HISTORIC NORTHAMPTON
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PAST PROGRAMS

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Carte-de-visite of Peter, 1863
Image courtesy of the ​National Portrait Gallery,
Smithsonian Institution
Thursday, December 6, 2018 | 7 pm | Presentation
​
The Need for Iconic Photographs: Race, Images & Representation presented by Kent Alexander

 
In conjunction with Historic Northampton's current exhibit, Chaotic Freedom and the Scars of Slavery, Kent Alexander will explore why iconic photographs of slavery were so useful as instruments of change and why this need still seems to be woven into the fabric of our times.

Kent Alexander is a playwright, writer, humanities professor and an anti-racism and workplace culture consultant. He serves as the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion consultant for the ValleyCreates program initiated by the Community Foundation of Western MA.
​He lives in Northampton.


 $5 donation suggested.


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Friday, December 7, 2018 | 5 to 7 pm | Reception

Annual Reception for Members and Supporters


It's time to celebrate!

Come celebrate our 2018 accomplishments, preview our plans for a new exhibit coming in Spring 2019, & enjoy delicious refreshments in the company of other supporters!


P.S. You will get more than nuts & berries! ​

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Thursday, December 13, 2018 | 7 pm | Book-Signing Event

The Power of Women: Celebrating Women from Western and Central Massachusetts from the 1600s to the Present Day
with editors 
Wayne E. Phaneuf and Joseph Carvalho III

The Pioneer Valley History Network (PVHN) will host a book-signing event at Historic Northampton with the editors of The Republican's new book, The Power of Women.

The Power of Women features the stories of 1000 influential women in western and central Massachusetts from the 1600s until the present day.

The editors, Wayne E. Phaneuf, editor of The Republican, and historian Joseph Carvalho III, will speak about making the book and show a short video.  They will sign copies, available for purchase at a special price.  Part of the proceeds will help support the Pioneer Valley History Network (PVHN) and Historic Northampton.


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Saturday, December 1, 2018 | 2 pm | Book-Signing Event

The Search for Lickingwater and the Making of Northampton

A Public Talk and Book Signing by John Sinton

John Sinton will talk about the physical creation of the Connecticut River Valley and of Nonotuck village.  How did Northampton come to occupy primary of place in the Valley for its first one hundred fifty years?

The central section of the presentation will focus on the Mill River itself, its major diversions in 1710 and 1940, and the role the river played in the formation and development of Northampton.

Free and open to the public.  ​Donations welcome.
First come, first served.


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Thursday, November 29, 2018 | 6 - 8 pm

Living History Series
A Conversation with Bill Newman
Public Interest Lawyer, Author, Podcast Producer,
and Host of the “The Bill Newman Show”


Join us for this special reception and evening presentation recognizing Bill Newman, one of Northampton’s most extraordinary and accomplished residents

6 pm: Reception and Event | $25
7 pm: Event only |$20

Reservations Required. Sold Out.
To register, email info@historicnorthampton.org



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Northampton Association of Education and Industry
Sunday, October 28, 2018 | 10 am | Walking Tour

All Hamptons Read Walking Tour
Florence Underground Railroad & Abolition Sites
Walking Tour with Steve Strimer


Local historian Steve Strimer of the David Ruggles Center will lead a walking tour of Underground Railroad and Abolition sites in Florence.  The tour will be followed by a preview of the upcoming David Ruggles Center exhibit, The Underground Railroad in Northampton & Florence: People, Places and Paper and related lecture at 1 pm.

Location: The tour will begin at The David Ruggles Center at 225 Nonotuck Street in Florence

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Sunday, October 21, 2018 | 10 am | Walking Tour

All Hamptons Read Walking Tour
Northampton Underground Railroad - East
Walking Tour with Steve Strimer


Local historian Steve Strimer of the David Ruggles Center will lead a walking tour of Underground Railroad and Abolition sites in Northampton.

The tour will leave from Historic Northampton and cover sites along Bridge Street, Pomeroy Terrace, Phillips Street, Market Street, Cherry Street and North Street.

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Saturday, October 20, 2018 | 2 pm | Lecture

"Chaotic Freedom" in Civil War Louisiana:
The Origins of an Iconic Image
A Talk by Bruce Laurie


Historian Bruce Laurie will speak at Historic Northampton in conjunction with the exhibition Chaotic Freedom and the Scars of Slavery.  Chaotic Freedom is the story to two local Union army soldiers who came face-to-face with slavery and the disorder that followed emancipation in 1863 Baton Rouge.  
The exhibition is based upon Dr. Laurie's 2016 essay published by the Massachusetts Review.

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Wednesday, October 17, 2018 | 7 pm | Lecture

A Witch in Paradise
by Kathy-Ann Becker


Kathy-Ann Becker, author of Silencing the Women: The Witch Trials of Mary Bliss Parsons, will speak at Historic Northampton on Wednesday, October 17th at 7 pm.

A slide-show enhanced story of the so-called “Witch of Northampton,” Mary Bliss Parsons, will be presented on the very grounds where Cornet Joseph and Mary Bliss Parsons made their early wilderness home in the 1650s.

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Saturday, October 13, 2018 | 10 am to 3:30 pm

​Pomeroy Terrace Historic District Celebration

The recent creation of the Pomeroy Terrace Historic District in Northampton will be celebrated on Saturday, October 13th in a collaboration jointly sponsored by The Ward 3 Neighborhood Association and Historic Northampton.  The celebration will include tours of the new district, a community potluck, and the annual meeting of the Ward 3 Neighborhood Association.  A historic marker denoting the district has been donated to the City of Northampton by The William G. Pomeroy Foundation.

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Friday, October 12, 2018 | 5 - 8 pm

Chaotic Freedom and the Scars of Slavery:
​From Baton Rouge to Northampton


Opening Reception for an exhibition based upon historian Bruce Laurie's essay, "Chaotic Freedom" in Civil War Louisiana: The Origins of an Iconic Image.  Dr. Laurie's research into the story revealed by card photographs brought home from Civil War Baton Rouge by Henry S. Gere is paired with photographer Stan Sherer's large-scale photographs of the original 1863 cartes-de-visite.


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Tuesday, October 2, 2018 | 7 pm

PHOTOGRAPHED LETTERS ON WINGS:
How Microfilmed V-Mail Helped Win World War II

a talk by Tom Weiner

Tom Weiner will speak at Historic Northampton on his book, PHOTOGRAPHED LETTERS ON WINGS: How Microfilmed V-Mail Helped Win World War II.  The book tells the heretofore untold story of the mail - close to 2 billion letters - that was sent to and from the many fronts of the war using microfilm.  The use of V-Mail freed up space for troops and supplies on transport planes since 1600 letters could fit on one small reel.  
World-renowned bookbinder Bill Streeter wrote the book's preface in which he explains why he provided the research materials to Tom Weiner and why he wanted such a book honoring both V-Mail and his cousin, Henry Streeter, who died while serving in the war.

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Saturday, September 29, 2018 | 10 am - 12 noon

A Gem of the Valley:
​The Cultural and Natural History of Arcadia


Join the directors of Arcadia and Historic Northampton in celebration of 75 years of Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary. Learn about the plants and animals that live at Arcadia and why it's such a special place for wildlife.

$10 members | $12 non-members

Registration required.

