rican National Identities will be published by the University of Nebraska Press.  His second book manuscript Glory, Shame and Redemption: The Ordeal of the All-Puerto Rican 65th Infantry during the Korean War will be published by Centro Press.

Franqui-Rivera’s most recent academic work “‘A New Day Has Dawned for Porto Rico’s Jíbaro’: Manhood, Race, Military Service and Self-Government during WWI” was published in Latino Studies, Palgrave, Vol. 13.2 (2015).

14 November 2015 — “19th Annual Great Gem, Mineral and Fossil Show & Sale”
Pioneer Valley Institute
Greenfield Community College, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Pioneer Valley Institute’s annual Gem and Mineral Show just got bigger and better than ever! Come Saturday, November 14, to the dining commons at Greenfield Community College for a daylong adventure with minerals, fossils and crystals. The show is free and there will begold, dinosaurs, trilobites and fantastic gems, minerals and beads, jewelry crafted by local artisans—it’s all here for your pleasure. Returning for another year and for the entire day—the Amazing Jurassic Roadshow too! Bring in your specimens. Talk to the experts.

And that’s not all. At 11 o’clock Eric Greene will talk about how he has collected world-class Spanish pyrite. At noon there will be the dedication of the Becklo Dinosaur Trackway near Stinchfield Hall to be followed at 12:30 by our keynote speaker, Chris Condit from UMass Amherst. He will speak on the training of NASA astronaut-geologists at Black Rock lava flow and beyond, “As Close as I’ll Get…”

By special arrangement the GCC Café will be open from 9 until 1 in the afternoon so plan to buy your snacks during the morning and take time to enjoy a lunch right at the Great Gem Show!

9 November 2015 — “This Business of Fighting: A Human Face on WWII”
Historical Lecture Series: Where the Heart Is
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

A few years ago Arnie Pritchard inherited his father’s World War II Army Footlocker. When he opened it, he discovered hundreds of family letters from the war years depicting the journey of a young man as he left his home and his family for a world wider and more brutal than he had ever known.

Admission is $7 general or $5 for members.

9 November 2015 — “Canoe Camps and Club Life on the Connecticut River”
South Hadley Historical Society
South Hadley Library, South Hadley, 6:30 p.m.

Leo Labonte gives a view of life on the river from 1890-1940.

8 November 2015 — “The Legacy of Joshua Packard in Goshen: a Story of Innovation, Family & Steam Technology”
Goshen Historical Society
Goshen Town Hall, 42 Main St., Goshen, 2 p.m.

Since the 1760s, the Packard family has been busy in Goshen. This talk will feature fond remembrances of the families of “The Packard Bros.” whose lives running a prosperous saw mill through WWI, the Great Depression, and WWII, and as steam-powered automobile enthusiasts, were filled with adventures, industry, innovation, inventions, and big personalities.
Refreshments served, all ages welcome! Free and open to the public.
Brought to you by:
The Goshen Historical Society
GoshenHistoricalSociety@gmail.com
(413) 268-7120

7 November 2015 — “Digital Windows to Your Analog World”
Pioneer Valley History Network
at Springfield City Library, 220 State St., Springfield, 9:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

Digital Windows to Your Analog World is a DIY tech tools workshop for museums and historic sites.

Would you like to add technology to your exhibits or website to reach a broader audience? Come learn how in this one-day, hands-on workshop sponsored by PVHN.

At the workshop, you will explore a variety of free, easy-to-use tools (including Weebly, Google Docs, Audioboom, Thinglink, Flipsnack and QRstuff) to:

• Create a website for your organization
• Create a virtual exhibit on your website using a built-in slideshow function
• Add multimedia elements (additional images, audio and video) to your website
• Use QR codes to add multimedia (images, audio and video) to your museum exhibits
• Digitize documents and convert them to searchable files on your website

To participate, you should be comfortable using computers, but you don’t need to be familiar with any of the sites listed. Registered participants will be emailed information to help you get the most out of the day. In this workshop, we will guide you while you create your website and/or virtual elements. You should leave with a) a live website that can be easily edited/maintained by you, and/or b) multimedia elements or virtual exhibits you can add to your existing site.

Limited to 14, on first-come, first-serve basis           Cost: $40 (bring or buy your lunch) (free parking)

*The lab has Windows PCs, but feel free to bring your Macbook as the tools are web-based.

7 November 2015 — “The Victorian Lady: Dressing from Corsets to Gloves”
Woodbury Room, Jones Library, Amherst, 1:30 p.m.

Join us on Saturday, November 7, 2015 at 1:30pm for The Victorian Lady: Dressing from Corsets to Gloves with performance artist Kandie Carle. Come discover the fashion and customs that existed during Emily Dickinson’s lifetime. While dressing in actual vintage and authentically reproduced undergarments, clothing, and accessories, Kandie Carle adds humor, history, and intriguing anecdotes about fashion, home life, and etiquette of men and women during the Victorian era. The Victorian Lady program brings to light some of the differences and similarities between us and our Victorian ancestors. The event will take place in the Woodbury Room of The Jones Library with refreshments following the performance.

Kandie Carle has been working in the theatre since 1980 as an actress, dancer, and singer through the United States and abroad. Ms. Carle created this one-woman show in 1996 and takes her audience on a journey of discovery by using clothing and accessories as a tool. Throughout the presentation, she shares insights into the clothing, lifestyle, manners, etiquette, and customs of the men, women, and children of the Victorian era. Included are interesting anecdotes and “myth busting.” The performance is full of audience interaction and tailored to those in attendance. With many years of research in social history and fashion along with humor and grace, Ms. Carle shares her love of these eras with her audiences.

Free and open to the public.  For more information, please contact Cynthia Harbeson at: 413/259-3097.

7 November 2015 — “More About the Moores”
Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls, 1 p.m.

7 November 2015 — Maureen Taylor, “The Photo Detective”
Holyoke Public Library, 250 Chestnut St., Holyoke, 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

7 November 2015 — “Honoring Our Veterans”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield, 2 p.m.

You are invited to a FREE program, HONORING OUR VETERANS at the SPRINGFIELD ARMORY NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE (on the STCC campus, corner of State & Federal Street),Springfield, MA

Watch the new documentary especially produced by Springfield Armory, “Over Here, Over There, Letters from the Great War”.

Plus a Panel of Veterans representing service during: WWII, Vietnam, Desert Storm, Iraq, and Pakistan with Question & Answer.

Free parking, wheelchair accessible

6 November 2015 — “A Collector is Born: Local Landscapes, Local Collections, and Joseph Allen Skinner’s Imagination”
History Bites Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity St., Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

Joseph Allen Skinner was a local silk manufacturer and collector who funneled the bulk of his collecting passions into the Joseph Allen Skinner Museum, now of Mount Holyoke College. But what, we often wonder, prompted one individual to amass over 7000 objects in his museum and home, as well as buildings and a famous mountain? Drawing upon archival sources and a plethora of objects, as well as research into collecting practices and material culture, Harned argues that the answer to this tantalizing question can be found embedded in the landscape of Skinner’s youth in the Pioneer Valley.

Cheryl Harned is a PhD candidate, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of History, and is writing her dissertation on Joseph Skinner, tentatively titled, Collected: The Wondrous Things of Joseph Allen Skinner, 1862-1946. She has also worked with many local museums and collections, including serving as curator of the Joseph Allen Skinner Museum before returning to UMass to complete her PhD in Public History, US History and Early Modern History of Science.

Join us with your lunch in hand. We will provide coffee, tea and cider for you as you listen to the presentations. The 30-minute program will begin promptly at 12:15 with seating and beverages ready just before noon. The lectures are free and everyone is welcome to attend. For updated information, check our website at http://www.amhersthistory.org

2 November 2015 — “Soul of the Hilltowns”
Historical Lecture Series: Where the Heart Is
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Artist and storyteller Jacqueline Cooper will present a multi-media look at two farm families, neighbors for eight generations, who played together, shared chores, equipment, and strategies. With images, voices from the past, and music you will experience a tight-knit family come to life and together explore roots, the past, and living with a sense of belonging.

Admission is $7 general or $5 for members.

1 November 2015 — Button Appraisal Day
Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson, 1 p.m.

BUTTON APPRAISAL DAY with Gretchen and George Gauthier at 1:00pm on Sunday, November 1 at the Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson, MA

Do you have your grandmother’s button box? Would you like to learn some of the stories of these? Or do you have a favorite button that you would like to know about? Does it have some monetary value?

The Gauthiers are long time button collectors. George began collecting buttons because his late wife Joy, had inherited a large jar of buttons and began sorting them.

George is president of the Owaneco & Nutmeg clubs of CT, a member of the CT, MA, NH, NY, OH & FL state button societies as well as the Northeast Regional Button Association.  As a member of the National Button Society, George serves as the expert on vintage and modern buttons, especially plastic buttons. George is an avid collector of 18th century and china calico buttons as well as polymer (plastic) buttons.

Gretchen is the secretary of the Owaneco & Nutmeg clubs of CT, a member of the CT, MA, NH, NY, OH & FL state button societies and the Competition Awards Chairman for both the Northeast Regional and the National Button Societies.  She specializes in glass buttons as well as modern buttons made by button artists.

The Gauthier’s have been judging buttons at state, regional and local competitions for many years.  They have published works in state, regional and national button bulletins. They have helped clean and recard collections at the Keep Museum, helped identify buttons at the Mattatuck Museum and have given talks on various facets of button collecting to many groups of all levels of button collecting interest.  Between them, they have significant collections in all types of buttons.

They are both well versed in the identification and current pricing of buttons. They will discuss the factors that control retail buying and selling prices at 1:00pm. They will begin the appraisals at 1:30pm. There is no cost for the appraisals; however, donations to the Friends of the KHM will be accepted.

While people are waiting to have their buttons appraised, they will be free to roam the museum that has one of the largest button collections in the US. In addition, there is the furniture, collections, photos of the Keep Family that lived in the house for over 150 years.

All are welcome, whether or not they have buttons to be appraised. Refreshments will be served. For more information, call 413-267-4137, email khm@keephomesteadmuseum.org or check the web at http://www.keephomesteadmuseum.org

OCTOBER

29 October 2015 — “Making Quilts & the Culture They Illustrate and Foster”
Belchertown Historical Association
Stone House Museum, 20 Maple St., Belchertown, 7 p.m.

On October 29th at 7 p.m., local quilt expert Jane Crutchfield will speak about signature quilts at the Stone House Museum, 20 Maple Street, in Belchertown.  The talk entitled, “Making Quilts and the Culture They Illustrate and Foster” will feature several examples of signature quilts from this area and the stories behind them. She’ll tell how a chance discovery sparked her interest in an intricately sewn red and white signature quilt from 1867. That find led her on a months-long quest to trace the history of the quilt and its story.

Crutchfield, a resident of Belchertown, Mass. has quilted throughout her life and became involved in the Massachusetts Quilt Documentation Project in 1999. The project, established in 1994, is dedicated to the study and preservation of historic quilts.

The talk will include several quilts from the Stone House collection. Guests are welcome to bring signature quilts to share, as time allows. The event is free (with donations graciously accepted) and open to the public.

29 October 2015 — Cookies with a Curator”
Coolidge Museum, Forbes Library, Northampton, 2 to 3 p.m.

Informal conversation and show and tell of objects in the Forbes Library’s collection.

October is Family History Month! Do you have a family member from the Northampton area who served in World War I or World War II and want to learn more about the local war efforts and those who served?

Join Archivist Julie Bartlett Nelson to see and learn about the World War I and World War II research materials in the Hampshire Room for Local History. Joseph Harrison was the Head Librarian 1912 to 1950 and he collected and documented biographical information on soldiers and the war which is invaluable to historians and genealogy research. All ages welcome. For more information contact localhistory@forbeslibrary.org or 413-587-1014

27 October 2015 — “Displacement & Disincorporation: Quabbin Reservoir’s Impact”
Clapp Library, 19 South Main St., Belchertown, 7 p.m.

The construction of the Quabbin Reservoir resulted in the displacement of 2,500 residents of the Swift River Valley in the 1920s and 1930s. By chance, the reservoir construction project overlapped with the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl years, although it had no direct connection to either, aside from the recurring themes of economic and social impacts, displacement, and a test of the human character.

Clif Read has worked as Supervisor of Interpretive Service for the Department of Conservation and Recreation at the Quabbin Reservoir for the past 27 years.

26 October 2015 — “Dress and Work Around the Home”
Historical Lecture Series: Where the Heart Is
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Explore the underpinnings of the work and dress of the women of the late 1800s with this performative presentation. Daily schedules, chores, and clothing options will be revealed. Caren Harrington & Heather Wasilewski

Admission is $7 general or $5 for members.

25 October 2015 — Open House
Southwick Historical Society, 84 & 86 College Hwy. [Rt 202 & 10], Southwick, 2 – 4 p.m.

The Southwick Historical Society will have an open house at the museums. The museums consist of two buildings filled with artifacts and ephemera from the town. The Joseph Moore house was built in 1751 by Joseph Moore who served and died during the Revolutionary War. The Charles Gillett Cigar Factory was built in 1892 and is the last surviving building of it’s kind in the valley. Both are situated on scenic farm land at 84 and 86 College Hwy [ Rt 202 and 10]. Stop in and take a tour with one of our docents. We look forward to meeting you.

25 October 2015 — “Longmeadow Cemetery- The Early Period”
Longmeadow Historical Society &  First Church of Longmeadow
at First Church of Christ, 763 Longmeadow St., Longmeadow, 2 p.m.

Betsy and Al McKee will discuss details found on various gravestone carvings in the Longmeadow Cemetery. The McKees live in a house built in Longmeadow around 1801 by the gravestone carver Hermon Newell.  Once they discovered that their house was built by a stone cutter, they began to learn more about 18th and 19th century gravestones in the Connecticut River Valley.  The McKees have been researching and restoring their old house since moving to the area in 1989.

This is a First Church of Christ event to celebrate 300 years and is being co-sponsored by the Longmeadow Historical Society.

25 October 2015 — “Benefit Harvest Dance & Bonfire with a Beehive Halloween Costume Twist!”
Institute for the Musical Arts, 165 Cape St., Rt 112, Williamsburg, 4 p.m.

This will be THE pre-Halloween party of the year, so join Christine Ohlman & Rebel Montez at this gorgeous barn/performance space (studio design by Electric Ladyland’s John Storyk) to support IMA and their slammin’ Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls. IMA, the brainchild of Ann Hackler and iconic Fanny guitarist June Millington, is located just north of Northampton, with its beautiful shops and restaurants…Come and make a day of it, with the evening’s party the icing on the cake!!! Directions and more info about IMA at http://www.ima.org

TIX $20 advance/$25 day of. TIX at: http://www.ima.org/concerts.html

25 October 2015 — “The Science of Chesterfield Gorge”
Pioneer Valley Institute
Chesterfield Gorge, Chesterfield, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Professor Richard Little and naturalist Nancy Goodman will lead a hike and discussion of the geology and biology found at the Chesterfield Gorge in Chesterfield, MA. This Pioneer Valley Institute program will be held on Sunday, October 25, from 10 to 3 o’clock in the afternoon. Current PVI members and children under 13 with adults may attend at no cost, for all others the fee is just $5. Pre-registration and payment by check are required. Directions to the meeting place will be given upon registration.

This remarkable natural formation allows visitors to experience the region’s geologic past. The dramatic rock canyon features 70 foot high walls carved by centuries of rushing water from the East Branch of the Westfield River. On this hike of the two mile trail along the cliff tops and river margin road we will take in breathtaking views of the gorge, the river, and the surrounding forest, which nurtures hemlock, ash and oak, and is home to bears, bobcats and turkeys.

Contact Nancy Goodman at wildeyes@rcn.com to register. Please mail your check made out to PVI and send it to Pioneer Valley Institute, GCC Downtown Center, 270 Main St, Greenfield MA 01301. Call PVI for more information at 413-775-1671 and leave a message. THIS HIKE IS NOT HANDICAPPED ACCESSIBLE

24 October 2015 — “The Great River Redux: The Past, Present & Future of Studying the Connecticut River Valley”
Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum, 130 River Drive, Hadley, 1 p.m.

In 1985 a major exhibition of Connecticut River Valley scholarship was held at Hartford’s Wadsworth Athenaeum.  The exhibition and catalogue, The Great River: Art & Society of the Connecticut Valley, was the culmination of several years of footwork exploring collections in over seventy small museums, historical societies and private homes up and down the River.  Thirty years later we are bringing together the originator of this remarkable undertaking along with several scholars who have focused their research on Connecticut River Valley culture for and since this exhibition.  The Great River Redux will begin with a presentation on the original exhibition by William Hosley along with a look at some objects from the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum collections. Hosley’s talk will be followed by a round-table discussion with some of the Valley’s leading scholars including Kevin Sweeney, Marla R. Miller, David Glassberg, Gretchen Holbrook Gerzina, Lisa Brooks and William Flynt. The round-table will address the question “What is on the horizon for our understanding of the Connecticut River Valley now?”  The program will begin at 1 pm on Saturday, October 24, 2015 in the Corn Barn of the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum, 130 River Drive, Hadley MA and is open to the public. Seating is limited.

William Hosley’s The Great River Revisited: Three Centuries of Connecticut Valley Art & History surveys the people, places and things that figured prominently in the cultural and artistic life of the Connecticut Valley.  This richly illustrated program explores aspects of regional history through the study of gravestones, architecture, household furnishings, and cultural industry. These objects demonstrate the Valley’s transformation from a provincial agrarian culture to the vanguard of the 19th century’s high-tech industrial revolution and offer insights into the people who owned them. The lecture revisits the themes and materials presented in the award-winning The Great River exhibition (Wadsworth Atheneum 1985), while providing further insights into the industrial transformation that occurred after 1840.  In 2014 a NY arts publication cited The Great River exhibition on a list of 100 milestones in 150 years of American arts and preservation. It was the largest and most intensively researched exhibition ever mounted

William Hosley, the principal of Terra Firma Northeast, is a cultural resource development and marketing and communications consultant, social media expert, historian, writer, and photographer. He was formerly Director of the New Haven Museum and Connecticut Landmarks where he cared for a chain of historic attractions throughout Connecticut. Prior to that, as a curator and exhibition developer at Wadsworth Atheneum, Bill organized major exhibitions including The Great River: Art & Society of the Connecticut Valley (1985), The Japan Idea: Art and Life in Victorian America (1990), Sense of Place: Furniture from New England Towns (1993) and Sam & Elizabeth: Legend and Legacy of Colt’s Empire (1996). As an expert in heritage tourism, Bill has studied, lectured and advised hundreds of museums and heritage destinations around the country and served as a content specialist for PBS, BBC and CPTV film documentaries.

The Round Table to follow will include celebrated Valley historians whose research and intellectual focus encompass the world of women, Native Americans, African Americans, architecture, environmental history and material culture of the Connecticut River Valley during the 18th and 19th centuries.

Their discussion will press beyond “The Great River” exhibition to reflect on what it accomplished for material culture studies and the history of place, and to recognize the concerns and history left out of that telling. Their exchange of ideas will bring focus to our changing understanding of the Connecticut River Valley.  These distinguished scholars include:

Kevin M. Sweeney is Professor of American Studies and History at Amherst College. He worked for a decade in history museums and trained as a colonial historian and Yale (Ph.D. in 1986).  He teaches courses on colonial North American history, the era of the American Revolution, early American material culture and architecture, and Native American histories. He has written numerous articles on the architecture and material culture of colonial New England and with Evan Haefeli wrote Captors and Captives: The 1704 French and Indian Raid on Deerfield (2003). Currently, he is teaching a class on the Material Culture of American Homes and continues research on the possession and use of firearms in early America.

Marla R. Miller directs the Public History Program at UMass Amherst. Her primary research interest is U.S. women’s work before industrialization, particularly in the Connecticut River Valley. Her first book, The Needle’s Eye: Women and Work in the Age of Revolution won the Costume Society of America’s Millia Davenport “best book” Award. In 2009 she published the edited collection Cultivating a Past: Essays in the History of Hadley, Massachusetts. Her 2010 book, Betsy Ross and the Making of America –a scholarly biography of that much-misunderstood early American craftswoman–was a finalist for the Cundill Prize in History at McGill University–the world’s largest non-fiction historical literature prize–and was named to the Washington Post’s “Best of 2010” list. Her most recent publication, a short biography of Hatfield, Massachusetts, gownmaker Rebecca Dickinson, appeared in the Westview Press series Lives of American Women in summer 2013. She is presently completing work on a microhistory of women, work and landscape in Hadley, Massachusetts.

David Glassberg, a native of Philadelphia moved to the Connecticut River Valley in 1986 to begin teaching public history, environmental history, and modern US cultural history at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.   Among his publications are American Historical Pageantry: The Uses of Tradition in the Early Twentieth Century (1990), Sense of History: The Place of the Past in American Life (2001), and “Place Memory, and Climate Change” (The Public Historian, August 2014).  He is an Affiliated Investigator with the Northeast Climate Science Center, and has collaborated with a number of local museums and historic sites as well as several national parks, including the W.E.B. Du Bois National Historical Site, Statue of Liberty National Monument, Pinelands (N.J.) National Reserve, Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park, Springfield Armory National Historical Site, and Cape Cod National Seashore.

Gretchen Holbrook Gerzina joined the Commonwealth Honors College as Dean on July 1, 2015 after ten years as a named professor at Dartmouth College, where she held the Kathe Tappe Vernon Professorship in Biography, and served as chair of the English department and later as chair of African and African American Studies. Her most recent book, Mr. and Mrs. Prince:  How an Extraordinary 18th-Century Family Moved out of Slavery and into Legend (2008) recounts the story of two former slaves, Abijah Prince and Lucy Terry Prince, of colonial Massachusetts and Vermont, who became landowners and public figures, successfully defending themselves in court.  From 1997 to 2012 she hosted the nationally-syndicated public radio program “The Book Show,” and has done commentaries on National Public Radio. She recently completed a ten-part BBC Radio 4 series on Britain’s Black Past that will air in 2016.

Lisa Brooks, Amherst College Associate Professor of English and American Studies, teaches courses in Native American studies, early American literature and comparative American Studies.  Her first book, The Common Pot: The Recovery of Native Space in the Northeast reframes the historical and literary landscape of the American northeast, illuminating the role of writing as a tool of community reconstruction and land reclamation in indigenous social networks and constructs a provocative new picture of Native space before and after colonization. She is currently working on a book project, “Turning the Looking Glass on Captivity and King Philip’s War,” which places early American texts, including Mary Rowlandson’s captivity narrative, within the historical and literary geography of Native space. A native Abenaki, Professor Brooks serves on the Advisory Board of Gedakina, a non-profit organization focused on indigenous cultural revitalization, educational outreach, and community wellness in New England.

William Flynt has 35 years experience as Architectural Conservator at Historic Deerfield overseeing the Village’s numerous historic structures.  Bill has extensively researched Connecticut River Valley architecture and lectures on a variety of topics including paint, wallpaper, roofing and hardware as well as Historic Deerfield’s Hinsdale and Anna Williams house, Wells-Thorn house, Sheldon house, Moors house, and Barnard Tavern.  His most recent research focuses on dendochronology, or tree ring dating, in order to give researchers better insights into how a specific community’s architecture developed and when framing and stylistic trends began. Bill attended Williams College and the University of Vermont’s Program in Historic Preservation.

24 October 2015 — “Walk with Southwick Spirits”
Southwick Historical Society
Southwick Cemetery, College Highway, Southwick, 2-4 p.m.

Our annual” Walk with Southwick Spirits” will be held on Sunday October 24th from 2-4 p.m. at the Southwick Cemetery on College Highway. This year we have some new “ghost guests”, including Julius Lee who is mentioned in Ripleys “Believe it or Not”. Why? Stop in and find out. Donations are gladly accepted for the walk.

24 October 2015 — “At Camp in the Field: The Common Soldier in America’s Civil War”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield, 1 p.m.

Springfield Armory National Historic Site invites you to join Ranger Richard Colton and Rob Wilson in discovering & acquainting yourselves with the common experience of the American Civil War soldier found in the Armory’s upcoming exhibit, At CAMP in the FIELD, on Saturday, October 24th, 2015 at 1:00 pm. The program is FREE.

Begin your journey of discovery with a half-hour illustrated program describing the new exhibit on camp life. Camp was the most common experience for thousands of soldiers with approximately 98 out of 100 days spent there. A Civil War camp was NOT like when we go camping with our families and friends.  Each day in camp prepared soldiers to fight better as individuals in organized military units through training and renewal of their equipment, weapons, and strength. In both armies, Federal and Confederate, everything moved like clockwork.

Rob Wilson’s Great Grandfather, George A. Marden, was an officer in the famous Union regiments of Berdan’s Sharpshooters. Enlisting in November, 1861, at the age of 22 as a private and rising to the rank of lieutenant, he took part in the Army of the Potomac’s grueling, bloody and unsuccessful Peninsula Campaign, and later battles such as Fredericksberg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and Wapping Heights.

Marden’s writing is lucid and insightful. He wrote of his camp experiences, hardships, humor and all. We are fortunate to have such poignant memories that inform our understanding of the Civil War and soldiers’ camps.  This program will set the stage for the opening reception of the next special exhibit; At CAMP in the FIELD, November 21, 2015.

The Springfield Armory National Historic Site is the location of the nation’s first armory (1794 –1968) and was established by George Washington. The site includes historic grounds, buildings, and the world’s largest historic American military firearms collection. Open daily 9am – 5pm after Memorial Day and then Wednesday to Sunday after October 31st. There is ample parking and the event is wheelchair accessible.  For further information and weather cancellation call (413) 734-8551 or check the website at http://www.nps.gov/spar  or go to our http://www.facebook.com/sparnhs.

24 October 2015 — “Comfort & Warmth House Tour”
Amherst Historical Society, Amherst, 10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

We are pleased to present the 2015 House Tour. Our theme this year is “Comfort & Warmth” and each of the five houses and one church will show you ways to gain these in your home. From a home designed and built for passive solar energy to a home retrofitted for high energy efficiency, you will be able to see new ways of achieving comfort and warmth in action.

Judy Terapulsky’s single-story Greek-style home is one of the houses you can tour and Cheyl Wilson’s article about this house in the Amherst Bulletin can be seen here. At the Simeon Strong House, students from UMass have developed a special scavenger hunt for you to find clues to its architectural past.

We are grateful to the owners who open their houses for this event and invite you to visit these special places. All proceeds support the Amherst Historical Society. Tickets are on sale at the Hadley Garden Center, AJ.. Hastings and at the Simeon Strong House during open hours. Tickets are also available online here.

We are an all-volunteer organization dedicated to our mission to connect people to the town of Amherst, its history and its culture. You can find us online at amhersthistory.org.

24 October 2015 — David Ruggles Center Fall Open House
David Ruggles Center, 225 Nonotuck St., Florence, 2 to 5 p.m.

* Raffle Drawing for Handmade Quilt
* Silk Making Demonstration with Faith Deering
* Nonotuck/Riverside Walking Tour at 3:30 p.m.
* Docents Talk About their Exhibits
* Library Acquisitions
* Slide Shows
* Refreshments

23 October 2015 — “100 Years of the Garden Club of Amherst”
History Bites Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity St., Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

2015 marks the 100th Anniversary of the Garden Club of Amherst. From its inception at the beginning of the last century, the purpose of the Club has been to foster the interests of its members in everything pertaining to gardens, and to show active concern for the beautification of the local area and for the preservation of its natural resources, extending this concern to similar state and national issues.

Probably the oldest local plant sale is the one held by the Garden Club of Amherst, which was started in the 1950s. With the funds raised, the club supports an annual UMass scholarship; community beautification activities (planters on the town common, 18th century garden at the Strong House Museum, the Daffodil Project); the Trees in Amherst book and walking tours; and contributions to local organizations such as the Kestrel Trust, Hitchcock Center, Durfee Conservatory, Waugh Arboretum, and Nasami Farm, and to area libraries for the purchase of gardening books.

Our two speakers, Elaine Barker and Patricia Holland, will present the history of the club based on research into the records maintained in Special Collections at the Jones Library (Patricia Holland) and the experiences of long-term membership (Elaine Barker).

Join us with your lunch in hand. We will provide coffee, tea and cider for you as you listen to the presentations. The 30-minute program will begin promptly at 12:15 with seating and beverages ready just before noon. The lectures are free and everyone is welcome to attend. For updated information, check our website at http://www.amhersthistory.org

23 October 2015 — “Ghosts in the Graveyard”
Longmeadow Historical Society
Longmeadow Cemetery, Williams St., Longmeadow, 6:30 – 8 p.m. (Weather permitting — there is no rain date.)

The Longmeadow Historical Society presents its annual “Ghosts in the Graveyard” event.  This event which takes place in the Olde Burying Yard located in the Longmeadow Cemetery is an educational and fun experience for both children and adults.  At this event a group of individuals long since deceased arise once again to speak about their life and experiences as early Longmeadow citizens.

Consider joining the fun…. this event is a favorite with both kids and adults. For more information, visit the website of the Longmeadow Historical Society:

http://www.LongmeadowHistoricalSociety.org
and its Facebook page: http://www.Facebook.com/LongmeadowHistoricalSociety

23 October 2015 — “Worth a Thousand Words”
Deerfield Valley Art Association
at Terrazza Restaurante, Greenfield Country Club, Greenfield, 7:30 p.m.

Deerfield Valley Art Association, as part of its annual meeting presents, Barry Deitz and his program “Worth a Thousand Words” which will trace the development of graphic storytelling, looking at Victorian era book and print illustration, movie posters of the 1930s, comic books of the 1950s, and the recent phenomenon of the graphic novel.  The program is dedicated to Kevin Slattery, who passed away this spring, and will look at how in his work he used all of these sources to create such a unique blending of words and illustrations in his books and artwork.

Free and open to the public. Contact: Beverly Phelps, edcp.bap@comcast.net or (413) 522-2325.

22 October 2015 — “At Home in Mason Square: Architectural History, Styles and Influences”
Community Rm, Mason Square Branch, Springfield City Library, 765 State St., Springfield, 5:30 – 7 p.m.

Join us for a fascinating look at Mason Square’s architecture and history!

First, former Winchester Square resident Charles Clark will discuss his carefully researched collection of photographs depicting the many iterations of State Street throughout the last century. He has generously donated the images, in book format, to the Mason Square Branch.

Next, Springfield Preservation Trust board member Bob McCarroll will talk about the residential architecture in the neighborhoods surrounding Mason Square including McKnight, which has many homes of local and national significance. Enjoy learning about the different housing styles, influences and trends that are represented in your community.

A short reception with refreshments will follow. We encourage those attending to bring their own photographs of the neighborhood to share.

21 October 2015 — “The New Haven and Northampton Canal”
Forbes Library, Northampton, 6:30 p.m.

History buffs, rowers and conservationists will be interested in a talk by Carl Walter on the ill-fated New Haven and Northampton Canal. Mr. Walter gave two standing room only talks at Historic Northampton on the canal. At this talk he will focus on the terminus of the canal, which is the site of the new boathouse for Northampton Community Rowing.

This presentation will explain why the canal was built, where it was located, how it was constructed, and its importance to the canal towns with emphasis on the terminus of the canal on the Connecticut River in Northampton.

Mr. Walter is a retired pathologist who avidly studies the New Haven and Northampton Canal. He uses thousands of pictures, maps, and other documents he gathered as the basis for his talks. He has walked the line of the canal twice and visited all the libraries and historical societies in the canal towns of Connecticut and Massachusetts.

The talk is sponsored by the Meadow City Conservation Coalition, Northampton Community Rowing, Historic Northampton and Forbes Library.

19 October 2015 — “The Trouble With Empire: Challenges to Modern British Imperialism”
UMass/Five College Graduate Program in History
Bernie Dallas Room, Goodell Hall, UMass-Amherst, 4 p.m.

The UMass/Five College Graduate Program in History invites you to our 2015-2016 Distinguished Annual Lecture:

“The Trouble with Empire: Challenges to Modern British Imperialism”

The speaker, Antoinette Burton, specializes in nineteenth- and twentieth-century Britain and its empire, focusing in particular on colonial India, feminism, and postcolonial studies. Dr. Burton is Interim Director of the Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities and Bastion Professor of Global and Transnational Studies at the University of Illinois.

For more information, see the event webpage and flyer:
http://www.umass.edu/history/about/AnnualLecture2015.html

Directions: http://bit.ly/1Kpb8KB
Parking: http://www.umass.edu/transportation/where-park

Contact: Mary Lashway at gradprogram@history.umass.edu or 413-545-6755

Sponsors: UMass Department of History and Five Colleges, Inc.

19 October 2015 — “The Godfather of Volleyball Comes to Town”
Historical Lecture Series: Where the Heart Is
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Harold T. Friermood “Frier” was perhaps best known as the man who got volleyball into the Olympics, but he was also a man who succeeded by doing what he loved and sharing his expertise and skills with others. Join us as we hear a tale of a man who, at a young age, was given a gift that would go on to shape his whole life’s purpose. Presenter Libby Franck is “Frier’s” daughter and a gifted storyteller.

Admission is $7 general or $5 for members.

18 October 2015 — “Discover the Quabbin Hike”
meet at Gate 40, Quabbin Reservoir, 11 a.m.

This hike is free and open to the public. Reservations not required. Donations to offset expenses are always welcomed.

Directions to Gate 40 can be found here: http://www.northquabbinwoods.org/quabbin_gate40.html

Expect this hike to last 4 – 5 hours (7 miles, give or take), so plan accordingly. Ie, bring lunch and drinks.
Contact the office by phone (978-544-6882) or email megansrvhs@gmail.com for further information.

18 October 2015 — “From Purgatory to Podunk”
Southwick Historical Society
Southwick Town Hall Auditorium, 434 College Hwy, Southwick, 1 p.m.

On a whim retired school teachers Debbie and Peter Lincoln traveled though every city, town and village in our state of Massachusetts. This turned into a major endeavor resulting in photographs and a mountain of information from which they have created this lively presentation. As lifelong teachers and learners they spoke to old timers and were rewarded with snippets of information and little known facts. “What we learned most of all is that Massachusetts is a magnificent state. It is rich in history, has a varied and extraordinary topography, and essentially was the cradle that rocked America”. Please join us for this free and fun program.

17 October 2015 — Family Fiesta Day
Springfield Museums, 21 Edwards St., Springfield, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.

The Springfield Museums will host a Family Fiesta Day on Saturday, Oct. 17, featuring performances of traditional music and folk tales from Puerto Rico along with hands-on activities, exhibits of photographs and handcrafted musical instruments, and a special documentary screening. The Fiesta is being presented as part Herencia Latina 2015-16, a nine-month Pioneer-Valley-wide exploration of Latino history and culture in the Pioneer Valley and beyond being organized by Pioneer Valley History Network. The event is also part of the Museums’ Family Fun series, which is funded by the TD Charitable Foundation.

The day’s performances will begin with a lively re-telling The Tale of Juan Bobo by CactusHead Puppets (11 a.m., Community Room, Springfield City Library). That afternoon, visitors can enjoy an interactive journey Latin American culture, music and history by MarKamusic, (2 p.m., Davis Auditorium, D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts).

At 3:15 p.m. in the Science Museum’s Tolman Auditorium, the Museums will host a special screening of Episode V: Prejudice and Pride from the six-part, NEH-supported documentary film series Latino Americans, created for PBS in 2013 by the WETA public television station. The award-winning series chronicles the history of Latinos in the United States from the 16th century to present day.  Following the screening will be a discussion led by UMass Professor Luis Marente.

Visitors can also enjoy two related exhibits at the Wood Museum of Springfield History.  “Faces of the North End” is an exhibit of evocative photographs by William Hughes featuring images of the Latino community in Springfield’s North End taken in 1991. They show, in his words, “an ever-present and quiet, underlying source of strength and optimism…visible even in those individuals who had lived a life of much hardship and strife.” Also on view near the main entrance to the Wood Museum will be a display of beautifully crafted stringed instruments titled “A Commitment of a Lifetime” by Will Cumpiano, who is renowned for his skills as a cuatro maker (the traditional instrument of Puerto Rico). Cumpiano will give a presentation about his work as a luthier in the Science Museum’s Tolman Auditorium at 12 PM. Afterward, visitors can attend a “meet and greet” with both Hughes and Cumpiano in the Wood Museum (1:30 p.m., Springfield History Library and Archives).

Other highlights of the day’s events include:
* Drop-in art activities in the City Library’s Children’s Room (9 a.m. – 5 p.m.) and the Science Museum’s Science Workshop (11 a.m. – 4 p.m.)
* Family Science Adventures, Science Museum (11 a.m – 2 p.m.)
* Art activities, Art Discovery Center, GWV Smith Museum, (12 – 4 p.m.)
* Planetarium shows (11:15 a.m., 12:00 p.m., 1 p.m., & 2 p.m.; additional fee required)

Herencia Latina 2015-16 is spearheaded and coordinated by the Pioneer Valley History Network and the Springfield Public Library, programming is presented by partners Casa Latina Northampton, Holyoke Community College, L.I.S.A. (Latino and International Students Association at H.C.C.), Holyoke Public Library, Springfield Museums, Springfield City Library, Turners Falls RiverCulture, and Wistariahurst Museum.

The project is funded by grants from the American Library Association, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Mass Humanities, and supported by El Sol Latino, Nuestras Raices, WGBY Public Television, and The Center for New Americans.

17 October 2015 — Home Movie Day
Holyoke Public Library, 250 Chestnut St., Holyoke, 1 – 3 p.m.

Do you have old 8mm, 16mm, or Super8 films in your closet, and no means of viewing them? or even knowing what they are about?
Home Movie Days are organized around the world every year to help people with old home movies view portions of those and learn how to care for their film and tape.

Holyoke Public Library Community Room
Saturday, 17 October 2015
Film drop off: 11:00 AM-12:30 PM
Screenings: 1:00- 3:00 PM
Accepted formats: 16mm, 8mm, Super8 and VHS.

All films will be returned to owners.
For questions or early film drop-off, call (413) 420-8107.

15 October 2015 — “Teddy Roosevelt- Our 26th President”
Longmeadow Historical Society
Glenbrook Middle School, 110 Cambridge Circle, Longmeadow, 7 p.m.

At 7:30 PM after the business meeting of the LHS has been concluded, there will be a special one hour presentation by actor Ted Zalewski who will bring to life our 26th President Teddy Roosevelt. In combining history, drama and fun, Zalewski gives voice to many of Roosevelt’s own words, writings, and beliefs. Cowboy, soldier, naturalist, historian, father, statesman, and winner of the Nobel Prize for Peace, Theodore Roosevelt lived a life that inspires us still. “Teddy Roosevelt: Mind, Body and Spirit” was written by Zalewski.

Theodore Roosevelt has universal appeal to audiences of all ages and political persuasions. Today, both men and women respond with equal enthusiasm to Teddy Roosevelt and Zalewski’s performance. Roosevelt is considered one of the most popular presidents in U.S. history.

Mark your calendar and plan to attend this interesting and unforgettable performance. Admission is free. For additional information email LongmeadowHS@gmail.com

13 October 2015 — “Conway and the Civil War”
Williamsburg Historical Society
Williamsburg Congregational Church, 4 North Main St., Williamsburg

Williamsburgh Historical Society Annual Meeting
6:30 pm Potluck Supper Social (Bring a favorite dish to share)
7:30 pm Program: A MASSACHUSETTS HILLTOWN’S EXPERIENCE IN THE CIVIL WAR with Bob Llamas
Free and Open to the Public
Bring Your Friends!
(Donations would be greatly appreciated)

11 October 2015 — Open House
Southwick Historical Society, 84 & 86 College Hwy. [Rt 202 & 10], Southwick, 2 – 4 p.m.

The Southwick Historical Society will have an open house at the museums.  The museums consist of two buildings filled with artifacts and ephemera from the town. The Joseph Moore house was built in 1751 by Joseph Moore who served and died during the Revolutionary War. The Charles Gillett Cigar Factory was built in 1892 and is the last surviving building of it’s kind in the valley. Both are situated on scenic farm land at 84 and 86 College Hwy [ Rt 202 and 10]. Stop in and take a tour with one of our docents. We look forward to meeting you.

11 October 2015 — “Colonial Day” at Wilder Homestead
Buckland Historical Society
Wilder Homestead, 129, Rt. 112, Buckland, 2 – 5 p.m.

Step into the past at the 1775 Wilder Homestead and sample activities from the Colonial era.

Open Hearth Cooking, Oxen, Basket Making, Weaving, Spinning, Quilting, Folk Painting, Music of the 1700’s, Cider Pressing, Morris Dancers

Admission:  Adult – $3.00  Child – $1.00

129, Rt. 112, Buckland, MA.  Presented by the Buckland Historical Society

10 October 2015 — “Spend a Day of Genealogy with Steve Morse”
Polish Genealogical Society of Massachusetts
Mary Dooley College Center, Elms College, Chicopee, 8:30 a.m. to noon

The Polish Genealogical Society of Massachusetts in collaboration with the Polish Center for Discovery & Learning and the Chicopee Cultural Council is pleased to announce that renowned genealogist and computer professional, Steve Morse, is coming to Chicopee to present a full day of talks.

10 October 2015 — “Next Stop Holyoke: Pumpkin Glow”
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 4-7 p.m.

In celebration of Next Stop Holyoke we’re filling our grounds with pumpkins and other fall fun!

Community members young and old are working hard to creatively carve over 100 pumpkins for this special outdoor “exhibition.” Join us for the grand lighting where we’ll have refreshments, pony rides, games, and crafts. See the historic grounds of Wistariahurst lit up like you’ve never seen them before.

Additional pumpkin viewing hours Sunday & Monday, October 11 & 12, 5 – 7 p.m. Free and open to all

9 October 2015 — “New England Pie: History Under a Crust”
History Bites Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity St., Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

Robert Cox, Head of Special Collections and University Archives, UMass. Talk and book signing.

7 October 2015 — “Gravestone CSI”
Western Hampden Historical Society
St. John’s Lutheran Church, Broad St., Westfield

OCTOBER MEETING — WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2015
TIME:            6:30 P.M.
MENU:          Italian Chicken; Fruit Cup; Roasted Potatoes; Green Bean Casserole; Dinner Rolls; Brownie & Ice Cream; Coffee or Tea.
COST:           $15.00
MEETING: 7:30 P.M.
PROGRAM: 8:00 P.M. SPEAKERS: Al & Betsy McKee
TOPIC:          “Gravestone CSI”

Reservations must be made by Saturday, October 3, 2015 with Jill O’Brien at 568-1116. Please leave a message on the answering machine.  Reservations must be honored.

5 October 2015 — “Butterworth Farm”
Historical Lecture Series: Where the Heart Is
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Allen Young is the sole surviving founder of a community known as Butterworth Farm, launched in 1973 in Royalston by a group of gay men as part of the back-to-the-land movement. The community, consisting of four houses, sits on one hundred acres includes gay and non-gay residents redefining what it means to be a family.  (Please note: This multimedia presentation includes some images of nudity)

Admission is $7 general or $5 for members.

4 October 2015 — Talk by Jane C. Nylander
William Cullen Bryant Homestead, Route 9, Cummington, 2:30 p.m.

Talk by Jane C. Nylander,President Emerita of Historic New England and author of Our Own Snug Fireside, about home life in early New England. The title for her talk is taken from Sarah Snell Bryant’s diary entry for New Year’s
Day, 1833: “All the world is but the pupil and disciple of female influence”. 

Ms. Nylander will talk about details of Mrs. Bryant’s everyday life in Cummington during the years 1794-1835. Tours of the Homestead will be available starting at noon. Admission: Trustees members, $5 @ person; Nonmembers, $10

4 October 2015 — “The Return of the Raptors”
Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson, 1:30 p.m.

RETURN OF THE RAPTORS with Tom Ricardi of the Birds of Prey Rehabilitation Center at the Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson, MA on Sunday, October 4 at 1:30pm. Also a visit of the 9th annual Ladies’ Day tour of the Worcester County Model A Club.

Ricardi has operated the Birds of Prey Rehabilitation Center in Conway, MA since 1970, however his interest in birds of prey began as a small child. He currently has approximately 60 birds in the Center – some too injured to release into the wild. Many of these are used in breeding programs and to date bald eagles, kestrels, barn owls and red-tailed hawks have been bred.

In addition, there will be a special visit by the Worcester County Model A Club as part of their 9^th Annual Ladies’ Day tour. There will be approximately 14 cars.

The Keep Homestead Museum will be open 1:00-3:3:30pm on that day. There is no admission charge and refreshments will be served. On the lawn. Bring a lawn chair or blanket

For more information, call 413-267-4137, email info@keephomesteadmuseum.org or look on the web at www.keephomesteadmuseum.org

1-4 October 2015 — “Amherst Poetry Festival and Emily Dickinson Poetry Marathon”
Emily Dickinson Museum, 280 Main Street, Amherst

The third annual Amherst Poetry Festival and the Emily Dickinson Poetry Marathon begin October 1.

Join us October 1 through 4 when the Emily Dickinson Museum and the Amherst Business Improvement District turn downtown Amherst into a must-visit destination for poetry lovers.

In addition to the Emily Dickinson Poetry Marathon, this year’s Amherst Poetry Festival features a wide variety of poetry readings, workshops, panels, a family day, musical performances, an open mic, and much more over the four days. Among the events are:

AMHERST ART WALK KICKOFF
The Amherst Poetry Festival opens during the monthly Amherst Art Walk on Thursday, October 1, from 5 to 8 pm.

The first session of the Emily Dickinson Poetry Marathon starts at 5 pm in the Homestead parlor. This four-day reading of all 1,789 of Emily Dickinson’s poems is a rare opportunity to become immersed in Dickinson’s poetry in the place where it was written, and for decades has drawn participants from around the world. Readers can stay for one poem or for the entire session, with everyone given a chance to join in. Emily Dickinson Poetry Marathon sessions continue Friday from 1:30 to 6:30 pm, Saturday from 8 am to 1 pm, and Sunday from 10 am to noon.

Amherst Poetry Festival poetry readings will also be held at several downtown locations on Thursday evening during the Art Walk, including the Unitarian Universalist Society of Amherst Meetinghouse, Gallery A3, Circa Now Gallery, and the UMass Amherst University Museum of Contemporary Art.

JAMES TATE MEMORIAL STAGE
This year’s main stage, on the Homestead lawn at the Emily Dickinson Museum, is dedicated to James Tate, one of the country’s greatest contemporary poets and an Amherst resident. Mr. Tate, who passed away in July, was a featured poet at the first two Amherst Poetry Festivals. On Saturday, the James Tate Memorial Stage will feature poets such as Dara Wier, Richard Michelson, Deborah Gorlin, the Warrior Writers, and over a dozen others.

FAMILY DAY
A family day takes place on the Museum grounds on Sunday afternoon, featuring craft activities, readings, music, storytelling, and great food.

EVENINGS AT THE PACIFIC LODGE
The poetry festival moves to the Pacific Lodge on Main Street Friday and Saturday evenings. Annie Finch, with her performance Letter to Emily Dickinson, and Northampton Poetry’s Dead Poets’ Slam will be the featured events on Friday.

On Saturday, Grey Matter Press will lead an open mic, followed by headliners Waywords and Meansigns, a global collaborative (begun in Northampton, MA) that sets James Joyce’s Finnegans Wake to music.

POETRY WORKSHOPS AND PANELS
Over a dozen poetry workshops and panel discussions will be offered Friday through Sunday at the Homestead and the Jones Library. Among this year’s topics are “The Real Dirt: Poetry of Food, Garden, and Farm,” “Emily Dickinson: Putting Art in its Place,” “From Zero to One: First Books and What We Wish We’d Known,” and “Weird is Good.”

JONES LIBRARY STORY WALK AND SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
Jones Library special collections will be open for extended hours during the festival. The collections, which feature original works by Dickinson, Robert Frost, and numerous other authors and poets, will be open Friday from 10 am to 5 pm, Saturday from 1 pm to 5 pm, and Sunday from 1 pm to 5 pm.

For the second year, the library is hosting a story walk, featuring Please, Louise by Toni and Slade Morrison, at a variety of downtown businesses. Pages from the book will be displayed in windows of businesses starting in the north end of downtown Amherst and ending in the Jones Library kids’ room. Participants who complete the walk can register at the checkout desk in the kids’ room for a raffle prize.

jubilat/JONES
The first session of this year’s jubilat/Jones Poetry Reading series, featuring Amy Lawless and Morgan Parker, will be held on Sunday at 3 p.m. in the Goodwin Room of the Jones Library.

3 October 2015 — Western New England Chapter, Association for Gravestone Studies
Greenfield Community College downtown campus, 270 Main St., Greenfield

2 & 3 October 2015 — “Forest of Mystery”
Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson 

October 2 & 3 on the woodland trails in the twilight and dark. The audience will be the heroes of the play. They will walk ½ mile, stopping to view and participate at a dozen stations along the way, where the story will unfold. You MUST buy tickets online, in advance, in order to be scheduled for your chosen starting time. Starting times are assigned on a first-come first-served basis. Tickets: $15 for Adults, $10 for students and seniors in advance, $18 and $12 at the door.

Tickets available:  http://www.MonsonArtsCouncil.com, http://www.GreeneRoomProductions.com, and http://www.KeepHomesteadMuseum.org.

1 October 2015 — Michael Sheridan in Concert
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 7 p.m.

On October 1 at 7 p.m. Michael Sheridan returns to Wistariahurst with his gypsy swing trio. Join us for an evening of the music of Django Reinhardt, robust tangos, and waltzes from South America in the intimate setting of our Music Room.

Michael Sheridan is a New York metro area guitarist trained in classical and jazz guitar. He has been a regular performer from NYC to California for the past ten years and released Prelude, his first solo CD in 2013.

Tickets are $15 general and $12 for members.

1 October 2015 — “New England Impressions: Art and the Making of Regional Identity, 1885 – 1950”
Memorial Hall Museum, 8 Memorial St., Deerfield, 7 p.m.

On Thursday, October 1 at 7 pm, William Hosley will present the slide lecture “New England Impressions: Art and the Making of Regional Identity, 1885 – 1950” at Memorial Hall Museum in conjunction with the recently-opened exhibition “Robert Strong Woodward: Artist for All Seasons.”

In his presentation, William Hosley will explore painters such as Woodward along with printmakers and photographers who strongly identified with a New England sense of place. “For several generations aspiring New England artists used our history, landscape, environment and traditional industries as subject matter and muse—drawing inspiration from their environment and helping to shape New England’s image at home and abroad,” writes Hosley. “Some were realist, others impressionists while many were drawn to genres of daily life. What they shared was a reverence for place, past, and seasonality, and ideas associated with New England’s epic heritage.”

William Hosley is the principal of Terra Firma Northeast, is a cultural resource development and marketing and communications consultant, historian, writer, and photographer. He was formerly Director of the New Haven Museum and Connecticut Landmarks where he cared for a chain of historic attractions throughout Connecticut. Prior to that, as a curator and exhibition developer at Wadsworth Atheneum, Hosley organized major exhibitions including The Great River: Art & Society of the Connecticut Valley (1985), The Japan Idea: Art and Life in Victorian America (1990), Sense of Place: Furniture from New England Towns (1993) and Sam & Elizabeth: Legend and Legacy of Colt’s Empire (1996). As an expert in heritage tourism, Bill has studied, lectured and advised hundreds of museums and heritage destinations around the country.

The exhibition “Robert Strong Woodward: Artist For All Seasons” features five privately-owned paintings by Robert Strong Woodward (1885-1957) of rural Buckland, Massachusetts, dating from the 1930s. Organized by the Friends of Robert Strong Woodward, the exhibition runs from until November 1.

There is recommended donation of $10 admission for the October 1 lecture, which includes admission to the museum. Memorial Hall Museum is located at 8 Memorial Street, Deerfield, MA. For information, please call 413-774-7476 x 10 or visit the museum’s website at http://www.deerfield-ma.org

SEPTEMBER

30 September 2015 — “Silent Presence: The French in New England”
Forbes Library, 20 West St., Northampton, 7 p.m.

For over 25 years Jeanne Douillard has probed the history of the French in New England. She began by researching her own family genealogy and discovered she had Québecois, Acadiens, Native American and English roots. She wanted to find out more about these people. Her passion led her to delve deeply into the quagmire of conflicting historiographies. English, French and American historians of the past offered up irreconcilable views of La Nouvelle France [New France]. She was intrigued. What is the truth and why have the French in particular been such a silent presence in New England?

Her talk, “Silent Presence – The French in New England,” brings a unique, fresh look at the story of “un petit people.” Join Jeanne as she takes us to France at the time of immigration when a group of pre-revolution people from the same country (they immigrated about 100 years before the French Revolution), inhabited two different areas of La Nouvelle France: Canada and Acadie. Although they grew up under the same political conditions in the land of their birth and left France around the same time (1600’s), their lives developed in two vastly different directions once they came to the Americas. We will find out how and why. We will also examine the hardships the French faced when they ventured forth from Canada to settle in New England. It is the story of a peoples’ struggle to reclaim pride, a story of hope and forgiveness: a story that has not been told in just this way.

Jeanne is not a historian, an academic or expert in this field, but she has consulted with experts to verify the facts of her intriguing narrative. The results of her research and reflections offer unique insights into the story of an invisible people. With compassion and understanding she unravels a long and complex history in an attempt to make it understandable for all. Even if you are not French, you are sure to gain greater understanding of the truly interesting story she tells.

28 September 2015 — “Hilltown Farmers, Friends & Family”
Historical Lecture Series: Where the Heart Is
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Join us for an evening of good-hearted storytelling with Frances Henry. Frances Henry befriended elderly neighbors in the Hilltowns and for 25 years observed their hard working farmer-lives. Henry has written about them in essays both poignant and humorous. Earlier this year, she published Tales of a Wayside Community to bring these stories to a wider audience.

Admission is $7 general or $5 for members.

27 September 2015 — Open House
Southwick Historical Society, 84 & 86 College Hwy. [Rt 202 & 10], Southwick, 2 – 4 p.m.

The Southwick Historical Society will have an open house at the museums. The museums consist of two buildings filled with artifacts and ephemera from the town. The Joseph Moore house was built in 1751 by Joseph Moore who served and died during the Revolutionary War. The Charles Gillett Cigar Factory was built in 1892 and is the last surviving building of it’s kind in the valley. Both are situated on scenic farm land at 84 and 86 College Hwy [ Rt 202 and 10]. Stop in and take a tour with one of our docents. We look forward to meeting you.

27 September 2015 — “Grand Trunk Hotel”
Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls, 1-2 p.m.

What was so grand about the Grand Trunk Hotel in Turners Falls? Right next to where the center is today, the hotel was built in 1872 and taken down in 1968. We’ll use our imaginations, old photographs, and testimonials to piece together the story of grand old days in Turners Falls.

Sundays in September 2015 — “River Rambles: Canal-side Rail Trail History Walks”
Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls, 10 – 11 a.m.

Meet outside our main entrance at 10 am and join a DCR Park Interpreter as we leisurely explore level, paved bike trails and village sidewalks to explore stories of industrialization, cultural and natural history, and resilience.

17-19 & 24-26 September 2015 — “Before You Became Improbable”
Emily Dickinson Museum, 280 Main St., Amherst, 6:30 – 8 p.m.

It took eight years of correspondence before Thomas Wentworth Higginson arrived in Amherst to meet his elusive advisee, Emily Dickinson. “Before You Became Improbable” re-imagines the day of that meeting, offering audience members an encounter with her words and poems in a remarkably personal theatrical experience.

This immersive journey returns to the Emily Dickinson Museum in September after a sold-out 2014 run.

“Before You Became Improbable” is not a stationary production, but a walking theatrical journey throughout downtown Amherst, en route to the Dickinson grounds. Equipped with a special pair of headphones, audience members are guided carefully through the show, following a path visible to only them, leading them through a series of compelling encounters. The journey ends in the Dickinson parlor, where participants gather to share insights and experiences with the playwright and each other.

“Before You Became Improbable” is written and directed by Amherst Regional High School Performing Arts Department Head John Bechtold and produced by Wendy Kohler and the Emily Dickinson Museum. It runs Thursday through Saturday (with a Sunday rain date) September 17-19 and September 24-26, with one or two participants departing every four minutes between 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. at the Emily Dickinson Museum, located at 280 Main Street in downtown Amherst.

Designed as an experience for two people at a time, audience participants should come prepared with comfortable shoes, the willingness to walk for much of the show, and a venturesome spirit.

DETAILS
Directed by John Bechtold
Produced by Wendy Kohler and the Emily Dickinson Museum
Location: Begins and ends at the Emily Dickinson Museum, 280 Main Street, Amherst, MA
Time: September 17-19 (rain date September 20) and September 24-26 (rain date September 27)
Participants begin the journey in pairs leaving every four minutes between 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Cost:$35 per person ($25 museum members), $15 students
To make reservations, visit our reservations page .
For more information: call 413-542-2034 or email EDMprograms@EmilyDickinsonMuseum.org

26 September 2015 — Golf Tournament
Granby Preservation Society
Westover Country Club, 12:30 p.m.

Granby Preservation Society (GPS) Presents Our 1st ANNUAL GOLF TOURNAMENT.

Saturday, September 26, 2015 12:30 PM Shotgun Start/Scramble Format
Westover Country Club

Dinner & Awards following golf
$90 fee per golfer includes green fees, golf cart, awards, contests, golfer gifts, and dinner at the clubhouse. Please RSVP by September 12th, 2015

Questions: Contact society@gmail.com
Mike Beck 265-5347 mbeck@wmasshomes.com or GPS via E-mail: granbypreservationsociety@gmail.com
http://www.granbypreservationsociety.org/

25 September 2015 — “Would Jonathan Edwards Have Agreed With Francis I About Climate Change?”
History Bites Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity St., Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

Jonathan Edwards has long epitomized the Puritan preacher as a fiery scold fixated on the inner struggle of the soul, a Calvinist scourge who majored in hellfire and brimstone, the fearful preacher of “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” Ronald Story has found Edwards to be a profoundly social minister who preached a gospel of charity and community bound by love and struggled to create a more just and peaceful world. Story will draw on his deep research into the life and writings of Jonathan Edwards and compare Edwards’ views with those of Pope Francis I on climate change.

Ronald Story, professor emeritus, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of History, is the author of The Forging of an Aristocracy: Harvard and the Boston Upper Class, 1800-1870 (1980) and co-author of Generations of Americans: A History of the United States (1976). He has also edited or co-edited A More Perfect Union: Documents in American History (1984-1995), Sports in Massachusetts: Historical Essays (1991), and Five Colleges: Five Histories (1993). He has provided content for a CD-ROM, The American Civil War (1996) and produced a website, The Jackie Robinson Educational Archives (1998). He is a past president of the Amherst Historical Society.

Join us with your lunch in hand. We will provide coffee, tea and cider for you as you listen to the presentations. The 30-minute program will begin promptly at 12:15 with seating and beverages ready just before noon. The lectures are free and everyone is welcome to attend. For updated information, check our website at http://www.amhersthistory.org

24 September 2015 — “From Rags to Riches: The Restoration of the Moore House”
Southwick Historical Society
Christ Church United Methodist Fellowship Hall, 222 College Hwy, Southwick, 7 p.m.

No surviving colonial in Southwick reflects the community’s early history better than the Moore House. It was home to a Revolutionary War martyr, the founder of the Hancock National Bank and the last known home in the “Southwick Jog” to have been in two colonies, two states, three counties and four towns.  In addition, buried under layers of siding, wallpaper, and several modernizations was a home embellished with raised paneling, wide pine flooring and period stenciling.

On September 24th at 7 p.m., the Southwick Historical Society will host Mr. Lee Hamberg, a founding member of the society and one of the main restorers of the Moore House. His presentation includes the history of the building, the process of restoration, and its use today and as a community educational center for understanding local history.

24 September 2015 — “The Brazen, the Bad, and the Beautiful: A Genealogist’s Memoir”
Southampton Historical Society
Southampton Senior Center, Southampton, 6:30 p.m.

Elise Bernier-Feeley explores genealogy questions actually asked and answered over a nearly 50 year career in public library service.

This is not a workshop on how-to-do genealogy, but a talk based on both serious and hilarious questions that the speaker has experienced in assisting those seeking to discover their family’s history.

Elise Bernier-Feeley is Local History and Genealogy Librarian of the Forbes Library. She is an honors graduate of the University of Massachusetts with a  B.A. in English History, Tudor-Stuart concentration and a minor in American Colonial History. Her Master’s Degree in Library Science was earned at Southern Connecticut State University’s School of Library and Information Science.

For more information, please contact Ruth McCormick at ruthmccormick@hotmail.com or 413-650-3698.

24 September 2015 — ” “What Does It Mean to Be a Latino American?: Film & Discussion”
Springfield City Library, S.T.C.C. & WGBY
Springfield Central Library, 220 State Street, 5:30 p.m.

Dr. Arlene Rodriguez, Vice President of Academic Affairs, Springfield Technical Community College

We all have an American journey. Everyone‘s is different. Come share yours while you explore one of the untold chapters of the American story: Latino Americans. Springfield’s Poet Laureate Maria Luisa Arroyo will share a poem or two followed by a screening of “Empire of Dreams” from the PBS documentary Latino Americans. Dr. Arlene Rodriguez will facilitate the discussion. Light refreshments.   https://www.facebook.com/events/1480939762199861/

23 September 2015 — “In Search of French Holyoke”
Holyoke Public Library Community Room, 250 Chestnut St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Join us in the Library Community Room for Jonathan Gosnell’s exploration of Holyoke’s French community, circa 1900-1920. Drawing on his research into the cultural history of diasporic French and francophone groups in the United States, Professor Gosnell (French Studies, Smith College) will place French Holyoke in broader context and examine some of the French schools, churches, clubs, societies, and publications that flourished in Holyoke in the early twentieth century. Free and open to the public.

23 September 2015 — “American Harmony in Concert: the Music of Timothy Swan (1758-1842)”
First Church of Christ, Kent Memorial Library, and the Suffield Historical Society
First Church of Christ, 81 High St., Suffield, CT, 7:30 p.m.

Step back in time on Wednesday, September 23 at 7:30 p.m., as costumed singers present secular and sacred songs of Suffield native Timothy Swan (1758-1843), whose popular music stirred the soul of early America. In a concert entitled “American Harmony in Concert,” director Nym Cooke, Ph.D., will lead the American Harmony singers in the historic sanctuary of First Church of Christ, 81 High St., Suffield. The program showcases the music of Suffield’s own Timothy Swan (1758-1842), one of America’s first and most important songwriters of his time. Nym Cooke, Ph.D. is the pre-eminent authority on the choral music of early America. His definitive edition of Swan’s complete music, Timothy Swan: Psalmody and Secular Songs, was published by A-R Editions in 1997 as Volume 6 of the national series Music of the United States of America. Cooke has been leading choruses, choirs and community sings in New England for more than 30 years. He is the author of a new book coming out in 2016 titled “American Harmony.” Biographical and musical commentary will be provided by Cooke, whose legendary “infectious enthusiasm,” along with the beautiful voices and finely-tuned musical ensemble of the chorus, will make this a memorable occasion.

The concert is free and open to the public. The First Church of Christ is located at 81 High Street in the middle of Suffield. For more information, contact Bill Sullivan bsullivan@suffieldacademy.org or (860) 328-9466. Bill Sullivan, American Studies Teacher at Suffield Academy and Suffield Historical Society Member.

22 September 2015 — “Mary Rowlandson”
New Salem Academy Museum, New Salem, 7 p.m.

On September 22, meet Mary Rowlandson and hear her tale of capture. A one person show – Researched, Written, and Performed by Katie Green. As part of the Friends of Historic New Salem’s History Series, Katie Green will be performing at the New Salem Academy Museum on Tuesday at 7pm.

The Friends will be opening the historic New Salem Academy Building for this exciting program sponsored by the New Salem Trustees. The building which holds the New Salem Academy Museum on the second floor was built in 1838 after the original was destroyed by fire. The newly restored stacked plank building was featured on This Old House and is a recipient of a Save America’s Treasures grant. The building is open for tours on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month from 12 to 5 p.m.

21 September 2015 — “Farleyville”
Erving Senior/Community Center, 7 p.m.

Sara Campbell and Shari Strahan will present their research into the Farley family, who gave their name to the Erving village on Route 2. They came from a Catamount family in Colrain and built several mills in Wendell at the turn of the 20th century and put “Farleyville” on the map. They became active in State politics as well as producing paper and knit goods. Come and hear about JB Farley’s during wish. This project was funded by the Erving Cultural Council. Friends of the Library will provide refreshments.

21 September 2015 — “Understanding Latino Families, Implications for Holyoke”
“Where the Heart Is” Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

with Miguel Arce

19 & 20 September 2015 — Deerfield Fall Craft Fair
Old Deerfield, 10-5 Saturday, 10-4 Sunday

• For a coupon
• Enter to win:  click for prizes

•  Please visit our website for more information  www.deerfield-craft.org

20 September 2015 — Open House
Historical Society of Greenfield, 43 Church St., Greenfield, 1-4 p.m.

The Historical Society of Greenfield is hosting our 1st Open House in several years. See many of our holdings of Greenfield’s history.  Two floors of the GHS’s brick Victorian home will be open. Come visit! All are welcome!!

11 thru 20 September 2015 — “Country Store: A Radio Play for the Stage”
1794 Meetinghouse, 26 S. Main St., New Salem

Sept. 11, 12, 18, 19 at 7:30 pm
Sept. 20 at 2:00 pm

Janet Paoletti, Carolyn Brown Senier & Dorothy Johnson. Directed by Dorothy Johnson.

You can’t keep a good woman down, and for the 1794 Meetinghouse, there has never been a better woman than Dorothy Johnson who retired in 2013 amid much fanfare from her biannual fundraising musical comedy productions ranging from Dogs to Big Winner to benefit the Meetinghouse.Here’s the thing. Dorothy just can’t quit. The result is Country Store, A Radio Play for the Stage, Johnson’s production scheduled for the 1794 Meetinghouse stage on the weekends after Labor Day with performances at 7:30 pm September 11, 12, 18, and 19 and 2 pm September 20 in the Meetinghouse. Proceeds will benefit the 1794 Meetinghouse.

Country Store sets itself in a 1940 general store somewhere in rural central Massachusetts-say in New Salem. There are a few songs, one written with Johnson’s lyrics by Andy Lichtenberg of Pelham whose collaborations with playwright Johnson have illuminated Meetinghouse performances since the early 1990s debut of the Meetinghouse itself. Johnson’s concept for Country Store allows her actors, including comedienne par excellence Dee Waterman of Amherst, to hold scripts in hand while onstage narrative unfolds with minimal music in a spare event designed to evoke pleasures understood in 1940 before World War II as America emerged from the Depression in an age when no one imagined that anyone would carry around a smart phone.

Janet Paoletti of Athol will accompany the players any time they sing a song practiced with them by Carolyn Brown Senier of Orange. Johnson encourages potential audiences to look forward to Country Store children’s rendition of George M. Cohan’s “It’s a Grand Old Flag” and, of course, the entire cast’s version of Lichtenberg’s “How I Love My Radio”. A few radio jingles, old timey product ads relegated to song with no other illustration, will enhance Country Store, including one specially composed by Paoletti.

Players from New Salem include,Ricardo Conde, John Ryan, Hugh Field, Judy Jewett, Susan Arnold, Bo Henderson, Janet Henderson, Marilyn Adams, and David Van Iderstine, Genie Casey, Peter Frost, Axel Larson, Joseph Greene, Jean Clayton, Henry Frost, Jean Derderian, Wendy Greene, and Nicole Sears Lisa De Witt, Ta Mara Conde, Sara Thayer, Mica Van Iderstine, Tessa Yohan, Hannah Dupont, and Aileen Fitzgerald, Ricky Phaeuf, Laura McGinness, Katie McGinness, Abel Wasilaski, and Clare Wasilaski. 0ut-of-towners in the cast are Dee Waterman (Amherst), Candi Fetzer (Orange), Mike Ross (Shutesbury) and Danielle Woodley (Leverett).

Johnson directs Country Store with behind-the-scenes support from producer Ta Mara Conde; Genie Casey consults on costumes with advice from Kate Jansyn of New York City; Hugo Frost will do lighting for Country Store; Carolyn Brown Senier of Orange is musical assistant. Janet Paoletti of Athol is pianist. Linda Pisano of Amherst will be stage manager. Brian Casey and Ricardo Conde will provide sound effects. Marcia Gagliardi is production assistant.

We hope you can make it to this special event! Get Your Tickets Now!

Adults: $10 13-17:$5 Children: Free. Tickets are available from cast members, at the door or online at our website, www.1794meetinghouse.org./index.php#country_store11

Full handicapped-accessible restroom facilities are available at the Old Academy Building, a short walk across the Common.

The 1794 Meetinghouse is a grant recipient from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Johnson offers special thanks to Swift River Valley Historical Society.

19 September 2015 — “What Really Happened at the Falls?”
Turners Falls High School Auditorium, 222 Turnpike Road, Montague, 1 – 4 p.m.

Mapping the 1676 Battle of Great Falls/ Wissatinnewag-Peskeompskut

1:00 to 2:00 Mid-Term Update on the Mapping Study from the Mashantucket-Pequot Museum Research Team
2:00 to 2:15 Break
2:15 to 4:00 Panel Discussion featuring colonial historians, tribal historians, and academics

The purpose of this collaborative research project is to identify the likely locations of the King Phillip’s War (1675-76) Peskeompskut (Turners Falls) Battlefield and associated sites, including the Native American community Peskeomskut-Wissatinnewag through the examination of documentary records and archeological collections, collection Tribal and Yankee oral histories, and the use of military terrain analysis. The project is intended to engage local officials, landowners and the interested public in effort to locate and encourage the protection of the battlefield.

Hosted by the Battlefield Grant Advisory Board: A consortium of 5 Towns and 4 Tribes
Sponsored by the Montague Planning Department and the National Park Service Battlefield Protection Program

19 September 2015 — Hilltowns History Conference & Fair
Mary Lyon Foundation
Mohawk Regional High School

The Hilltowns History Fair and Conference is back! A great day of workshops, demonstrations, exhibits, sales, and a keynote speaker.

This popular event will be held at Mohawk Trail Regional High School on Saturday, September 19, 2015. Please join us for an exciting day of history at Mohawk Trail Regional School! There will be re-enactors, paper marbling, antiques, books, a dynamic keynote, face painting, historical societies, 4-H booth, “mudman” pottery, wood and metal working , 18 workshops, a history app station, demonstrations, exhibits, food vendors, great music and MUCH MORE!

If you would like to be a vendor or demonstrator, please call our office at (413-625-2555), or email your interest to booklady2@hotmail.com. Co-sponsored by the Pioneer Valley History Network

19 September 2015 — “A Tour of Two Hilltown Treasures:
Bryant Homestead in Cummington and Shaw-Hudson House in Plainfield

Learn about connections between Bryant and Plainfield’s early 19th century doctor, Samuel Shaw. Start at either home and travel 6.6 miles to the other. The Trustees and Plainfield Historical Society members, $10;nonmembers, $15

17 September 2015 — “Latino History Day”
Turners Falls RiverCulture
Shea Theater & Downtown Turners Falls, 4 – 10 p.m.

Latino History Day in Turners Falls at the Shea Theater and other venues downtown. See full details at: herencialatina2015-16.org and turnersfallsriverculture.org.

16 September 2015 — Herencia Latina Kick-off Event
Casa Latina & PVHN
Forbes Library, Northampton, 6 p.m.

Casa Latina, the Pioneer Valley History Network (PVHN) and partner organizations announce Herencia Latina 2015-16, a nine-month Pioneer-Valley-wide exploration of Latino history and culture in the Pioneer Valley and beyond, lasting from September 2015 to May 2016. The series will be formally launched on Wednesday, September 16, 2015, 6:00 pm, with a press event at Forbes Library in Northampton.

This expansive project includes fourteen film-and-discussion events, four exhibits, and six cultural programs and festivals, as well as related events, in Springfield, Holyoke, Northampton, and Turners Falls. A full list of programs can be found on the website at http://www.herencialatina2015-16.org. The project includes multiple screenings of the six episodes of the PBS documentary series, Latino Americans, in libraries and museums in Holyoke, Northampton, Springfield, and Turners Falls, many followed by community discussion moderated by local scholars. There will also be art and culture exhibits at the Springfield Museums, Wistariahurst in Holyoke, and in Turners Falls; festivals and music at the Springfield Museums and in Turners Falls.

The kick-off for the project will be on Wednesday, September 16 in the Calvin Coolidge Room at the Forbes Library in Northampton. At 6 p.m., there will be a press event to announce the kick-off of the project and answer questions. At 7 p.m., Episode I of the Latino Americans documentary will be screened. This episode, entitled “Foreigners in their Own Land (1565-1880)”, includes the Spanish Mission system, Texas’ war for independence, the Mexican-American War, and the plight of Californios during the Gold Rush. At the conclusion of the episode, there will be a discussion led by Raul Gutierrez, an instructor of the Spanish language at Holyoke Community College. Refreshments will be served.

The centerpiece of the project is the six-part documentary film series Latino Americans, created for PBS in 2013 by the WETA public television station and supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The award-winning series chronicles the history of Latinos in the United States from the 16th century to present day. (Learn more about the series at http://www.pbs.org/latino-americans/en/.)  As part of Herencia Latina 2015-16, all six episodes will be screened with scholar-led discussions, each more than once, at different locations throughout the autumn and spring. At the conclusion of the project, PVHN will donate DVDs of the documentary series to Holyoke Public Library and to Holyoke Community College.

Casa Latina is the only Latino-led and Latino-focused organization in Hampshire County, Massachusetts. Its mission is to promote self-sufficiency and a sense of community among local Latinos. Casa Latina endeavor to fulfill this commitment by working directly with Latino residents to develop educational, access, and action programming based on the community’s capabilities and needs.

The project is funded by grants from the American Library Association, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Mass Humanities, and supported by El Sol Latino, Nuestras Raices, and WGBY Public Television.

14 September 2015 — “One Cotton Sock”
Historical Lecture Series: Where the Heart Is
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

What story does the “stuff” we leave behind tell about us? To kick off our fall Historical Lecture series join us as Sara Campbell shows us how something that seems mundane, property lists from probate records, can paint a a very vivid portrait of the past a life, a family, a home.  Admission is $7 general or $5 for members.