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​Saturday, September 22, 2018 | 10 am - 12 noon
​
History of Land Use at Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area, a walk/talk with Laurie Sanders

From colonial times to the damming of Broad Brook in the late 1960s that created Fitzgerald Lake, the 850 acres of FLCA have undergone many changes.

Laurie Sanders will lead a walk along Boggy Meadow Road to the dam and Cooke’s Pasture, focusing on the economic, social, and environmental history of this area.


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Time, a woodcut by Nancy Haver
Friday, September 14, 2018 | 5 to 8 pm

Landscapes/Dreamscapes
Arts Night Out and Print Fair


View the exhibition Landscapes/Dreamscapes on Northampton's Arts Night Out.

The September Print Fair will feature eight artists showing and selling their original hand-pulled prints:


  • Nancy Haver
  • Erika Radich
  • Maggie Nowinski
  • Margo Temple
  • Janet Winston
  • Kate Jenkins
  • Doris Madsen
  • Lilian Jackman


​


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Three Dancers at Smith College, 1919
Photo by Eric Stahlberg
Smith College Special Collections
Friday, September 14, 2018 and
Saturday, September 15, 2018


Historical Footnotes:
​Dancing Through Northampton's History

7 pm: Music & Art Displays in the Lobby
8 pm: Historical Footnotes Performance 

Historic Northampton and A.P.E.@Hawley Street join forces for a special collaboration on September 14 & 15 to celebrate the opening of the new Flexible Performance Space at the Arts Trust’s building, 33 Hawley Street. 

Tickets: $15 at the door; $12 in advance online


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​Tuesday, September 11, 2018 | 5:30 - 7:30 pm

From Northampton to the Boundary Waters
(or at least the boundary with Hatfield)
​

Historic Northampton is teaming up with Paradise City Dragon Boat for a trip on the Connecticut.  Betsy Powell, Head Coach of Paradise City Dragon Boat, will begin the outing with a paddling lesson. Laurie Sanders, naturalist & Co-Director of Historic Northampton, will explain about the rich human and natural history in this stretch between Elwell Island and the Hatfield boundary. 

​​Registration required|$25-$35 | Ages 18+


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Lingering Still by Daniel Chiaccio
Thursday, September 6, 2018 | 6:30 - 8 pm

Landscapes/Dreamscapes Lecture
​

Dream Landscapes: The art of dreaming, dreams as art
by Dr. Annie Rogers


Professor of Psychoanalysis and Clinical Psychology at Hampshire College, psychoanalyst and poet, Dr. Annie Rogers will explore how visual artists imagine & make dreamscapes, and how their work conveys the unconscious as a realm of human experience.


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Tuesday, August 28, 2018 | 6:30 pm | film screening

Life Ain't Fair
a documentary by PJ Moynihan
A Digital Eyes Production


Last year, as part of the 200th Fair Celebration, the Three County Fair partnered with Northampton filmmaker P J Moynihan to produce a documentary film entitled “Life Ain’t Fair” about the Three County Fair (Northampton, MA), America’s oldest continuing agricultural fair.

​PJ Moynihan will introduce the film.

The film weaves the history of the fair with a portrait of contemporary agricultural life in the Pioneer Valley.  Narrated by Dennis Lee.

Co-sponsored by the Three County Fair.


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Saturday & Sunday, August 11-12, 2018 | 10 am-5 pm

BIG INK at Zea Mays Printmaking

Large scale woodblock printing on the BIG TUNA traveling press in the courtyard of Zea Mays Printmaking.  Ongoing throughout the day.  The public is welcome to come watch as six artists print giant woodblocks.

Location:
Zea Mays Printmaking
320 Riverside Drive
Florence, MA 01062


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Friday, August 10, 2018 | 5 to 8 pm

Landscapes/Dreamscapes
Arts Night Out and Print Fair


Join us for an Arts Night Out reception for the exhibition Landscapes/Dreamscapes, an exhibition of contemporary prints from Zea Mays Printmaking with objects and images from Historic Northampton's collection.

The August Print Fair will feature printmakers:
​Dan Chiaccio, Jennifer Gover, Nick Osetek & Sheryl Jaffe.


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Tuesday, July 31, 2018 | 4 pm

A Natural & Cultural History of Ticks
by Dr. Kirby Stafford, III


During the last three decades deer tick populations have soared in our region and tick-borne illnesses have become a major public health concern. Why has this happened? What’s changed? What were tick populations like in 1654 when Northampton was settled? And what might they be like in 2054?  Dr. Kirby Stafford, III, chief entomologist at the Connecticut Agricultural Station will explore these questions in this illustrated lecture.

Limited Seating.  First come, first served.
​$8 for members & donors; $12 for non-members.


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Sunday, July 29, 2018 | 2 pm

​Factual and Fictitious Geography
in the Nuremberg Chronicles
​
Lecture by T. Klacsmann
Wood engraving demonstration by Nancy Haver


Join us for a fascinating double feature: a presentation by New York artist Tate Klacsmann about the woodcuts
​in the Nuremberg Chronicles, followed by a live wood-cut demonstration by local artist Nancy Haver. Both artists have work in the current exhibit Landscapes/Dreamscapes at Historic Northampton.

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Friday, July 27, 2018 | 6:30 - 7:30 pm

Full Moon Group Sing at Historic Northampton
led by Jim Armenti


Join us for a Group Sing at the gazebo/bandstand in the backyard of Historic Northampton under the full moon.
Come learn the three songs the community will sing at the Forbes Library Community Sing in September.  ​Local musician and singer Jim Armenti will lead the singing.  After the group sing and weather permitting, all are welcome to take an amble to the Bridge Street Cemetery where we will use binoculars and telescopes to admire the rising full moon.

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Print by Daniel Chiaccio

Friday, July 13, 2018 | 5 to 8 pm | Opening Reception

Landscapes/Dreamscapes
Opening Reception and Print Fair
Arts Night Out


Join us for the opening reception of the exhibition, Landscapes/Dreamscapes on Northampton's Arts Night Out.  The Print Fair features 8 artists showing and selling their original hand-pulled prints.  A new group of artists will appear at the Print Fair at the August and September Arts Nights.

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Sunday, June 24, 2018 | 2 - 3:30 PM 

​
Tour of Zea Mays Printmaking

Come see where original hand-pulled prints are made!  Printing presses, ink rollers, artists at work – Zea Mays Printmaking is a hive of creative printmaking activity in the heart of the Pioneer Valley.

The tour will include a walk through the 6,000 sq. ft. studio, a look at prints in the Flat File Project and in the on-site gallery and a short printmaking demonstration.

$5 members & donors | $8 non-members.
Limited to 12 people.
Register with Historic Northampton.




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The 1898 Masonic Block featured an
​ornate water-powered elevator.
Saturday, June 16, 2018 | 2 pm & 4 pm | Film Screening

The Gilded Cage: Northampton’s Last Water-Powered Elevator
A film by Stan Sherer

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Northampton's Masonic Block (sometimes referred to as the “Fitzwilly Building”) on Main Street, which opened in 1898, featured an ornate water-powered elevator, state-of-the-art engineering at the time. But it was more: the elevator and its chatty, cheery operators created a community of building's shops, offices, denizens and visitors. This came to an end in 2017, when the elevator was decommissioned. To preserve this fascinating bit of Northampton's history, documentary filmmaker Stan Sherer interviewed former operators and the repair service person who maintained it from the mid-1980s until the end.  We learn how elevators work and why they matter, and what this one, and its operators, meant to the people and the City of Northampton.


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Wednesday, May 23, 2018 | 6:30 pm​

Teri O'Brien, Reading and Book Signing
While I Danced Alone with the Moon Across the Front Yard
​

While I Danced Alone with the Moon Across the Front Yard is Teri O’Brien’s new memoir of growing up in a large family in the small town of Haydenville in the 1950s and 60s.

Teri weaves stories of her daily life and those of her rambunctious seven brothers and sisters as they roam the village making their own fun and sometimes doing and seeing things they shouldn’t.  She recollects the telling details and notable quirks of the village personalities and relates the pleasures and anxieties of growing up in a financially pinched but loving family in a small New England town.


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Tuesday, May 22, 2018 | 10 am - 12 noon

Exploring the Former Pasture of Northampton's Poor Farm (aka Barrett Street Marsh Conservation Area)

Co-director and naturalist Laurie Sanders lead a walk of this 25-acre island of green, located a ten minute walk from downtown with a remarkably diverse array of plant and animal life.

Limited to 20.  Registration required. 
$8 members & donors; $12 non-members.
Meeting location upon registration.


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May 16, 2018 is the 144th anniversary of the
devastating 1874 Mill River Reservoir Disaster.
Wednesday, May 16, 2018 | 7 pm

Readers' Theatre:
The Mill River Disaster of 1874


Elizabeth Sharpe, co-director of Historic Northampton and author of In the Shadow of the Dam: The Aftermath of the Mill River Flood of 1874 (Free Press), will narrate a readers' theatre presentation on the Mill River Disaster.

Registration is full for this program.
$8 members & donors; $12 non-members


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Friday, May 11, 2018 | 6:00 - 7:45 pm

Funktionlust Powers at Historic Northampton
Arts Night Out


Funktionlust, Northampton High School’s Improvisation Troupe, will perform at Historic Northampton during Arts Night Out.  Throughout their 13-year history, the Funks have performed many times - at First Night, Click Workspace, the Lathrop Community and Northampton High School.
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Sunday, May 6, 2018 | 7:30 - 9:30 am

Exploring Northampton Series:
Early Morning Birding at Laurel Park


Join naturalist & co-director Laurie Sanders for an early morning bird walk along the trails in Laurel Park's Nine Acre Woods, a conservation area owned by Laurel Park that is open to the public.

$8 members of Laurel Park or Historic Northampton
$12 non-members


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Wednesday, May 2, 2018 | 4 pm

Dispelling Myths and Confirming History: Dendroarchaeology Studies as a Means for Establishing Accurate Building Construction Dates

by Bill Flynt, Architectural Conservator

For the past 15 years, Bill Flynt has been conducting dendroarchaeology studies throughout the Northeast, collecting tree ring samples from interior posts and beams to identify the construction dates of buildings.   Bill will describe dendroarchaeology and its impact on the study of early New England architecture.

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Daily Hampshire Gazette photo
Friday, April 27, 2018 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm

Living History Series: A Conversation with Yvonne Freccero, Advocate for the Homeless

Advocate for the Homeless Yvonne Freccero will share her story: her childhood in post World War II England, her emigration to the United States, her decision to move to the Valley, and why she chose to dedicate herself to helping homeless people and what she's learned.​

Reception & Conversation: $25
Conversation Only: $10


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Thursday, April 26, 2018 | 7 pm

Film Screening of A Place for Madness
with Christopher Sparks


Film screening of the 1994 episode of PBS’s Frontline (60 min.) focusing on Northampton and the stories of families, individuals, lawyers, psychiatrists and caregivers as they dealt with the effects of the closure of Northampton State Hospital.  Introductory remarks and a follow-up conservation with Christopher Sparks.
​

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Saturday, April 21, 2018 | 10 am - 1 pm

Exploring Northampton Series: Impressive Trees Along the Mill River with Big Tree Expert Bob Leverett 

Florence resident, big tree hunter and old growth forest expert Bob Leverett will lead a 3-hour walk along the Mill River, where he’ll point out some of his favorite trees and share information about their life history, ecology and earlier uses.

$8 members; $12 non-members

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Friday, April 13, 2018 | 6 pm & 7 pm

Arts Night Out: An Evening with Claire Dacey 

Claire Dacey is an award-winning folk singer/songwriter and instrumentalist with a voice reminiscent of the legendary female folk singers of the 60’s and 70’s.  She will perform two sets - at 6 pm and 7 pm - during Arts Night Out.  In conjunction with the current exhibition, Single Room Occupancy, donations will benefit local organizations aiding those in need.

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Friday, April 6, 2018 | 5:30 - 7:30 pm

Living History Series: A Conversation & Songs by Local Music Legend Jim Armenti


During this special evening, Jim will share why he chose to settle in the Valley, his musical roots, his views on community, and some of local events that have inspired his songwriting. 

$25 including VIP Pre-Event Reception
$10 Jim Armenti event only

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Wednesday, March 28, 2018 | 7 - 8:30 pm

​Immigration in the Connecticut River Valley and Around the Country: Then and Now


​Immigration is in the news this year, and all of the national issues are playing out in the Valley.  Dan Berger, a nationally known immigration lawyer, and Kenneth Reade, UMASS International students & faculty advisor, will give a joint presentation that surveys U.S. immigration history and trends.

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Tuesday, March 20, 2018 | 2 to 4 pm

Explore Northampton Series: Burt's Pit & Greenway


Co-director and naturalist Laurie Sanders will lead a walk to Burt’s Pit, one of the most ecologically, geologically and historically significant properties within the City’s conservation holdings. The property includes the city’s only extant bog, a network of trails, and a history of ownership that will dazzle.

$8 members & donors: $12 non-members
Limited to 20. Registration required.

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Friday, March 16, 2018 | 12 noon to 1 pm

Exploring Downtown Northampton


Co-director and naturalist Laurie Sanders will lead a one-hour amble along a stretch of the former rail-line, now bike path and describe the natural and cultural history along the route.

$8 members & donors; $12 non-members

Limited to 15.  Registration required.
To register, lsanders@historicnorthampton.org


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Thursday, March 15, 2018 | 7 pm

​Artists' Talk with Cassandra Holden and Paul Shoul
​
Single Room Occupancy: Portraits & Stories from Northampton Lodging,  1976 - 2016

Guest curator Cassandra Holden and photographer Paul Shoul will discuss the process of getting to know the former residents of Northampton Lodging and how they approached the project intellectually, emotionally and artistically.


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Friday, March 9, 2018 | 5 - 8 pm

​Opening Reception
​
Single Room Occupancy: Portraits & Stories from Northampton Lodging,  1976 - 2016

Join guest curator Cassandra Holden and photographer Paul Shoul for the opening reception of their exhibition of photographs and oral histories of former residents of Northampton Lodging on Pleasant Street.


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Wednesday, January 24, 2018 | 11 am

Oxen Logging Demonstration & Parade
​
​
Forester and oxen driver Tom Jenkins of Blue Dog Forestry will bring his oxen "Rock" and "Star" to Historic Northampton for an outdoor demonstration on oxen logging.  After the 45-minute presentation, Rock and Star will drag logs from Historic Northampton down Bridge Street to 33 Hawley Street.