13 September 2015 — Open House
Southwick Historical Society, 84 & 86 College Hwy. [Rt 202 & 10], Southwick, 2 – 4 p.m.

The Southwick Historical Society will have an open house at the museums. The museums consist of two buildings filled with artifacts and ephemera from the town. The Joseph Moore house was built in 1751 by Joseph Moore who served and died during the Revolutionary War. The Charles Gillett Cigar Factory was built in 1892 and is the last surviving building of it’s kind in the valley. Both are situated on scenic farm land at 84 and 86 College Hwy [ Rt 202 and 10]. Stop in and take a tour with one of our docents. We look forward to meeting you.

13 September 2015 — “Lake Pleasant Spiritualist Community”
Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls, 1 p.m.

Lake Pleasant, one of five villages in the Town of Montague, was founded in 1870 as a camp meeting grounds and lays claim to being the oldest continuously-existing Spiritualist center in the United States. Join David James to learn about Lake Pleasant, the historical “mecca” for believers in continuity of life. Memories and images will be shared from the book Spirit and Spa: A Portrait of the Body, Mind and Soul of a 133-Year-Old Spiritualist Community written by Louise Shattuck and David James. Louise, who died in October of 2005, was a third generation Spiritualist.

12 September 2015 — “Florence: Dedicated to the Proposition…A History Walking Tour”
David Ruggles Center
meet at the Sojourner Truth statue, Park & Pine Sts., Florence, 10 a.m.

This village was founded by a set of visionaries who acted on their belief that all people are created equal. We will walk in their footsteps and hear their stories. Led by Tom Goldscheider, historian, Ruggles Center member, and Florence resident.

12 September 2015 — Open House & Tag Sale
Granby Historical Association & Granby Preservation Society
State St., Granby, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

12 September 2015 — Water Shops: The Beating Heart of Armory Production
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield, 1 p.m.

8 September 2015 — PVHN Rap Session: A Conversation about Collection & Deaccession Policies
Wistariahurst Museum Carriage House, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke,  6:30 – 8 p.m.

This Doesn’t Belong Here? Where Did It Come From? How Do I Get Rid of It?

On Tuesday, September 8, 2015 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. the Pioneer Valley History Network (PVHN) will host an informal conversation about the challenges of developing, changing and enforcing collection and deaccessioning policies for local historical institutions.  Bring your questions and/or share your experiences. If you don’t know what “Deacessioning” is; or your organization doesn’t have a collection policy; or you have items that don’t fit your collections and want to get rid of but don’t know how, this rap session is for you. Does your organization have strong policies you’d like to share? Have you worked through an extensive clean up of your collections and have examples of what not to do? Bring your questions and answers to this conversation.

If you have questions about this event, or need directions please contact Penni Martorell at Wistariahurst Museum or email her at martorellp@holyoke.org.

5 September 2015 — “Patch Walk”
Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls, 10:30 a.m. to noon

Turners Falls History month begins with a tour of the Patch neighborhood, led by a DCR Park Interpreter. A small patch of land sits in the middle of the Connecticut River – sandwiched between the power canal on one side and the largest river in New England on the other. Meet at the corner of Avenue A and Eleventh Street in Turners Falls, at the canal side rail trail.

AUGUST

24 August 2015 — “Caring for Historical Records”
New England Archivists
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge Street, Northampton, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Instructor: Anne Ostendarp, Consulting and Project Archivist

Description:  This workshop is for those responsible for the care of historical records or those interested in developing a historical records collection. It is especially useful for staff and volunteers working in libraries, museums, historical societies,  or municipal governments who have responsibility for archival materials but no formal training in archival practice. Through a combination of lecture, group discussion, and exercises, participants will get an overview of the fundamentals of archival organization, including the basic principles and practices of identification, acquisition, preservation, arrangement and description of historical records. The topics of access, reference and outreach will also be explored. This workshop will help participants develop policies, forms, and procedures to manage archival collections

Directions/parking: http://www.historicnorthampton.org/visit.html

Lunch on your own. Historic Northampton is closed to the public on Mondays; information will be sent to attendees prior to the workshop for accessing the workshop location.

– REGISTRATION –

Early bird (July 17-August 21)
Members: $85.00
Non-Members: $100.00
Students: $42.50

NEA members, to insure you receive the member rate when registering online, please log-in to your existing Member Profile (in the top right of this page). From there, you can register online securely using PayPal.

Don’t have a Member Profile password yet?  Contact the NEA Membership Secretary to receive one.
If you want to register online, but still need to pay by check, the system will generate an invoice that you can print out and mail to the attention of:

Juliana Kuipers
NEA Treasurer
Harvard University Archives
Pusey Library – Harvard Yard
Cambridge, MA 02138
Please make all checks payable to New England Archivists.

Questions about registration? Please contact NEA’s Registrar, Emily Tordo, at registrar@newenglandarchivists.org.

If you have questions or concerns about accessibility and/or disability accommodations that you would like addressed before or after registration, please contact NEA’s Inclusion and Diversity Coordinator Anna Clutterbuck-Cook at acook@masshist.org / 617- 646-0561 for assistance.

CANCELLATION POLICY

NEA will issue a refund minus a $10 cancellation fee for up to 10 days prior to the meeting. Exceptions to the cancellation policy will be made at the discretion of the Registrar.

23 August 2015 — Open House
Southwick Historical Society, 84 & 86 College Hwy. [Rt 202 & 10], Southwick, 2 – 4 p.m.

The Southwick Historical Society will have an open house at the museums. The museums consist of two buildings filled with artifacts and ephemera from the town. The Joseph Moore house was built in 1751 by Joseph Moore who served and died during the Revolutionary War. The Charles Gillett Cigar Factory was built in 1892 and is the last surviving building of it’s kind in the valley. Both are situated on scenic farm land at 84 and 86 College Hwy [ Rt 202 and 10]. Stop in and take a tour with one of our docents. We look forward to meeting you.

22 August 2015 — “Salt of the Earth”
Film School in 60 Minutes
Amherst Cinema, 28 Amity St., Amherst, noon

If you’ve never seen or heard of the 1954 film Salt Of The Earth, that was the intention of both Hollywood and the Government of the United States.

Join us for “Film School In 60 Minutes,” Saturday, August 22 at noon and find out why.

Nina Kleinberg relates the struggles of the three blacklisted film makers who, at the height of the McCarthy era, set out to do the impossible – make a film independent of the Hollywood film studios. The story is as compelling as the film itself. Throw in the House Un-American Activities Committee, the FBI, Howard Hughes and Grandpa Walton, and you have a story that needs to be told. In 1992, the Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the United States National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

14 August 2015 — “Ice Harvesting and the Natural Ice Industry in New England”
Goshen Historical Society
John James Memorial Town Hall, 42 Main St. (Rt. 9), Goshen, 7 p.m.

by Dennis Picard. The commercial harvesting of ice from New England’s ponds and lakes for export began in the first decade of the 19th century.  By the end of that century, ice harvesting was the 9th largest industry in the United States. Dennis Picard will display some of his antique tools of that trade and share the interesting tale of this once massive enterprise that is now fading from our collective memory.

14 August 2015 — Free Fun Friday
Historic Deerfield

Admission to Historic Deerfield is FREE to all visitors on August 14, courtesy of the Highland Street Foundation. Guests can visit Historic Deerfield’s museum houses, see demonstrations from the Society of the 17th Century, and participate in hands-on activities. Free Fun Fridays is the annual summer program that opens doors at no cost to visitors to many of the most treasured cultural venues in Massachusetts.

14 August 2015 — PVHN’s Cruise on the Connecticut River
Brunelles Marina, 1 Alvord St., South Hadley, 4 p.m. Sharp!

This is a 75 minute cruise. Amenities include a bar, indoor or on deck view options, and a restroom. Feel free to bring your own snacks. You’ll find it very comfortable and easy to move about the boat.  Bring your co-worker, bring your friend, bring your siblings!  What a great way to wrap up your week!

Rates: $15 adults, $14 for those age 62+, $10 for kids

Reserve your seat soon! Follow this link and click on 4 pm on August 14:
https://www.brunelles.com/lady-bea/lady-bea-schedule/?date=2015-08

or call Brunelles to reserve your seat at: 413-315-6342

Please email me to let me know of your interest. bpelissier@gmail.com  If you have slow/no internet, you can call me at 413-527-3209.

The website also has info on their Dockside restaurant, offering live music at 7pm every Friday night. See you on the 14th at Brunelle’s! The Lady Bea sails at 4 p.m., so please arrive about 20 minutes early… Look for me or for Cliff McCarthy and say hello!

9 August 2015 — Open House
Southwick Historical Society, 84 & 86 College Hwy. [Rt 202 & 10], Southwick, 2 – 4 p.m.

The Southwick Historical Society will have an open house at the museums. The museums consist of two buildings filled with artifacts and ephemera from the town. The Joseph Moore house was built in 1751 by Joseph Moore who served and died during the Revolutionary War. The Charles Gillett Cigar Factory was built in 1892 and is the last surviving building of it’s kind in the valley. Both are situated on scenic farm land at 84 and 86 College Hwy [ Rt 202 and 10]. Stop in and take a tour with one of our docents. We look forward to meeting you.

9 August 2015 — “Wilbraham: A Place of Hope”
Old Meetinghouse Museum, Wilbraham, 2:15 p.m.

On August 9th we will have Lujuana Hood, Executive Director of the Pan African Historical Museum in Springfield come and give a talk titled: “Wilbraham; A Place of Hope,” the African-American experience before the Civil War. She will be focusing on the former Wesleyan Academy, now Wilbraham and Monson Academy and the role it played in the education of free and enslaved African and African-American young men and women. The open house is from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. with our speaker starting at 2:15 p.m.. I encourage everyone to attend this talk. Ms. Hood is very knowledgeable on the history of the underground railroad movement in Springfield and in the surrounding towns as well as Wesleyan Academy and also plans to be showing a video as well.

6 August 2015 — “Immigration and Politics: Dilemmas & Solutions”
Charlemont Forum 2015
at the Charlemont Federated Church, 175 Main St., Charlemont, 7 p.m.

David Martin, Distinguished Professor of International Law at the University of Virginia, will examine current political and ethical controversies relating to immigration. Alex Morse will reflect on his experience as Mayor of Holyoke, a city with a significant immigrant population. Marise Lyra, (Brazil/Amherst), teacher of English language learners at the Center for New Americans in Northampton, will share her immigration story.
All are welcome to these free dialogues where donations are welcomed but not required!

This program is funded in part by Mass Humanities, which receives support from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and is an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Funding was also provided by grants from the Cultural Councils of: Charlemont-Hawley, Rowe, Amherst, Shelburne, Buckland and Heath.

2 August 2015 — “Satchmo Calling: Life & Times of Louis Armstrong”
Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson, 1:30-3:30 p.m.

Dixieland Stomp performs “The Life, Times, and Music of Louie Armstrong” on the Lawn at the Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson MA on August 2, from 1:30-3:30 p.m.

From a tough childhood in early 20th century New Orleans to the jazz clubs of Chicago, Harlem, and Hollywood, find out how Louie Armstrong became the world greatest trumpet player.

Dixieland Stomp specializes in the music of Louis Armstrong — New Orleans four beat style and up-beat Chicago tempos — and will perform selections from throughout Armstrong’s musical career.

Bring a picnic lunch and blanket or lawn chair. The concert is free and open to the public, rain or shine (we’ll move into the barn). Refreshments will be served. For more information, call 413-267-4137, email khm@keephomesteadmuseum.org or on the web http://www.keephomesteadmuseum.org

This program is supported in part by a grant from the Monson Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

JULY

30 July 2015 — “Day is Same as Night”
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

A concert of Yiddish music and labor songs from the early 1900s, featuring Laurie Israel on vocals, guitar, piano, accordion, and Alice Schertle, as reader. Admission: $10/$8 members. For more information: (413) 634-8063 or Info@TheLookingBackProject.org

30 July 2015 — “Cookies with a Curator”
Coolidge Museum, Forbes Library, Northampton, 2 – 3 p.m.

26 July 2015 — Open House
Southwick Historical Society, 84 & 86 College Hwy. [Rt 202 & 10], Southwick, 2 – 4 p.m.

The Southwick Historical Society will have an open house at the museums. The museums consist of two buildings filled with artifacts and ephemera from the town. The Joseph Moore house was built in 1751 by Joseph Moore who served and died during the Revolutionary War. The Charles Gillett Cigar Factory was built in 1892 and is the last surviving building of it’s kind in the valley. Both are situated on scenic farm land at 84 and 86 College Hwy [ Rt 202 and 10]. Stop in and take a tour with one of our docents. We look forward to meeting you.

25 July 2015 — “Cabaret Alive IV (and Beef Roast!)”
Worthington Historical Society
at the home of David and Helen Pollard, 343 Huntington Rd. (Rte. 112), 5:30 p.m.

Cocktails begin at 5:30 pm, dinner served between 6:00 and 7:00 pm. Ticket price TBA. Cash bar. This year our two annual social events will be folded into one memorable mega-event. Stay tuned for details.

25 July 2015 — Wallace Nutting Day
Major Joseph Griswold House, 8 Old Upper St., Buckland, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Wallace Nutting (1861-1941) was an iconic photographer, fine cabinetmaker, prolific author and celebrated minister.  Step back in time into “fabled Upper Buckland” and enter the ancestral home of Wallace Nutting’s wife, Mariet Griswold…

Cost: $50 includes tour, buffet lunch, presentations and a souvenir

What the Major Joseph Griswold House (aka Mary Lyon House) and Buckland meant to Wallace Nutting: Tour includes Griswold House, Wallace Nutting Room with books & photographs, 3rd floor ballroom where Mary Lyon (founder of Mt. Holyoke) taught school, Asher Benjamin fireplace, Nutting plaque in nearby library & tour of the gardens (weather permitting).

Not handicapped accessible. Proceeds benefit local nonprofits.

Limited tickets are $50 each. To register, please contact Sue Samoriski: booklady2@hotmail.com  ~  Tel 413-625-9916

25 July 2015 — Architectural Paints in Early New England Symposium
Deerfield Community Center, Historic Deerfield, 8:45 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Historic Deerfield will offer a one-day program focusing on Early New England architectural painting. The day will include a review of architectural paint analysis through the years as well as how paints were used from the late 17th century to the mid-19th century to decorate both interiors and exteriors. Paint grinding and faux finishes will be demonstrated. Participants will also have an opportunity to see examples of early architectural finishes in Historic Deerfield’s architectural fragments study collection.

Schedule
8:45 a.m.      Registration and Refreshments
9:30 a.m.      The Evolution of Architectural Paint Analysis: How We Know What We Know Now
Susan L. Buck, Ph.D., Conservator and Paint Analyst

10:30 a.m.    American Architectural Paints: The First Two Centuries
Brian Powell, Architectural Conservator

11:30 a.m.    Painted Wall Decoration …”finished in the style of the country”
Linda Lefko, Historic Decorative Painter

12:45 p.m.    Lunch (pre-paid optional box lunch or bring your own)

2:00 p.m.    Where Variety of Color meets Intricacy of Pattern
MaryLou Davis, Conservator/Practitioner of Historic Decorative Painting

Contemporary Practice in the Reproduction of Historic Paints
Erika Sanchez Goodwillie, Historic Paint Specialist
Chris Mills, Architectural Conservator

3:45 p.m.    A selection of early architectural finishes from Historic Deerfield’s collection on view at the Flynt Center of Early New England Life

Refreshments at the Flynt Center

Registration for Historic Deerfield’s Architectural Paints in Early New England Symposium is now open. An early registration discount is available through June 1, 2015. To view the complete schedule and to register online, visit   www.historic-deerfield.org/apene or contact Julie Orvis at (413) 775-7179 to register by telephone.  To download a registration form,  click here.

25 July 2015 — “Visiting the WATER SHOPS: The Beating Heart of Armory Production”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield, 1 p.m.

Springfield Armory National Historic Site invites you to join Rangers Richard Colton and Susan Ashman discovering & rediscovering the Armory’s Water Shops in the upcoming program, The WATER SHOPS: The Beating Heart of Armory Production on Saturday, July 25th, 2015 at 1:00 pm. See & walk the historic grounds along the Mill River just south of the Armory’s Hill Shops where the National Historic Site & Museum now is. This Ranger-led program is FREE.

Your journey of discovery begins in the Museum’s theater with a half-hour slide show & orientation followed by a short one-mile drive (in your own vehicle) to meet at the present Water Shops and ending at the site of the older Lower Water Shop about a mile down the Mill River. Paper handouts with maps & images will be available. Water power was essential to the Armory from the moment it was established in 1794. There, the heavy rough work of shaping the wooden gunstocks, iron barrels, and iron & steel components and bayonets were done. Shipped by wheeled vehicles up Walnut Street to the Hill Shops as mile away, the pieces shaped, new smaller iron & steel pieces forged & filed, and the muskets and rifles finished and stored in large Arsenals like the one the Museum is in. The Water Shops, though listed in the National Historic Register, were not included in the National Historic Site but were sold to private owners who maintain it as an industrial site with extensive industrial rental opportunities.

The Springfield Armory National Historic Site is the location of the nation’s first armory (1794 –1968) and was established by George Washington. The site includes historic grounds, buildings, and the world’s largest historic American military firearms collection. The park is open daily 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. after Memorial Day until October 31st. There is ample parking and the event is wheelchair accessible. For further information and weather cancellation call (413) 734-8551 or check the website at http://www.nps.gov/spar or go to our www.facebook.com/sparnhs.

23 July 2015 — “The Northampton Community & New England Utopianism in the 1840s” 
2015 Summer Lecture Series: “Utopian Dreams in 19th-Century New England”
Deerfield Community Center, Historic Deerfield, 7:30 p.m.

Christopher Clark, Professor and Department Head, Department of History, University of Connecticut

19 July 2015 — “A Patriotic Afternoon with the 94th United States Army Band”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield, 2 p.m.

Grab a chair or a blanket and join us outside on our historic grounds as we welcome the talented 94th United States Army Band.  The concert begins at 2:00 pm on Sunday, July 19, 2015, behind the museum building. The 94th Army Band represents one of the nation’s finest and time honored military bands.  Admission is free.  The concert will be cancelled due to inclement weather.

Based in Windsor, Connecticut, the 94th has a long tradition. The band is a unit of the Army Reserve assigned to the eastern United States. The 94th, or  “Pilgrim Division”, was formed during World War I and participated in the Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, and Central Europe campaigns of World War II. Its band was created in 1943. The bands of the U.S. Army are the oldest in all of the military branches and have toured throughout the United States, Canada, South America, Europe, and the Far East.

Michael Deraleau, the Unit Administrator stated that the band, consisting of a woodwind and brass quintet would be playing patriotic military music, along with selections similar to chamber music.

Chief of Interpretation, Joanne M. Gangi-Wellman commented that “Springfield Armory is the ideal place for this Army band concert.  Having served the United States Armed Forces through 174 years of firearms production for the Army, now, the Springfield Armory NHS is pleased to invite the 94th Army Band to perform on Armory grounds.”

Springfield Armory National Historic Site commemorates and preserves the site of our Nation’s first armory, established in 1794. Managed with the Commonwealth of MA, Springfield Technical Community College and the National Park Service, it is the home of the world’s largest historic American military firearms collection. The site is open daily, 9 AM- 5 PM.

Admission is free. For information call 413-734-8551 or check http://www.nps.gov/spar.

18 July 2015 — “Luncheon in the Garden”
Sons and Daughters of Hawley
Stone Edge, East Hawley, 12 noon – 2 p.m.

On Saturday, July 18th, the Sons and Daughters of Hawley will be holding a buffet luncheon at the Poudrier’s lovely home, Stone Edge, which is tucked away in the hills of East Hawley. All are welcome to join us between 12 pm and 2 pm to enjoy tasty victuals prepared by the many talented cooks of Hawley. Appetizers, entrées (featuring baked ham), salads, sides, desserts, drinks and more will be served, rain or shine. Dine in and stroll through the extensive perennial gardens which always have new and unusual flowers and plants of all colors and varieties, as well as stone walls, walkways and a frog pond!

Suggested donation: $15.00. Reservations appreciated by Friday evening, 7/17. Please contact Melanie Poudrier: 339-5347 – poudriermel27@yahoo.com; Lorraine McCarthy: 339-4903; or Pamela Shrimpton: 339-4091 – pam@forgehollow.com for reservations and address information. Proceeds to benefit the East Hawley Meeting House and the many other projects of the Sons and Daughters of Hawley. Hope to see you there!

18 July 2015 — Bryant Day
William Cullen Bryant Homestead, Cummington, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

To celebrate William Cullen Bryant’s significant role in American history, journalism, and literature, we will again invite the public to Bryant Day at the Homestead in Cummington on the third Saturday in July (10 a.m. – 4 p.m.). Tours of the house will be offered, and on the lawn there will be a Civil War military encampment and talented craftspeople demonstrating antique skills. In addition, we hope that historical societies and institutions from the Valley and surrounding hills will set up information tables and displays so that visitors can learn of other places to go and things to do. If your organization would like to have a spot at Bryant Day, please be in email contact with sjonsberg@hcc.edu.

17 July 2015 — “Goshen & the 1790 Census”
Goshen Historical Society
John James Memorial Town Hall, 42 Main St. (Rt. 9), Goshen, 7 p.m.

by Michael Packard. Using the 1790 US census, Michael will look at the families living in Goshen that year. He will identify, if possible, where they came from, which families stayed, and where other families ended up settling.

16 July 2015 — “Walden as Utopia”
2015 Summer Lecture Series: “Utopian Dreams in 19th-Century New England”
Deerfield Community Center, Historic Deerfield, 7:30 p.m.

Robert Gross, Draper Professor of Early American History, University of Connecticut. Free.

16 July 2015 — “The 1677 Hatfield Raid: The Judge & the Widow” & “Puritans of Hatfield: The Saga of Martha Leonard Waite & Benjamin Waite”
Greenfield Historical Society, 43 Church St., Greenfield, 7 p.m.

Ralmon Jon Black is a marvelous story-teller – intriguing and entertaining. You’ll learn things you never knew! Black’s historical knowledge is extensive……..this will be a wonderful evening,and presentation. Black is a member of both the Williamsburg Historical Commission and the Historical Society.

An Indian raid in Hatfield results in the captivity of Martha Leonard Waite, in 1677. “Through Martha’s window in Hadley blew the most ill winds of any season that New England will ever endure. Martha, caught up in this storm of events, unable to shutter it all out, and was helplessly swept away by it.”

This is a story of especially one remarkable pioneer woman in the Valley. Martha was born in 1649, and in 1670 married Benjamin Waite in Springfield. Upon their marriage, they moved up to Hadley in a new small settlement. In 1677, the River Indians took Martha with her 3 little girls, and also pregnant (!) by horse, canoe, and pung up into Canada in the cold of winter. Also captured was Hannah Dickinson Gillette Jennings. Hannah’s 1st husband, Stephen Gillette, had recently been killed in a 1676 Turner Falls fight. She’d then married one Stephen Jennnings, and she was pregnant as well.

Miraculously, Waite and Jennings soon effected a rescue of both women in Canada. The descendants of these amazing Puritan pioneers are numerous, and now reside all over the USA. Here is just a peek at this:
Martha’s baby, born after her rescue, was named ‘Canada’, and Canada went on to produce 11 children! Canada’s daughter, Sarah, married John Belding…….a son, John, married Mary Belding…….and another son, Jeremiah settled in Hatfield. Jeremiah’s son, Benj. Waite II, married a woman with the fabulous name of Bathsheba Foote! Finally, Canada’s grandson, Oliver Smith, was the uncle to Sophia Smith and he was all-important to that Smith legacy of Hatfield and Northampton.

This entire story, and this evening, will be a thrilling recounting of love and courage — a tale for all time and for all ages. Black will enthrall his audience with his wide depth and breadth of local history. The setting is before we were a Nation, but the Land was bound to become one through its determined spirit. And this will be nowhere more evident than in Black’s presentation.

The Greenfield Historical Society welcomes all. Event is free, but donations are greatly appreciated.

16 July 2015 — “The Roots that Keep Spreading: Afro-Latin Music and the Re-Conquista of The Americas”
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

On Thursday, July 16, at 6 p.m. Heshima y Ofrecimiento, a group of seven exceptionally talented musicians who combine jazz, Latin and soul styles, will perform a special program of original compositions and new arrangements of Afro-Latin jazz standards in the Music Room of Wistariahurst Museum. The concert is open to the public and tickets are $15 or $12 for Museum members.

Jazz, and other musical art forms usually attributed to the Americas, owe much of their conceptualization to the African diaspora – people with African heritage found throughout the world and for this one-time event, Heshima Moja and his group Ofrecimiento will perform a program of music that reflects the intertwining of Afro-Latin musical influences of Cuba and Puerto Rico with these types of music to create an experience that is totally unique. Moja describes it as “Luther Vandross meets Tito Puente and John Coltrane.”

The concert is part of an on-going effort by Wistariahurst Museum to present music that reflects the diversity and artistry of the community in the Pioneer Valley. Other up-coming concerts in the series include “Day is the Same as Night,” an evening of Yiddish music with Laurie Israel on Thursday, July 30, and “Lavender Blues,” a showcase of queer music before World War II written and performed by Sarah Kilborne, great- great- granddaughter of William Skinner and the author of American Phoenix, on Sunday, August 1. A full list of concerts and performances can be found at http://www.Wistariahurst.org.

12 July 2015 — “Hidden Walls, Hidden Mills”
Plainfield Historical Society
Meet behind the Shaw Memorial Library, 312 Main Street, Plainfield, 1 p.m.

Join us for  history adventure learning about land measurement and measuring a historic lot the old way. The land survey was, arguably, the most powerful weapon in the British quiver in conquering North America. Without the survey, no land ownership, and without ownership as the carrot, there’s no sense in doing all that conquering. With compass, rod, and chain, colonists re-created a familiar world.

Learn about how Plainfield was surveyed, see some of the instruments that were used. Then get hands-on experience in how it was done.

At 1:00 pm we explore maps and surveying tools and at 1:44 pm we start surveying. We’ll be walking around some uneven terrain in the sun. Bring water and a hat. Bring compass or GPS if you want to. Make sure to be tick safe.

Look for announcements on Facebook, in the Plainfield Post, on  plainfieldmahistory.org (brochures for all the walks are also available for downloading and printing there). For more information, contact Pleun Bouricius (bouric@post.harvard.edu – 634-2250)

Creation of  Hidden Walls, Hidden Mills was funded in part by Mass Humanities (masshumanities.org).

12 July 2015 — Open House
Southwick Historical Society, 84 & 86 College Hwy. [Rt 202 & 10], Southwick, 2 – 4 p.m.

The Southwick Historical Society will have an open house at the museums. The museums consist of two buildings filled with artifacts and ephemera from the town. The Joseph Moore house was built in 1751 by Joseph Moore who served and died during the Revolutionary War. The Charles Gillett Cigar Factory was built in 1892 and is the last surviving building of it’s kind in the valley. Both are situated on scenic farm land at 84 and 86 College Hwy [ Rt 202 and 10]. Stop in and take a tour with one of our docents. We look forward to meeting you.

9 July 2015 — “Shakers, Anti-Shakers and the Utopian Dream”
2015 Summer Lecture Series: “Utopian Dreams in 19th-Century New England”
Deerfield Community Center, Historic Deerfield, 7:30 p.m.

Elizabeth De Wolfe, Professor of History, Chair, University of New England. Free.

8 July 2015 — “Our Stories: The Jews of Western Massachusetts”
Forbes Library, 20 West St., Northampton, 7 p.m.

Jane Kaufman, editor and main contributor to Our Stories: The Jews of Western Massachusetts, will speak at Forbes Library’s Community Room on themes and challenges in researching genealogy among Jews. Jane will read excerpts from the book highlighting themes common to her research, particularly the twin “demons” of anti-Semitism and assimilation.

Our Stories: The Jews of Western Massachusetts, edited by veteran journalist Jane Kaufman, features stories of individuals, both prominent and little known, in the four western counties. Topics range from ritual life to business to building community with articles from a dozen contributors. Featured in the 180-page pictorial book are photos from the archives of the Springfield newspapers, some more than 50 years old, as well as photographs taken specifically for the volume.

“It was humbling and inspiring to be able to spend time with some of the most interesting people of my faith in this region, and to be able to capture and relate their stories. It is my hope that the book will inspire conversations between family members and among friends, as they think about how their religion shapes and enhances their life experience – and about how their experience shapes their religious life.” Jane Kaufman.

This program is free and open to the public. Copies of Our Stories will be available for sale.

JUNE

29 June 2015 — “Getting Started with International Genealogy”
3rd Floor Computer Room, Holyoke Public Library, 250 Chestnut St., Holyoke, 3:30 p.m.

with Janet Curley.

Workshop 3:30 – 4:15
Open Lab 4:30-5:30

Pre-registration recommended for the 3:30 Workshop. Call the History Room at (413) 420-8107 and leave name and phone number. Maximum 12 participants. Open Lab seating (4:30-5:30) as available. This is the last in our series of Spring workshops.

28 June 2015 — “Stories of Wistariahurst from a Skinner Descendent”
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 3 p.m.

Allerton Kilborne, the last living Skinner family member to call Wistariahurst home returns to the estate on Sunday, June 28, 2015

On Sunday, June 28 at 3:00 p.m. Wistariahurst Museum will host Allerton Kilborne, the last living Skinner descendent to have lived at the historic estate, for a talk and special tour. Mr. Kilborne will share his memories of living at Wistariahurst with his grandmother, Katherine Skinner Kilborne, and a full time staff which he remembered in detail and with great affection. An historian himself, Mr. Kilborne weaves his personal memories into the broader narrative of Holyoke.  The event, which will offer a lively mix of Holyoke history and personal memories, is open to the public and tickets are $12, or $10 for Museum members.

Mr. Kilborne will lead a personalized tour of the house following his talk. Acquiring its name from the flowering vine, the twenty-six room mansion features parquet floors, vaulted ceilings, elaborate woodwork and two marble lions that have guarded the entrance since the late nineteenth century.  The estate was kept in the Skinner family until 1959 when Katharine Skinner Kilborne and her 3 children gave Wistariahurst to the City of Holyoke for cultural and educational purposes.

23-28 June 2015 — Association for Gravestone Studies Annual Conference
Westfield State University, Westfield

Members of the Pioneer Valley History community may be interested in attending one or more sessions of The Association for Gravestone Studies Conference to be held at Westfield State University.  During this 4-day conference, there will be four motor coach excursions to historic cemeteries in western Massachusetts and north central Connecticut.  Al and Betsy McKee, along with Ruth Shapleigh-Brown of the Connecticut Gravestone Network, will lead a Connecticut Valley Sandstone tour on June 26th.  Bob Drinkwater will lead a Berkshire County Marble tour on June 24th and a Berkshire Hills tour on June 26th.  On June 26th, we will also offer a Metro-Springfield tour, which will include a visit to Forestdale Cemetery, conducted by Penni Martorell of Wistariahurst Museum.

Note:  Members of the Pioneer Valley History community may register for bus tours at the special rate of $40 per person, per tour (boxed lunch included).  To sign up for a bus tour, contact the AGS Conference Registrar, Beth Santore (graveaddiction@gmail.com) on or before June 5th.  Please plan to arrive and check in at the registration table in the lobby of University Hall no later than 8:45 AM.  Tours will depart from the parking area next to University Hall at 9 AM and will return around 4:30 PM.

In addition to the bus tours, there will be workshops (Gravestone Conservation; Photography) and a variety of group participation sessions on June 25th and June 27th, and lecture sessions each evening, June 24th through 27th.  On Saturday, June 27th, there will be a Saturday matinee lecture session, featuring several presentations of local interest.

Note:  Members of the Pioneer Valley History community are invited to attend evening and Saturday matinee lectures free of charge.  Lecture sessions will be held in Wilson Hall, June 24-27 — check the conference schedule for additional details.

To see the conference schedule, go to: http://gravestonestudies.org/images/Schedule_2015_Conference.pdf

To see a preview of conference bus tours, go to: http://gravestonestudies.org/images/Conference_Preview.pdf

For more information, and to register for one or more days of conference activities, go to: http://gravestonestudies.org/conference/register

For additional information, contact the AGS Office — info@gravestonestudies.org, or contact Bob Drinkwater, 2015 Conference co-Chair:  soulestones@gmail.com; (413) 549-0581

27 June 2015 — “Fashioning Emily: Translating Historical Fashion for the Modern Eye”
Emily Dickinson Museum
at the Amherst College Alumni House, 75 Churchill St., Amherst, 5 p.m.

TheatreTruck costume designer Elizabeth Pangburn will explore the clothing fashions of Emily Dickinson’s Amherst.

TheatreTruck, an artistic collaborative that crafts mobile and site-specific performances, is joining with the the Emily Dickinson Museum to stage The Emily Dickinson Project, July 13 to August 2.

On Saturday, June 27, go behind the scenes, and learn about the historical influences that shaped the costume design for the many actresses playing Emily Dickinson in the performance, at Fashioning Emily, Translating Historical Fashion for the Modern Eye. The event will be held at 5 pm at the Amherst College Alumni House at 75 Churchill Street. The suggested donation is $10 for adults, $5 for Emily Dickinson Museum members and students.

TheatreTruck co-founder and costume designer Elizabeth Pangburn will explore the fashion and clothing of Emily Dickinson’s Amherst through her lens as a designer, answering the question: “How to dress Emily?” It will also provide an inside look into the research and creative work that went into the creation of The Emily Dickinson Project.

After the talk, the audience will have the opportunity to help choose a costume design for “The Poet,” one of the variations of Emily Dickinson featured in The Emily Dickinson Project. TheatreTruck will offer three costume renderings of this character and audience members can vote for their favorite. The rendering with the most votes will be the garment produced for this summer’s production!

Proceeds from the event will directly benefit this summer’s production of The Emily Dickinson Project. For more information, visit the TheatreTruck website. Find out more at EDMPrograms@EmilyDickinsonMuseum.org or call programming coordinator Lucy Abbott at 413-542-2034.

24 June 2015 — “Sustainable Lives: Attainable Dreams”
Greenfield Historical Society, 43 Church St., Greenfield, 7 p.m.

A film and talk by Rawn Fulton.

The film was produced, filmed on 3 continents and edited in 1993-94 for the National Wildlife Federation in Washington DC. It pertains to the inter-related issues of human population growth, world-wide natural resource consumption/depletion, and their implications for the future of human civilization and of our planetary biosphere. It was used by NWF to introduce these concepts to their 4 million plus US membership, and was also presented to a global audience at the 1994 United Nations’ Summit Conference on World Population in Cairo, Egypt.

Rawn Fulton, Filmmaker, Videographer, Editor — An award-winning filmmaker with extensive production experience, Fulton has created documentaries in many genres: the arts, biography, corporate marketing and communications, education, environment, ethnography, history, science, sociology, sports and travel. Projects have taken him all over the world.

He has produced films independently and for such major clients as: The National Wildlife Federation, The Peace Corps, PBS, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Antenne 2 (France), Philomel Books, Scholastic Inc., Eric Carle Studio, The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, Historic Deerfield Museum, Digital Equipment Corporation and Compaq (now Hewlett-Packard). He also has filmed and edited projects for many producers and clients such as: The New-York Historical Society, American Express Publishing, Guardian, Pfizer, The Boys’ Club of New York, Eaglebrook School, Greenfield Community College, The Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College, Wellspring House, Boys Hope Girls Hope/NY. He currently has 2 films in nationwide broadcast on PBS.

Fulton’s films cover an extensive range of topics: world population and the environment, New England farm life, Pre-Columbian and Native American cultures, ancient Egypt, tribal village life in India, drug addiction, the computer revolution, educational institutions, portraits of artists Louise Nevelson, Batuz, Eric Carle, Patricia Polocco, Ezra Jack Keats, and Virginia Lee Burton, and the teachings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

In addition to his own numerous film projects, he created and for over a decade directed, with support from The Sopris Foundation of Aspen CO, The World Population Film/Video Festival—challenging American and international students to create programs of their own, examining the most critical issues of our time: population, consumption, environment, and sustainability.

Throughout his career he has used film and video to explore, express and extend the human capacity for sharing information—not simply as data, but as a source of creative expression and insight.

Educated at The Wooster School, Danbury CT and Columbia University, with 2 years Peace Corps service working with tribal peoples in Maharashtra, India, he speaks 5 languages: English, French, Marathi, Film and Video.

23 June 2015 — PVHN Rap Session: Accessibility Issues for Small Museums
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6:30 p.m.

Come discuss how to improve your museum’s accessibility for people with differing abilities.  Yes, Wistariahurst Museum is handicapped accessible.

19-21 June 2015 — “Schooldays in New England, 1650-1900”
2015 Dublin Seminar for New England Folklife
Historic Deerfield, Deerfield

“Schooldays in New England, 1650-1900” is a three-day conference of nineteen lectures and related field trips on the culture of education in New England and adjacent areas of New York and Canada from the seventeenth through the nineteenth centuries. The conference opens with site visits to local schools and academies Friday afternoon (see below for an in-depth description of the field trip). The lecture program begins Friday evening with talks on the larger objectives of New England’s common schools; it continues Saturday morning with special purpose education for religious minorities and abolitionists and for blind, deaf, and disenfranchised students. Saturday afternoon will address the teaching experience and school architecture. After-dinner talks will cover one-room schoolhouse museums and “pen-pictures” of New England schools and schooling. Sunday morning will address curriculum standards and female education.

The Seminar is designed for educators, historians, collectors, authors, scholars, librarians, groups who preserve historic schoolhouses, and museum curators, as well as students and the general public. A selected and edited transcript of this conference will appear as the 2015 Annual Proceedings of the Dublin Seminar for New England Folklife, to be issued about two years after the conference. Past Seminar Proceedings and publications by program speakers will be available at the conference.