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Sunday, December 3, 2017 | 2 pm

Belchertown State School:
Pictures and Words from Behind the Bars
by Ed Orzechowski


“You’ll like it here.” — Donald Vitkus, Belchertown Patient #3394”  exposes the de-humanizing environment of Belchertown State School where six-year-old Donald Vitkus was committed in 1949.  n a series of interviews over eight years, Donald related his story to author Ed Orzechowski.  Ed will explain how his book came about, and present a slide show about the Belchertown State School.

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Saturday, December 2, 2017 | 4 - 6 pm

End-of-Year Celebration at Historic Northampton


Historic Northampton invites you to celebrate our accomplishments of 2017.

Join others who love Northampton's history, enjoy delicious refreshments, hear our latest news and look behind-the-scenes at our new state-of-the-art collections storage facility.


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Friday, November 17, 2017 | 10 am

What are the Rocks at Turkey Hill Quarry?
by geologist John Brady


In this outing, Smith College geologist John Brady will take us to one of his favorite places in Northampton--the abandoned rock quarry in the Mineral Hills Conservation Area.

$8 members; $12 non-members.
Pre-registration required.

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Wednesday, November 15, 2017 | 10 - 11:30 am

Explore Northampton Series:
The Northampton State Hospital


Co-director Elizabeth Sharpe will lead a walking tour of the former Northampton State Hospital grounds which is now the Village Hill complex.   She will describe the history of the hospital, the location of various buildings, and how treatments changed over time.

$8 members; $12 non-members.
Pre-registration required.

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Friday, November 10, 2017 | 5 - 8 pm
Opening Reception

Vanished: the Hospital on the Hill
Photographs by Stan Sherer
Text by J. Michael Moore


This exhibition tells the story of the Northampton State Hospital through the words of the employees, Stan Sherer’s photographs, commentary by J. Michael Moore, and historical photographs from the collection of Historic Northampton.


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Saturday, November 4, 2017 | 10 am - 12 noon

Meadow City Historians Quarterly Meeting
The Bridge Street Cemetery


Jane Slattery (aka Find A Grave's P.K. Magruder) will present a virtual tour of the cemetery.  Tom Gleason, who spent about forty years in the Cemetery Maintenance crew, will also answer questions about the day to day operations of digging graves, cutting grass, and directing people to historic or family sites.

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Sunday, October 29, 2017 | 10 am - 12 noon

American Cemetery Design and the Bridge Street Cemetery by Martha H. Lyon, ASLA


Martha Lyon will present a 30-minute talk about the history of American cemetery design.  Following the talk, she will lead an interactive "treasure hunt" tour through the Bridge Street Cemetery landscape, identifying design changes, and encouraging participants to spot them too.

Limited to 25 participants
$8 members; $12 non-members

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Friday, October 27, 2017 | 10 am - 1 pm

Explore Northampton Series:
Exemplary Trees of Look Park
Co-sponsored with Look Park

Noted big tree hunter and expert Bob Leverett will lead participants on a 3-hour guided walk of notable tree specimens found at Look Park. 

Pre-registration required
$8 members; $12 non-members

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Saturday, October 21, 2017 | 2 pm

The Devil's Juggles: Witchcraft Accusations in 17th-Century New England
by Michael Thurston


This talk (newly updated from its 2016 version) surveys the appearance of witchcraft in the seventeenth-century history of Valley towns and villages, pointing out familiar patterns of accusation and interrogation.

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Saturday, October 21, 2017 | 11 am

Dedication of the Northampton State Hospital
Burial Ground Memorial Bench


The Northampton Historical Commission will dedicate a new memorial bench overlooking "Cemetery Hill," used as a burial ground by Northampton State Hospital from 1858 until the 1920s.

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Annie Woodhull and Gordie Thorne
Photograph by Stephen Petegorsky
Friday, October 13, 2017 | 5 - 7:30 pm

Living History Series:
Arts in Northampton - Then, Now and Going Forward
A Conversation with Gordie Thorne and Annie Woodhull


Gordie Thorne and Annie Woodhull, in conversation with co-director Laurie Sanders, will describe the state of the arts in Northampton in the early 1970s when they first arrived to today, with the creation of the new Northampton Community Arts Trust project at 33 Hawley Street.

Reception: 5 - 6 pm
Presentation 6 - 7:30 pm

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Thursday, September 28, 2017 | 5:30 pm | Film

The Brush Shop: A Film by Stan Sherer


Stan Sherer's film, The Brush Shop, will be shown as part of the Northampton Film Festival at Historic Northampton.

This film tells the story of a vital Northampton industry through interviews with former Pro Brush people, archival photographs and commercials and advertisements from different periods.


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Sunday, September 24, 2017 | 2 pm

Parsing the Past of the Parsons House


Professional archaeologist Craig Chartier will discuss the finds from the excavation behind the Parsons House during the past week and explain the discoveries and observations within the context of the history of the house (1719), the history of the town and similar sites in New England.

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Saturday, September 23, 2017 | 2 pm

Vietnam
by Tom Weiner


The 18-hour film series The Vietnam War by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick will air on PBS beginning September 17th.  Author Tom Weiner will offer a presentation intended to both share his book on the Vietnam War draft and give folks an opportunity to offer their responses to the series and the war.

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Friday, September 22, 2017 | 10 am to 12 noon

Explore Northampton Series:
Exploring Roberts Hill, Leeds, MA


Join naturalist & co-director Laurie Sanders for a 2-hour exploration of one of Northampton's oldest conservation areas.  Roberts Hill is an important wildlife habitat with an elaborate network of well-maintained trails.

Co-sponsored by the Leeds Civic Association.
$8 members; $12 non-members.
Limited to 20.


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Thursday, September 21, 2017 | 10:30 am - 3 pm

Public Invitation to the Archaeology Dig Behind
the Parsons House


From September 18-22, a small archaeological dig will be underway behind the Parsons House (1719) to investigate a historic well and its immediate surroundings.  On Thursday, September 21, from 10:30 am to 3 pm, you're invited to come by the site and talk to professional archaeologists Craig Chartier and Greg Walwer about what they're doing and finding.

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Thursday, September 14, 2017 | 6:30 pm | Film

The Brush Shop: A Film by Stan Sherer


Stan Sherer's film, The Brush Shop, will be shown at the Westhampton Public Library. This film tells the story of a vital Northampton industry through interviews with former Pro Brush people, archival photographs and commercials and advertisements from different periods.

Location: Westhampton Public Library

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Saturday, September 9, 2017 | 2 pm | Public Talk

Photographic Portraits: Private Meets Public
by Sandra Matthews


Sandra Matthews will speak on photographic portraits and history in conjunction with the exhibition, Reframing Northampton: A Contemporary View of the Howes Brothers Photographs by Sara Lyons.

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Friday, September 8, 2017 | 5 to 8 pm | Reception

Reframing Northampton: A Contemporary View
of the Howes Brothers Photographs
by Sara Lyons

Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out


Sara Lyons revisited and re-photographed a number of homes documented by the Howes Brothers over 100 years ago.  Her contemporary portraits will be exhibited alongside prints of the original Howes Brothers images.

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Saturday, August 26, 2017 | 7 pm

The Scarlet Professor: An Evening of Discussion & Song


Award-winning biographer Barry Werth and composer Eric Sawyer will describe how they and librettest Harley Erdman transformed the powerful story of Newton Arvin into an opera.