The fortieth annual meeting in the Dublin Seminar series, “Schooldays in New England, 1650-1900,” will take place at Historic Deerfield, Deerfield, Massachusetts. The lecture program will begin at 7:00 p.m. on Friday evening and will continue until approximately 11:30 a.m. on Sunday. The weekend will include optional site visits to local academies and one-room schoolhouses on Friday afternoon, 1 p.m. – 5 p.m. Lunch and dinner will be provided on Saturday, June 20; coffee and doughnuts will be served each morning. Housing is available at group rates at local hotels.

For a complete schedule, including registration and lodging information, download the brochure. Online registration is also available.

2015 Dublin Seminar Schoolhouse Field Trip
Join us on a field trip to visit some of the many wonderful historic buildings that preserve the history of early school education in New England. Our itinerary will take us to four sites: The original Deerfield Academy building was designed by the first American-born architect, Asher Benjamin, and dedicated in 1799. Since 1880, the old academy building has been the home of the Memorial Hall Museum of the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association. PVMA’s Executive Director Timothy Neumann will share the early history of the Academy.

The Wapping Schoolhouse was moved in 1968 by Historic Deerfield to Old Main Street from the Wapping section of Deerfield. Built in 1839, it is an example of the fourteen district schoolhouses that dotted the town’s landscape in the mid-nineteenth century.

From Deerfield, we will travel to West Springfield and the Storrowton Village Museum, where Dennis Picard, the Museum’s Director will explore themes of early education at “The Little Red Schoolhouse,” or North Center School, which was built as a model school in 1810 in Whately, Massachusetts, before being moved in 1930 to Storrowton Village.

Our last stop will be the Hockanum School House in Hadley, Massachusetts, built in 1840 and in active use until 1936.

To register for the field trip, please refer to the registration materials.

20 June 2015 — “Blast From the Past: Armory Day”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, State & Federal Sts., Springfield

Military Encampments! Firing! Music! Dancing!

Armory Day 2015 illuminates Springfield Armory firearms made for the American infantryman.  Military encampments of “living historians” portray infantry from the War of 1812, Civil War, World War One, World War Two, and the Korean War.

On Saturday, June 20 from 10:00 am to 4:30 pm visitors of all ages will find themselves dazzled by the blank firing of Civil War cannon and rifles, listening to an exciting performance of Civil War music, moved by viewing the video premiere titled “Letters from World War One,” tapping to the rousing WWI-era dance show, and sharing conversation with members of “historic” infantry units. Food vendors will be available.  All events are free. RAIN CANCELS.

Blank firing demonstrations remind us of the shock of war. Through two scheduled demonstrations at 10:30am and 3:00pm, you can see and smell the acrid gun smoke, hear the blasts of cannon and rifles, and wonder at the courage of soldiers serving yesterday and today.

At 12:30 pm, Visitors may experience an American WWI dance. The merriment and excitement of the Small Planet Dancers, dressed in period costume, captivate us through music and dances.

At 2:30 pm Stamp your feet to Springfield’s own; The Prodigal Sons Civil War Gospel Choir and Musicians led by Jay Griffin.

From 9:00am to 5:00pm,  the museum is open and features the new exhibit Springfield Armory Goes to Hollywood.  Do you love books? Be sure to check out the book/tag sale by the Springfield Armory Alliance.

Thanks to the Springfield Alliance for writing a successful grant awarded from the Springfield Cultural Council who provided funds towards the cost of the music, dancing groups, the WWI letter writing video and the author talk and book signing.

Pedestrians may enter the State Street gate or travel through the gate at the intersection of State and Byers Streets.  Both gates are open 9:00 am to 5:00 pm except the Byers Street gate will be closed during the Evolution of Firearms Blank Firing demonstrations.  Parking is free of charge.

A Complete schedule:

10:00 am Armory Day opens.

10:30 am Evolution of Firearms with Blank firing of Civil War Cannon and Rifles

11:00 am NPS Outdoor FUN. Meet Rangers from MA park sites to “Find Your Park”

11:30 am- Alex MacKenzie, Curator, author talk & book-signing- Images of America; Springfield  Armory

12:30 pm – WWI Dance Performance – “Remembering the War to End All Wars”

12:00 Noon – Jacqueline Lynch, author talk & book signing on Manufacturing in Early America.

1:00 pm- Alex MacKenzie, Curator, author talk & book-signing- Images of America; Springfield Armory

1:30 pm – Video presentation – “Letters of WWI”

2:00 pm – Jacqueline Lynch, author talk & book signing on Manufacturing in Early America.

2:30 pm – The “New Prodigal Sons Civil War Gospel Choir and Musicians”

3:00 pm – Evolution of Firearms with Blank firing of Civil War Cannon and Rifles

3:30 pm – Video presentation – “Letters of WWI”

4:30 pm – End of Armory Day events

All day visit the Museum and special exhibits, Jr. Ranger programs.  Outside “Find Your National Park” stations set up on the Armory grounds. Enjoy the military encampments from the American Revolution through the Korean War. Meet Living Historians who portray soldiers and civilians from the different historical periods.

The Springfield Armory National Historic Site is the location of the nation’s first armory (1794 – 1968) and was established by George Washington. The site includes historic grounds, buildings, and the world’s largest historic American military firearms collection. The park is open daily 9am – 5pm after Memorial Day until October 31st. There is ample parking and the building is wheelchair accessible. For further information and weather cancellation call (413) 734-8551 or check the website at http://www.nps.gov/spar  or go to our http://www.facebook.com/sparnhs.

20 June 2015 — Springfield Armory Book & Tag Sale
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, State and Federal Sts., Springfield, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Springfield Armory Alliance wants your books and stuff – not just any stuff, but items that are historic military and manufacturing memorabilia particularly from the Pioneer Valley for the Springfield Armory’s First Book & Tag Sale to take place on Saturday, June 20, 2015.

The Alliance is the non-profit agency whose mission is to support Springfield Armory National Historic Site’s programs and events, advocacy, preservation, education, and fundraising.  The tag sale will be one of its first fundraisers, and the goal is $4,000.  The local community is asked to help out.

It’s time to rummage through your bookcases, attics, garages, and closets. Books, memorabilia, history ephemera, local and national history items, manufacturing tools, and militaria would be excellent tag sale items. However, no weapons and ammunition are accepted.

One of Springfield Armory’s largest events is Armory Day on June 20th.  The Alliance will add to Armory Day’s many events with the Armory’s First Book & Tag Sale. The sale will be held under a large tent on the Armory grounds located at the corner of State and Federal streets. The event is scheduled from 10am – 4pm.

Items are accepted until June 18th. Donors will receive tax-deductible receipts for all items. In addition, Alliance members are willing to pick up. All proceeds will benefit Springfield Armory NHS. Call 413-271-3979 or email shera_cohen@partner.nps.gov for pick-up and/or any questions.

For information: Shera Cohen
shera_cohen@partner.nps.gov or 413-271-3982

20 June 2015 — “Jaws: An Outdoor Movie With a Bite”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, State and Federal Sts., Springfield, approx. 8:15 p.m.

In celebration of the exciting and very popular Springfield Armory Goes to Hollywood exhibit, we will be hosting an outdoor movie screening of the classic blockbuster “JAWS”  Saturday, June 20 at approximately 8:15 pm, once it is sufficiently dark. An inflatable movie screen will be set up on the back lawn of the Armory with a commanding view of downtown Springfield.  Popcorn and candy will be available for purchased from the Springfield Armory Alliance.  Bring a lawn chair, blanket, or even an inflatable pool toy to sit on, and bug spray just in case.  Admission is free. RAIN CANCELS.

The promotion of the Springfield Armory Goes to Hollywood exhibit allows the park an opportunity to offer new ways for visitors to know the park.  Park Curator Alex Mackenzie says, “One of the crowd pleasing objects in our new exhibit is an M1 Rifle, designed and manufactured here at the Springfield Armory, that was later used prominently in the movie “JAWS”.  This new exhibit gives us a great opportunity to have a movie night here at the park.”  Gavin Gardner, Resource Program and Facilities Manager, adds “General Patton called the M1 ‘the greatest battle implement ever devised’.  I think Patton would have approved of Steven Spielberg having one of his characters use an M1 to stop the rogue Great White Shark at the end of the movie (spoilers).”

June 20th also celebrates the 40th anniversary of the original release of “JAWS”.  Gardner adds, “There are people here at the park that have never seen “JAWS”.  Can you believe it?  What a fun way to see one of the best movies ever made while sitting outside under the stars, with a beautiful view of the city of Springfield.”    A new generation of movie fans will have the opportunity to experience the first blockbuster movie on a big screen.  Mackenzie adds, “I really hope this turns out to be successful so we can consider hosting other exhibit related outdoor movies in the future!”

20 June 2015 — Juneteenth Celebration
David Ruggles Center, 225 Nonotuck St., Florence, 2 – 5 p.m.

Opening of the Exhibits:
* David Ruggles: At the Vanguard of Liberty
* Lydia Maria Child: Am I Not a Woman & a Sister?

Walking Tour Leaves at 3 p.m.

Performance at 4:30 — Spirit of the Hills Chorus with Songs of Freedom

19 June 2015 — “The Development of Highland Lake”
Goshen Historical Society
Goshen Town Hall, 42 Main St. Goshen, 7 p.m.

Join us for a DVD featuring a conversation between developer Donald Greenwood and Goshen resident Edgar Judd. They talk about the beginnings of the Lower Highland Lake community and remembrances of local history such as when the telephone and electricity first came to town.
Refreshments served, all ages welcome! Free and open to the public.
Brought to you by:
The Goshen Historical Society
GoshenHistoricalSociety@gmail.com
(413) 268-7120

18 June 2015 — “The Development of Highland Lake”
Goshen Historical Society
John James Memorial Town Hall, 42 Main St. (Rt. 9), Goshen, 7 p.m.

By Marion Judd, this video features a conversation between Edgar Judd and Donald Greenwood on the shore of Highland Lake in 1990. They talk about Greenwood’s development of the area and remembrances such as when the telephone and electricity came to town.

14 June 2015 — “Let Me Die With My Face to the Foe”
Worthington Historical Society, 6 Williamsburg Rd., 3 p.m.

Brigadier General James Clay Rice: “Let me die with my face to the foe.”  To mark the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War, Worthington resident David Pollard will give a talk on his longtime research specialty, James Clay Rice. Rice was a Worthington native who became a brigadier general of volunteers in the Union Army. The talk will be accompanied by an exhibit on Civil War soldiers from Worthington and the town’s wartime experience. Light snacks and libations appropriate to the period will be served! Free admission, donations encouraged.

14 June 2015 — “Edwardian Lady Performance & Tea”
Noble Cooley Center for Historic Preservation Museum at the Drum Shop
42 Water Street, Granville, 2 p.m.

Calling all Downton Abbey Fans! On Sunday, June 14th, performance artist Kandie Carle will present her one woman show  “The Edwardian Lady, Dressing from Corset to Gloves”, followed by a light Tea.

The performance will start promptly at 2:00 PM and last about an hour.  The performance is audience interactive, informative and fun for ages 8 to 108! Tickets for the performance and tea will be available at the door ($5 for NCCHP members; $10 per ticket for non-members).

NOTE:   Reservations are highly recommended due to limited seating. Call or e-mail today to reserve your tickets!

To learn more about Kandie Carle, her theater background and her performances, please visit www.kandiecarle.com.

13 June 2015 — “Brewer Road Neighborhood Walk”
Pelham Historical Society
Meet on North Valley Rd at Brewer Rd., Pelham, 12 noon

Please join the Pelham Historical Society for the second of two programs about Pelham`s 19th century Brewer Road Neighborhood. We will visit this neighborhood during our BREWER ROAD NEIGHBORHOOD WALK led by Bruce Klotz. The talk is NOT required to join the walk!

Brewer Road is a now discontinued road running through forests and fields. Now managed mostly by the Amherst Water Company and private land owners, this road was once a thriving neighborhood and home to one of Pelham`s wealthiest families. Now all that remains are cellar holes and stone walls and stories.

All of our programs are free and open to the public. For more information about the Pelham Historical Society, please visit us on the WEB at pelhamhs.org or send us an email to: info@pelhamhs.org
Be sure to check out our full calendar of programs. Thank You! and hope to see you soon!

13 June 2015 — Third Annual Publishing Fair
Amherst Area Publications
Jones Library, 43 Amity St., Amherst, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Learn how to sell your self-published book to a larger publisher. Learn how to use resources at the Jones Library. Network with experts in all areas of publishing! Coffee and conversation all day. EVERYONE WELCOME!

$10 Admission includes workshops and space to display your writing, editing and publishing promotional materials. Pre-registration is strongly suggested to help us provide enough space and materials for everyone.

10:30 How to Sell your Self-Published Book to a Larger Publisher:
Shel Horowitz, marketing consultant and award-winning author, will share some of his ethical
marketing strategies.

1:00 Using The Jones Library for Researching Your Project:
Cynthia Harbeson, Head of Special Collections, at the Jones Library, will provide an overview
of the wealth of local history, genealogy, and other unique resources available at the library.
Contact amherstareapublications@gmail.com or Amherst Area Publications, PO Box 3389, Amherst, MA 01004.

11 June 2015 — “William Apess: Native American Activist”
Colrain Historical Society
Stacy Barn behind the Pitt House at 8 Main Rd., Colrain, 7:30 p.m.

Colrain’s little-known but remarkable Native Son was one William Apess, born on Catamount Hill of mixed racial lineage in 1798. Living for only a few years in Colrain and surviving a childhood marked by severe deprivation, he fought in the War of 1812 and went on to become an itinerant preacher, author of the first book-length autobiography by a Native American and a lecturer in support of Native American rights in New England.  He delivered his first sermon as an “Indian preacher” in the Catamount Hill schoolhouse in the 1820s.

Apess will be the subject of a program at the meeting of the Colrain Historical Society Thursday, June 11, in the Stacy Barn behind the Pitt House at 8 Main Road. The program at 7:30 p.m. will follow a business meeting at 7:00. Speaker Drew Lopenzina is researching a book about Apess. A native of western Massachusetts, he teaches Early American Literature at Old Dominion University in Virginia.

The meeting is open to the public, and refreshments will be served.  For more information call Belden at 624-3453.

10 June 2015 — “Rani Arbo and daisy mayhem”
Wednesday Folk Traditions
Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum, 130 River Drive (Rte. 47), Hadley, 6:30 p.m.

The Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum kicks off its 34th season of Wednesday Folk Traditions on June 10, 2015, with Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem, an acoustic rhythm and harmony string quartet with an adventurous, joyous repertoire that dips into a range of American musical idioms. This and all other performances are held Wednesday evenings at 6:30 pm in the Sunken Garden at the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum, 130 River Drive, Route 47, Hadley, MA 01035. The Museum, Rani Arbo enthuses, is “a stunning setting for a concert, and a great place to bring the family and a picnic and enjoy the outdoors. It’s a real community event, which we love.” General admission is $12, or $2 for children 16 and under. Picnickers are welcome on the museum grounds beginning at 5:00 pm. The Museum and its grounds is a smoke-free site.

Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem’s performance at Wednesday Folk Traditions is funded in part by the New England States Touring program of the New England Foundation for the Arts, made possible with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts Regional Touring Program and the six New England state arts agencies.

Mixing New Orleans grooves with old-time gospel harmonies, Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem features Rani Arbo on fiddle and guitar, Andrew Kinsey on bass, banjo, and ukulele, Anand Nayak on electric and acoustic guitars, and Scott Kessel on percussion. The quartet has toured North America together for 15 years. Some of the band’s eclecticism can be attributed to Kessel’s homemade percussion kit — a collection of cardboard boxes, tin cans, caulk tubes, packing-tape tambourines, bottle-cap rattles, Mongolian jaw harps, and a vinyl suitcase.

Possessing a particular knack for pairing words and music, Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem plumb the human condition with an infectious joie de vivre, digging “deep into their collective souls, finding joy in the moment, peace in the harmonies, and rapture in the rhythmic drive.” (The Hartford Courant). The band’s incisive songwriting lends emotional depth and striking originality to their “mellifluous mélange” of musical styles (Maverick Magazine). Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem have a penchant for music that digs deep, laughs loud, and finds the joy in all things.

For their June 10 performance at Wednesday Folk Traditions, Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem will be performing from their fifth and most recent album, Violets Are Blue, a collection released by Signature Sounds. Full of sugar-free, grownup love songs infused with poetry and groove, Violets Are Blue evinces a confidence and sincerity informed by the band’s long history together and their experiences in life and love.

9 June 2015 — “The History of Union Station and Olmsted Park in Palmer”
Palmer Historical & Cultural Center
2072 Main St., Three Rivers (Palmer), 7 p.m.

In this lecture Blake and Robin Lamothe, owners of the Steaming Tender Restaurant, will discuss the history of the station and how it came to be that the great Romanesque architect Henry Hobson Richardson, Union Station architect, and Frederick Law Olmsted, landscape architect who designed the pocket park that once was part of the station. The Lamothes will also discuss what the station was like in its heyday, as well as where it fits into Palmer history, and what part it may play in the future. Free, but donations kindly accepted.

9 June 2015 — “The Neighborhood at Brewer Road”
Pelham Historical Society
Ramsdell Room, Pelham Community Center, 7 p.m.

Please join the Pelham Historical Society for two programs about Pelham`s 19th century Brewer Road Neighborhood. The first program is a talk / slide show presentation at the Pelham Library: The Neighborhood at Brewer Road presented by Linda Campbell Hanscom on Tuesday June 9 2015 7 p.m.

All of our programs are free and open to the public. For more information about the Pelham Historical Society, please visit us on the WEB at pelhamhs.org or send us an email to: info@pelhamhs.org
Be sure to check out our full calendar of programs. Thank You! and hope to see you soon!

7 June 2015 — “A Window Into the Past: A Button Collector’s Scrapbook”
Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson, 1:30 p.m.

In 2011, the Keep Homestead Museum acquired the button collection of Mrs. Henry C. (Alice) Sanderson, of “Bonnie Biel,” Wilbraham Road, Monson. It was donated by Judith Gerrish, Alice’s daughter and member of Monson Button Club. The collection had been stored in Judith’s attic for many years. In 1988, a fire at residence damaged the collection. When the KHM received the collection, it was in trash bags and materials had been damaged by fire, water, and smoke. Fortunately, many of the buttons were able to be cleaned and salvaged.

The collection also contained Sanderson’s scrapbook of fascinating button memorabilia which provides a rich resource for information about the rise of button collecting clubs in the 1940s and insights about the people, places, and activities that made up this unique button collecting hobby through the early 1960s.

“When you hold a button in your hand, you hold a piece of history.”

Anne Sroka is a member and a past president of the Monson Button Club and a member of the Massachusetts State Button Society. Her professional life for the past 20 years has been in higher education administration. She holds a MA in Archaeology and Heritage from the University of Leicester, England and a BA in Studio Art from the University of California, Davis. Her undergraduate career included study at Tulane University School of Architecture and Rhode Island School of Design. An avowed amateur historian, she has a passion for the study of the past. Her research interests generally relate to architectural archaeology, and all things “buttons”: design, uses, materials, manufacture, and the subjects they depict.

The Keep Homestead Museum will be open to visitors 1:00-3:30 pm. There is no charge for either the program or the museum and refreshments will be served. For more information call 413-267-4137, email khm@keephomesteadmuseum.org or check the web at http://www.keephomesteadmuseum.org

7 June 2015 — “Old County Road to Allis Cemetery”
Hidden Walls, Hidden Mills Series, Plainfield Historical Society
meet behind Shaw Memorial Library, 312 Main St., Plainfield, 1 p.m.

Hidden Walls, Hidden Mills: Join us for a history adventure exploring how we can see the early settlement of Plainfield in the forested landscape today. Learn to “read” stone walls, cellar holes, cemeteries.

At 1:00 pm, we explore maps and at 2:00 pm we depart for a guided tour of “Old County Road to Allis Cemetery.”

History ADVENTURE: 2-3 mile walk up moderately steep terrain, some bushwhacking. Wear appropriate footwear. Bring water. Bring compass or GPS if you want to.
Make sure to wear boots and be tick safe. Some of these are moderate to strenuous hikes, some are walks, but all are adventures  — be sure to dress appropriately.  For more information, contact Pleun Bouricius (bouric@post.harvard.edu – 634-2250).

Creation of  Hidden Walls, Hidden Mills was funded in part by Mass Humanities (masshumanities.org)

7 June 2015 — Open House
Western Hampden Historical Society
Dewey House, 87 South Maple St., Westfield, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.

The public is invited to the annual spring open house of the Western Hampden Historical Society’s
Dewey House.  Colonial crafters will demonstrate their skills; docents will guide you through the 280 year-old home; and refreshments will be served.

This year come see a Civil War Encampment and learn the uses of herbs during the 1700’s. Admission is free.

3 June 2015 — “The Heart Has Many Doors”
Author Reading
Meekins Library, Williamsburg, 7 p.m.

A New Emily Dickinson Romance!  Susan Snively to Read From Her Novel The Heart Has Many Doors in Williamsburg at Meekins Library, June 3 at 7 P.M.

Join author, poet, screenwriter and Dickinson scholar Susan Snively on Wednesday, June 3, 2015 at the Meekins Library, Williamsburg, at 7 p.m. to hear her read from her dazzling new Emily Dickinson novel The Heart Has Many Doors.  A book signing will follow the reading.  Copies will be available at Meekins.

This boldly imagined novel portrays the autumnal love affair between the poet Emily Dickinson and the eminent Judge Otis Phillips Lord of Salem, eighteen years older and her father’s best friend.  In the novel over many years, Judge Lord and Emily discover the passion latent in their friendship.  As Emily and Phil struggle with her need for privacy and his power as a man of the world, they stir up the troubled Dickinson family.  Despite the hostility of greedy and jealous relatives, Emily contrives a secret rendezvous in Salem with the big, tempestuous man she calls “Little Phil,” and they even talk of marriage.  Their courage to defy convention inspires the poet’s unforgettable art.

This program is part of the Meekins’ ongoing occasional series celebrating the stories of people here in the Valley.  It is the stories of our historical Valley friends and neighbors that reach across generations and make this a special place.  This program is free and everyone is welcome.

For more information call:  413-268-7472 (Meekins) or 413-538-6489 (cell); contact Daria D’Arienzo at ddarienzo@me.com or visit the Meekins Library online at: http://www.meekins-library.org/.  Williamsburg and Haydenville residents, who might need a ride, please contact the Meekins Library.

1 June 2015 — “Chew on This: Presenting the History of Food in Massachusetts”
Mass. History Conference
Hogan Campus Center, College of Holy Cross, Worcester, 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

A Conference for Massachusetts History Organizations

Presented by Mass Humanities  •  New England Archivists  •  Massachusetts Historical Society  •  Colonial Society of Massachusetts  •  University of Massachusetts Amherst Program in Public History  •  Massachusetts State Historical Records Advisory Board (MA SHRAB)  •  University of Massachusetts Boston Public History and Archives Tracks and the Joseph P. Healey Library

REGISTER NOW at: http://masshumanities.org/programs/mass-history/history-conference-2015/

Keynote Address by Filmmaker Ian Cheney, creator of The Search for General Tso (2014) and co-founder of Food Corps.

At this, the eleventh annual Mass History Conference we will welcome the many small historical organizations and practitioners preserving, interpreting, and deepening the exploration of Massachusetts history.

You are what you eat! Or are you? At this year’s conference, we will explore the meaning and availability of food in Massachusetts History: what we grow, what we eat, food and identity, scarcity and quality. We will once again present a program that is chock-full of excellent hands-on examples of, and workshops in, the best practices in public history. We are planning workshops on topics like doing food demonstrations; conducting oral histories that focus on food and identity; and using public history in reinventing the food system. The conference will also include sessions on American food 101; archives with cookbook and other food-related collections; the history of and current strategies for feeding the hungry in Massachusetts cities and towns; multicultural food ways and local practices; Native American food practices; home economics and other twentieth-century food movements; and preserving agricultural landscapes.

We are happy to welcome the 2015 MA SHRAB Forum to the Mass History Conference! MA SHRAB is holding two free sessions in the afternoon to which any Mass History Conference participant may attend. If you would like to ONLY attend these two SHRAB sessions, register for free on MA SHRAB Forum registration page.

The conference is widely celebrated as the best networking and skill-sharing opportunity for historians of our state culture. Read the full conference theme statement.

For more info and to Register, go to: http://masshumanities.org/programs/mass-history/history-conference-2015/

MAY

30 May 2015 — Beading Workshop in Deerfield
Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, 10 Memorial St., Deerfield, 10 a.m.

On Saturday, May 30, Canadian Metis/Abenaki beadworker Rhonda Besaw will give a two-hour hands-on workshop (10 am to noon) on beading around cabochon stones at the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association in Deerfield, Massachusetts. The class is suitable for beginners, and participants will learn how to create a pair of earrings with a cabochon (a cut and polished stone with a flat bottom) bordered with beads. The workshop is offered in conjunction with Memorial Hall Museum’s exhibition “Made of Thunder, Made of Glass II: Continuing Traditions in Northeastern Indian Beadwork” that opens that day.

Rhonda Besaw is a nationally recognized artist who does both traditional and contemporary Wabanaki beadwork. Examples of her work are featured in the “Made of Thunder, Made of Glass II” exhibit, and following the workshop, Rhonda Besaw and museum curator Suzanne Flynt will accompany participants to see the exhibit and hear Rhonda discuss her beadwork. The exhibition includes over 240 extraordinary examples of contemporary and historical Native American beadwork made in the Northeast between 1800 and 2015 accompanied by compelling portraits of the beadwork artisans by Gerry Biron.

The cost of the workshop is $45 and it includes a beading kit from Rhonda Besaw, two hours of instruction, and a visitor’s pass to Memorial Hall Museum to view the exhibit after the class. The class will be held behind Memorial Hall Museum at the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, 10 Memorial Street (rear entrance–follow the signs), Deerfield, MA. Class size is limited and preregistration is required by Wednesday, May 27. Please register by emailing pvmaoffice@deerfield.history.museum (or call 413-774-7476 x 10).

28 May 2015 — “Springfield’s Immigrants: Then & Now”
Museums a la Carte Lecture Series
Davis Auditorium, Springfield Museums, Springfield, 12:15 p.m.

Frances Gagnon, historian, will trace Springfield’s new arrivals from William Pynchon’s 1636 first settlers to the Great Migration of the 19th century as well as today’s newcomers from Asia, Africa and elsewhere.  The issues of “us” and “them” will be explored through the centuries.

$2 members; $4 nonmembers, in addition to regular museum admission.

The audience is invited to bring a lunch to enjoy during the program; cookies and beverage are provided. Sponsored by Big Y.

28 May 2015 — “Remembrance of Our Past”
Charlemont Historical Commission & Lil’ Red School House Committee
Lil’ Red School House, Rte. 2 Charlemont, 6 p.m.

In Commemoration of Charlemont’s 250th Anniversary, the Charlemont Historic Commission and the Lil’ Red School House Committee are hosting a historic “REMEMBRANCE OF OUR PAST” presentation revolving around Charlemont’s 19th century Abolitionist activities. Two Charlemont Houses were recognized by the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom project. The Hart and Mary Leavitt House and the Roger Hooker and Keziah Leavitt House were evaluated as “making a significant contribution to the understanding of the Underground Railroad in American History and meets the requirements for inclusion in the “National Underground Network to Freedom.”

Information provided by Bambi Miller and Charlemont Historical Commission. Sponsored by the Charlemont Historical Commission & Lil’ Red School House Committee, in conjunction with the Charlemont 250 Committee.  More information can be found at http://www.charlemont250.org

27 May 2015 — “The History of Public and Low-income Housing in Holyoke, 1930s-1980s”
Community Room, Holyoke Public Library, 250 Chestnut St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Since the appearance of the original plan for Holyoke circa 1850, housing Holyoke’s low-income families has been a recurring and often controversial issue. The Holyoke History Room is pleased to present two speakers whose research and experience will shed light on this important aspect of the city’s history.

Jeremy Smith: “Crisis & Conservatism: Holyoke’s Struggle for Urban Renewal”
Jeremy explores the controversies surrounding the construction of the first two federally-funded housing projects in Holyoke in the late 1930s and early 1940s: Lyman Terrace and Jackson Parkway. He will also discuss the urban renewal efforts of the Samuel Resnic and William Taupier mayoral administrations in the 1960s and 70s. His research draws on a wide range of sources, including articles from the historic Holyoke Transcript-Telegram (found at the Holyoke History Room) and local and Federal government reports.

Jeremy Smith (B.A., M.S.L.S.) has deep family roots in Holyoke and is currently a staff archivist at the Special Collections and University Archives at the University of Massachusetts as well as board member of Flywheel, a community arts space in Easthampton.

Miguel Arce: “Housing in South Holyoke: A community development perspective, 1983-1990”
South Holyoke, one of Holyoke’s lower wards, has always been an entry point for new arrivals. Starting in 1983 and continuing for two decades Nueva Esperanza, Inc. was involved in the redevelopment of multi-family four story tenements which had for 100 years housed newcomers. Miguel’s discussion will focus not only on the housing stock, but on the political, economic and social forces that interfaced that community.

Miguel Arce is Associate Professor in the School of Social Work at Springfield College, specializing in community and organizational practice. His talk draws on his experience as the director of Nueva Esperanza from 1983 to 1989.

Sponsored by the Holyoke History Room. Free and open to the public. This event takes place at the Holyoke Public Library Community Room, 250 Chestnut Street, Holyoke. For more information call (413) 420-8107.

25 May 2015 — Memorial Day with the Coast Guard Band
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield, 2 p.m.

The U.S. Coast Guard Dixieland Jazz Band will perform an outdoor jazz fest on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25, 2:00 – 3:00pm. RAIN CANCELS. Free Admission.

“Paying tribute to those who died in service to their country is an honor for Springfield Armory NHS where firearms were produced for the Army for 174 years. The rousing music of the Coast Guard Dixieland Jazz Band reminds us of our fallen service men and women while reminding us of lighter times of laughter and music” remarked Joanne Gangi-Wellman, Chief of Interpretation at Springfield Armory NHS.

The United States Coast Guard Dixieland Jazz Band was organized in 1970 to perform classic jazz, blues, and rags with a “New Orleans” flavor. The Dixieland Jazz Band has entertained audiences across America, in the former Soviet Union, England, Japan and Taiwan. Notable venues include the open-air theater in Disney World, the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, at the “Galaxy Jazz Festival” in Milwaukee, the Embarcadero in San Francisco, the John F. Kennedy Center Millennium Stage in Washington, D.C., and at Mardi Gras in New Orleans. The group has also performed on numerous radio and television broadcasts across the nation.

Springfield Armory National Historic Site commemorates and preserves the site of the nation’s first armory, established in 1794. As a unit of the National Park Service, the Visitor Center, Museum, buildings and grounds are open Memorial Day to October 31 daily, 9am-5pm then Wednesday – Sunday. Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Day. Admission is free. For information call 413-734-8551 or check the website at www.nps.gov/spar or www.facebook.com/sparnh

24 May 2015 — “Ware Remembers”
Ware Center Meeting House, Ware Center, 6 p.m.

The fifth annual Ware Remembers Ceremony will be held at the 1799 Ware Center Meeting House lawn in Ware Center on Sunday, Mary 24, 2015 beginning at 6:00 PM.

For your donation of $5.00, accompanied by a completed form, an American flag to honor your loved one will be placed in a ‘field of flags’ on the historic green. A roll call reading will include the recognized person’s name and brief information/military service.

Forms are available at the Ware Senior Center, Ware Town Clerk’s Office, and the Young Men’s Library and should be turned in to the Ware Senior Center by Wednesday, May 20, 2015.

A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Ware Veterans’ Council.

Come to remember, to pay respect, and to support the Ware Veterans’ Council, the Ware Center Meeting House, and the Ware Historical Society. Please bring your lawn chair.

24 May 2015 — “Surviving World War II: V-Mail, Snapshots and Cigars Help Ease the Hardships and Heartache”
Hatfield Historical Society
Hatfield Historical Museum, 39 Main St., Hatfield, 11 a.m.

Please join us on Sunday, May 24, as we remember our World War II veterans with an exhibit in the Hatfield Historical Museum, an outside WWII reenactor’s display and a short program (1:45-2:15 pm) to highlight a few soldiers’ lives.

The exhibit and outside display will be open 11 am to 12:30 pm, take a break for the Hatfield Memorial Day parade and ceremony, and reopen at 2:15, following our WWII program.

Sponsored by the Hatfield Historical Society, the exhibit will run through 2015 at the Hatfield Historical Museum, located at 39 Main St., (2nd floor of library). Please join us!

Kathie Gow, Curator, Hatfield Historical Museum     http://hatfieldhistory.weebly.com
Oral History Producer     http://www.wordspicturesstories.com

24 May 2015 — Annual Memorial Day Commemoration at Quabbin Park Cemetery
Department of Conservation and Recreation
Quabbin Park Cemetery, Ware Rd., 10 a.m.

In 1868, Major General John A. Logan, the Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, named May 30th as a special day for honoring the soldiers that had died in the Civil War. Like communities all across the United States, the towns of the Swift River Valley commemorated their war dead each year on Memorial Day until the towns’ demise in 1938. Since 1947, Quabbin Park Cemetery has been the center of Memorial Day services for the four towns. Please join the Friends of Quabbin, the Swift River Historical Society, the Veterans Council of Belchertown, Chauncey D. Walker Post #239, American Legion and the staff of the DCR Quabbin Reservoir for our annual Memorial Day Service at Quabbin Park Cemetery.

Refreshments will be offered at 10 a.m. Parade and services begin at 11 a.m.

24 May 2015 — “Western Bay State Regiment in the Civil War”
Department of Conservation and Recreation
Quabbin Visitor Center, Ware Rd., 2 p.m.

The Swift River Valley contributed more than twenty soldiers to the 31st Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment, originally known as the “Western Bay State Regiment,” during the Civil War. Now, dozens of newly-discovered manuscripts of diaries, letters, and personal recollections tell the story of the regiment. The documents were found in the archives of the Lyman & Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History in Springfield. They had been collected in the early 1900s by the regimental historian with the purpose of publishing a regimental history which was never completed. Cliff McCarthy, Archivist at the Wood Museum of Springfield History and at the Stone House Museum in Belchertown, will bring that story to life using the soldiers’ own words.

23 May 2015 — “Bombs Over Quabbin”
Department of Conservation and Recreation
Hike at Quabbin Gate 52, 11 a.m.

In the early years of World War 2, as the reservoir was filling with water, the US Army Air Corp was given permission to test bombs here at Quabbin. In later years, armaments were tested in the Quabbin Park area. Please join us for a short hike down Gate 52 to review the history of military testing here at Quabbin. Gate 52 is accessed from either the Middle or East Entrance to Quabbin Park. Please call 413-323-7221 for directions to Gate 52.

19 May 2015 — “Southwick Gold Dome Bell Ringers Concert”
Noble Cooley Center for Historic Preservation, 42 Water St., Granville, 6:30 p.m.

Join the Southwick Gold Dome Bell Ringer choir for an evening of music as they fill the NCCHP museum with the beautiful sounds of the bells.  If you’ve never experienced a bell ringer choir, come prepared to be amazed at the sights, sounds and uplifting power of the music.  This living history event is a free event.  Light refreshments will be served.  Visit http://www.ncchp.org for more information or call 413-357-6321.

17 May 2015 — “Fiber, Food & Faults”
Pioneer Valley Institute Bus Trip
leave from Greenfield Community College, Greenfield, 9 a.m.

The Pioneer Valley Institute invites you along on its sixth annual “Spring Into…” bus trip, this year heading north to Putney VT and Chesterfield Gorge, NH. On Sunday, May 17, we will leave the GCC campus (bus stop at south end) at 9 AM, for a guided tour of the Green Mountain Wool Spinnery, a lunch at nearby Curtis’s All-American Bar-B-Q and a geology hike at the Chesterfield Gorge in the afternoon. Pre-registration is required and to cover the cost of the bus there is a $35 fee. Bring a friend along and it is just $60 for the two of you. Send a check to PVI, GCC Downtown Center, 270 Main St, Greenfield MA 01301 along with your name, phone number and email address. Registration closes May 1, so don’t wait. These tours with Prof Richard Little are always immensely popular! For more information please email pvi@gcc.mass.edu or call 413-775-1671.

We have had tons of fun—and success—with our “Spring Into…” and “Fall Into…” bus trips throughout the years. This one promises to be no different but with a totally new emphasis—natural fibers and their processing. From the very start of the Industrial Revolution, fiber mills were the basis of our area’s economy, a true mainstay of old New England. We will visit and tour the Green Mountain Spinnery, a worker-owned cooperative spinning mill in Putney VT which not only creates its own selection of yarns and patterns but also is used by many northeast producers of wool, mohair and alpaca. After the tour knitters and weavers will have time to shop for yarns and patterns, books and magazines to their heart’s content!

Lunch will be at the nearby and justifiably famous Curtis’s All American Bar-B-Q, price not included in your registration fee. There are excellent alternatives for vegetarians just across the road at the Putney Food Co-op.