Location: Unitarian Society, 220 Main Street, Northampton

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Sunday, August 20, 2017 | 4:30 - 6 pm

4th Annual Ice Cream Social
on the grounds of Historic Northampton
  • Herrell's On the MOOOve ice cream trailer
  • Florence Community Band
  • Triple Membership Offer

Sponsored by Historic Northampton, the Ward 3 Neighborhood Association and the Meadow City Conservation Coalition.

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Friday, August 11, 2017 | 5 to 8 pm

Reframing Northampton: A Contemporary View
of the Howes Brothers Photographs
by Sara Lyons

Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out


Sara Lyons revisited and re-photographed a number of homes documented by the Howes Brothers over 100 years ago.  Her contemporary portraits will be exhibited alongside prints of the original Howes Brothers images.

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Sunday, July 23, 2017 | 2 pm | Film Screening

The Brush Shop
A film by Stan Sherer

64 minutes

The sprawling brick complex in Northampton, Massachusetts called “Brushworks Arts and Industry” hosts the studios of a hundred artists and craftspeople. But the brush in “Brushworks” isn't a paintbrush, it's a toothbrush.
 
The building had been the home of the Pro Corporation. Under different names and ownerships, the company spanned the manufacturing life of this lively city.

Through interviews with former Pro Brush people, archival photographs from the collection of Historic Northampton, and commercials and advertisements from different periods, this film tells the story of a vital Northampton industrial history.

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Saturday, July 22, 2017 | 4:30 - 6 pm | Painting Party

Good Neighbors Paint Good Fences

Join dozens (100s?) of volunteers at Historic Northampton where you'll have the "privilege"of helping to paint all 300 feet of fence along Bridge Street.

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Saturday, July 22, 2017 | 9:30 am |  Reunion

Parsons Family Association 2017 Reunion


The Parsons Family Association 2017 Reunion will be held at Historic Northampton on Saturday, July 22, 2017.

Pre-registration required.

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Saturday, July 15, 2017 | 2 pm | Public Talk

The Other Battle of the Somme:
The Smith College Relief Unit in World War I

by Jennifer Hall-Witt

The women of the Smith College Relief Unit arrived in Grécourt, a village in the Somme Valley, in September 1917 to help civilians recover from two and a half years of German occupation and utter devastation.  Jennifer Hall-Witt tells the story of this remarkable group of women.

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Tuesday, July 11, 2017 | 5:30 - 7:30 pm | Boat Outing

From Northampton to the Boundary Waters
(or at least the boundary with Hatfield)


Take in the beauty of the Connecticut River in a 16-person dragon boat and learn about its natural and cultural history at the same time with Betsy Powell, founder of Paradise City Dragon Boat and Laurie Sanders, co-director of Historic Northampton and naturalist.

Connecticut River Greenway Park, Damon Road


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Saturday, June 17, 2017 | 2 pm| Public Talk

Chaotic Freedom in Civil War Louisiana:

The Origins of an Iconic Image
by Bruce Laurie


Bruce Laurie will speak on his research into two Pioneer Valley soldiers who changed the course of the Civil War.  Laurie’s work culminated in the essay, “Chaotic Freedom” in Civil War Louisiana: The Origins of an Iconic Image, a Working Titles e-book published by The Massachusetts Review.  Northampton-based printer and newspaper publisher Henry S. Gere (Hampshire Gazette) and Greenfield currier and carpenter Marshall S. Stearns, collaborated to produce a photo that became an emblem of abolitionism during the Civil War, featured in Harper’s and throughout the country. The carte de visite features “Peter,” often misidentified as “Gordon,” the slave with scourged back, elbow jutting, and striking profile.


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Wednesday, June 14, 2017 | 9 pm | Moth Night

Downtown Northampton's "Wild" Night Life:
Moths, Fireflies & Other Night Flying Insects

Presented by moth aficionado Betsy Higgins, the evening will include an indoor slide presentation about the diversity of moths in our area. Following this, we will head outdoors to check out the variety of night-flying insects drawn to Higgins' black lights and mercury vapor lamps. The evening will conclude with a light show, courtesy of thousands of fireflies in the nearby meadows. 

 
Pre-registration is required.  Limited to 20.
$10 members; $15 non-members

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Saturday, June 10, 2017 | 2 pm | Lecture

Call me Professor, or, Students and Respect on Campus
by Rob Cox, Special Collections, UMass Archives


The New York Times recently ran a story by Molly Worthen in which she implies that the fading of formality on campus between students and faculty seems to signify the passing of a culture of respect.   In this talk, Rob Cox takes a look at student attitudes at UMass (and its predecessor Massachusetts Agricultural College) in an attempt to put the present day in a longer context and to ask what respect has meant to students and faculty alike over the years.

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Friday, June 9, 2017 | 5 - 8 pm | Opening Reception

Contained and Constrained
by Karen Battles and Leslie Lyman


Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out


Artists Leslie Lyman and Karen Battles have each created artworks that respond to and reinterpret images and artifacts drawn from Historic Northampton's archives.  Each of the pieces has been conceived and is being presented in a context informed by the late 19th century book Social Etiquette or Manners and Customs of Polite Society.


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Wednesday, June 7, 2017 | 7 pm | Forbes Library

The Brush Shop
A film by Stan Sherer
Coolidge Museum, Forbes Library, Northampton

64 minutes

The sprawling brick complex in Northampton, Massachusetts called “Brushworks Arts and Industry” hosts the studios of a hundred artists and craftspeople. But the brush in “Brushworks” isn't a paintbrush, it's a toothbrush.
 
The building had been the home of the Pro Corporation. Under different names and ownerships, the company spanned the manufacturing life of this lively city.

Through interviews with former Pro Brush people, archival photographs from the collection of Historic Northampton, and commercials and advertisements from different periods, this film tells the story of a vital Northampton industrial history.


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Saturday, June 3, 2017 | 4:30 pm | Concert

The Super PAC Band
An Acoustic Concert on the grounds of Historic Northampton


Historic Northampton will host the Super PAC Band, a talented group of local musicians, who describe themselves this way:  “The Super PAC Band is Passionate About Community!  We play for the general good will and your listening pleasure… Our waltzes and foot-tappin’ tunes hail from New England, including the Connecticut River Valley, Appalachia, Scandinavia, and Ireland.”

Please bring a blanket, picnic, and your friends and family!

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Saturday, May 13, 2017 | 2 pm | Lecture

Wildlife Changes in Northampton: From Nonotuck to Now
by Laurie Sanders


During the last 500 years, major changes have occurred in Northampton's wildlife.  Wolves and passenger pigeons and mountain lions are gone, while beaver, bear and turkeys, which had disappeared for decades, are now back in abundance.  In this presentation, Laurie Sanders will highlight some of the major trends and changes that explain the mix of animal species that we now encounter in Northampton, from its urbanized center to its wilder spaces.


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Friday, May 12, 2017 | 5 - 8 pm | Opening Reception

Laws Change. People Die.  The Land Remains.
Curated by Sally Curcio and Anne LaPrade Seuthe


Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out


An exhibition of paintings and sculpture by five Western Massachusetts artists who reflect on how our actions impact the landscape.  The five artists are Jesse Connor, Sally Curcio, Karen Evans, Anne LaPrade Seuthe and Jenny Tibbetts.


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Thursday, April 27, 2017 | 6 - 8:30 pm | Special Event

An In-Depth Conversation with Frances Crowe
  • Hors D'oeuvres Reception at 6 pm
  • A Conversation with Frances Crowe, with Co-Director Laurie Sanders at 7 pm

Reservations are required.

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Saturday, April 22, 2017 | 2 pm | Demonstration

Silverpoint: A Demonstration and Talk
by Jeremiah Patterson, University of Hartford


Jeremiah Patterson of the University of Hartford will offer a demonstration and presentation on the art of silverpoint drawing in conjunction with the exhibition En Pointe: Silverpoint (Drawing from History).  He will explain the materials involved and techniques used to make these works of art, from the emptiness of a blank sheet of paper to a final image made of silver toned marks.

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Friday, April 14, 2017 | 5 - 8 pm |Opening Reception

En Pointe: Silverpoint (Drawing from History)
curated by Diane Savino

Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out


Opening Reception for the exhibition, En Pointe: Silverpoint (Drawing from History), a contemporary visual dialogue with the drawings of Charles C. Burleigh, Jr., who studied the Masters and recorded his natural environment through realistic approaches.  The exhibition features the work of silverpoint artists: Diane Savino, Fred Wessel, Jeremiah Patterson, William Patterson, Carolyn Patterson, Banjie Nicholas, Kandy Phillips and Jon Gernon.

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Saturday, April 8, 2017 | 10 am - 4 pm

Community Building as Resistance:
The Northampton Association at 175


Commemorate the 175th Anniversary of the founding of the Northampton Association of Education and Industry.

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Monday, April 3, 2017 | 7 pm | Staged Reading

Getting Out: A staged reading by the Holyoke Community College Theatre Department of Getting Out, a play by Marsha Norman, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for 'Night Mother.

Getting Out is the story of Arlene, a woman struggling to survive on the outside after being incarcerated for eight years in a Kentucky prison.  The guards, prison officials, and her former self (Arlie) all appear on stage in flashbacks.

Location: Forbes Library Community Room

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Sunday, April 2, 2017 | 2 pm | Lecture

The Final Flourish, the Rhetoric of the Hat
by Margaret Bruzelius


Beginning with illustrations derived from 30's screwball comedies, Margaret Bruzelius will discuss the patterns of meaning in hats in film: high crown versus low crown, broad versus narrow brim, feathers and trim, and where and how the hat fits on the head.  
 
Location: Historic Northampton

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Wednesday, March 29, 2017 | 7 pm | Lecture

Real Madness: Warehousing People with Mental Illness in Prisons presented by Robert Fleischner


The United States incarcerates more of its citizens than any other country, and a substantial percentage of those prisoners have a serious mental illness.  Contrary to their mission, prisons and jails have become the new asylums.  Robert Fleischner will discuss why so many people with mental illness are in prison and other aspects of this issue.

Location: Forbes Library, Coolidge Room

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Saturday, March 25, 2017 | 3 pm | Lecture

Punishment in Paradise: The History of Incarceration
in Northampton, 1654-present

a lecture presented by Mike Ryan

Mike Ryan will discuss crime and punishment in Northampton and the development of the series of Northampton jails and houses of correction. He will describe how philosophies about incarceration have changed here over the last 350 years.  A native of Northampton, Mike Ryan is a board member of Historic Northampton, a former District Attorney, and a retired lawyer and judge.

Location: Forbes Library, Coolidge Room

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Thursday, March 23, 2017 | 7 pm | Film Screening

Film Screening of Ava DuVernay's film 13th


This Oscar-nominated documentary powerfully explores the intersection of racism and criminal justice, from its roots in slavery to today's modern-day prison labor system.

Presented by Historic Northampton and the American Studies Department at Smith College.

Location: Weinstein Auditorium, Wright Hall, Smith College


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Saturday, March 18, 2017 | 10 am | Quarterly Meeting

Meadow City Historians


At the March 2017 quarterly meeting of Meadow City Historians, Julie Bartlett Nelson, archivist and Elise Bernier-Feeley, local history librarian will discuss special collections relating to local history at Forbes Library.

To join MCH, email us at info@historicnorthampton.org and tell us about your research interests. 

Location: Forbes Library


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Monday, March 13, 2017 | 5 - 8 pm

States of Incarceration Opening Reception


Opening reception for States of Incarceration, a traveling exhibit from the Humanities Action Lab.  The exhibit will be on view from March 13th to March 30th at Historic Northampton and at Forbes Library.

At 7 pm, at Historic Northampton, Voices From Inside will perform Voices Carry, a collection of original poetry readings by women who were formerly incarcerated.

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Friday, March 10, 2017 | 5 - 8 pm | Opening Reception

Unidentified Woman
by Jodi Colella


In Unidentified Woman, Jodi Colella engages with headwear and daguerreotypes from the collection of the Historic Northampton Museum and responds to forces that have shaped women’s identities since the 18th century.


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Saturday, February 25, 2017 | 2 pm | Lecture

Florence at the Turn of the Twentieth Century:
The Goodwin Photographic Collection
by Steve Strimer


Steve Strimer will present a selection of images from the Goodwin Photographic Collection of over 300 glass-plate negatives taken by J.W. Bird and Ferdinand Schadee.  Taken around 1900, these images document the growth of the village of Florence. The collection was donated to the Florence History Museum by Ann Goodwin. 

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Friday, February 10, 2017 | 5 - 8 pm | Reception

Romancing Northampton
by Emily Stedman


Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out

Romancing Northampton explores our longing for a sense of continuity with our past.  New York City artist Emily Stedman has created a series of watercolor paintings based on archival photos from Historic Northampton’s collection.

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Saturday, December 10, 2016 | 4 - 6 pm | Reception

A Special Celebration for Members & Supporters


Our new co-directors, Laurie Sanders and Betty Sharpe, will review our year's activities and thank our volunteers.

View a slide show of images of this year's exhibitions, lectures, events and building renovations.

Hear our exciting news and mingle with others who love Northampton's history.

Enjoy delicious treats that Sylvester Graham would never eat.





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Saturday, December 10, 2016 | 10 am - 12 noon | Meeting

Meadow City Historians Quarterly Meeting


The next quarterly meeting of Meadow City Historians will take place on Saturday, December 10, 2016 at 10 am in the Damon Education Center at 46 Bridge Street.

On the agenda:

  • Bob Drinkwater: Bridge Street Cemetery
  • Tom Goldscheider: labor research in Greenfield, Massachusetts
  • 2017 Steering Committee election

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Friday, December 9, 2016 | 5 - 8 pm | Holiday Stroll

Downtown Northampton Holiday Stroll 2016


The Downtown Northampton Association is closing Main Street to car traffic on Friday, December 9th for a holiday stroll.  Enjoy entertainment, treats and holiday lights.  Celebrate the winter season with S'Mores and marshmallow roasting at a fire pit outside Thornes Marketplace.  Historic Northampton will host a special graham cracker activity in honor of Sylvester Graham.  Find us downtown at Memorial Hall on Friday, December 9, 2016 from 5 to 8 pm.

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Sunday, December 4, 2016 | 2 pm| Lecture

The Wampum Trail:
Restorative Research in Native American Collections
by Margaret Bruchac, University of Pennsylvania


The Wampum Trail research project examines the use of northeastern Native American quahog and whelk shell beads for adornment, ritual, and diplomacy.  By re-visiting archival sources and analyzing the construction of mysterious wampum beads and belts in museum collections, Dr. Bruchac has recovered many previously overlooked material details.  At left, Bruchac examines the Six Diamond Mohawk Belt at the Mohawk Nation at Kanehsatake, Oka, Quebec.