Now, fortified with plenty of yarn and sated with ribs or chicken, we will proceed to the Chesterfield NH Gorge for a hike to explore the faux faults found there. Faux faults? As Richard Little will explain, there have been several erroneous interpretations of the formations to be found here. As you hike the path watch the cascades as they disappear into the mist or plunge down through the gorge to the pools below. For the fiber artists among us here is a wonderful opportunity to absorb the colors and patterns in nature—falling water, vibrant colors, rock formations—and to apply these new visions to your next project!

16-17 May 2015 — 36th Annual Long Meddowe Days
Longmeadow Historical Society
Town Green, Longmeadow

The historic Town Green in Longmeadow, MA is the setting for a two day New England Town Fair!  On May 16 & 17 there will be activities for all members of your family.  A 5K Race/ Walk and Community Walk will be on Saturday morning, May 16 and a free cookout and campfire on Saturday evening.  There will be a wide  range of exhibits including Crafters, Artists, Photographers & Community Booths on Saturday, May 16 from 10 AM – 5 PM and on Sunday May 17 from 12 Noon – 5 PM.  The 9th Massachusetts Light Artillery, Civil War reenactors, will camp out on the Town Green all weekend and on Sunday afternoon President Abraham Lincoln will visit his troops.  A Memorial Service will take place on Sunday.  Visit our Town Green and enjoy the Historical Tours, live entertainment, Food Court and activities for children.

For more information visit:
www.LongMeddoweDays.org  or www.Facebook.com/LongMeddoweDays

Long Meddowe Days is the primary fundraiser for the Longmeadow Historical Society.

16 May 2015 — “Damnable Heresy: William Pynchon, the Indians, and the First Book Banned (and Burned) in Boston.”
Old Classical High School Building, Springfield, 2 p.m.

So, what about that guy in the funny black hat at the center of Robert Lewis Reid’s mural, “The Light of Education”?  The half-moon shape of the painting nicely fitted the space above the back of the stage in the old Auditorium at Classical High School.

You know the man was William Pynchon, the founder of Springfield in 1636.  Now you can know a little more (actually, a lot more) about him.  I’ll be talking to a meeting of “Historic Classical, Inc.,” in our old school on May 16 – the 376th anniversary of the date the community was founded.  My presentation will be based on my new book, Damnable Heresy: William Pynchon, the Indians, and the First Book Banned (and Burned) in Boston. (Wipf & Stock, 2015)  This is the first book-length study of the Puritan entrepreneur, magistrate, and pioneer who maintained remarkably positive relationship with Native peoples.

Oh, yes: he also got into trouble for a book he wrote, which led to the first instance of book burning in English North America. But more about that on Springfield’s birthday.  You and your friends are most welcome!  I look forward to seeing you. –David M. Powers

16 May 2015 — “Emily Dickinson Poetry Walk”
Emily Dickinson Museum, 280 Main St., Amherst, 1 p.m.

Amherst is in full bloom. Enjoy the season with the annual Emily Dickinson Poetry Walk!

Join us this Saturday, May 16, at 1 pm to mark the anniversary of Emily Dickinson’s death (on May 15, 1886) with readings of her poetry at historic sites throughout downtown Amherst. The event is free and open to the public.

The Walk will begin at 1 pm in the Homestead garden and proceed through Amherst, stopping at sites significant in Dickinson’s life and concluding at the poet’s grave in West Cemetery.  At the cemetery, participants are invited to join in the traditional light-hearted toast to the poet and to read a favorite Dickinson poem. The walk will take about one hour.

This year’s selection of poems will be read by volunteers from the audience. Anyone who would like to read one of the poems should arrive at the Homestead at 12:45 pm to receive an assignment; poems will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.

Wheelchair accessible parking is available at the Homestead; all other vehicles are asked to park on the street or in the Amherst College lot on Spring Street. For more information about accessibility, call 413-542-2034 or email edmprograms@EmilyDickinsonMuseum.org.

16 May 2015 — “Holyoke Remembered” Oral History Program Preview
Community Rm., Holyoke Public Library, 250 Chestnut St., Holyoke, 10:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.

In 2014, the Holyoke History Room began recording oral life histories with long-time residents of Holyoke from all walks of life. Please drop in anytime between 10:30 and 1:00 on May 16 to see and hear excerpts from our first round of interviews, chat with participants, and to learn more about the program and its future.

With thanks to the Community Foundation of Western Mass for its support. For more information, see our website. Free and open to the public. For more information, contact us at 413.420.8107.

16 May 2015 — Bohemian Quartet in Concert
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 7 p.m.

This acclaimed Providence-based ensemble features the sounds of the violin, viola, cello, and bass and specializes in the music of the Romany or “Gypsy” tradition, along with other related Eastern European folk styles. A performance by the Bohemian Quartet is a door to another culture; their fast tempos, virtuosic playing, and the echoing of spry strings crying and dancing ensures a riveting experience.

Violinist Stan Renard, a composer and virtuoso player, assembled the quartet in 2005 hoping to preserve the Romany tradition and indulge in the virtuosic playing of the group’s classic music. Renard recruited his like-minded friends Dave Zinno on upright bass, Christine Harrington on cello, and Nancy Richardson on viola.

The performance will be preceded by a presentation by the quartet, starting at 7:00 p.m.

Admission is $15 general/$10 members.
Tickets are available at Wistariahurst.org or by calling the museum at (413)-322-5660

For more information about Bohemian Quartet please visit their website at  http://www.bohemianquartet.com

15 May 2015 — “Precision Valley Symposium”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site & Springfield Technical Community College
Room 102, Putnam Hall, Bldg. 17, S.T.C.C., Springfield, 9 a.m.

PROGRAM

9:00 AM                Coffee
9:10 AM                Welcome   James Woolsey, Superintendent, Springfield Armory NHS
Opening Remarks, Arlene Rodriguez, Dean, School of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, S.T.C.C.
9:30 AM                Yankee Armorers and the Union war machine: A technological perspective on the American Civil War
Merritt Roe Smith, Ph.D., Leverett Howell and William King Cutten Professor of the History of Technology (STS and History), MIT
10:20 AM             As the Valley Falls: Deindustrialization After the Second World War
Bob Forrant, Ph.D., Professor, Co-Director, Senior Research Fellow, Univ. of Massachusetts at Lowell
10:50 AM             Hartford, CT (late 1800s): Factory Town Puts the Pieces Together in Explosive New Ways
Eric S. Hintz, Ph.D., Historian, Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, National Museum of American History,                                  Smithsonian Institution
11:20 AM             BREAK
11:30 AM             PANEL DISCUSSION, moderated by Dean Arlene Rodriguez, with audience on “Where do we go from here?” and the future of precision manufacturing in the region that includes Dave Cruise, President and CEO of the Regional Employment Board of Hampden County, Inc., that is a prime occupational training/education unit funneling trained machinists into the expanding precision industries here in the region. Also attending will be Rodney Grover, Executive Director, Society of Manufacturing Engineers Educational Foundation. The Soc. of Manuf. Engineers (SME) are sponsors of the EASTEC Show which will be ending the day before the symposium across the Connecticut River in W. Springfield’s BIG E.

12:15 PM              LUNCH followed by

1:00 PM  AFTERNOON TOURS

The afternoon offers a selection of one among several activities. These include a trip to the main Springfield Armory collection room with its thousands of military firearms (mostly a reference collection for R&D as well as some production jigs & gages & machines), a trip to & tour of the Coltsville site in Hartford, or a tour of Smith & Wesson’s factory (S&W tour only is limited to twelve and applications will be closed by May 1st. Bus transportation will be available for the Hartford tour.)

*Please write Richard Colton ( richard_colton@nps.gov ) of your plan to attend the Symposium and whether you wish to go on one of the afternoon tours. This will help make the SYMPOSIUM a success!

14 May 2015 — “What was Potash?”
Colrain Historical Society 
at the Stacy Barn behind the Pitt House on Main Road, Colrain, 7:30 p.m.

As Colrain was being settled, potash was an important farm and home industry.  It was a dangerous, dirty and an entirely unpleasant business, which ended when all the land had been cleared.

What was potash?  It will  be the topic of a program of the Colrain Historical Society, Thursday, May 14, in the Stacy Barn behind the Pitt House on Main Road.   Ralmon Black will discuss colonial asheries, the first industry of the hilltowns, and how they affected the economy of those times and the land forever.  There was a Potash Hill in Colrain.

Black was raised on the one-horse ancestral farm in Williamsburg.  He retired in 2000 as a dairy specialist with  the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture and serves the town of Williamsburg as a Historical Commissioner, Secretary of the Historical Society and town historian engaged in genealogical research on the first settlers of his town.

The program at 7:30 p.m. will follow a business meeting at 7.  Refreshments will be served, and the public is welcome to attend.  For information call Belden at 624-3453.

14 May 2015 — “Evolution of the Turners Falls Dam”
Pioneer Valley Institute
Stinchfield Hall, Greenfield Community College, Greenfield, 7 p.m.

On Thursday, May 14, the Pioneer Valley Institute will present a program by local geologist and historian Ed Gregory on “The Evolution of the Turners Falls Dam.” The program, which will start at 7 o’clock, will be in Stinchfield Hall on the main campus of the Greenfield Community College. Free and open to the public.

Please join us for an historical tour of the Turners Falls Dam. Ed Gregory will present a pictorial excursion of the longest dam on the Connecticut River. We’ll board the “Way-Back Machine” and set the control panel for 1866 to view the crib dam. Then we will lever forward to take in two major reconstruction projects, the first from 1910 to 1915 and the second from 1969 to 1971. The dam played an integral part in the development of Alvah Crocker’s planned industrial city which developed into Turners Falls and which he hoped would rival Lawrence or Holyoke.

12 May 2015 — “Willard Asylum from 1910 to 1960”
Pelham Historical Society
Ramsdell Room, Pelham Library, 7 p.m.

Pelham photographer Jon Crispin unites art and history with images of suitcases with belongings left by patients who passed away at the Willard Asylum from 1910 to 1960. Locked in the attic of the Willard New York Psychiatric Center, the suitcases are a time capsule offering insights into the lives of unique and sometimes forgotten individuals who lived there. Jon has also done photographic studies of abandoned New York State prisons and asylums.

12 May 2015 — “Colonial Hearth Cooking”
Williamsburg Historical Society
At Congregational Church, 4 North Main St., Williamsburg

Williamsburgh Historical Society Spring Meeting, Tuesday, May 12th

6:30 pm Potluck Supper Social (Bring a favorite dish to share)

7:30 pm Program: “Colonial Hearth Cooking¨ Recipes, Tools, and Techniques

A demonstrated history of the implements and tools of the hearth by Frederick Goodhue

Free and Open to the Public, Bring your Friends! (Donations greatly appreciated)

11 May 2015 – “Puerto Ricans: The Search for Prosperity in the Paper City”
Historical Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot st., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Like many immigrating groups, migrating Puerto Ricans came to Holyoke searching for prosperity. Unfortunately, the manufacturing industries were beginning to head south and overseas. Come hear Maria Salgado Cartagena share stories of a time of resistance and cultural celebration in Holyoke’s history. Admission $7 general / $5 members (pay at door)

9 May 2015 — “If Only the Armory Buildings and Grounds Could Speak!”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, 2 p.m.

Join Springfield Armory NHS historian Richard Colton on a history and architecture walk around the Armory’s historic Hill Shops Saturday, May 9 at 1:00pm. Learn about the historic buildings and better understand the essential work necessary to produce Springfield Armory firearms including storage, research and development, and assembly.

Admission is free of charge. Wear comfortable shoes.

Saunter along the walkways, fields, and buildings filled with workers at Springfield Armory during the War of 1812 through the Viet Nam War. Discover how the Armory met the US Army’s mission to provide small arms and to improve the manufacturing process that advanced the Nation’s industrial technology.

Weapons housed in one of the Arsenal buildings inspired poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to create the peace poem “The Arsenal at Springfield”. He and his young bride stepped onto the Armory’s green in 1843 to view the fine stately brick buildings in a well ordered park. Shortly after Longfellow’s visit, the final boundary of the Armory’s Hill Shops was set permanently with a cast iron fence constructed around the perimeter that took nine years to complete.

See some of the buildings where over 13,000 men and women worked day and night in the Hill Shops and at the Water Shops in WWII. More than three million M1“Garand” Rifles were produced. At the end of a work day during the war, one might even see the designer and inventor of this rifle, John Garand, coming through an Armory gate on his way home. Historian Richard Colton invites visitors to spend an afternoon remembering the profound influence of Springfield Armory on our country.

The Springfield Armory National Historic Site is the location of the nation’s first armory (1794 – 1968) and was established by George Washington. The site includes historic grounds, buildings, and the world’s largest historic American military firearms collection. The park is open Wednesday – Sunday from 9am – 5pm. There is ample parking and the building is wheelchair accessible. For further information and weather cancellation call 413-734-8551 or check the website at http://www.nps.gov/spar or go to our http://www.facebook.com/sparnhs.

9 May 2015 — “A Revolutionary Evening: Dinner and Historical Presentations of the Revolutionary Era”
Palmer Historical & Cultural Center, 2072 Main Street, Three Rivers, 5 p.m.

Join the Palmer Masons from Thomas Lodge for a night of delicious food and entertainment from the Revolutionary War era!

See Thomas Lodge namesake Isaiah Thomas tell his story in Isaiah Thomas – Patriot Printer
Learn about Paul Revere from RJ Parron
Interact with the Sturbridge Militia
Enjoy a social hour and dinner with period fare

Dinner at 5:00 p.m., followed by entertainment

Tickets: $30 per person To reserve, call Mark at: 413-801-7193.
All proceeds benefit the Baystate Wing Emergency Room Fund!
Presented by The Thomas Lodge of Masons in Association with Palmer Historical & Cultural Center.

9 May 2015 — Commemoration of the Civil War in Leverett 1865 – 2015
Leverett Historical Commission
Leverett Town Hall, 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.

The 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War in our country commemorates not the glory of the war, but its cost.
Come celebrate with us in Leverett!

“We talked the matter over and could have settled the war in thirty minutes had it been left to us.”
(Confederate Soldier referencing a meeting with a Union Soldier between the lines.)

Encampment with Civil War soldiers’ life on display – ALL DAY (King Lot, across from Town Hall)
Historical Society Family Museum open – 10-2pm
Cemetery Tour w/ LES 6th Grade – meet @ Town Hall – 3-4pm
Refreshments/ Presentation by LES 6th Grade (Town Hall) – 5-6pm
Staged Reading of “Hallowed Ground” by Laura Harrington, Directed by Liesel de Boor – Town Hall – 7pm

* All Events Free and Open to the Public *
Brought to you by The Leverett Cultural Council and the Historical Commission & Society.

9 May 2015 — “Florence: Dedicated to the Proposition…”
A History Walking Tour led by Tom Goldscheider
at Sojourner Truth Statue, Park & Pine Sts., Florence, 10 a.m.

Florence was founded by a set of visionaries who acted on their belief that all people are created equal. We will walk in their footsteps and hear their stories. Led by Tom Goldscheider, historian, Ruggles Center member, and Florence resident.

7 May 2015 — Emily Dickinson-themed Tarot Readings at Amherst Art Walk
Emily Dickinson Museum, 280 Main Street, Amherst

Readings will be held from 5 to 6:30 pm and from 7 to 7:45 pm, with talk on Dickinson tarot deck’s design at 6:30 pm

The Emily Dickinson Museum will offer free Emily Dickinson-themed tarot readings during the May 7 Amherst Art Walk.

The Amherst Art Walk runs on the first Thursday of every month from 5 to 8 pm. Tarot readings will be held from 5 to 6:30 pm and from 7 to 7:45 pm in The Evergreens, the home of Emily Dickinson’s brother Austin and sister-in-law Susan, on the Museum property at 280 Main Street.

At 6:30 pm, poet Dara Wier, who created the Dickinson-themed tarot deck, will join Halie Theoharides, the illustrator of the deck’s Major Arcana section, in a conversation on the inspirations for the tarot illustrations.

“The illustrations for the Major Arcana depict twenty-two insects, plus a spider, all found in Massachusetts,” says Theoharides of her work. “Insects such as bees, houseflies and caterpillars were a magnified part of Dickinson’s ‘minor Nation’ – an ‘unobtrusive mass’ that provided the poet with a microcosm of meaning.”

Wier created the deck for the 2014 Amherst Poetry Festival, and there was an enthusiastic response to both the readings and the deck itself. The first edition of 200 tarot decks, published through Factory Hollow Press in Hadley, MA, quickly sold out. A few copies of the second edition will be on sale during the Art Walk, but supplies are limited.  Original artwork for the tarot deck, illustrated by Theoharides, Phoebe Harris, Emily Pettit, Bianca Stone, and Haley Rene Thompson, will be on display in the main hall at The Evergreens.

“The Dickinson-themed tarot booth was a crowd favorite at the Amherst Poetry Festival, and we’re so happy to be able to host another night of readings,” says Emily Dickinson Museum Executive Directory Jane Wald. “I hope Art Walk patrons will also enjoy seeing the original artwork that went into this imaginative project.”

For more about the Amherst Art Walk tarot readings or other offerings at the museum, visit http://www.EmilyDickinsonMuseum.org/events, email edmprograms@EmilyDickinsonMuseum.org or call 413-542-2034. Find out more about the Amherst Art Walk at http://www.amherstartwalk.com.

6 May 2015 — “Great Falls of South Hadley”
South Hadley Public Library, Main St., South Hadley Falls, 6:30 p.m.

This talk will highlight the Great Falls of South Hadley starting from Stoney Brook and running south to Buttery Brook. The talk is centered around the developments on the river from 1792 to 1900 including the first canal in the USA. if you have any questions please contact Desi Smelcer at 413-538-5045.

4 May 2015 – “Meet Miss Anne Harding, French-Canadian Boarding House Operator”
Historical Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

History comes alive as Elizabeth Wood portrays Mrs. Anne Harding, owner of a boarding house in Holyoke, Massachusetts at the turn of the century. Admission $7 general / $5 members (pay at door)

3 May 2015 — Hike along the old Boston-Albany Road
Worthington Historical Society
at the parking lot for the Chesterfield Four Seasons, West Chesterfield, 1:45 p.m.

During its early history, Worthington lay along a road connecting Boston to Albany. This road, which dates back to the mid-18th century, crossed the Westfield River at “the Gate,” a bridge just north of the Chesterfield Gorge, and continued west to what is now Harvey Road in Worthington.
WHS board member Ben Brown will lead a backwoods hike along this stretch of the long-abandoned roadway, stopping to observe the remains of farm sites. The walk is likely to be rugged and physically demanding in certain parts. The rendezvous point will be in West Chesterfield, at the parking lot for the Chesterfield Four Seasons, just past the Chesterfield Gorge parking lot, on the River Road turn-off from Ireland Street (not to be confused with the River Road in West Worthington).  Arrival time is 1:45pm. At 2:00pm sharp we will squeeze into the minimum number of vehicles and drive to the hike’s starting point, the eastern terminus of Harvey Road. The hike will conclude back at the Chesterfield Gorge.

Free admission. RSVP in advance with Evan Spring at evanspring@gmail.com.

3 May 2015 — “The Flexible Farmer: Protecting Your Back & Muscles When Gardening”
Keep Homestead Museum, 35 Ely Rd., Monson, 1:30 p.m.

In this fun and engaging workshop participants will learn anatomy and body mechanics as they relate to working in the garden. Facing your work, utilizing your whole body, economy of movement, protecting your joints and assessing your task are the foundations of a more healthy gardening experience.  Also covered will be the five movement categories that dominate gardening and specific ways to prepare, maintain and restore the body for each.  The workshop will be tailored to the questions and interests of the group including but not limited to; injury prevention, self-massage, restorative stretches and daily practices.

Lydia Sivel-Irons is a licensed massage therapist and award winning workshop presenter. She is passionate about the new era of farming and the values of sustainability to the community and self without depleting the land and she is dedicated to doing her part to keep their bodies working with minimal stress and pain. She has made it her mission to bring affordable, efficient and informed body work and body care workshops to the organic and sustainable farms of New England. She is also passionate about the ability of farmers and gardeners to provide food for themselves and the community.

Raised on a homestead by “back to the landers” in rural New Hampshire, Lydia was born into a life of living from the land.  Continuing in the traditions set down by her family, she pursued jobs on farms in her community until she left home to attend Hampshire College. While attending Hampshire she double majored in Human Kinesiology & Anatomy and Sustainable Agriculture.  Lydia completed her thesis on these two subjects entitled; Sustainable Bodies on Sustainable Farms, the moving body in an agricultural context. She received her Bachelor of the Arts from Hampshire in 2009.

This program, while aimed at the gardeners at the Keep Homestead Museum Community Garden, all are welcome to attend. The Keep Homestead Museum will be open from 1:00-3:30 p.m. There is no admission charge for either the program or the museum. Refreshments will be served in the museum. For more information, call 413-267-4137, email khm@keephomesteadmuseum.org or check the web at http://www.keephomesteadmuseum.org

3 May 2015 — Spring Lyonnaise
Mary Lyon Foundation
Shelburne-Buckland Community Center, Main St., Shelburne Falls, 2-5 p.m.

You are Invitedto attend the Annual Lyonnaise — A Celebration of Excellence in Local Education — Sponsored by the Mary Lyon Foundation

Meet Dr. Jeffrey Shea, 2015 MA Teacher of the Year

Refreshments, Exhibits, Awards, Music, Demonstrations, Plus a Special Announcement!

Please join us for this FREE event to celebrate excellence in local education.

The following awards will be presented:
Spirit of Adventure Award ~ Gabriel Coler
Business Award ~ Baker Pharmacy
Career Award ~ Melinda Gougeon, Ed.D.
Mohawk Outstanding Graduate Award ~ Brendan Lattrell

INNOVATIVE SUPPORT OF LOCAL EDUCATION
Mary Lyon FoundationP. O. Box 184
75 Mechanic Street
Shelburne Falls MA 01370
Tel 413-625-2555
Fax 413-625-0065
Sue Samoriski, Executive Director
booklady2@hotmail.com

10 April thru 3 May 2015 — “Fair People: Continuing a Tradition”
Photographs by Stan Sherer
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge Street, Northampton

There are agricultural fairs each weekend in western Massachusetts as summer fades into fall. Each fair is distinctive in size and in spirit, and there is much to attract the casual visitor: the fascination of sheep, cows, and other livestock; the agricultural and commercial exhibitions; entertainment by circus performers and amusement-park rides; and booths offering food, amusements, and information of various kinds.

Sherer asks, “Who are the people who participate in today’s agricultural fairs?” The photographs tell us that many are our neighbors: the dairy farmer down the road, the child next door who belongs to the 4-H Club, or the woman across the street who raises rabbits. In addition to Sherer’s photographs, items from Historic Northampton’s collection of Three County Fair ephemera will be on display.

Agricultural fairs remain part of a changing world. Agriculture in western Massachusetts is pressured by urban and suburban development. In many families there is a second outside career, leaving less time for the volunteer work that organizing a fair requires. But none of the people interviewed for this project suggested that the fair is an endangered species. They are confident that it will adapt to new circumstances, as it has since the early days of fairs.

APRIL

29 April 2015 — “Immigration & Migration to the Valley”
PVHN Spring Gathering & Annual Meeting
Deerfield Community Center, Deerfield, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Our annual Gathering of the Tribe. Program includes:

Dennis Picard: Paddy on the Railroad
Dave Robison: Ethnic Genealogy
Jane Kaufman: History of the Jews of Western Massachusetts
Ron Lech: Polish Center at Elms College
Laurie Millman: Center for New Americans

Open to all. Time during lunch to network with fellow history enthusiasts from up and down the valley. Lunchtime “Show & Tell” from our collections. Registration information here.

29 April 2015 — “Escaping Slavery: African Americans in Western Massachusetts before the Civil War”
Community Room, Holyoke Public Library, 6 p.m.

Joseph Carvalho III, historian, genealogist, and former director of the Springfield Museums, shares stories from his 25 years of research into regional African-American history using family papers, legal documents, news sources, and census records. Carvalho’s work recovered numerous histories once thought permanently lost. His talk will provide an overview of the early history of African-Americans in New England as well as stories of local families and research anecdotes.  Free and open to the public

27 April 2015 – “Polish Center of Discovery and Learning Collections”
Historical Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Stas Radosz will be speaking about the the Polish Center of Discovery and Learning and how it seeks out and safeguards materials which illustrate the history and the lives of ordinary Polish immigrants and their children. Admission $7 general / $5 members (pay at door)

27 April 2015 — “Civil Rights in Springfield: Panel Discussion and Photo Exhibit”
Community Room, Mason Square Branch Library, 765 State St., Springfield, 7 p.m.

Join us in the Mason Square Branch Library Community Room for an intergenerational dialogue with civil rights activists and advocates, State Rep. Benjamin Swan, former State Rep. Raymond Jordan, Councilor E. Henry Twiggs, and Rev. Karen Rucks. They will discuss the events and conditions that incited Springfield’s civil rights activism in the 1960s, the strategies employed to further the cause, and the leadership necessary to make a movement and inspire the community.  Contemporary civil rights issues in Springfield will also be discussed. Participants are encouraged to contribute to the conversation, and bring their questions.

The conversation will be followed by a light reception highlighting the branch’s recently-acquired prints that depict the civil rights rallies and marches against police brutality that swept the city following the Octagon Lounge incident in July of 1965.

Special thanks to the Springfield Republican for generously donating the photographs.

For more information, call (413) 263-6854.

27 April 2015 — Introduction to Genealogy Workshop: Using Census Records
Computer Classroom, 3rd floor, Holyoke Public Library, Holyoke, 4 p.m.

A short workshop designed to provide new users with an introduction to finding and interpreting U.S. federal census records. Computer Classroom, 3rd floor. Free to all, but pre-registration recommended. Limited to 12. Call 413.420.8107. Additional workshops take place on May 18 and June 29.

26 April 2015 —  “Gravestone Art in the Face of Mortality”
Westhampton Historical Society
Community Rm., Westhampton Public Library, 1 North Rd., Westhampton, 2 – 3 p.m.

On Sunday, 26 April from 2:00 – 3:00, the Westhampton Historical Society has rescheduled the unique presentation by Alfred McKee, of Longmeadow, who will show images and discuss gravestone carving traditions of past centuries.  When Alfred McKee and his wife, Betsy, learned that their 1801 Longmeadow home had belonged to a prolific stonecutter named Hermon Newell, they wanted to learn more.  The McKees have been researching Newell and restoring the house since 1989.  Several hundred cemeteries and over 17,000 photographic images later, they are now quite familiar with the work of many of the 18th and 19th century Valley carvers, including Newell, Stebbins, Ely, Williston, Holland, and Brewer.

The McKees are now members of the Association for Gravestone Studies, an international organization founded to further the study and preservation of gravestones from historical and artistic perspectives. Al presented this same talk for the AGS in 2014.  Betsy and Al are also president and vice president, respectively, of the Longmeadow Cemetery Association.  Through their presentation, The McKees hope to inspire others to enjoy a fresh air walk through area burying grounds, identifying and appreciating some carved motifs and traditions found in the Valley.

This free presentation will be held in the Community Room of the Westhampton Public Library from 2:00 – 3:00 on Sunday afternoon, April 26th.  The library is located at 1 North Rd., Westhampton.  Call Barbara at 527-3209 with questions or for directions.

26 April 2015 — Tree Identification Walk
Pioneer Valley Institute
Meet in the parking area on Sanderson Rd next to the tennis courts, Greenfield, 10 a.m.

On Sunday, April 26, PVI continues its series of tree identification walks with naturalist Nancy Goodman, this time in the dry ridge environment of Poet’s Seat Tower. Participants will meet at 10 in the morning in the parking area at the base of the cliffs on Sanderson Rd next to the tennis courts, then walk up to the tower road. Bring binoculars, water, very warm clothes in many layers as you will not be walking much (and this area can be very windy), lunch, warm boots, and the book Bark by Michael Wojtech if you have a copy. There are no facilities here so please plan accordingly! The views are spectacular and the cost for this four-hour walk and talk is just $5 for the general public; it’s free for current PVI members. There is no rain date and the program is not handicapped accessible. Questions? Email to wildeyes@rcn.com.

25 April 2015 — “Eyes on Owls”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield, 1:30 p.m.

Licensed raptor rehabilitator, Julie Ann Collier will bring a variety of 6 live North American owls. Find out how owls use their specialized powers of sight, hearing and flight to survive and thrive. Find out which owls spend their nights on the prowl from the trees of Springfield Armory NHS. It’s always best to call first to confirm.

25 April 2015 — Western New England Chapter Meeting
Association for Gravestone Studies
Hadley Congregational Church, Hadley, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Please join us on Saturday, April 25, 10am-4pm — we will meet at the social hall of the Hadley Congregational Church in Hadley, Massachusetts. The morning program will include presentations by Dennis Picard, Arthur Mange, Jim Freeman and Bob Drinkwater.

Dennis, Director of Storrowtown Museum in West Springfield, will present: “A Search for Soprona: or How a Westfield Archive Holds the Clues to a Western Massachusetts Gravestone Carver, a Radical Religious Leader and the Final Tribute by a Grieving Husband and Father in 1835 Northwestern Connecticut. . . .”

Arthur, a retired biologist and current member of Pioneer Valley Photographic Artists, will share a selection of his gravestone/cemetery images.

Jim, an English Professor at UMass, Amherst, and editor of the AGS Quarterly, will present: “Cemeteries and Metanoia — How Gravestones Convert Onlookers”

Bob will preview the 2015 AGS Conference to be held at Westfield State University this June.

Coffee, snacks and lunch will be provided (we request a modest donation to help cover costs). After lunch, we will visit the Old Hadley Cemetery (est. 1661).

DIRECTIONS: The Hadley Congregational Church is located on Rte. 9, in the center of town, next to the Town Hall. From Rte. I-91 northbound, take Exit 19 and bear right, onto Rte. 9 east, across the Connecticut River. From Rte. I-91 southbound, take Exit 20, onto Rte. 5; turn left at the traffic light, onto Damon Rd., then turn left at the second traffic light, onto Rte. 9 east. The Town Hall and the Church will be on the right, at the intersection of Rtes. 9 and 47.

CALL FOR PRESENTATIONS: Do you have news, stories, and/or photos you’d like to share with local AGS members and friends? Contact Bob Drinkwater atsoulestones@gmail.com.

If you plan to attend the meeting, RSVP to anduruna@hotmail.com.

25 April 2015 — “Thoughts on Turning 200”
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge St., Northampton, 2 p.m.

As the 200th anniversary of the Three County Fair approaches, Bruce Shallcross will give a talk titled “Thoughts on Turning 200.”

Northampton’s annual Three County Fair, founded in 1817, is the oldest continuing agricultural fair in the United States. On April 25 at 2pm, Bruce Shallcross, the fair’s General Manager, will speak at Historic Northampton about the history of the Three County Fair and the development of agricultural fairs in general.

Northampton and its fair have shared good times and bad. The bad, Bruce says, have usually been river-related. The Valley’s older citizens may still remember the catastrophic flood of 1936. A spring freshet, further north, pushed the Connecticut River to overflowing; the flood rampaged through Hadley, Northampton, and elsewhere (the city of Springfield was devastated.) In this flood, the most disastrous local flood in twenty years, water covered the fairgrounds ten feet deep. The city and its fair have a unique shared history; together they reflect changing times. For example, horse racing was integral to the fair for decades. What led to its decline and loss of popularity? It’s especially interesting to look at this question now, when new casinos are opening in the region.

Bruce Shallcross has been involved with the Fair since the 1980’s and has served as a Director, Vice President, President and Treasurer. He became its General Manger in 2002. Since 1970, Bruce has been a Certified Public Accountant, serving small businesses in the construction and machining trades in New England. On their farm in Conway Mass., Bruce and his wife raised Morgan horses, beef, hay and four children. Today Bruce lives in Williamsburg with his daughter and two of his seven grandchildren.

Bruce Shallcross’s talk is in conjunction with Stan Sherer’s exhibition at Historic Northampton “Fair People: Continuing a Tradition.”

25 April 2015 — Antiques Appraisal Day
Coolidge Museum, Forbes Library, 20 West St., Northampton, 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Professional appraisers from Skinner Inc. will be on hand to evaluate your items — anything from books to fine and decorative arts, toys, furniture, Americana, and folk art.  Participants are limited to 2 objects each at $10 per item. Prohibited items are coins, stamps, jewelry, and musical instruments. Hours are 11:30 to 4:30, in the Coolidge Museum at Forbes Library.

Appraisals will be offered by:

Karen Keane: As CEO of Skinner, Inc., Karen Keane oversees the operation of one of the world’s leading auction houses. Under her direction, Skinner has grown from a New England specialty auction house to a viable player in the international art and antiques marketplace. Karen was instrumental in the establishment of Skinner as a world-class auction gallery in Boston, as well as the company’s expansion into specialty areas that include Fine Musical Instruments, Science & Technology, Rare Books & Manuscripts, Fine Wines, and Judaica.

Devon Eastland: Devon Eastland joined Skinner in 2012 after more than twenty years as the co-owner and founder of James & Devon Gray Booksellers in Harvard Square. Devon is widely known for her expertise in books printed prior to 1700 including those from the Pre-medieval, Medieval, Renaissance, Reformation, Elizabethan, Jacobean, and Restoration periods. She is much in demand as an appraiser and cataloger of antiquarian books, and has served in an advisory role to individual and institutional collectors, including Harvard University, The Shepard Historical Society, Boston College, and the Cleveland Public Library’s Department of Special Collections.

George Lewis: George Lewis established and ran his business, George Thomas Lewis & Co., for over 35 years. The business specialized in estate liquidations and antiques, and Lewis built a strong reputation in the region for integrity, thoroughness, and professionalism. Karen Keane, Skinner CEO, said, “George has years of experience working with objects of value and is known for his courteous demeanor and personal service. We are delighted to have him represent Skinner in Western Massachusetts.”

For more information contact friendsofforbes@gmail.com .  All proceeds benefit the Friends of Forbes Library.

25 April 2015 — Reception for “Springfield Armory Goes to Hollywood”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield, 6 p.m.

On Saturday, April 25, 2015 at 6:00 pm come to the premier opening reception of the Springfield Armory Goes to Hollywood exhibit. This unique exhibit runs until September 30, 2015. Join us for an enjoyable evening with refreshments and a cash bar.  Free Admission to the Museum and Reception.

“Although Springfield Armory firearms were all made for military use, some of the Armory weapons had another life in Hollywood staring in famous movies such as Jaws, Sargent York, and the Springfield rifle,” declared Joanne M. Gangi-Wellman, chief of interpretation.

From the prop houses of the film industry, Springfield Armory NHS will showcase firearms used in blockbuster Hollywood movies.  Springfield Armory goes to Hollywood allows us to tell a fun and often unknown aspect of Armory firearms history. For visitors it is a onetime opportunity to experience these remarkable movie props.  The exhibit features such specialties as two rubber prop copies of Colt 1847 Walker Revolvers, which were used by Clint Eastwood for stunts in the cult classic “Outlaw Josey Wales” and a Savage Arms company 1907 pistol fired by Jude Law in the gangster movie “Road to Perdition.”

Curator Alex Mackenzie explains “A primary Armory firearm used was the Trapdoor because there was a surplus available to Hollywood.  Whether correct to the period or not, Trapdoors were easy to handle and load for the actors.  An attempt was made to make the Trapdoor gun more visually like a 1903, Krag Jorgenson or other rifles needed for the film.”  Throughout the six month exhibit Park Rangers will treat visitors to highlight tours, back stories of the displayed firearms and up close and personal opportunities to study Armory weapons.

The Springfield Armory National Historic Site is the location of the nation’s first armory (1794 – 1968) and was established by George Washington. The site includes historic grounds, buildings, and the world’s largest historic American military firearms collection. The park is open Wednesday – Sunday from 9am – 5pm. There is ample parking and the building is wheelchair accessible. For further information and weather cancellations call 413-734-8551 or check the website at http://www.nps.gov/spar or go to http://www.facebook.com/SPARNHS.

25 April 2015 — “Plainfield Aquaduct Company: 1816 – 1975”
Plainfield Historical Society
Meet behind the Shaw Memorial Library (312 main Street), Plainfield, 1 p.m.

Hidden Walls, Hidden Mills: Sinking deeply into spring mud, as most of us are doing, reminds us of the abundance of water that once made Plainfield a center of industrial farming, a boomtown of sorts in which land speculation went hand in hand with great civic efforts to build a community. In five guided talks/walks, learn to see old Plainfield in the landscape, about the mills, springs, and wells, “read” stone foundations and walls like so many tablets, interpret trees and plants to find cellar holes, and enrich your understanding of hill town history.

Plainfield Aquaduct Company: 1816 – 1975. Learn about the first commonly-held utility in Plainfield history and then find the source of PAC water. Make sure to wear boots and be tick safe. Meet behind the Shaw Memorial Library (312 main Street)  at 1 pm.

1pm  history “show and tell”; 2 pm adventure on foot

Other dates: Saturday April 25, Sunday June 7, Sunday July 12, Sunday August 16, and Saturday October 10th. Some of these are moderate to strenuous hikes, some are walks, but all are adventures  — be sure to dress appropriately. Details for each event will be announced separately.

Look for announcements in the Plainfield Post and on the PHS website, plainfieldmahistory.org (brochures for all the walks are also available for downloading and printing there).