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Saturday, December 3, 2016 | 2 pm | Book Launch

A Northampton Journey: from Pumps to Politics to Print
Book Launch of Jim Cahillane's new book, The Pilot's Satchel


In his latest book of poems, The Pilot’s Satchel, Jim recounts his dreams of worldly travels, books, theater, life, and near-death medical tales over a three-month odyssey of local hospitals and rehabs, and conjectures their relations to events in his life: emigration, boxing, political races, City Hall itself, Union Street Jail, Halligan and Daley, the auto business, and much more.  Mr. Cahillane will read selections from The Pilot's Satchel and recount stories of the family’s rich local history.

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Saturday, November 19, 2016 | 2 - 4 pm | Walking Tour

Hidden Mill River Walk: Paradise Pond to Old South Street
John Sinton, Mill River Greenway Initiative
Laurie Sanders, Historic Northampton


Join John Sinton and Laurie Sanders on a walk through more than 15,000 years of geological history and 10,000 years of human history, focusing on the section from Paradise Pond to Old South Street

Suggested Donation:
$5 for members of Historic Northampton
$10 for non-members of Historic Northampton

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.Sunday, November 13, 2016 | 2 pm | Book Launch

The Lost Village of Roberts Meadow:
Northampton's Forgotten Settlement
by John I. Clapp


John Irving Clapp, of Florence, will launch and read from his latest book, The Lost Village of Roberts Meadow: Northampton’s Forgotten Settlement.  John will reveal the little known history of the small village of Roberts Meadow that was located in the northwest corner of Northampton on Kennedy, Sylvester and Chesterfield Roads.

Books will be available for purchase and signing, and 25% of proceeds from that day’s sales will be donated to Historic Northampton. The reading is free and open to the public and refreshments will be served.

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Saturday, November 12, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Button It!
by Lynne Zacek Bassett


Textile and costume historian Lynne Zacek Bassett will explore the history of buttons and more specifically, button making in Northampton in conjunction with the Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton exhibition, Northampton Unbuttoned.

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Friday, November 11, 2016 |5 - 8 pm |Opening Reception

Northampton Unbuttoned:
the Girls of The Mill River Button Company, circa 1874
by Elisa Lanzi and Nancy Meagher


Elisa Lanzi and Nancy Meagher present Northampton Unbuttoned, an installation of contemporary artworks inspired by the "plaid-clad" girls that sorted, carded and packed boxes of shaped and dyed buttons made from vegetable ivory at the Mill River Button Company in Leeds.

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Thursday, November 3, 2016 | 7 pm | Film Screening

Campaign
by Kazuhiro Soda

2007, 60 minutes

In 2005, Kazuhiro Soda shot Campaign (2007, 60 minutes), depicting a political campaign in Kawasaki, Japan, by Kazuhiko Yamauchi, an inexperienced candidate officially endorsed by the Japanese Liberal Democratic Party.

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Sunday, October 23, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Guerilla Portraiture at the Political Conventions
by Barry Goldstein


Barry Goldstein interviewed and photographed participants at the 2016 Republican National Convention for The American Scholar magazine. He also covered the demonstrations in Philadelphia during the Democratic Convention.  Barry will describe the technical and logistical challenges of what he calls his on-the-fly “guerilla portraiture."

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Saturday, October 22, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Fact or Fiction? The Reality of Clothes in Portraits
by Edward Maeder


Textile and costume historian Edward Maeder will examine some of the methods in which early fashion information was distributed from the late Middle Ages until the middle of the nineteenth century.  He will also present and discuss a brief survey of publications that included or were based entirely on “dress” from the 15th to the 19th century.

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Thursday, October 20, 2016 | 7 pm | Film screening

Bernadette

by Duncan Campbell
2008, UK, 37 minutes

Bernadette is a portrait of the Irish dissident and political activist, Bernadette Devlin by artist Duncan Campbell.  This screening is co-sponsored by Hampshire College and X (Unknown Quantity), a film series supported by the Amherst College English Department and Film & Media Studies.

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Saturday, October 15, 2016 | 1 to 3 pm |Walking Tour

Wildsboro & Roberts Meadow Walk


Join John Clapp on a walk along “Mosquito Hollow Road” to view the cellar holes, stone walls and stone lined wells of former residents of Wildsboro, a long-forgotten neighborhood within the larger village of Roberts Meadow. 

Limited to 20 participants.  Pre-registration is required at lsanders@historicnorthampton.org. 

Suggested donation: $5 for members and $10 for non-members.

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Friday, October 14, 2016 | 5 to 8 pm | Opening Reception

Mask by Jenni Sussman


Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out

For her series Mask, Jenni Sussman explores how we as individuals choose to present ourselves to the world.  Sussman questions daguerreotypes, tintypes and painted portraits in the museum collection to discover what is revealed and what is not.

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Thursday, October 6, 2016 | 12 noon | Walking Tour

The History of Market Street:
1730s to the End of the Civil War
with Lu Stone


Historian and author Lu Stone will lead a lunch time walking tour based on her research of the Market Street neighborhood.  Pre-registration is required.  Limited to 20 participants.  Suggested donation: $5 for members and $10 for non-members.


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Sunday, September 18, 2016 | 9:30-11:30 am | Paddle Boat

From Northampton to the Boundary Waters
(or at least the boundary with Hatfield)


Take in the beauty of the Connecticut River in a 16-person dragon boat and learn about its natural and cultural history at the same time with Betsy Powell, founder of Paradise City Dragon Boat and Laurie Sanders, co-director of Historic Northampton and naturalist.

Pre-registration is required.

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Saturday, September 17, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Leather and Wool: Early Industries in the Lost Village of Roberts Meadow by John Clapp


John Clapp will talk about his forthcoming book, The Lost Village of Roberts Meadow, focusing on the rise and fall of its wool and leather industries.

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Saturday, September 17, 2016 |10 am to 12 noon | Meeting

Meadow City Historians Quarterly Meeting


The quarterly meeting of Meadow City Historians will take place on Saturday, September 17th at 10 am in the Damon Education Center.

On the agenda:
  • a participatory presentation by Historic Northampton co-director Betty Sharpe, author of In the Shadow of the Dam
  • reports from affinity groups
  • upcoming projects

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Friday, September 9, 2016 | 5 to 8 pm | Opening Reception

Utopia to Paradise?
by Anna VA Polesny


Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out

Anna Polesny blends the old with the new by exploring a variety of leathers and leather working techniques and miniature locally-found objects and decorative materials. Art garments and wall hangings tell the continuing story of Northampton influenced by geography and history.

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Saturday, August 27, 2016 | 5 - 7 pm |Ice Cream Social

3rd Annual Ice Cream Social
on the grounds of Historic Northampton
  • Herrell's On the MOOve ice cream trailer
  • Florence Community Band
  • A2Z Yo-Yo Team and games for kids
  • Local historian Mike Ryan will speak on Caleb Cooley Dickinson
  • Triple Membership Offer
Sponsored by Historic Northampton, the Ward 3 Neighborhood Association and the Meadow City Conservation Coalition.

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.Sunday, August 21, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Tales from the Trails: The Northampton Rail Trail and Beyond
by Craig Della Penna


Craig Della Penna will speak about the history of the rail trail corridors, their transformation from rail-to-trail, and the cultural and economic impact of these projects.  A railroad project that the Norwood Engineering Company needed jumpstarted Calvin Coolidge's career.