For more information, contact Pleun Bouricius (bouric@post.harvard.edu – 634-2250)

Creation of  Hidden Walls, Hidden Mills was funded in part by Mass Humanities (masshumanities.org)

25 April 2015 — “Dinosaur Valley, the Best Place in the World to Study Geology.”
Pioneer Valley Institute
Meet at the bus stop at the south end of the GCC campus (park in lot F), Greenfield, 1 p.m.

On Saturday PVI president and geologist Richard Little will take you on a tour through “Dinosaur Valley, the Best Place in the World to Study Geology.” Participants will meet at 1 o’clock at the bus stop at the south end of the GCC campus (park in lot F) and begin the tour with the college’s Rock Park and then continue on (by carpooling) to Highland Park, Poet’s Seat, Stop and Shop, and eastward along Route 2 to the base of the French King Bridge (Dorsey Rd). This popular program has been offered previously. Come again! You are guaranteed to find faults with this trip. Join Prof. Richard Little for a tour through early Mesozoic time (Triassic and Jurassic Periods) and see evidence of continental “drift”, dinosaurs, lava flows, and a place where the rare armored mud balls were formed. Heavy rain cancels. For questions: RDLittle2000@aol.com or (413) 527-8536. This program is free!

24 April 2015 — “Stand Proudly as a Soldier”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, 2 p.m.

Grasp & shoulder the Union soldier’s Springfield musket by watching original films of an actual Civil War veteran demonstrating how to do it. Learn from a Civil War soldier who fought in the war! Visitors will be issued their own wooden toy musket for the training.

24 April 2015 — “Envisioning Emancipation: Black Americans and the End of Slavery”
History Bites Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity Street, Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

In this illustrated talk, Dr. Barbara Krauthamer will highlight the intersecting histories of photography and slavery and emancipation in the 19th-century U.S. Using photographic images of African Americans and images created by African American photographers, this presentation considers the ways in which photographs helped shaped understandings of African American slavery and freedom in the past and also in the present.

Barbara Krauthamer, Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director in the History department at the University of Massachusetts/Amherst, is the author of many essays and articles on the history of slavery and emancipation. She is the author of Black Slaves, Indian Masters: Slavery, Emancipation, and Citizenship in the Native American South, and co-author of Envisioning Emancipation: Black Americans and the End of Slavery. The latter book was awarded the 2013 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work in non-fiction. Barbara is currently working on a book about enslaved African and African American women’s strategies of resistance in the 18th-century Atlantic World.

Barbara has received awards and funding from: the Association of Black Women Historians; the National Endowment for the Humanities; Stanford University’s Research Institute for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity; Yale University’s Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition; the Institute for Historical Studies at the University of Texas at Austin; and the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

Join us with your lunch in hand. We will provide coffee, tea and cider for you as you listen to the presentations. The 30-minute program will begin promptly at 12:15 with seating and beverages ready just before noon. The lectures are free and everyone is welcome to attend. For updated information, check our website at http://www.amhersthistory.org

23 April 2015 — “Armory Worker Doll Making Workshop”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, 2 p.m.

Be introduced by Ranger Jennifer Zazo-Brown to men and women who worked at the Armory. Next, craft an Armory worker doll out of recycled cloth and wire materials.

23 April 2015 — “Native American Legacy, the Gifts Left to us by the First People”
Southwick Historical Society
at Christ Church United Methodist Fellowship Hall, 222 College Highway, Southwick, 6 p.m.

The Southwick Historical Society will hold its annual catered dinner on Thursday April 23rd at 6 p.m. The location will be Christ Church United Methodist Fellowship Hall at 222 College Highway, Southwick Mass. This year’s menu is turkey dinner with all the trimmings. Tickets for the event are twelve dollars per person and must be paid in advance by sending a check to The Southwick Historical Society, P.O. Box 323, Southwick, MA 01077 by April 17th. Following dinner there will be a presentation by Sally Killips entitled “Native American Legacy, the gifts left to us by the first people”.

23 April 2015 — “The Conflicting Legacies of the Vietnam War: Why They Still Matter”
A Vietnam War Teach-In
Bernie Dallas Room, Goodell Hall, UMass Amherst, 7 p.m.

This diverse panel of veterans, peace activists, and historians will discuss the Vietnam War and share stories of combat, activism, and post-war life. This teach-in aims to further understandings of the realities and myths of America’s most controversial war and its impact on veterans, the national psyche, and the lives of Americans and Southeast Asians.

Panelists:

Christian Appy is Professor of History at UMass Amherst and the author of several acclaimed books on the Vietnam War, including Patriots: The Vietnam War Remembered From All Sides and American Reckoning: The Vietnam War and Our National Identity.

Cherie Rankin served in Vietnam with the U.S. Red Cross. Rankin is an advocate for the recognition of women’s service in Vietnam and has helped to organized several national conferences on the War.

Wayne Smith served two tours in Vietnam as an Army medic. Smith formerly worked at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, and he is former President of the Black Patriots Foundation. Now retired, Smith is an advisor to the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

Randy Kehler is a peace activist who spent 22 months in federal prison for his refusal to cooperate with the draft. Daniel Ellsberg credits Kehler with inspiring him to publicly release the Pentagon Papers.

Tom Weiner is author of Called to Serve: Stories of Men and Women Confronted by the Vietnam War Draft, which tells the stories of veterans, military family members, and resisters.

Tom Fricke, the event moderator, is a Social Studies teacher at Amherst-Pelham Regional H.S. who teaches a popular unit on the Vietnam War.

Free and Open to the Public. More Information: Rob Wilson, Veterans Education Project, wdwright@crocker.com; Susan Leary, Veterans Education Project, vep@crocker.com
Poster: http://www.umass.edu/history/documents/VietnamWarTeachIn.pdf
Website: http://vetsed.org/events-2/

Co-sponsored by the UMass Amherst Labor Center, the Five College Program in Peace and World Security Studies, the American Friends Service Committee of Western Massachusetts, and by the UMass Amherst Departments of Afro-American Studies, Economics, English, Political Science, Social Thought and Political Economy, Sociology, and Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies.

22 April 2015 — “Build and Keep a Bird Feeder”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, 10 a.m.

Meet Ranger Susan Ashman to make a bird feeder using a pinecone, sunflower butter, and birdseed. Learn which kinds of birds live on the Armory grounds. Participants then bring their bird feeders home to hang in the perfect location.

22 April 2015 — “The Wounds Within: A Veteran, a PTSD Therapist and a Nation Unprepared”
Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main St., Belchertown, 7 p.m.

Mark Nickerson, author of The Wounds Within: A Veteran, a PTSD Therapist and a Nation Unprepared, will talk about his book, which follows the iconic case of Marine Lance Corporal Jeff Lucey of Belchertown. Discussion, question and answer, and book signing.

19 April 2015 — “The Road Home from Appomattox”
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, 2 p.m.

Experience Ranger Melanie Hankins’ illustrated program that traces a one-of-a-kind Confederate musket through the last days of the Civil War. Learn more about the surrender at Appomattox Court House and a soldier’s journey home from war.

19 April 2015 — “An April Afternoon of Archaeology”
Deerfield Town Hall, 8 Conway St., South Deerfield, 1 – 3 p.m.

See the new Archaeology Display Cabinet recently constructed and given to the Town by Deerfield Academy. It
features never-exhibited artifacts from the 12,400 year-old Sugarloaf Site.

Hear about the Sugarloaf Site and the Paleo-Indians who lived and hunted in Deerfield from Dr. Richard Michael Gramly who directed two field seasons at the site. (Dr. Gramly will also be signing copies of his book on the Sugarloaf Site.)

Watch as a piece of flint is transformed into a fluted point similar to the ones found at the Sugarloaf Site.

Bring Native American artifacts you may have found and get an expertʼs analysis.

Refreshments.
Deerfield Town Hall is wheelchair-accessible.
This event is sponsored by the Deerfield Historical Commission.
Questions ? Call the DHC at 413-665-1400 x 336 and leave a message.

18 April 2015 — Springfield Armory Book Talk
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, 2 p.m.

Join Alex MacKenzie, Springfield Armory’s Curator and author of the new book, Springfield Armory (part of the “Images of America” series) for a book signing and talk about this exciting new project.

18 April 2015 — Patriot’s Day Revolutionary Muster & Parade
Historic Deerfield, Deerfield, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Travel back in time and rediscover the history behind the Patriot’s Day holiday and the “shot heard ’round the world” at Historic Deerfield on Saturday, April 18.  The Patriot’s Day Revolutionary Muster & Parade will offer a full day of activities for visitors of all ages throughout the village, including a colonial-era encampment.

“Our intention is for visitors to gain a richer sense of what life was like in early America,” said Laurie Nivison, Director of Marketing at Historic Deerfield. “The Revolution played out in different ways all across our state as people responded to the news of what happened on April 19, 1775, in Lexington and Concord.”

Revolutionary times will come to life through demonstrations of period crafts and activities, fife and drum music, a re-enacted skirmish, and a parade and muster. Historic Deerfield Guides and Open Hearth Cooks will interpret open hearth cooking and powder horn carving in the 1786 Hall Tavern. Horse-drawn wagon rides will transport visitors through the village, and all historic houses will be available for touring. Visitors can make a flag to wave during the afternoon parade, and then take it home as a memento. Self-guided “Liberty Walk” tours will be available.

From the opening “Reveille” at 10:30 a.m., visitors can experience a typical day in a colonial encampment.  Highlights will include a parade accompanied by the fifes and drums to the Town Green, the reading aloud of an official “Muster,” as well as a re-enactment of an attack.  On-going demonstrations include camp cooking, sewing uniforms, and children’s toys and games.

“We are proud to welcome The Nathan Hale Ancient Fifes and Drums who will play a lead role in the day’s activities and create the encampment,” said Nivison.  “Their talented re-enactors in period costume will bring to life the sights and sounds of Revolutionary times.”

The Nathan Hale Ancient Fifes & Drums have been officially recognized by the State of Connecticut as the reactivated 19th Connecticut Regiment of Foote – Continental Line.  The Incorporated group consists of four units: The Field Music, Knowlton’s Connecticut Rangers, Capt. Stephen Buckland’s Artillery, and the Company of Artificers.  They have performed at a number of leading historic sites including Old Sturbridge Village, Heritage Plantations, Van Cortland Manor, and Valley Forge.

Also on view will be the exhibition Engraved Powder Horns from the French and Indian War and the American Revolution: The William H. Guthman Collection at Historic Deerfield’s Flynt Center of Early New England Life.  One of the finest assemblages of this indigenous and unique American art form ever presented, these 75 powder horns offer a wealth of documentary information about the original owners and carvers who created them.

The Patriot’s Day Revolutionary Muster & Parade will take place at Historic Deerfield on Saturday, April 18, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., rain or shine.  Admission is $14 for adults (18+), $5 for youth (6-17), under 6, Deerfield residents and members are free. Family-friendly food will be available for purchase.

For more information, including a detailed schedule of the day’s activities, please log ontowww.historic-deerfield.org, or call (413) 775-7214.

18 April 2015 — “Cyclonic: Queen of Vaudeville”
Wistariahurst Museum
238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 7:30 p.m.

Join us on April 18 at 7:30 pm for an unforgettable evening of a unique musical experience titled “Cyclonic.” Cyclonic is a dramatized stage rendering of four scenes from the book The Queen of Vaudeville, told with music and pictures. Holyoke’s own Eva Tanguay (1878-1947) was the biggest star of the vaudeville stage, a variety-format entertainment that was hugely popular in the years 1880-1920.

Of French-Canadian heritage, her family moved to Holyoke, Massachusetts. Here, amid thousands of immigrants, Eva became a child performer. By 1900 she gained notice for her quick timing and boisterous energy, and she entered vaudeville as a featured star, partly on the success of her hit song “I Don’t Care.” Eva took vaudeville by storm and was soon the highest-paid performer in vaudeville. Eva continued to break box office records and draw legions of adoring fans, even though her hair-trigger temper, iconoclasm, and perfectionism often earned her the rancor of managers, censors, and peers.

Author Andrew Erdman came up with the idea of turning an ordinary book signing into a something livelier – a musical show. Acclaimed songwriter and musician, Mary Lorson has a family connection to Eva Tanguay’s entourage, and has written songs inspired by Eva as well as interpreted a number of the tunes that helped Tanguay to become the “cyclonic comedienne” of the vaudeville stage. Cyclonic not only gives a taste of the book Queen of Vaudeville and a sample of Mary Lorson’s performing talents, but also revives the spirit of Eva Tanguay, the mighty queen of vaudeville—if only for an evening.

Reservations required. Tickets can be purchased online by clicking here or by calling the Museum at 413-322-5660.

This event is sponsored by MIFA, Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts.

18 April 2015 — “Prayers in Stone”
Western Mass. Chapter of the Massachusetts Archeological Society
Deerfield Teachers’ Center, 10 Memorial St., Deerfield, 2 p.m.

PRESENTER:  Dr. Curtiss Hoffman, Anthropology Department, Bridgewater State University

Scattered throughout the wooded backlands of the Atlantic seaboard are a large number of standing lithic structures that have mostly been ignored by conventional archaeologists. Often dismissed as colonial era stone walls and field clearing piles, these formations are increasingly emerging as part of a Native American tradition of ritual building practices that played a vital role in sociocultural events. Native people refer to them, succinctly, as “prayers in stone”.

Over the past three years, the author has been focused on obtaining locational data on these potential Native American sacred sites from Georgia to Nova Scotia, in order to establish patterns between their construction techniques, environmental positioning, and event-specific structural alignments. Utilizing GIS software, 4,475 sites in the region have been geolocated, providing a basis for understanding these sites in their original contexts.  Dr. Hoffman will share some of the results of these models, as well as anecdotal evidence which allows him to conclude that the majority of these sites are not the result of colonial field clearance or wall building activities, but instead form a class of underexamined structures of Native origin (pre- and post-Contact) which form an important part of the indigenous people’s relationship to the landscape as a sacred place.  The work of this project is only the first step in a larger effort to rediscover and preserve the cultural heritage and knowledge Native Americans in the area have long practiced and projected onto their physical landscape.

Dr. Curtiss Hoffman is professor of Anthropology at Bridgewater State University, where he has taught courses in archaeology and cognitive anthropology since 1978.  He is the author of several monographs and numerous articles on archaeology in northeastern North America, and on mythology, and has conducted numerous field excavations on pre-European sites in the region.  He currently serves as Bulletin Editor and Membership Secretary of the Massachusetts Archaeological Society, and as President-Elect of the Northeastern Anthropological Association.

16 April 2015 — “The Pioneer Valley & the California Gold Rush”
Hatfield Historical Society
at the Hatfield Congregational Church, 41 Main St., Hatfield, 7 p.m.

Have you missed Cliff McCarthy’s Gold Rush presentation in the past? Well, here’s your chance! Why did they leave and what did they find? Did they make it back? Would you have gone if you’d been in their shoes?

The California Gold Rush was a pivotal period in American history, having an enormous impact on migration, land development, the slavery debate, and the nation’s economy.  Many pioneers from western Massachusetts played important roles in the development of California, and many of those who returned to New England built on their western adventures to achieve positions of stature and importance in our communities.  This talk will tell the stories of some of these intrepid adventurers — our neighbors from another time.

Cliff McCarthy is the Archivist at the Lyman & Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History and at the Stone House Museum in Belchertown. Cliff is also president of the Pioneer Valley History Network, which is a network of historical museums, libraries, and sites, and local history enthusiasts who share information about their programs, challenges, and research questions.

Program held at the Hatfield Congregational Church, 41 Main St., 7 pm (side door entrance)

Preceded by business meeting at 6:30 pm. All welcome. Free. Handicapped accessible. Refreshments to follow program.

Kathie Gow
Curator, Hatfield Historical Museum     http://hatfieldhistory.weebly.com
Oral History Producer     http://www.wordspicturesstories.com

13 April 2015 – “Our Stories: The Jews of Western Massachusetts”
Historical Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Jane Kaufman will read excerpts from her book and describe her research process highlighting Holyoke residents and featuring the stained glass works at Congregation Sons of Zion. Admission $7 general / $5 members (pay at door)

12 April 2015 — “Uncommon Loons”
Spring Program Series
Quabbin Visitor Center, 485 Ware Rd., Belchertown, 2-3 p.m.

The Quabbin Visitor Center is located in the Department of Conservation and Recreation Quabbin Administration Building, 485 Ware Road in Belchertown.  The entrance to Quabbin Reservoir is located on Route 9, three miles east of the Route 9/202 intersection.  For additional information and to check on the program status, please contact the Center at (413) 323-7221.

11 April 2015 — “Pillow Talk: Discovering Early New England Bed Chambers”
Deerfield Community Center, Historic Deerfield, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Few spaces are more personal than the bedroom. In the past, bed chambers functioned as multipurpose spaces for sleeping, lovemaking, tending young children, getting dressed, washing and toileting, entertaining friends, giving birth, caring for the sick, and ultimately dying. The most important focal piece of the bed chamber was the bed and its textiles or “bed furniture.” For the very wealthy, highly decorated beds represented a status symbol. The quest for comfort and a good night’s sleep was not to be taken for granted in early America. This one-day forum at Historic Deerfield brings together a diverse group of historians and specialists who will focus on the functions and material culture of the New England bed chamber. We will discuss issues of fashion and status, comfort, privacy, sleep patterns, health, and hygiene.

Jane C. Nylander, President Emerita of Historic New England and author of Our Own Snug Fireside: Images of the New England Home, 1760-1860, will provide an overview of the New England bed chamber, and focus on sleep and repose, display and comfort, privacy and neighborliness, as well as hygiene and fashion.

Dr. A. Roger Ekirch, Professor of History at Virginia Tech and author of At Day’s Close: Night in Times Past, will speak on how sleep patterns were different before the invention of artificial illumination. Hundreds of years ago, people enjoyed two sleep sessions in one night: a first sleep and a second sleep, with as long as two hours of wakefulness in between.

Amanda Lange, Curatorial Department Director and Curator of Historic Interiors at Historic Deerfield, will discuss the functions of the bed chamber through the lens of ceramics, examining such objects as chamber pots and commodes, basins and ewers, shaving bowls and ointment pots, spit pots, feeders and food warmers.

Natalie Larson, owner of Historic Textile Reproductions in Williamsburg, Virginia, will deconstruct the anatomy of the best bed: the mattresses or ticks, linen sheets and pillow cases, and the bed hangings as well as different bed forms and bed foundations (e.g. sacking vs. rope). Her talk will also focus on new discoveries and recent investigations of some of the best remaining beds and bed hangings in New England. The program also includes tours of Historic Deerfield’s period houses to see examples of bed chambers from different time periods and economic levels.

The day ends at the Flynt Center of Early New England Life with an informal examination of Historic Deerfield’s documented examples of bed hangings and textiles with Associate Curator of Textiles David E. (Ned) Lazaro.

Registration Information
The cost for the program is $115 ($95 for members, $125 for new members*) and includes lunch. Save $10 off your program fee when you register by February 27, 2015. For more information and registration, contact Julie Orvis at jorvis@historic-deerfield.org or (413) 775-7179. Follow the links below to download a brochure or register online.

10 April 2015 — “The Rescue of Angeline Palmer”
History Bites Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity Street, Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

In the spring of 1840, prominent Belchertown attorney and businessman Mason Shaw schemed to transport his ten-year-old, African-American servant girl, Angeline Palmer, to Georgia in order to sell her into slavery. Only a daring rescue by members of Amherst’s African-American community saved her from this fate. Cliff McCarthy, Belchertown’s Stone House archivist, will present the story along with new research into the event.

Cliff McCarthy is an archivist at the Lyman & Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History and at the Stone House Museum in Belchertown. A local historian and avid genealogist, he is also the president of the Pioneer Valley History Network. He has written, co-written, or edited three books on Belchertown’s history.

Join us with your lunch in hand. We will provide coffee, tea or cider for you as you listen to the presentations. The 30-minute program will begin promptly at 12:15 with seating and beverages ready just before noon. The lectures are free and everyone is welcome to attend. For updated information, check our website at http://www.amhersthistory.org

9 April 2015 — “Fatal Flight: Sen. Kennedy’s Plane Crash”
Southampton Historical Society
at the Southampton Congregational Church, Southampton, 7 p.m.

1964, … The year of the Beatles and Civil Rights legislation, but for Southampton … The year of Senator Ted Kennedy’s plane crash!  Following up on aviation history, we are hosting an evening of local memories and oral history in recognition of the 50th anniversary of the plane crash in Bashista’s Orchards. Come find out about this intriguing aspect of Southampton history, seldom mentioned, but nationally recognized.

9 April 2015 — “Great Wall of Erving”
Pioneer Valley Institute
Stinchfield Hall, Greenfield Community College, Greenfield, 7 p.m.

The Pioneer Valley Institute will be taking us on a virtual journey to explore the geology in the Great Wall of Erving on Thursday evening, April 9. Our tour leaders will be the local and enthusiastic geologists Harry Sharbaugh and Ed Gregory and Holyoke Community College Earth Science professor Steve Winters. The program, which begins at 7 o’clock in Stinchfield Hall on the Greenfield Community College campus, is open and free to the public.

You’ve seen it a million times, wanted to know more about it, get a closer and slower look, but could never bring your car to a legal stop, let alone park it.  Yes, it’s “The Great Wall of Erving”!  You know, the road-cut and wall on Route 2 across from the Erving Paper Company that climbs into the sky showing off a few hundred million years of incredible geologic history.

Now intrepid geology amateurs Harry Sharbaugh and Ed Gregory, and Professor Steve Winters have taken that closer and slower look for you and have prepared a virtual sightseer’s tour of The Wall you can enjoy in the comfort of GCC’s Stinchfield Hall.  Please join us and see what The Wall is really all about.

8 April 2015 — Shays’ Rebellion
Coolidge Museum, Forbes Library, Northampton, 7 p.m.

After the American Revolutionary War, Daniel Shays and others, many of them veterans of the war, attempted to storm and occupy the Springfield Arsenal on January 25, 1787. It was an action against heavy fees and taxes imposed to pay the war debt. Come hear Daniel Bullen, a poet; Constance Congdon, a playwright; and Richard Colton, historian at the Springfield Armory, discuss these events as well as present work based on this dramatic moment in local history. Books will be available for sale.

6 April 2015 – “The Earliest Origins of African-American Families of Western Massachusetts: 1650-1865”
Historical Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

As part of Wistariahurst’s Spring Lecture Series, Joseph Carvallo III, will give a history lecture about the history of African Americans in Western Massachusetts from the earliest days of colonial slavery to the Civil War. This is a story of brave individuals and families who endured generations of bondage. Their post-slavery experiences in this region will be traced and the development of the earliest African American led institutions will be chronicled. Helpful tips for tracing early African Americans through historical records will also be shared.

Joeseph Carvallo III is a retired executive director of the Springfield Museums. He holds a M.A. American History from College of William and Mary and has co-authored over 40 books and historical articles. He is currently working on independent historical and genealogical research. Tickets are $7 general / $5 members at the door. For more information call 413-322-5660.

6 April 2015 — Oral History Crash Course
UMass Amherst Public History Program
601 Herter Hall, UMass Amherst, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

This one-day intensive from the UMass Amherst Public History Program offers an introduction to oral history theory and methodology. Participants will learn about interviewing techniques, project planning, archiving, oral history ethics, recording technologies, and more. This workshop is geared toward beginners, including individuals with no prior experience and those in the beginning stages of developing projects of all kinds. Open to all Five College undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, community historians, and the general public.

Free and Open to the Public. Light Lunch Included.

Preregistration: Participation is limited to 25. We kindly request your preregistration. Please email outreach@history.umass.edu to secure your spot.

Workshop Faculty:
Professor Sam Redman, Workshop Facilitator (UMass Amherst History Department)
Professor Joyce Berkman (UMass Amherst History Department)
Professor Doug Boyd (Director, Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky)
Professor Laura Lovett (UMass Amherst History Department)
Professor Emily T.H. Redman (UMass Amherst History Department)
Aaron Rubenstein (Digital Archivist, UMass Amherst Special Collections and University Archives)

Poster: http://bit.ly/1bCpbmu
Questions? Contact sredman@history.umass.edu

6 April 2015 — “Transnational Fight for the Rights for Undocumented Migrants, 1965-1986”
Feinberg Family Distinguished Lecture Series
Bernie Dallas Room, Goodell Hall, UMass Amherst, 4 p.m.

A Lecture by Professor Ana Raquel Minian (Stanford University)

This talk will explore how Mexican undocumented migrants forged a transnational struggle to achieve rights in Mexico and the United States. It will focus on the 1970s, a decade that saw the rapid rise in unauthorized border crossing and the displacement of Mexican workers from both countries. In this context, migrants found ways to fight for their political, economic, and social inclusion.

Ana Raquel Minian is Assistant Professor of History and Comparative Studies of Race and Ethnicity at Stanford University. A public reception for Professor Minian will take place at 3 p.m. in the Herter Hall 6th floor lobby. All are welcome.

The Feinberg Family Distinguished Lecture Series is a biennial lecture series on pressing social issues in interdisciplinary perspective made possible thanks to the generosity of UMass History Department alumnus Kenneth R. Feinberg (B.A., 1967) and associates. The theme of the 2014-2015 series is Migration Matters: Rethinking Immigration in the Modern Americas.

Directions: Goodell Hall is a short walk from the UMass Amherst Campus Center parking garage. For directions to Goodell, click here. For directions to the UMass Amherst Campus Center parking garage, click here.

Website: http://www.umass.edu/history/about/Minian.html
Contact: communications@history.umass.edu Poster: http://bit.ly/1xkKQcq

5 April 2015 — “Welcome to Spring Open House”
Keep Homestead Museum
35 Ely Rd., Monson, 1 – 3:30 p.m.

The museum has wakened from winter hibernation and will be open to the public for the season. People often want to spend time just looking at the collections, so there will be no program on this day; however, refreshments will be served. There is no admission charge.

Tour the museum and marvel at the items collected by the Keep family who lived there for over 150 years. There is furniture, silver and cut glass, collections of rocks, minerals and shells, quilts and other needlework done by the women of the family, along with the extensive button collection (the pride of the museum). Visit the bedroom that Charles and Pearl Keep moved into on their wedding day in 1893 and that has the original wallpaper, carpet, furniture and the bill-of-sale for the furniture.

Unknown to many, Monson is home to a national treasure, cited on countless websites and known to antique button collectors everywhere. The museum houses one of the most outstanding antique button collections in the U.S. and is well worth a visit!

The museum property has a beautifully preserved and restored 19th century farm house and which, besides being home to the premier button collection, offers visitors over two miles of nature trails in 75 acres and carefully recreated gardens, The homestead, consisting of the land, a barn and the house with sixteen rooms, three attics and three cellars was donated to the Town of Monson when Myra Keep Moulton died in 1988.

For more information, call 413-267-4137, email khm@keephomesteadmuseum.org or visit the web at http://www.keephomesteadmuseum.org

4 April 2015 — “Sam Adams, Fox News, and Freedom of the Press”
Community Room, Forbes Library, Northampton, 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Allen Woods will read from his recent historical fiction novel, The Sword and Scabbard: Thieves and Thugs and the Bloody Massacre in Boston, and lead a discussion on how modern democratic ideals were evident, or not, in early Revolutionary activities in Boston.

The Sword and Scabbard is a fictional waterfront tavern in 1760s Boston that is home to both political and criminal intrigue. The main characters would like to steer clear of the conflicts in the streets, but eventually are thrust into the middle of them. As the Boston Massacre approaches, Nicholas Gray, bartender and part-time thief, is forced to make decisions between saving himself and crippling the march towards the Revolution. Books will be available for signing afterwards. Visit the web site at http://www.theswordandscabbard.com

Allen Woods, 413-774-5873

1 April 2015 — “In Search of the Movement: The Struggle for Civil Rights Then and Now”
University of Massachusetts History Department
601 Herter Hall, UMass Amherst, 4 p.m.

In Search of the Movement: The Struggle for Civil Rights Then and Now examines the legacy of the freedom struggle of fifty years ago, while also attempting to see to what extent the same kind of work is going on today. While most view the civil rights movement as something that ended a long time ago, Hedin wonders if it would be better to view it as a continuum–an ongoing tradition of activism–rather than an isolated historical moment.  To test that position, Hedin blends history, journalism and travelogue, and profiles the movement’s most legendary figures as well as those who have been overlooked by the public eye.  In a time when voting rights have again been threatened and #blacklivesmatter has become a cultural buzzword, In Search of the Movement is essential, a fascinating meditation on the patterns of history as well as an indelible look at the meaning and limits of American freedom.

Benjamin Hedin is author of In Search of the Movement: The Struggle for Civil Rights Then and Now, recently published by City Lights Books. He is editor of the anthology, Studio A: The Bob Dylan Reader and producer and author of a forthcoming documentary, The Blues House. His writing has appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Slate, The Nation, The Oxford American, The Chicago Tribune, and Poets and Writers. He has taught at New York University and The New School for Social Research. You can visit him at http://www.benjaminhedin.com. Sponsored by the University of Massachusetts History Department. Books will be available for purchase courtesy of Amherst Books.

1 April 2015 — “Northampton and the Coolidges in the 1920s and 30s”
All Hamptons Read: The Maltese Falcon
Forbes Library, 20 West St., Northampton, 7 p.m.

The Maltese Falcon was published in 1930 and the story is set in 1928. What was Northampton like during that time? Calvin Coolidge was finishing up his term as the 30th President of the United States and returning to live out the remainder of his years in Northampton.

Join Julie Bartlett-Nelson, Elise Bernier-Feeley and Dylan Gaffney from the library’s Information Services team as they set the scene both locally and nationally including a visual tour using historic photographs of Northampton during the ’20s and ’30s. What has changed and what has been lost?

MARCH

11 – 25 March 2015 — “The Decorative Arts of the China Trade”
Historic Deerfield Museum Course
Flynt Center of Early New England Life, 37D Old Main St., Historic Deerfield

The word “China” evokes a sense of distance, romance, and mystery.  China is an ancient culture and a cradle of invention; the Chinese discovered the technology to make silk fabric, gunpowder, and paper while also providing the West with its first taste of tea and first piece of porcelain. Western merchants have always been attracted to the products of China, and in pursuit of profits have made every effort to obtain them.  Even today, the decorative arts of the China trade continue to fascinate the collector as well as the historian.

This museum course will examine how western merchants transacted business under China’s unique set of rules and regulations, called the Canton System.  The various export items produced by Chinese craftsmen (often to western specifications), such as paintings and drawings, silver, fans, lacquerware, and porcelain will be discussed. Each session will be divided into a lecture and a study session with objects from the Historic Deerfield collection as learning tools.  On the final evening, specialist Ned Lazaro, Associate Curator of Textiles and Collections Manager, will present information on Chinese silks, silk embroideries, and durable Chinese cottons called “nankeens.”

Wednesdays, March 11, 18, 25, 2015.  Course Schedule:

March 11 (7 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.): Lecture: “Merchants and Mandarins: An Overview of Western Commerce in 18th and 19th-Century China”; Study Session: Maps, Paintings, Watercolors, and Drawings

March 18 (7 p.m. – 9 p.m.): Lecture: “China for the West: Chinese Export Porcelain”; Study Session: Chinese export porcelain (Manufacture, Decoration, and European Influences)

March 25 (7 p.m. – 9 p.m.): Lecture: “Novelties for Sweethearts and Wives: Lacquerware, Fans, and Silver”; Lecture: “Chinese Textiles”; Study Session: lacquerware, fans, silver, silk, and nankeens

Save $15 off your course fee when you register by February 13, 2015.  For more information, contact Julie Orvis at  jorvis@historic-deerfield.org or (413) 775-7179.

7 February thru 28 March 2015 — “What’s in a Name? Villages, Hamlets and Hollows of the Swift River Valley”
Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls, 1-3 p.m.

Please join us at the Great Falls Discovery Center in Turners Falls on Saturday, February 7th, from 1 to 3 pm, for an opening reception of What’s in a Name? Villages, Hamlets and Hollows of the Swift River Valley, an exhibit of historic photos–families, houses, mills, factories, stores, schools, post offices, and churches.

On view are images of families, houses, stores, mills, factories, schools, churches, and scenic vistas. The family-friendly exhibit includes an interactive area inspired by village schoolhouses and colorful 3-D art by Pioneer Valley Regional School District students under the guidance of their art teacher, Althea Dabrowski. The exhibit is on view from February 7th through March 28th on Fridays and Saturdays from 10 am to 4 pm. (Note: the Great Hall is used for many community activities; to confirm the exhibit is accessible on a given day, call 413-863-3221.) This program is supported in part by grants from the Bernardston, Colrain, Deerfield, Erving, Gill, Montague, Northfield, and Shelburne Cultural Councils, local agencies supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

Seventy-six years ago four towns in west-central Massachusetts were destroyed to construct the Quabbin
Reservoir—to quench the thirst of the growing city of Boston to the east. In addition to the four “lost towns”— Dana, Enfield, Greenwich, and Prescott — land was purchased from nine other towns: Belchertown, Hardwick, New Salem, Orange, Pelham, Petersham, Shutesbury, Ware, and Wendell. These towns were made up of small villages and even smaller hamlets and hollows. People settled near each other for one reason or another — perhaps they were extended family, or worked in a mill or factory. Sometimes the name of the village or hamlet gives us a clue as to its origins, for example, the names Atkinson Hollow and Cooleyville came from families, Bobbinville from the factory that made bobbins, and Soapstone Station from the quarries nearby.

Executive Director, Sheila Damkoehler, comments, “Especially for those less familiar with the story, I think we see the “lost towns” in a more personal way when we picture small clusters of people who are related or closely connected. We can imagine these neighbors going about their daily lives in their homes, posting a letter, learning their lessons at school, or working at the mill or factory up the road.”
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The Swift River Valley Historical Society in New Salem, Massachusetts has been keeping alive the stories of the Swift River Valley for more than 75 years. For more information, to become a member, or to learn how you can help preserve photographs such as those on exhibit, visit http://www.swiftrivermuseum.org or call 978-544-6882.

February & March 2015 — “From Our Yards: Natural Landscapes”
Wistariahurst Gallery Exhibition
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke

The Photography of Les Campbell and Elaine Darr-Morton

Les Campbell and Elaine Darr-Morton’s show in the gallery at Wistariahurst Museum offers Quabbin landscapes, seascapes and rural settings celebrate the rich variety of local flora and fauna of New England and exemplify the artists’ personal approaches to photography – straightforward pictorial documentation, capturing the essential “decisive moment” of exposure.

Living on the edge of the shores of the great Quabbin Reservoir, Les Campbell’s “yard” is full of the local flora and fauna. His lens captures the native wildlife in action. In another “yard” he captures the picturesque rural New England farmstead with respect and reverence for the natural and magnificent landscapes of this part of New England.  Elaine Darr-Morton’s “yard” is on the Maine coast.  Her front steps overlook Frenchman’s Bay with Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park’s Mount Cadillac in the background.  Together, Campbell and Darr-Morton’s lenses reflect New England’s bountiful and beautiful natural environments.

Their personal approach to photography is straightforward, pictorial documentation of the subjects. The intent and emphasis of their work is on capturing the essence of the subject at a particular time. Composition and lighting are second only to the all-important “decisive moment” of exposure.

Les Campbell is among the best-known photographers of the Pioneer Valley.  His work has appeared in National Geographic and National Audubon and he has received many honors from the Photographic Society of America. Elaine Darr-Morton studied with Les and has frequently shown her work in area galleries. Together they operate the Sky Meadow Gallery in Belchertown, MA.

Meet Les Campbell and Elaine Darr-Morton at the opening reception on Sunday, February 1, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.  From our Yards: Natural Landscapes will be on view through March 30. The Wistariahurst Gallery is open Saturday, Sunday, and Monday 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.  Admission to the gallery is $3 general / Free for members

30 March 2015 – “The Polish Community in Chicopee”
Historical Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Chicopee Historian Stephen Jendrysik will tell the story of an immigrant entrepreneurial class and its’ impact on the business, political and social history of a small New England City. Admission $7 general / $5 members (pay at door)

30 March 2015 — “Welcome to the Graveyard – A Tour of Cemetery Art, History & Symbolism”
Wilbraham Public Library, Wilbraham, 6:30 p.m.

“Welcome to the Graveyard – A Tour of Cemetery Art, History & Symbolism”
Gravestone Girls at Wilbraham Library – Monday 3/30 6:30 pm

Talk will focus on Wilbraham cemeteries.  RSVP required 413.596.6141

27 March 2015 — “Quabbin Valley: Life As It Was”
History Bites Lunchtime Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity Street, Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

Quabbin Valley: Life As It Was (2015) is the third volume in the Images of America series from Arcadia Publishing by Elizabeth Peirce. Ms. Pierce will present a slide program of archival photographs featured in the book. When the 1927 Swift River Act allocated funds to construct the Quabbin Reservoir, it signaled the demise of the towns of Enfield, Dana, Greenwich, and Prescott which lay in the Swift River Valley. A total of 2500 people lost their homes, towns, and life as it was.

Elizabeth Peirce, curator of the Swift River Valley Historical Society, is the author of three books about life in the Swift River Valley before the Quabbin Reservoir. Quabbin Valley: Life as it Was, The Lost Towns of the Quabbin Valley, and Quabbin Valley: People and Places all draw on photographs from the Swift River Valley Historical Society in New Salem, Massachusetts. Since the 1960s, she has been a leader in the preservation of the memories and artifacts of the former residents of the four “lost towns.”

The author will sign books before and after the presentation.

Join us with your lunch in hand. We will provide coffee, tea or cider for you as you listen to the presentations. The 30-minute program will begin promptly at 12:15 with seating and beverages ready just before noon. The lectures are free and everyone is welcome to attend. For updated information, check our website at http://www.amhersthistory.org

26 March 2015 — Celebrate Robert Frost’s Birthday
Jones Library, Amherst, 5-7 p.m.

Join us on Thursday, March 26, 2015 between 5 pm and 7 pm for a reception in Special Collections in honor of the 141st anniversary of Robert Frost’s birth. The reception coincides with the opening of a new exhibit titled “Imaginings of Spring,” which features items from the Robert Frost Collection. Items on display include first editions of A Boy’s Will and New Hampshire; manuscripts of Frost’s poems “Blue-Butterfly Day” and “Putting in the Seed;” and a J.J. Lankes woodcut illustration of Robert Frost’s farm.

The reception will take place in the Exhibit Room of Special Collections located on the third floor of The Jones Library. Light refreshments will be served.  Free and open to the public.  For more information, please contact Cynthia Harbeson at 413/259-3097.

24 March 2015 — “Haiti’s Earthquake and the Limits of Charity”
UMass Amherst History Department and Five Colleges, Inc.
Cape Cod Lounge, UMass Amherst, with a simulcast at the UMass Springfield Center, 4 p.m.

Amy Wilentz is the winner of the Whiting Writers Award, the PEN Martha Albrand Non-Fiction Award, and the American Academy of Arts and Letters Rosenthal Award. In 2014, she won the National Book Critics Circle Award (Autobiography) for her book Farewell, Fred Voodoo. Wilentz has also written for the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, Mother Jones, the Village Voice, the London Review of Books and many other publications. She is a long-time contributing editor at The Nation. She teaches in the Literary Journalism program at the University of California at Irvine.

This lecture is part of the UMass History Department’s Writer-in-Residence program, which facilitates sustained conversation with widely-read authors whose historical work engages broad public audiences. The Writer-in-Residence program is generously supported by Five Colleges, Inc.

Locations:
This lecture will be held at the Cape Cod Lounge in the UMass Amherst Student Union, which is a short walk from the UMass Amherst parking garage. See map here: https://parking.umass.edu/images/maps/mapGarageParking.pdf. The simulcast will be held at the UMass Springfield Center, Tower Square, 1500 Main St., Springfield, MA. http://www.visittowersquare.com

23 March 2015 – “Poles in the Land of the Puritans”
Historical Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

“Poles in the Land of the Puritans” read the headline in local news when the great wave of immigration from Poland, the Ukraine, and Eastern Europe occurred at the turn of the 20th century. Using a wealth of material culture, artifacts, and images to bring alive the stories of those “aliens” of the first quarter century, we explore together the changing face of our valley. Come to touch, taste, and experience this important part of Western Massachusetts’ immigrant heritage.

Reba-Jean Shaw-Pichette is a museum educator and living history presenter from the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association (PVMA) in Old Deerfield where she has been creating and presenting interactive learning incorporating material culture since 1997. For many years she was director of the annual Eastern European Festival in Deerfield. She speaks on a wide range of subjects from Greek Elocution to the Roaring Twenties.

Tickets are $7 general / $5 members at the door. For more information call 413-322-5660.

22 March 2015 — “Patterns of Their Time: Design in Printed Textiles”
Winter Lecture Series
Deerfield Community Center, Historic Deerfield, 2 p.m.

by Linda Eaton, John L. & Marjorie P. McGraw Director of Collections and Senior Curator of Textiles, Winterthur Museum, Wilmington, DE

22 March 2015 — “The Brazen, the Bad, and the Beautiful: a Genealogist’s Memoir”
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge Street, Northampton, 2 p.m.

In her lecture, “The Brazen, the Bad, and the Beautiful”, Elise Bernier-Feeley will discuss some of the more bizarre and intriguing genealogical questions she’s been asked in her long career as a public library genealogy and local history librarian. (What’s that about the Pomeroy anvil?) Each question requires a different genealogical technique and set of sources, and sometimes even family heirlooms with unusual histories.

Ms. Bernier-Feeley, a native of the Connecticut Valley who grew up in the Northampton-Easthampton area, is the Local History and Genealogy Librarian for the Forbes Library. After graduating with honors from the University of Massachusetts with a double major in English history and American Studies, she received her Masters in Library Science from Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven. She came to the Forbes Library in 1982 from the Springfield Public Library System, and was appointed Reference, Genealogy and Local History Librarian, serving in that capacity until 2006. Now she pursues her passion (both professional and personal) by concentrating solely on local and family history in the Hampshire Room for Local History at the Forbes.

She is the recipient of a City of Northampton Preservation Award and the Frederick Henry Kramer Award for Excellence in the Study of History. She has served as an adjunct member of the Northampton Historical Commission and is cited in Who’s Who in America.

20 March 2015 — “North from the Springfield Armory”
Pioneer Valley Institute
Sloan Theater, Greenfield Community College, Greenfield, 7 p.m.

The Pioneer Valley Institute presents the program “North from the Springfield Armory: The Industrial Corridor” on Friday, March 20, at 7 PM, in the Sloan Theater on the Greenfield Community College campus. Richard Colton, historian and park ranger for the Springfield Armory NHS, and Jim Terapane, a state-certified journeyman machinist and president of The Museum of Our Industrial Heritage, will talk about the history of the many industries which followed the Connecticut River north as far as Windsor VT. The program is open to the public and free. No registration is required.

The Springfield Armory’s role in the establishment of a manufacturing region, incorporating what foreign observers called the “American System of Manufacturing,” rested on cooperative government-funded and private investment and development, and owed much to free enterprise and the movement of people and ideas. From its founding, chartered by George Washington, the technologies developed in the manufacture of arms at the Armory became the springboard for the spread of the machine tool industry stretching up the river to Windsor, Vermont. Join us to explore the genealogy of regional and Connecticut Valley companies, their connections to the Springfield Armory, and the industrial lineage of Franklin County.

Historic Deerfield Winter Lecture Series: “Textiles and Fashion in Early America”
Deerfield Community Center, Historic Deerfield, 2 p.m.

January 25: “‘Exquisite Selections:’ Masterpieces from the Historic Deerfield Textile Collection, ” by David E. (Ned) Lazaro, Collections Manager and Associate Curator of Textiles for Historic Deerfield.  2 p.m., Deerfield Community Center

February 22: “Boarding in Boston: Education, Embroidery and Refinement in the Late Colonial Period,” by Pamela Parmal, David and Roberta Logie Curator of Textile and Fashion Arts, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. 2 p.m., Deerfield Community Center

March 22: “Patterns of Their Time: Design in Printed Textiles,” by Linda Eaton, John L. & Marjorie P. McGraw Director of Collections and Senior Curator of Textiles, Winterthur Museum, Wilmington, DE.     2 p.m., Deerfield Community Center

19 March 2015 — “Talking with the Dead in Massachusetts”
Stone House Lecture Series
Stone House Museum, 20 Maple St., Belchertown, 7 p.m.

In the 1850s, Modern Spiritualism — talking to the spirits of the dead — became the fastest growing religious movement in the United States, claiming hundreds of thousands, if not millions of believers. Although its first manifestations took place in upstate New York, Massachusetts became one of its movement’s intellectual centers, with writers and spirit mediums throughout the state. Rob Cox will talk about the history of American Spiritualism, its people, their beliefs, and particularly their activity in western Massachusetts.

Rob Cox is an archivist and historian and for the last ten years, head of Special Collections at UMass Amherst. Since receiving his doctorate in history from the University of Michigan, he has published books on the history of the Spiritualist movement, the Lewis and Clark expedition, and the foods of New England.

19 March 2015 — “Connecticut River Oxbows”
Hatfield & Whately Historical Societies
at Whately Congregational Church, Whately, 7 p.m.

Come hear Gary Sanderson, an editor of the Greenfield Recorder, talk about the history of the Western Mass. Connecticut River oxbows. Focussing on the Whately and Hatfield oxbows, Gary will interpret a landscape he’s walked for almost 50 years, with input from wetlands scholars and his family’s local colonial roots. Refreshments by Whately Historical Society members.

19 March 2015 — “Exodus From Enfield: A Video Presentation”
Palmer Historical & Cultural Center, 2072 Main St., Three Rivers, 7 p.m.

“Exodus from Enfield” was recorded by Bob Wilder, a former resident of Enfield, MA, one of the towns flooded for the Quabbin Reservoir. In the video, Bob vividly describes what it was like to grow up in one of those four villages now underwater. The closing element is a montage of historic images from Prescott, Enfield, Dana, and Greenwich put to a song written about the demise of the towns and celebrating last ball that was ever held. This is the second showing of this video, back by popular demand!

The night will also include a short presentation by Maria Beiter-Tucker about her project to locate and document various buildings that were moved from those towns to new locations and still stand today.

Freewill donations kindly accepted.

18 March 2015 — “State of Your House” Part II
PVHN Rap Session
Forbes Library, Northampton, 6:30 p.m.

The “State of Your House” Part II deals with historical society boards: how they are created, what the various roles should be, how meetings are conducted and how to maintain the “official record” of the organization. Come hear what we’ve learned in our first year and where we are going from here. Come with your own hard-earned pearls of wisdom to share! Informal and everyone is invited.

16 March 2015 – “Paddy on the Railway: Irish Laborers and the Building of the Great Western Railroad”
Historical Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

As part of Wistariahurst’s Spring Lecture Series, Dennis Picard tells the story of the challenges of building the Western Railroad of Massachusetts linking the Boston & Worcester Railroad to the New York state line. The Western Railroad of Massachusetts was chartered in February of 1833. This transportation construction project was to link the Boston& Worcester Railroad to Springfield, across the Connecticut River and on to the New York state line. This undertaking, which only took five years to reach that goal, required hundreds of skilled and unskilled workers to complete. Though many ethnic groups were represented among the crews the vast majority of the labor was done by those of Irish birth or heritage. Come hear some of the stories of the trails and successes of this unique and very mobile workforce that called our area home for a few months and then was gone.

Dennis D. Picard has been a museum professional in the “Living History” field for over thirty-five years. He began his career at Old Sturbridge Massachusetts, in 1978, where he eventually spent twelve years filling various positions including “lead interpreter” where he researched and designed many public programs which are still offered by that institution today.

Tickets are $7 general / $5 members at the door. For more information call 413-322-5660.

15 March 2015 — “Quabbin Valley: Life As It Was”
Quabbin Visitor Center, 485 Ware Road, Belchertown, 2 p.m.

The Quabbin Visitor Center will host a presentation and book signing by Elizabeth Peirce for her most recent book entitled Quabbin Valley; Life As It Was on Sunday, March 15^th at 2:00 p.m.  Elizabeth Peirce is Curator, Board Member and past President of the Swift River Valley Historical Society (SRVHS) in New Salem and has authored two previous books on life in the valley before the creation of the Quabbin Reservoir.  Using images from the SRVHS photographic collection and accompanying narrative, she provides a rich image of life in the former towns of Dana, Enfield, Greenwich and Prescott through these books.  The program will share information about these images, the archival collection and the process of producing these books.  Copies of the book will be available for purchase and inscription following the presentation.

15 March 2015 — Maple Harvest Day
Storrowton Village, West Springfield, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Storrowton Village Museum will celebrate its 10th annual Maple Harvest Day on Sunday, March 15.  The event will showcase the history and lore of maple sugaring at the Gilbert Farmstead from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Museum director Dennis Picard will demonstrate Sugar Maple tree tapping, sumac spile making and how to boil sap over an open fire in the historic home’s front yard.

“People probably don’t realize how much the technology in making maple sugar and syrup has changed, even in the last decade. A lot of families are interested in what we do.  It’s also very sensory, you get to smell the syrup as it boils and touch the tree,” said Picard.

Inside the house, guides will demonstrate 19th century open hearth cooking at the cozy kitchen fireplace as well as quilting and spinning wool. The event is free and open to the public.  A selection of maple-themed gifts and cookbooks, including the Storrowton Village Museum’s “A Maple Harvest Sampler” cookbook will be sold nearby. For more information about this event, please call 413-205-5051 or visit thebige.com.

14 March 2015 — “Outside the Gallery: Public Sculpture in New England”
Deerfield-Wellesley Symposium
Deerfield Community Center, 16 Memorial Street, Old Deerfield, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

The annual Deerfield-Wellesley Symposium, held every odd year at Historic Deerfield, will be held on Saturday, March 14, 2015.  Titled “Outside the Gallery: Public Sculpture in New England,” the day-long symposium will explore the art and function of public sculpture in New England from the 19th century to the present. As objects of art and material culture, commissioned works of public art reflect aesthetic, civic, and institutional ideals as well as choices made by both artists and clients working at a particular moment in history. Such sculptures also offer special opportunities to explore the ways in which communities and individuals have chosen to commemorate, memorialize, mourn and/or celebrate people and events in a public setting.  The symposium, which is free and open to the public, will be held at the Deerfield Community Center, 16 Memorial Street, Old Deerfield, from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Pre-registration is required. A lunch will be available for purchase.

For a complete list of the presentations at the Deerfield-Wellesley Symposium, and to register, visit www.historic-deerfield.org/dw or download a flyer.  The symposium is sponsored by the Grace Slack McNeil Program for Studies in American Art at Wellesley College and the Office of Academic Programs at Historic Deerfield.

14 March 2015 — “Relive the Lewis & Clark Expedition”
Pilgrim Covenant Church, 605 Salmon Brook St., Granby, CT, 6 p.m.

In 1804, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark set off on an epic journey into the unknown wilderness of the west.  They and the Corps of Discovery traveled up the Missouri River to find its source and continued on to the Pacific Ocean, returning east in 1806. In 2006 and 2007, Pat and Harold Odiorne of Southwick retraced the journey of Lewis & Clark by car, with some hiking, and have prepared an illustrated presentation about this expedition so important to the history of the United States.

Please join us at Pilgrim Covenant Church, 605 Salmon Brook St. (Rtes. 10 & 202), Granby, Connecticut on Saturday March 14 at 6 P.M. for a hearty meal of stew and bread followed by a presentation on the epic journey of Lewis and Clark.  Admission is by donation, with proceeds to benefit the youth trip to Knoxville, Tennessee this July.

For more information and to make a reservation, please contact Pat Odiorne at (413-569-5846) or plodiorne@comcast.net.

13 March 2015 — “The Relocation of Quabbin Houses”
History Bites Lecture Series
Amherst Historical Society, Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity Street, Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

Amherst has been Jackie Tuthill’s home for 45 years. For much of that time she has hiked the paths of the Quabbin reservoir watershed with her family. In the fall of 2014, she took the Five College Learning in Retirement Course “Another View of Quabbin.” She chose the relocation of Quabbin houses in the Western Massachusetts area as the topic she would research and present to the class. She found this topic fascinating and rewarding and that it keeps the Quabbin story of the displaced residents alive, as it informs present and future generations. She will present background on individual Quabbin homes, who sold the homes to the MDWSC (Metropolitan District Water Supply Commission), and the present locations and current owners.

Jacqueline “Jackie” Tuthill grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania and received a BS degree in Medical Technology. She held many jobs and retired after 11 years as an administrative assistant in the Dean of Faculty office at Hampshire College. Jackie continues her strong interest in photography and has received awards in several juried shows. Taking a Five College Learning in Retirement course has set a new direction to follow by researching Quabbin homes.

Join us with your lunch in hand. We will provide coffee, tea or cider for you as you listen to the presentations. The 30-minute program will begin promptly at 12:15 with seating and beverages ready just before noon. The lectures are free and everyone is welcome to attend. For updated information, check our website at http://www.amhersthistory.org

9 March 2015 – “Introduction to Immigrant Communities in Western Massachusetts”
Historical Lecture Series
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 6 p.m.

with Wayne Phaneuf, and Joseph Carvallo, III.  Admission $7 general / $5 members (pay at door)

6 February thru 8 March 2015 — “Entering Northampton”
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge St., Northampton

Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton presents “Entering Northampton”, an exhibition of photographs by Ellen Augarten and prints from the museum’s Howland Collection of photographs. In 1998, when the home of the late Agnes Wright Howland (1903-1995) on Lyman Road in Northampton, was being cleared and cleaned for sale, several old photo albums were found in the dusty basement. The 350 photographs, made in the five years between 1895 and 1900, include images of families, identified and unidentified landscapes, Smith College, and other familiar Northampton sites. The family donated the albums to Historic Northampton.

Though Augarten set out to discover who the photographer/s of this collection were, that is still unknown; perhaps it was created by early photo enthusiasts. But she did discover how little she knew of the town she has called home for more than forty years. So far she’s merely scratched the surface of Northampton’s rich history, she says, but this project has already enriched her life as a (transplant) New Englander.

Her exhibit combines reprinted and mounted cyanotypes from the Howland Album, original pages from the Album, and 15 new contemporary, double exposures, together with brief histories.

Ellen Augarten’s work has turned from portraiture toward the more spontaneous and serendipitous double exposure. For the past few years she has been making in-camera ‘doubles’ of people, trees and flowers, roadways, bridges, buildings, train tracks, and more, combining and blending in both analogue and digital mediums. After working as a portrait photographer for twenty years, she received her MFA in Photography at the Hartford Art School. Her photographs have appeared in both group and solo shows in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York City, but mostly in our hometown, Northampton.

8 March 2015 — “Quabbin Boy Rescued From Obscurity”
Spring Program Series
Quabbin Visitor Center, 485 Ware Rd., Belchertown, 2-3 p.m.

Joins us as historian Joe Manning shares how he tracked down the story of a Greenwich boy who died in 1906, at the age of 13. Manning spotted his tiny gravestone almost hidden on the edge of the woods at Quabbin Park Cemetery, and within weeks, uncovered the details of his short life. The story (with pictures) gives a curious glimpse at life in Greenwich at the turn of the 20^th century.  Joe Manning, of Florence, Mass., is an author, historian and freelance journalist. His work has been featured on CBS Evening News, National Public Radio, and in Yankee Magazine.

7 & 8 March 2015 — Deerfield Crafts Fair
Young Building, Eastern States Exposition, West Springfield

The Deerfield Spring Sampler March 7 & 8 is looking forward to spring with the best of crafts people & some fun, free workshops at the ESE’s Young Building in West Springfield. After all the snow & cold this winter, we all are more than eager for Spring!

7 March 2015 — “The Hampshire & Hampden Canal”
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge Street, Northampton, 2 p.m.

Canal historian Carl Walter returns to Historic Northampton for an encore presentation of his public lecture, “The History of the Hampshire and Hampden Canal.” Mr. Walter is a retired pathologist who has been studying the canal since 1991. He has entered his research on the canal into a computer database accessed by referencing a map of the canal. Currently the database contains several thousand pictures and documents. He has walked the line of the canal twice and has visited all the libraries and historical societies in the canal towns of Connecticut and Massachusetts. Mr. Walter will explain why the canal was built, where it was located, how it was constructed as well as its importance to the canal towns with emphasis on the line of the canal in Northampton.

7 March 2015 — “Visions of the Past: Historic and Contemporary Quabbin Valley Images”
Swift River Valley Historical Society
at the Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls, 1 p.m.

Dale Monette presents “Visions of the Past” at the Great Falls Discovery Center in Turners Falls. The public program compares images of properties in the Swift River Valley before the Quabbin Reservoir was constructed 77 years ago―with views of each location photographed from the same vantage point today. The program, sponsored by the Swift River Valley Historical Society, is free.

The Metropolitan District Water Supply Commission took photographs of each property that was to be removed or destroyed to make way for the reservoir and its watershed. With today’s scanning technology providing enlarged views, previously unnoticed details can now be seen in the MDWSC’s “real estate” photographs of homes and other sites. Recently retired from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Monette’s work at the Quabbin Visitor Center gave him a unique vantage point to learn about and photograph some of these properties today, providing a fascinating angle on the Quabbin story.

The presentation is in conjunction with the Swift River Valley Historical Society’s exhibit of photographs and student art on view at the center on Fridays and Saturdays from 10 am-4 pm during February and March, “What’s in a Name? Villages, Hamlets, and Hollows of the Swift River Valley.” Inspired by the historic images, Althea Dabrowski’s Bernardston Elementary School students created murals and 3-D village scenes.

The Swift River Valley Historical Society, located at 40 Elm Street in New Salem, MA, keeps alive the stories of the villages and four “lost” towns—Dana, Enfield, Greenwich, and Prescott— destroyed to create the Quabbin Reservoir. For information and upcoming programs, call 978-544-6882, or visit http://www.swiftrivermuseum.org or the organization’s facebook page.

7 March 2015 — “Women Ordnance Workers (WOWs)”
Springfield Armory Historical Site, Springfield, 2 p.m.

Springfield Armory National Historic Site invites the public to celebrate Women’s History Month with the upcoming program, Women Ordnance Workers (WOWs) at the Springfield Armory. This illustrated program on Saturday, March 7, 2015 at 2:00 pm will present the women who worked at Springfield Armory during World War I and World War II. Discover what changes were made at the Armory to accommodate these WOWs’ and the suggestions they made to management to improve the manufacturing process for the jobs they performed. Admission is free.

Springfield Armory began to recruit and employ women in large numbers during the First World War and these numbers nearly doubled during World War II. These WOWs filled the employment gaps in many ways ranging from clerical positions to assembly line and manufacturing work on the factory floors. Many of the women hired at the Armory during both World Wars worked long hours, created new safety measures for wartime production, and kept up the fight for freedom and patriotism which was crucial to winning the wars.

This program will also address the lasting impact and new confidence women gained while learning and doing work they never had done before. Their presence and legacy, often associated with Rosie the Riveter, challenged gender stereotypes of the time period. They helped pave the way for women to enter a primarily male-dominated workforce often requiring machine work in a loud and potentially unsafe environment.

Park Ranger, Melanie Hankins reminds us that “Many people understand that women had entered the workforce to fill men’s shoes during wartime, but what they often don’t realize is the societal impact that WOWs had on the work environment for generations to come. Their creativity, courage, and perseverance inspire us to this day.”

1 March 2015 — “B. V. Brooks’ Pre-Quabbin Art, Photos and Postcards”
Quabbin Visitor Center, 485 Ware Road, Belchertown, 2 p.m.

with J. R. Greene

FEBRUARY

27 February 2015 — “Exploring Quabbin”
History Bites Lunchtime Lecture Series
Simeon Strong House, 67 Amity Street, Amherst, 12:15 p.m.

The boundaries of the four lost towns were marked by some 62 markers, most of them scraggly granite posts. A total of 41 of these posts are located above water, and 21 are now inaccessible, except possibly in time of severe drought. In the 1970s and 1980s, Bob Romer found and photographed about 35 of the markers. In this talk, he will describe some of his techniques for finding those markers and his epic journeys through the wilds of Quabbin to find two markers of particular interest. Map skills, a good compass, and an ability to count steps were essential. In those days, the GPS, which would have made it too easy, was not available. And, Lyme disease — which would have made bushwhacking through the underbrush much less fun — was essentially unknown.

Bob Romer is an emeritus professor of physics at Amherst College. Since his “retirement” in 2001, he has devoted much of his energy and time to uncovering the history of slavery in the valley in colonial times, as well as the history of the black communities of Amherst in more recent times. He is the author of Slavery in the Connecticut Valley of Massachusetts (Levellers Press, 2009). He has held the post of fence viewer in the Town of Amherst for about 35 years.

Join us with your lunch in hand. We will provide coffee, tea or cider for you as you listen to the presentations. The 30-minute program will begin promptly at 12:15 with seating and beverages ready just before noon. The lectures are free and everyone is welcome to attend. For updated information, check our website at http://www.amhersthistory.org

25 February 2015 — “Taking the Train to Holyoke, Then and Now”
Holyoke Public Library Community Room, Holyoke, 6 p.m.

We’re excited to have two speakers on board this evening: Nancy Howard will share her research into the origins of one of Holyoke’s architectural gems: the H.H. Richardson passenger rail station, built in 1885 at Bowers and Lyman Street.  To start off the evening, Marcos Marrero, Holyoke’s Director of Planning and Economic Development, will tell us about the return of passenger rail to Holyoke in 2015. He will describe how city planners envisioned and designed the Depot Square train platform and the future of Holyoke as a stop on the Knowledge Corridor.  Co-sponsored by the Friends of the Holyoke Public Library.  No pre-registration needed.

24 February 2015 — Connecticut River Talk
All Saints Church, South Hadley Center, 7:30 p.m.

Leo Labonte gives a Connecticut River presentation on Tuesday night at 7:30 in the All Saints Church in South Hadley Center. The presentation will review the Connecticut River from 1792 until 1900, a time when the river went through a great transformation. Essentially a 3.5 mile trip down the river that includes the first canal in  the USA. Dinner is at 6:30PM, presentation starts at 7:30. Reservations for dinner $15 are being taken by Ellen Peck at 414-532-5505. For presentation only 7:15 would be good. Entrance is in the back with lots of parking.

23 February 2015 — “DuBois in Our Time”
UMass/Amherst Libraries
WGBY’s “Connecting Point”, 7:30 p.m.

In honor of the 147th anniversary of the birth of W. E. B. Du Bois, we invite you to watch a 30-minute documentary “Du Bois in Our Time,” that will be broadcast as a special edition of WGBY’s “Connecting Point“ program at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, February 23rd.

The film follows ten renowned artists over the course of a year as they prepared new work for the UMass Amherst 2013 exhibition Du Bois in Our Time. The exhibit reexamined the legacy of Du Bois based on the belief that art can elicit insightful dialogue on critical public issues of our time. The film shares firsthand stories about the influence that Du Bois’s writings and ideas had on each artist during the creative process.

A pioneering civil rights leader, W. E. B. Du Bois was a visionary of equality and democracy, a poet, playwright, novelist, and sociologist. A native of Great Barrington, Massachusetts, he lived until the age of 95. UMass Amherst is the owner and steward of the Du Bois Homesite in Great Barrington, and UMass Amherst’s W. E. B. Du Bois Library houses the Papers of Du Bois and the W.E.B. Du Bois Center.

22 February 2015 — “Boarding in Boston: Education, Embroidery and Refinement in the Late Colonial Period”
Winter Lecture Series
Deerfield Community Center, Historic Deerfield, 2 p.m.

22 February 2015 — “African Americans — Breaking through Barriers”
Springfield Armory Historic Site, Springfield

Springfield Armory National Historic Site invites the public to celebrate Black History Month with the upcoming program, A Century of African American History and Culture: Documenting 100 Years of Dedicated Service. The illustrated talk will be presented on Sunday, February 22^nd at 2:00 p.m. and will highlight the brave men and women who broke through racial barriers to become engineers, inspectors, machinists, and line workers at Springfield Armory over the last century. Admission and parking are free of charge.

The African American community in Springfield dates back at least to the Revolutionary War era, but was relatively small until World War II when many African Americans came from the South to find jobs in the industrial cities of the north. Springfield Armory hired large numbers of these men and women to fill its expanding wartime workforce, employing close to 800 African Americans (more than all other area industries combined) out of over 14,000 workers at the height of World War II. Some of these workers stayed on at the Armory until its closing in 1968.

This program will also touch on the broader narrative of American progress and the many African Americans who fought to become distinguished members of the United States military as well as the hard fought battle for civil rights. “The Springfield Armory National Historic Site is a place rich in archival resources that document the Armory’s daily operations,” explained Ranger Zazo-Brown. “This program will offer participants a chance to reflect on a century of growth that has had an everlasting impact on this city and the nation as a whole.”

15-21 February 2015 (School Vacation Week) — “Explore, Learn, and Protect!”
Springfield Armory Historic Site, Springfield, 1:30 p.m.

Experience the new Junior Ranger book of activities. Have fun doing museum searches, and firearms word searches. Unscramble twelve countries that were home to Armory men and women employees. Find out about a life-saving gun, a gun stock machine, and the famous inventor of the M-1 Rifle. Make an Armory worker doll on Sunday, Feb. 15th & Thursday, Feb. 19th at 1:30 pm. It’s always best to call first to confirm.

21 February 2015 — New England Re-Enactors Faire 2015
Sturbridge Host Hotel, 366 Main St., Sturbridge, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Welcome to the Expanded New England Re-enactors Faire with a variety of vendors and a brand new lecture series, From Fashion to Fighting.

Whether you’re a brand new re-enactor or looking to update your kit with that last minute item, our vendors from all over New England can provide you with exactly what you need! Also Plan to attend our lecture series in Seminar room 1!  Either way you’ll find it here! Admission- $5.00 per person, Children 12 and under Free.

For more information contact us at wingzero112@gmail.com or 774.757.7508 Richard Eckert, 112 Glendale Circle, Ware, MA 01082

21 February 2015 — “Irish Genealogy with Lisa Dougherty”
Holyoke Public Library Community Room, Holyoke, 11 a.m. – 1:15 p.m.

Special guest and veteran genealogist Lisa Dougherty will lead a two-hour lecture/workshop on tracking down Irish ancestors. With almost 20 years of experience in the field, Ms. Dougherty specializes in locating places of origin for Irish immigrants to New York and the New England states. She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists and provides volunteer assistance at the Irish American Heritage Museum in Albany, New York. This lecture/workshop is appropriate for those just getting started as well as more experienced family history researchers.
Pre-registration recommended but not required: 413-420-8107.

21 February 2015 — “Feed the Birds; Make a Feeder”
Springfield Armory Historic Site, Springfield, 10 a.m.

Join Ranger Susan for a Junior Ranger activity. Make a bird feeder using a pinecone, sunflower butter and birdseed. Learn which kinds of birds live on the Armory grounds and at your own home and what kind of food they love to eat. Then, get outside and find the perfect location for your bird feeder. It’s always best to call first to confirm.

21 February 2015 — “The Family Photo Album in Late 19th Century America”
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge St., Northampton, 2 p.m.

Anthony Lee, Idella Plimpton Kendall Professor of Art History at Mount Holyoke College, will speak at Historic Northampton Saturday, February 21, 2pm on “The Family Photo Album in late 19th century America.” His illustrated presentation will address such questions as: What went into these albums? What did their makers want from them? What historical forces shaped them? The audience will have an opportunity to hold and explore actual albums of that era.

Lee’s talk is being held in conjunction with Ellen Augarten’s exhibition of photographs “Entering Northampton,” a series of double exposures of Northampton sites and landmarks based on those featured in the Howland Photography Album. In 1998, when the home of the late Agnes Wright Howland (1903-1995) on Lyman Road in Northampton was being cleared and cleaned for sale, several old photo albums were found in the dusty basement. The 350 photographs, made in the five years between 1895 and 1900, include images of families, identified and unidentified landscapes, Smith College, and other familiar Northampton sites. This album is in the permanent collection of Historic Northampton.  Original cyanotypes and pages from the album will be on display.

17-19 February 2015 (School Vacation Week) — “Hands on History: Travel with the Skinners”
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 1 – 3 p.m.

Learn about far away places without leaving Holyoke. Wistariahurst was home to the Skinner family, remarkable men and women who travelled extensively and brought many cultural souvenirs back to their home in Holyoke. We invite you to travel with the Skinners on their trips to Egypt, Japan, and France at the turn of the last century!  View their historic travel photo albums, map their journey and hear about their exciting experiences in different cultures. Examine pictures and historical documents and create a sample souvenir reminiscent of the Skinner’s travels based on materials and cultural imagery of the region. This program will make you feel like a tourist to another time and place.

Tuesday, February 17— Egypt
Join our expedition to uncover the ancient mysteries of Egypt. Model your own pyramid and use ancient symbols to decorate it and leave a secret message.

Wednesday, February 18— Japan
Travel to Japan, known for its beautiful art and silk. The Skinner family imported silk from Japan and brought back souvenirs from their travels. Create good luck charms as souvenirs of your visit to Japan.

Thursday, February 19— France
Enjoy a trip to France , Belle Skinner’s second home. A center of art and culture, France will inspire the artist in everyone. Bring home your own miniature painting on its own easel.

This program is appropriate for ages 8 and above. All children must be accompanied by an adult. Reservations are required.  Admission $12 general / $10 members

18-19 February 2015 — “A Day Away in the Past”
Storrowton Village Museum, Eastern States Exposition, West Springfield, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Children who want to learn what life was like for their 19th century counterparts in early America can find out by spending “A Day Away in the Past” at Storrowton Village Museum on the grounds of the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield. Two sessions will be held on Feb. 18 and 19 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., when youngsters can dress in period-inspired clothing and learn about history and traditions from yesteryear by participating in some eight hands-on activities.

“We’ve been offering school vacation enrichment programs since the 1970s. They are a nice introduction to village life from yesteryear and to the historical programming offered at Storrowton Village. One of the things that makes it attractive to those attending is the fact that it’s only one day, that they’re not committing to a week-long event,” said Dennis Picard, director, Storrowton Village Museum, who noted many youngsters return year after year to participate in the program.

Designed for children ages 7-12, “A Day Away in the Past” begins its daylong journey in the 1834 Meetinghouse, where participants will get acquainted with the 19th century by donning cloth caps, pullover shirts, dresses and bonnets.

“There is a running narrative as we go from house to house where different activities are located, but there are no lectures,” said Picard, who didn’t want kids to think they’re back in school with lessons.

In the village’s authentic one-room Schoolhouse, kids will have the opportunity to experience classroom life absent of all modern learning technologies, where they can try their hand at using a quill pen and writing on slates with chalk. Also, during the day children will get to play old-fashioned indoor games of skill and show off their creativity doing crafts, such as candle dipping, tin smithing and more to bring home with them.

No meal will be provided during the daylong event and participants are requested to bring their own brown bag lunch.

15 February 2015 — “Gravestone Art in the Face of Mortality”
Westhampton Historical Society
Community Rm., Westhampton Public Library, 1 North Rd., Westhampton, 2 – 3 p.m.

POSTPONED DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER

On Sunday, February 15th from 2:00 – 3:00, the Westhampton Historical Society has rescheduled the unique presentation by Alfred McKee, of Longmeadow, who will show images and discuss gravestone carving traditions of past centuries.  When Alfred McKee and his wife, Betsy, learned that their 1801 Longmeadow home had belonged to a prolific stonecutter named Hermon Newell, they wanted to learn more.  The McKees have been researching Newell and restoring the house since 1989.  Several hundred cemeteries and over 17,000 photographic images later, they are now quite familiar with the work of many of the 18th and 19th century Valley carvers, including Newell, Stebbins, Ely, Williston, Holland, and Brewer.

The McKees are now members of the Association for Gravestone Studies, an international organization founded to further the study and preservation of gravestones from historical and artistic perspectives. Al presented this same talk for the AGS in 2014.  Betsy and Al are also president and vice president, respectively, of the Longmeadow Cemetery Association.  Through their presentation, The McKees hope to inspire others to enjoy a fresh air walk through area burying grounds, identifying and appreciating some carved motifs and traditions found in the Valley.

This free presentation will be held in the Community Room of the Westhampton Public Library from 2:00 – 3:00 on Sunday afternoon, February 15th.  The library is located at 1 North Rd., Westhampton.  Call Barbara at 527-3209 with questions or for directions.

March 1, 2014 thru February 15, 2015 — “Deerfield: A Community of Craftwork in the Early 20th Century Showcases the Work of Deerfield’s Arts & Crafts Community”
Flynt Center, Historic Deerfield

In the early 20th century, the village of Deerfield supported a thriving Arts & Crafts community of metalsmiths, potters, furniture makers, photographers, embroiderers, and basket makers. Frequently inspired by objects from New England’s past, these artisans combined older designs and techniques in new and creative ways to sell to a 20th-century audience. Several of the Deerfield artisans, who were predominantly women, achieved national recognition for their work. The new exhibition, Deerfield: A Community of Craftwork in the Early 20th Century, features more than 30 objects from Historic Deerfield’s collections and includes objects made by Madeline Yale Wynne, Cornelius Kelley, the Deerfield Society of Blue and White Needlework, and the Pocumtuck Basket Makers. The exhibition will be on view from March 1, 2014 – February 15, 2015 in the lobby of the Flynt Center of Early New England Life at Historic Deerfield.

By the end of the 19th century, Deerfield’s agriculture-based economy had been eclipsed by competition from western farms connected by railroads and canals. In addition, the Civil War had claimed many of the town’s young men, creating an older and more female population with fewer resources to maintain the old homesteads. By embracing the tenets of handicraft production and drawing inspiration from the town’s pre-industrial past, residents created beautiful yet utilitarian crafts for summer tourists who traveled to Deerfield.

21 December 2014 thru January 2015 — “Giving Thanks: A Folk Art Thanksgiving Supper”
Hatfield Historical Museum 
2nd Floor, Hatfield Public Library, 39 Main St., Hatfield

Carved by Hatfield Artist Thomas Yarrows

Opening Sunday, Dec. 21, 4:30-5:45 pm (for Luminarium)

Come see this exhibit and others while the children are regaled by storytellers in the Library downstairs (5 pm), before joining caroling at Town Hall (6 pm), refreshments at the Fire Station (6:30) and the bell and choral concert at the Congregational Church (7 pm).

After Luminarium, Thomas Yarrows’ whimsical carvings will be on display Saturday and Tuesday mornings just during January when the museum is open. It’s been many years since they’ve been seen – so don’t miss this carnivore’s feast!  Sponsored by the Hatfield Historical Society.

14 February 2015 — “Hawks, Owls and a Golden Eagle”
Springfield Armory Historic Site, Springfield, 1:30 p.m.

Join rehabilitator and wildlife biologist Tom Ricardi of the Massachusetts Bird of Prey Rehabilitation Facility for an up close and personal introduction to Birds of prey that live on or frequent the grounds of Springfield Armory NHS. Meet these amazing birds and learn about their lives; where they sleep, what they eat and how they catch their prey. It’s always best to call first to confirm.

13 February 2015 — Opening Reception for “Entering Northampton”
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge St., Northampton, 5-8 p.m.

Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton presents “Entering Northampton”, an exhibition of photographs by Ellen Augarten and prints from the museum’s Howland Collection of photographs. In 1998, when the home of the late Agnes Wright Howland (1903-1995) on Lyman Road in Northampton, was being cleared and cleaned for sale, several old photo albums were found in the dusty basement. The 350 photographs, made in the five years between 1895 and 1900, include images of families, identified and unidentified landscapes, Smith College, and other familiar Northampton sites. The family donated the albums to Historic Northampton.

Though Augarten set out to discover who the photographer/s of this collection were, that is still unknown; perhaps it was created by early photo enthusiasts. But she did discover how little she knew of the town she has called home for more than forty years. So far she’s merely scratched the surface of Northampton’s rich history, she says, but this project has already enriched her life as a (transplant) New Englander.

Her exhibit combines reprinted and mounted cyanotypes from the Howland Album, original pages from the Album, and 15 new contemporary, double exposures, together with brief histories.

Ellen Augarten’s work has turned from portraiture toward the more spontaneous and serendipitous double exposure. For the past few years she has been making in-camera ‘doubles’ of people, trees and flowers, roadways, bridges, buildings, train tracks, and more, combining and blending in both analogue and digital mediums. After working as a portrait photographer for twenty years, she received her MFA in Photography at the Hartford Art School. Her photographs have appeared in both group and solo shows in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York City, but mostly in our hometown, Northampton.

January 15 thru February 12, 2015 — “Papercut Art”
Deerfield Arts Bank, 3 Sugarloaf St., S. Deerfield

The artists included in the exhibit are: Edith Bingham, Peggy Davis, Carolyn Guest, Margaret Humbert-Droz, Greta Kessler, Maggie Schollenberg, and Yehudit Shadur. They come from different traditions and their techniques and styles reflect that.

Paper was invented in China, and that is probably the birth place of the art of papercutting.This art form was used  for decorations at funeral and festivals. But Europe developed its own intricate styles often involving symmetry within the design. Many extant examples come from the Middle Ages. In Poland it was called wycinanki; it was a peasant art (beginning in late 19th-century) used to decorate Christian holidays and traditionally sheep shears were the tool used. Jews, who were living throughout Europe were making papercuts in all the local styles for amulets, wedding contracts and other religious needs such as the Mizrach (indicating the direction of prayer), and holiday decorations. In German, papercutting designs were called scherenschnitte (scissor cuts); common forms include silhouettes, valentines, and love letters.  The tradition was brought to Colonial America in the 18th century by German and Swiss immigrants who settled primarily in Pennsylvania.

The art of papercutting has been revived and is flourishing. The traditions may be different, perhaps less religious, but the variety and experimentation is phenomenal.  This exhibit will showcase seven New England artists.  Demonstrations and workshops and an illustrated lecture are part of the program… inviting the public to learn and to try their hands at papercutting.

The press and the public is invited. Gallery hours: Tues, Wed, Fri & Sun 12-6 pm.  Thursdays 12-8pm. closed Saturdays.

Additional events:
Papercutting with sheep shears, the traditional Polish tool demonstration by Carolyn Guest
at Reception Jan 22 (6-8 pm)

Tree of Life Papercutting Workshop with Tamar Shadur
Sunday, January 25 (1-4 pm) $60 fee

Folk Traditions of Papercut Art Illustrated talk by Tamar Shadur
Tuesday, Feb 10 (7 pm) free

Papercutting for Kids (8-14) with Greta Kessler
Sunday, Feb 1 (1-3 pm) $30 fee

Contact:  Jane Trigere 413-665-0123 gallery; 413-768-8917 cell phone. Interviews with the artists can be arranged. More images can be supplied.

12 February 2015 — “Archaeology of the First World War: Exploring the Trenches Today”
Memorial Hall, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, 5 – 8 p.m.

The UMass Amherst Libraries invite the public to a talk and exhibit by Ed and Libby Klekowski, “Archaeology of the First World War: Exploring the Trenches Today,” on Thursday, February 12, 2015, 5 – 8 p.m., in Memorial Hall, at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.  The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

Researchers Ed and Libby Klekowski have spent many years living in Belgium and France, exploring the remains of the Western Front of World War I. They have produced two PBS documentaries and written two books based upon their experiences, Eyewitness to the Great War: American Writers, Reporters, Volunteers and Soldiers in France, 1914-1918 and Americans in Occupied Belgium 1914-1918:Accounts of the War from Journalists, Tourists, Troops and Medical Staff, both of which will be available for sale and signing.  The lecture, given by UMass Amherst professor emeritus of biology Ed Klekowski, will give an inside look at what it is like to explore the Western Front today.

The event will include a small display of many of the Klekowski’s personally owned artifacts and photographs, some of which they have donated to Special Collections and University Archives at UMass Amherst Libraries.

The event location, Memorial Hall, was built in 1921 to honor the 51 men from Massachusetts Agricultural College who died in military service during WWI, and it has since become a tribute to all our fallen alumni. For more information and to RSVP, email friends@library.umass.edu.

12 February 2015 — “Voices Beyond Bondage”
David Ruggles Center
Historic Northampton, 46 Bridge St., Northampton, 7 p.m.

Join editors Erika DeSimone and Fidel Louis for a discussion of their book, Voices Beyond Bondage, a collection of 150 poems culled from black-owned newspapers in the 1800s, offering a fresh perspective on African-American life, literature, and identity.

10 February 2015 — “Time Machines of Town: Williamsburg & Haydenville Tower Clocks”
Williamsburgh Historical Society Winter Meeting
at the Church, 4 North Main St., Williamsburgh, 6:30 p.m.

Williamsburgh Historical Society Winter Meeting
6:30 pm Potluck Supper Social (Bring a favorite dish to share)

7:30 pm Program — “Time Machines of Town: Williamsburg & Haydenville Tower Clocks, The History and workings”. Collin Black & Eric Weber give an illustrated history of these time machines and their donors. Free and Open to the Public. Bring your Friends. Donations would be greatly appreciated.

For more information call or email:
Ralmon Jon Black, Secretary
Williamsburg Historical Society
[413] 268-7767
RalmonBlack@gmail.com

8 February 2015 — Victorian Valentines Workshop
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 1 – 3 p.m.

A creative and fun greeting card workshop to celebrate and prepare for Valentines Day will take place on Sunday, February 8 from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. at Wistariahurst Museum. With antique Valentines, bygone love poems and enchanting phrases on display to inspire your creativity, you can create your own beautiful and unique greeting for special friends, family and sweethearts. Learn how this English novelty turned Worcester, MA into the City of Valentines, and about Mt. Holyoke Alumae, Esther Howland and her connection to giving greetings on Valentines Day.

Begin your creation with some lovely papers; embellish with bits of ribbon; border with delicate lace; and personalize with found objects. Let your inspiration guide your creation and put onto paper what is in your heart. Voila! A personalized and Victorian inspired greeting made to share.  Cards, glues, historically inspired images and decorative elements are provided.

Bring a friend or relative for a fun and festive program. You won’t want to miss it!  Reservations for the workshop are suggested. Admission: General $7 / Members $5

8 February 2015 — “The Quabbin Boy Rescued From Obscurity”
Quabbin Visitor Center, 485 Ware Road, Belchertown, 2 p.m.

The Quabbin Visitor Center will host a program entitled “The Quabbin Boy Rescued From Obscurity” on Sunday, February 8th at 2 pm.  This free presentation will be given by historian Joe Manning who will share his experience documenting the story of a Greenwich boy who died in 1906, at the age of 13. Manning spotted his tiny gravestone almost hidden on the edge of the woods at Quabbin Park Cemetery, and within weeks, uncovered the details of his short life. The story (with pictures) gives a curious glimpse at life in Greenwich at the turn of the 20th century.  Joe Manning, a resident of Florence, Mass., is an author, historian and freelance journalist. His work has been featured on CBS Evening News, National Public Radio, and in Yankee Magazine.

The Quabbin Visitor Center is located in the Department of Conservation and Recreation Quabbin Administration Building, 485 Ware Road in Belchertown.  The entrance to Quabbin Reservoir is located on Route 9, three miles east of the Route 9/202 intersection.  For additional information, please contact the Center at (413) 323-7221.

Future programs at the Visitor Center will include:
“Uncommon Loons” by DCR Wildlife Biologist Jill Whitney on February 22nd
“B. V. Brooks’ Pre-Quabbin Art, Photos and Postcards” by J. R. Greene on March 1st
“Quabbin Valley: Life As It Was” by Elizabeth Peirce on March 15th

7 February 2015 — Opening Reception for “What’s in a Name? Villages, Hamlets and Hollows of the Swift River Valley”
Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls, 1-3 p.m.

Please join us at the Great Falls Discovery Center in Turners Falls on Saturday, February 7th, from 1 to 3 pm, for an opening reception of What’s in a Name? Villages, Hamlets and Hollows of the Swift River Valley, an exhibit of historic photos–families, houses, mills, factories, stores, schools, post offices, and churches.

On view are images of families, houses, stores, mills, factories, schools, churches, and scenic vistas. The family-friendly exhibit includes an interactive area inspired by village schoolhouses and colorful 3-D art by Pioneer Valley Regional School District students under the guidance of their art teacher, Althea Dabrowski. The exhibit is on view from February 7th through March 28th on Fridays and Saturdays from 10 am to 4 pm. (Note: the Great Hall is used for many community activities; to confirm the exhibit is accessible on a given day, call 413-863-3221.) This program is supported in part by grants from the Bernardston, Colrain, Deerfield, Erving, Gill, Montague, Northfield, and Shelburne Cultural Councils, local agencies supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

Seventy-six years ago four towns in west-central Massachusetts were destroyed to construct the Quabbin
Reservoir—to quench the thirst of the growing city of Boston to the east. In addition to the four “lost towns”— Dana, Enfield, Greenwich, and Prescott — land was purchased from nine other towns: Belchertown, Hardwick, New Salem, Orange, Pelham, Petersham, Shutesbury, Ware, and Wendell. These towns were made up of small villages and even smaller hamlets and hollows. People settled near each other for one reason or another — perhaps they were extended family, or worked in a mill or factory. Sometimes the name of the village or hamlet gives us a clue as to its origins, for example, the names Atkinson Hollow and Cooleyville came from families, Bobbinville from the factory that made bobbins, and Soapstone Station from the quarries nearby.

Executive Director, Sheila Damkoehler, comments, “Especially for those less familiar with the story, I think we see the “lost towns” in a more personal way when we picture small clusters of people who are related or closely connected. We can imagine these neighbors going about their daily lives in their homes, posting a letter, learning their lessons at school, or working at the mill or factory up the road.”
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The Swift River Valley Historical Society in New Salem, Massachusetts has been keeping alive the stories of the Swift River Valley for more than 75 years. For more information, to become a member, or to learn how you can help preserve photographs such as those on exhibit, visit http://www.swiftrivermuseum.org or call 978-544-6882.

7 February 2015 — 7th Annual Ice Harvest
Noble & Cooley Center for Historic Preservation
42 Water Street, Granville, 12 – 3 p.m.

Mark your calendars!  The 7th annual Ice Harvest at the shop pond will be held on Saturday, Feb. 7 from 12 – 3.  Dennis Picard, director of Storrowton Village Museum, will organize the harvest and invite visitors to join him on the ice to use the ice saw and other tools to experience life before the days of refrigeration.  A video on ice harvesting in New England will also be shown continuously in the NCCHP Museum.  The rescue horses from the Blue Star Equiculture Farm ( http://www.equiculture.org) will be back for Ice Harvest again this year.   The museum will be open for tours that focus on Yankee Ingenuity from the 1850’s to current day. We hope to bring people together to rekindle the community spirit of the farm communities and industrial villages that were common in most of New England.

The Noble & Cooley Center for Historic Preservation (NCCHP) invites everyone with an interest in “living history” to join us at the museum for the first event of 2015 at 42 Water Street in Granville.  There is no charge for the event or for refreshments but donations will be gratefully accepted. For last minute information on ice conditions and the status of the harvest check the http://www.ncchp.org website or call 413-357-6321 on February 6, 2015.

6 February 2015 — “Looking Back:  Songs and Readings from 100 Years Ago”
Plainfield Congregational Church, 356 West Main St., Plainfield, 7-9 p.m.

Musicians: Laurie Israel, David Perkins, William Sheppard, June Persing
Readers:  Alice Schertle and Susan Pearson

An exploration of the music, poetry, and memories of the early 20th century. Included are spirituals of Afro-American soldiers, songs of lost youth and lost love, worker songs, Appalachian and British folksongs.  Songs that were sung by the famous Irish tenor, John McCormack will be performed, as well as popular songs of the era, “Danny Boy” and “The Lost Chord”.  Readings of poetry and contemporaneous accounts of events of the time period will be interspersed with the music.  Contributions appreciated as a benefit for the Historical Shaw-Hudson House.

5 February 2015 — “Freedom Stories of the Pioneer Valley”
A la Carte Lecture Series
Davis Auditorium, D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts, Springfield, 12:15 p.m.

Cliff McCarthy, Archivist, Wood Museum of Springfield History; Stone House Museum, Belchertown; President, Pioneer Valley History Network

This talk will tell four freedom stories of African Americans who lived in the Pioneer Valley.  Along the way we will learn about Jupiter Richards, Jenny (Cumfry) Williams, the Rescue of Angeline Palmer, and the League of Gileadites. These are stories that are distinctly local, but each raises broader questions about the history of racial policy in America. $2 members; $4 nonmembers. The audience is invited to bring a lunch to enjoy during the program; cookies and beverage are provided. Sponsored by Big Y.

5 February 2015 — “In My Native Town”: A conversation with Annie Baker and Madeleine George
Emily Dickinson Museum
at the Amherst Regional High School Library, Amherst, 7 p.m.

Amherst natives and Pulitzer Prize for Drama winner and nominee will discuss the impact of home and place on their work.

The Emily Dickinson Museum is pleased to present “In my native Town,” a conversation between 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Drama-winner Annie Baker and 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Drama finalist  Madeleine George on Thursday, February 5, at 7 pm at the Amherst Regional High School library. The event is free and open to the public.

Baker won the Pulitzer Prize for her play “The Flick,” while George was nominated for “The (curious case of the) Watson Intelligence.” Both were raised in Amherst and are graduates of Amherst Regional High School. The conversation, moderated by Amherst educator and Emily Dickinson Museum Board of Governors member Wendy Kohler, will focus on their ties to Amherst and its influence on their work, the role of place in writing, issues of identity, and, of course, the influence of Emily Dickinson as the most famous literary figure to come from their hometown.

“I’m looking forward to the opportunity of hearing how these supremely talented young writers view their hometown experiences, and how those experiences may have contributed to their artistic inspiration and, perhaps, their artistic identity,” said Kohler, who directed the ARHS musical for eleven years. “It’s wonderful that the Emily Dickinson Museum has invited them to return to Amherst to talk about the importance of home and place.”

Amherst Regional High School is located at 21 Mattoon Street in Amherst, MA. For more information, call413-542-2034, email edmprograms@EmilyDickinsonMuseum.org or visit our website.

4 February 2015 — “Some Kind of Funny Porto Rican”: A Cape Verdean American Story
Feinberg Family Distinguished Lecture Series & 22nd Annual Mass. Multicultural Film Festival Announce
Isenberg School of Management, Rm 137, 121 President’s Drive, UMass Amherst, 7:30 p.m.

Film Screening and Q&A with the Director, Dr. Claire Andrade-Watkins

Through memories, music, and history, this documentary chronicles a vibrant community of immigrants from the Cape Verde Islands in the Fox Point section of Providence, Rhode Island, in the face of displacement by urban renewal and gentrification. Poignant, heartfelt, and warm, this film captures the essence, spirit, and heart of a community whose history was erased before it had been written.

Dr. Claire Andrade-Watkins, Director, is President, SPIA Media Productions, Inc. and Associate Professor, Emerson College. The evening will begin with an introduction by Dr. Sid Ferreira (Director of Enrollment Services and Instructional Support for Residential Academic Programs, UMass Amherst) and Debora Ferreira, J.D. (Executive Director for Equal Opportunity and Diversity, UMass Amherst).

Poster: http://www.umass.edu/history/documents/CapeVerde.pdf

Website: http://www.umass.edu/history/about/feinbergseries.html / http://www.umass.edu/film/mmff.html

Contact: outreach@history.umass.edu

Directions: Isenberg School of Management is a short walk from the UMass Amherst Robsham Visitor’s Center Parking Lot (300 Massachusetts Ave, Amherst, MA). For directions to the Visitor’s Center Parking Lot, click here. For a campus map, click here.

**Free and Open to the Public**

4 February 2015 — “Remembering Those Gone”
Local History/Local Novelists Lecture Series 
Coolidge Museum, Forbes Library, Northampton, 7 p.m.

Two accomplished poets – Lesléa Newman and Mark Hart – read from books written in memory of a parent who has died. Moving further back in time and memory, Elise Bernier-Feeley, Forbes Local History and Genealogy Librarian, offers profiles of three persons who rest (or might rest) in Northampton’s Bridge Street Cemetery. Boy Singing to Cattle by Mark Hart was a Massachusetts Book Award Finalist. This evening is the book launch for I Carry My Mother by Lesléa Newman, who will donate $1 to The Cancer Connection for each book sold.  Room capacity is limited to seventy-five. Please come early to ensure that you get a seat.

JANUARY

January 6 – 31, 2015 — “Treasures of Forbes Library Special Collections”
Hosmer Gallery, Forbes Library, 20 West St., Northampton

A special exhibition at Hosmer Gallery, featuring rarely seen art and artifacts from the library’s extensive special collections, will be on view through January. On display will be works that are visually fascinating not only as historical documentation but also as graphic art and as tangible artifacts of Northampton’s past.

A curated selection of photographs, prints, letters, diaries, paintings, posters, and objects of historical significance from the 18th to the 20th centuries will be on view. Some have never been on display before and as a group they shed insight on the lives of the area’s residents and the artists and collectors who documented and preserved our past.

Recently acquired materials which will be exhibited for the first time include photographs of Pioneer Valley Ballet’s early productions in the 1980s, donated by artist Maurine Sutter; photos from the Smith Vocational School archives; and art created for the annual “Show Us Your Bra” auctions benefiting the Breast Form Fund between 1994 and 2010. Some of the oldest items to be on display are photographs of Northampton’s Civil War veterans, broadsides from the mid-1800s, and Sioux beadwork given to Calvin Coolidge during his presidency.

Also included are images by Robert Emrick, Walter Corbin, the Howes Brothers, Daily Hampshire Gazette, and the people of Northampton who participated in the Midnight to Midnight project last year.

Gallery Hours:
Monday 9-9 ; Tuesday 1-5 ; Wednesday 9-9 ; Thursday 1-5 ; Friday & Saturday 9-5 ; closed Sundays and holidays.

30 January 2015 — “Hanged By The Neck Until You are Dead, Dead, Dead”
First Person Presentation
Meetinghouse, Storrowton Village, West Springfield, 7 p.m.

The story of Thirza Mansfield, a 19th century New Haven woman who was tried and convicted for the axe murder of her husband, will come alive at Storrowton Village Museum’s annual First Person Presentation.

During the 45-minute presentation, titled “Hanged By The Neck Until You are Dead, Dead, Dead – The Murder Conviction of Thirza Mansfield, 1824,” historian Linda Oakley will perform in character as Mansfield as she recounts her life, trial and conviction.

The presentation’s title comes directly from Mansfield’s original sentence, said Dennis Picard, the Storrowton Village Museum director.  To have someone doing a program like this, where you’re taking on a real person’s character,” said Picard, “it’s not like you’re being Paul Bunion or Captain Jack Sparrow. This is a real person and the presentation is based on real facts.”

The presentation, which costs $5 to attend, will take place on Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. at the Storrowton Meetinghouse. For more information or to make a reservation, call 413-205-5051.

29 January 2015 — “The Evolution of Baystate Medical Center, 1870-Present”
A la Carte Lecture Series
Davis Auditorium, D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts, Springfield, 12:15 p.m.

Thomas L. Higgins, MD, MBA, FACP, FCCM, Vice Chair, Clinical Affairs, Department of Medicine, Baystate Medical Center, Professor of Medicine/Surgery & Anesthesiology, Tufts University School of Medicine
Linda S. Baillargeon, TAGME, Manager, Internal Medicine Residency & Fellowship Programs, Baystate Medical Center, Tufts University School of Medicine

Baystate Medical Center, incorporated in 1976, traces its origins back to Springfield City Hospital (1870), Hampden Homeopathic Hospital (1900) and the Wesson Maternity Hospital (1908). A rich photographic legacy, much of it now housed at the Springfield Museums, documents the growth and development of today’s complex medical center. Chester Chapin (of the Boston and Albany Railroad), Daniel Baird Wesson (of Smith and Wesson), George Dwight Pratt, William Merrick, Eugene Walker MD and Blanche Blackman RN are among the numerous individuals who helped shape health care in Springfield, Massachusetts.  We’ll uncover some buried architectural gems and document how hospital care and health professional education have evolved over the past 144 years.

$2 members; $4 nonmembers. The audience is invited to bring a lunch to enjoy during the program; cookies and beverage are provided. Sponsored by Big Y.

Thursday, 29 January 2015 — “The Rescue of Angeline Palmer”
Stone House Lecture Series
Stone House Museum, 20 Maple St., Belchertown, 7 p.m.

In the Spring of 1840, prominent Belchertown attorney & businessman Mason Shaw schemed to transport his 10 year-old, African-American servant girl, Angeline Palmer, to Georgia in order to sell her into slavery.  Only a daring rescue by members of Amherst’s black community saved her from this fate.  Cliff McCarthy, Stone House Archivist, will present the story and some new-found research into the matter. Refreshments will be served. Free, but donations gratefully accepted.

28 January 2015 — “The Dyeing Room”
Holyoke Public Library Community Room, Holyoke, 6 p.m.

Against the backdrop of Holyoke in the spring of 1917, Bob McMaster‘s new novel tells the story of Jack Bernard, who struggles with conditions in the fume-laden dyeing room of a city woolen mill. Rich in detail about early twentieth-century Holyoke, the book touches on the local and national issues of the day in 1917: labor unrest, new roles for women, alcoholism and the Temperance movement, anti-communism, and much more. After the talk, the author will be available to sign copies of his books.

25 January 2015 — “Exquisite Selections: Masterpieces from the Historic Deerfield Textile Collection”
Winter Lecture Series
Deerfield Community Center, Historic Deerfield, 2 p.m.

David E. “Ned” Lazaro, Associate Curator of Textiles for Historic Deerfield, will give an in-depth look at the Helen Geier Flynt Textile Collection, which today numbers some 8,000 objects including clothing, accessories, and domestic textiles, assembled by Historic Deerfield founders Helen Geier Flynt and Henry N. Flynt.

Thursday, 22 January 2015 — “Grants Revisited” Rap Session
Pioneer Valley History Network
Hatfield Public Library, 39 Main St., Hatfield, 6:30 p.m.

The next PVHN Informal Discussion, or Rap Session, will be held Thursday, Jan. 22, 2015, in the basement* of the Hatfield Public Library, at 6:30** p.m.

This meeting will be hosted by Kathie Gow and the Hatfield Historical Society and we will revisit the Grants topic from a year ago. Did you apply for any grants last year? If so, what did you learn? What would you like to know? 2015 is a new year, and grants make things possible that wouldn’t be possible otherwise. They also often push us to new levels.

Last year the Hatfield Historical Society and Museum was awarded two grants (a CAP grant, from IMLS, and a 3-year inventory and collections mgt. grant from CPA), and denied another (an oral history grant from the local Cultural Council). They learned from the wins and the losses. Come share the insights from your wins and losses, learn about low-hanging fruit, and hopefully get your grant questions answered.

These discussions have been valuable for PVHN members and are free and open to all. We hope you can join us Jan. 22 at the Hatfield Public Library.  Please RSVP to kgow.hatfield@gmail.com  so they have enough chairs and space!

*Not handicapped accessible, but side entrance available from parking lot next to building, with fewer stairs.

**If you want to check out the Hatfield Historical Museum (also not handicapped accessible) before the meeting, it will be open from 6 to 6:25 pm. Exhibits on: The Lost Art of Cursive, A Folk Art Carved Thanksgiving Supper, the Civil War, Small Town Doctoring, and Hatfield’s Buried Colonial Village.

January 22, 2015 — Reception for “Papercut Art”
Deerfield Arts Bank, 3 Sugarloaf St., S. Deerfield, 6 – 8 p.m.

The artists included in the exhibit are: Edith Bingham, Peggy Davis, Carolyn Guest, Margaret Humbert-Droz, Greta Kessler, Maggie Schollenberg, and Yehudit Shadur. They come from different traditions and their techniques and styles reflect that.

Paper was invented in China, and that is probably the birth place of the art of papercutting.This art form was used  for decorations at funeral and festivals. But Europe developed its own intricate styles often involving symmetry within the design. Many extant examples come from the Middle Ages. In Poland it was called wycinanki; it was a peasant art (beginning in late 19th-century) used to decorate Christian holidays and traditionally sheep shears were the tool used. Jews, who were living throughout Europe were making papercuts in all the local styles for amulets, wedding contracts and other religious needs such as the Mizrach (indicating the direction of prayer), and holiday decorations. In German, papercutting designs were called scherenschnitte (scissor cuts); common forms include silhouettes, valentines, and love letters.  The tradition was brought to Colonial America in the 18th century by German and Swiss immigrants who settled primarily in Pennsylvania.

The art of papercutting has been revived and is flourishing. The traditions may be different, perhaps less religious, but the variety and experimentation is phenomenal.  This exhibit will showcase seven New England artists.  Demonstrations and workshops and an illustrated lecture are part of the program… inviting the public to learn and to try their hands at papercutting.

The press and the public is invited. Gallery hours: Tues, Wed, Fri & Sun 12-6 pm.  Thursdays 12-8pm. closed Saturdays.

Additional events:
Papercutting with sheep shears, the traditional Polish tool demonstration by Carolyn Guest
at Reception Jan 22 (6-8 pm)

Tree of Life Papercutting Workshop with Tamar Shadur
Sunday, January 25 (1-4 pm) $60 fee

Folk Traditions of Papercut Art Illustrated talk by Tamar Shadur
Tuesday, Feb 10 (7 pm) free

Papercutting for Kids (8-14) with Greta Kessler
Sunday, Feb 1 (1-3 pm) $30 fee

Contact:  Jane Trigere 413-665-0123 gallery; 413-768-8917 cell phone. Interviews with the artists can be arranged. More images can be supplied.
—
Deerfield Arts Bank  — a community place for art classes, art exhibits & gifts
http://www.deerfieldartsbank.com  413-665-0123!
3 Sugarloaf Street, South Deerfield, MA 01373
Jane Trigere, proprietor (413) 768-8917 cell.  jane@deerfieldartsbank.com

21 January 2015 — “The ABC’s of Family Research”
Armbrook Village, 551 North Road, Westfield, 3 p.m.

Dave Robison of Old Bones Genealogy of New England. This event, sponsored by Armbrook Village, offers an overview of how to get your research started…or re-started!   Finding your long lost cousins, building a family tree from scratch, productive research strategies and, if time permits, the basics of DNA and how it can be a productive adjunct to the paper search. The one-hour program starts with an additional half hour for questions and answers.

18 January 2015 — “Art in the Face of Mortality: A Sampling of Gravestone Art in the CT River Valley”
Westhampton Historical Society
Community Room, Westhampton Public Library, 1 North Rd., Westhampton, 2-3 p.m.

POSTPONED DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER

Westhampton Historical Society will host a unique presentation by Alfred McKee, of Longmeadow, who will show images and discuss gravestone carving traditions of past centuries.  When Alfred McKee and his wife, Betsy, learned that their 1801 Longmeadow home had belonged to a prolific stonecutter named Hermon Newell, they wanted to learn more.  The McKees have been researching Newell and restoring the house since 1989. Several hundred cemeteries and over 17,000 photographic images later, they are now quite familiar with the work of many of the 18th and 19th century Valley carvers, including Newell, Stebbins, Ely, Williston, Holland, and Brewer.

The McKees are now members of the Association for Gravestone Studies, an international organization founded to further the study and preservation of gravestones from historical and artistic perspectives. Al presented this same talk for the AGS in 2014.  Betsy and Al are also president and vice president, respectively, of the Longmeadow Cemetery Association.  Through their presentation, The McKees hope to inspire others to enjoy a fresh air walk through area burying grounds, identifying and appreciating some carved motifs and traditions found in the Valley.

This free presentation will be held in the Community Room of the Westhampton Public Library from 2:00 – 3:00 on Sunday afternoon, January 18th.  The library is located at 1 North Rd., Westhampton.

13 January 2015 — Talk on Internet Privacy Issues
Deerfield Arts Bank, 3 Sugarloaf St., South Deerfield, 7 p.m.

The Deerfield Arts Bank is pleased to present one of the nation’s experts on Internet privacy and security issues. Seth Schoen has worked at Electronic Frontier Foundation (https://www.eff.org/about) in San Francisco as the Staff Technologist helping their lawyers understand the civil liberties implications of their work, and the public understand what the products they use really do. He is intensely concerned with issues of privacy and Internet security. He has traveled widely lecturing on the subject at conferences and testifying at the Federal Court.

Q&A to follow presentation.

Deerfield Arts Bank, 3 Sugarloaf Street, South Deerfield, MA 01373
http://www.deerfieldartsbank.com
413-665-0123
Jane Trigere, proprietor (413) 768-8917 cell. jane@deerfieldartsbank.com

10 January 2015 — Archaeology Program
Springfield Armory National Historic Site, 2 p.m.

The public will get a chance to see the trove of artifacts unearthed by University of Massachusetts archaeologists during digs this year at the site of Springfield Armory Building 104. Eric Johnson, director of Archaeology Services at UMass Amherst, will present an illustrated program Jan. 10 at 2 p.m. at Springfield Armory National Historic Site. The event is free.

Parts of Building 104, the main manufacturing location for the M1 Garand, were demolished this year to make way for redevelopment of the site, now part of the Springfield Technology Park. The ends of Building 104, both north and south, were kept and will be reused.  But removing the center gave archaeologists a rare chance to see what had been buried under the structure for more than 70 years.

Finds include:

• A 5,000-year-old stone blade probably used as a knife or a spear point.
• A Civil War-era bullet, called a minie ball, which along with a modern .22-caliber shell casing is the only piece of ammunition found.
• Chunks of charcoal made from defective M-1903 Springfield rifle stocks, the wood still bearing lathe marks. Archeologists found the 1920s-era pit where the charcoal was burnt. It was probably for use in a nearby forge.
• A brass button fused to the fireplace of a World War I barracks.
• Post holes, probably from an early-19th century storehouse. Workers used broken grindstones to level up the bottom of the whole. Barker said he’s seen similar work done elsewhere at the armory.
• A pint Crown Royal Whiskey jar, probably from the 1930s.
• A key, at the bottom of a privvy or latrine pit. Probably dropped there by someone who didn’t care to fish it back out.
• Bone handles, probably from combs or brushes.
• An enameled tin plate, one of the few domestic items found.

Park Resources and Maintenance Chief Gavin Gardner said: “The discovery of these artifacts will provide knowledge that can become a part of visitor programs for years to come. At the presentation visitors will learn what historic clues were found, the archaeological techniques used, and the reasons behind the scientific practices.”

Springfield Armory National Historic Site commemorates and preserves the site of the Springfield Armory, established in 1794. It has the world’s largest historic American military firearms collection. The site is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Admission is free. For information call 413-734-8551, check: www.nps.gov/spar or go to: www.facebook.com/sparnhs.

9 January 2015 — Reception for “Treasures of Forbes Library Special Collections”
Hosmer Gallery, Forbes Library, 20 West St., Northampton, 4 – 7 p.m.

A special exhibition at Hosmer Gallery, featuring rarely seen art and artifacts from the library’s extensive special collections, will be on view through January. On display will be works that are visually fascinating not only as historical documentation but also as graphic art and as tangible artifacts of Northampton’s past.

A curated selection of photographs, prints, letters, diaries, paintings, posters, and objects of historical significance from the 18th to the 20th centuries will be on view. Some have never been on display before and as a group they shed insight on the lives of the area’s residents and the artists and collectors who documented and preserved our past.

Recently acquired materials which will be exhibited for the first time include photographs of Pioneer Valley Ballet’s early productions in the 1980s, donated by artist Maurine Sutter; photos from the Smith Vocational School archives; and art created for the annual “Show Us Your Bra” auctions benefiting the Breast Form Fund between 1994 and 2010. Some of the oldest items to be on display are photographs of Northampton’s Civil War veterans, broadsides from the mid-1800s, and Sioux beadwork given to Calvin Coolidge during his presidency.

Also included are images by Robert Emrick, Walter Corbin, the Howes Brothers, Daily Hampshire Gazette, and the people of Northampton who participated in the Midnight to Midnight project last year.

Gallery Hours:
Monday 9-9 ; Tuesday 1-5 ; Wednesday 9-9 ; Thursday 1-5 ; Friday & Saturday 9-5 ; closed Sundays and holidays.

8 January 2015 — “Rebels In Paradise: Sketches of Northampton Abolitionists”
Book Signing & Presentation by Bruce Laurie
Nielsen Library, Smith College, Northampton, 7 p.m.

Bruce Laurie, professor of history emeritus at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, will discuss his newly published book,
Rebels in Paradise: Sketches of Northampton Abolitionists.

In this book, Laurie profiles five rebellious figures – Sylvester Judd Jr., John Payson Williston, David Ruggles, Henry Sherwood Gere and Erastus Hopkins — who launched Northampton’s abolitionist movement. Through their individual stories, Laurie traces the evolution of the antislavery movement in western Massachusetts and links it to broader developments in economics, civil life and political affairs. Northampton’s abolitionists were a heterodox group, yet most were intrepid devotees of democracy and racial equality, idealists who enjoyed genuine friendships and political alliances with African Americans. Several even took the bold step of hiring African Americans in their businesses. Although a prohibitionist faction disrupted the Northampton abolitionist movement for a time, the leaders prevailed on the strength of their personal prestige and political experience, making the seat of Hampshire County what one of them called an abolitionist “stronghold.”

The author presentation will occur Thursday, January 8th at 7 pm in the Browsing Room of Neilson Library at Smith College. Refreshments will be served and books will be offered for sale and signing by the author.

Bruce Laurie is professor of history emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and author of Beyond Garrison: Antislavery and Social Reform (2005), Artisans into Workers: Labor in Nineteenth-Century America (1989) and Working People of Philadelphia, 1800-1850 (1980).  In 2011-2012 Laurie was Scholar-in-Residence at Historic Northampton under a research grant awarded by MassHumanities to study abolitionism in Northampton using the resources of Historic Northampton, the David Ruggles Center and Forbes Library.

Wednesday, 7 January 2015 — “Engaging Young People with History: An Evening with YA and Middle Grade Novelists”
Local History/Local Novelists Series
Coolidge Museum, Forbes Library, 20 West St., Northampton, 7 p.m.

From the early America of Louisa May Alcott and Emily Dickinson, to the Cold War and medical mistakes of the 1960s — four local authors for middle grade and young adult readers will read from their work set in America’s past. This evening will be appropriate for people ranging from young teen to adult, and will feature a question-and-answer panel with the authors.
Jeannine Atkins, Becoming Little Women: Louisa May at Fruitlands
Burleigh Mutén, Miss Emily
Ellen Wittlinger, This Means War!
Jane Yolen, Centaur Rising

Moderated by Naila Moreira

For five years, Forbes Library has been presenting Local History/Local Novelists, a reading and lecture series exploring links between local history and contemporary novelists, held the first Wednesday of the month at 7 pm in the Coolidge Room, October through May. The 2014/15 season, curated by Forbes Writer in Residence Susan Stinson working closely with Forbes Assistant Director Lisa Downing, varies the theme to include strange stories of science, an evening of poetry about Northampton, and some evenings appropriate for teens as well as adults.

In January, the theme is “Engaging Young People with History: An Evening with YA and Middle Grade Novelists”, guest curated by Naila Moreira, and featuring Jane Yolen, Jeannine Atkins, Burleigh Muten and Ellen Wittlinger. All of the evenings are focused on an adult audience, but the evening in January will be particularly suitable for teens, as well.

Forbes Writer in Residence Susan Stinson is the author of four novels and a collection of poetry and lyric essays.  She is also a writing coach, freelance editor, and gives cemetery tours. Spider in a Tree, her novel about Northampton in the time of 18th century Calvinist preacher Jonathan Edwards, was published in 2013. Her website is http://susanstinson.net/.

Sunday, 4 January 2015 – “Stories of Wistariahurst from a Skinner Descendant”
Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., Holyoke, 3 p.m.

Allerton Kilborne will return to Holyoke to offer a very special tour of his grandmother’s home and share his memories of living at Wistariahurst. When Allerton enters the home on Cabot Street, it is like entering a time machine. Join Allerton Kilborne on a journey back in time as Wistariahurst comes alive with his memories.
Admission $12 general admission / $10 members