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Friday, August 12, 2016 | 5 to 8 pm | Opening Reception

The Norwood Engineering Building: A Florence Landmark
by Paul Griffin and Peter Norman


Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton

Photographers Paul Griffin and Peter Norman have documented the current occupants of the Norwood Engineering Building.  Reprints of historic images and documents will give an historic context to the building.

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Sunday, July 31, 2016 | 2 pm | Presentation

Caring for Grace Coolidge's Gown
by Colleen Callahan, Costume and Textile Specialist


Costume conservator Colleen Callahan will present an illustrated lecture about her work restoring an evening gown owned by Grace Coolidge.  The gown will be on view along with several items of needlework made by Grace Coolidge.

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Sunday, July 31, 2016 | 11 am to 12:30 pm | Lampron Park

Ward 3 Neighborhood Association Annual
Summer Social Event


The primary focus of the event will be the Preservation Master Plan for Bridge Street Cemetery.  Martha Lyon, the Northampton landscape architect who created the plan and Rich Parasiliti, the former foreman of the parks and cemetery division of the Northampton Department of Public Works will each give a short talk about our hopes for the cemetery.  The formal part of the program will begin about 11:15 am.

At Lampron Park outside the Bridge Street Cemetery

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Saturday, July 30, 2016 | 2 pm| Lecture

The Devil's Juggles:
Witchcraft Accusations in 17th-Century New England
by Michael Thurston, Smith College


In conjunction with the exhibition, Mary Bliss Parsons: Accused Witch of Northampton, Michael Thurston will give a public talk on witchcraft accusations in seventeenth-century New England.  Michael Thurston is William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of English Language and Literature at Smith College.

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Saturday, July 23, 2016 | 9:30 am | Parsons Family Reunion

Parsons Family Association 2016 Reunion


The Parsons Family Association 2016 Reunion will be held at Historic Northampton on Saturday, July 23, 2016.

Pre-registration required

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Sunday, July 17, 2016 | 11 am | Slide Presentation & Guided Walk

The Surprising Natural and Cultural History of Laurel Park
by Laurie Sanders


Laurie Sanders, naturalist and co-director of Historic Northampton, will present a slide presentation and guided walk as part of Chautauqua Weekend at Laurel Park.



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Friday, July 8, 2016 | 5 to 8 pm| Opening Reception

Mary Bliss Parsons: Accused Witch of Northampton
by Susan Montgomery


Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out

In this Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton exhibition, Susan Montgomery explores the confusing and contradictory rumors and accusations against Mary Bliss Parsons.  Montgomery's selection of watercolor paintings are complemented by a sculpture installation and linocut print.

The presentation of women in history, culture and our communal memory has always been a subject for Montgomery, who has worked with such figures in her art as Pope Joan, Marie Curie, The Radium Girls, Hester Prynne, the Daughters of Saint Crispin among other female heroes.

At left is The Great She-Goat: Mary Bliss Parsons, watercolor and mixed media, 24" x 36," 2016.

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Tuesday, June 28, 2016 | 12 noon | Natural History Walking Tour

Exploring the Natural History of the Bridge Street Cemetery
with naturalist Laurie Sanders


Join naturalist Laurie Sanders for a lunchtime walking tour exploring
the natural history of the Bridge Street Cemetery.

Pre-registration is required.  Limited to 20 participants.
Donation: Members: $5 and Non-members: $10


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Tuesday, June 21, 2016 | 12 noon | Natural History Walking Tour

Botanizing Along the Bike Path Walking Tour
with naturalist Laurie Sanders


Join naturalist Laurie Sanders for a lunchtime walking tour,
Botanizing Along the Bike Path.

Pre-registration is required.  Limited to 20 participants.
Donation: Members: $5 and Non-members: $10

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Saturday, June 18, 2016 | 2 pm | Hestia Mural Lecture Series

Up on the Wall: The Story of the Hestia Mural
featuring Linda Bond, Mariah Fee, Susan Pontious & Wednesday Nelena Sorokin


Muralists Linda Bond, Mariah Fee, Susan Pontious and Wednesday Nelena Sorokin will speak about creating the Hestia Mural: how the Hestia Art Collective came together as a group, the evolution of the initial concept, historical research, community engagement, grant writing, designing & painting the mural.

Location: Neilson Library Browsing Room, Smith College


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Tuesday, June 14, 2016 | 12 noon | Natural History Walking Tour

Natural History of Historic Northampton and Vicinity
with naturalist Laurie Sanders


Join naturalist Laurie Sanders for a lunchtime walking tour focusing on the natural history of Historic Northampton and vicinity.

Pre-registration is required.  Limited to 20 participants.
Donation:
Members: $5
Non-members: $10

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Sunday, June 12, 2016 | 2 pm | Panel Discussion

Do today's toys develop lasting creative and social skills in our children?

Panelists
:
  • Andre Boulay, owner of A2Z Science & Learning Store
  • Laura Frogameni, Northampton Montessori School
  • Bartlett Doty, Lego Corporation
  • Meghann Obear, Obstetric Nurse at Cooley Dickinson Hospital

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Friday, June 10, 2016 | 5 to 8 pm | Opening Reception

Toys: Yesterday and Today: Artwork by Jan Ruby-Crystal


Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out

Jan Ruby-Crystal intertwines toys from Historic Northampton's collections with contemporary toys and creates a responding body of artwork exploring the ways that play supports creative growth in children.
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Saturday, June 4, 2016 | 10 am | Walking Tour

Walking Tour of the Pomeroy Terrace Historic District

with tour guide Steve Strimer

Meet at Historic Northampton (rain date TBA)

Tour the proposed Pomeroy Terrace Historic District.  The tour is co-sponsored by The Ward 3 Neighborhood Association and Historic Northampton
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Saturday, May 21, 2016 | 10 am - 12 noon| Quarterly Meeting

Meadow City Historians Quarterly Meeting

The quarterly meeting of Meadow City Historians will include a research presentation from Northampton State Hospital researcher Christopher Sparks on "Moral Treatment in Paradise City" and break sessions for affinity groups.

Meadow City Historians is open to individuals researching of any aspect of local history related to Northampton, Massachusetts.

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Sunday, May 15, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Copper Kettles & Lonesome Pines: Northampton's Tea Room Era

by Jan Whitaker

Consumer historian Jan Whitaker will present an illustrated talk on the history of Northampton’s tea rooms.  Iced tea, lemonade and pastries will be served afterwards on the terrace.  This program is held in conjunction with the exhibition, Table Talk: Food, Cooking and Eating in Northampton, Then and Now curated by Barbara B. Blumenthal.

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Saturday, May 14, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Agriculture, Art, Tourism and the Natural History of the Northampton Meadows, 1654-present
by Laurie Sanders, co-director of Historic Northampton

Naturalist Laurie Sanders will explore the important roles that Northampton’s 3,000 plus acres of rich meadowland have played in the City’s settlement and its economic and cultural history. She will also highlight some of the special habitats and species that can be found within its wilder margins and pockets.

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Saturday, May 14, 2016 | 10 am | Walking Tour

Women's History of Florence Walking Tour


Hestia Mural 35th Anniversary Lecture Series

Tour guide Steve Strimer will lead a walking tour of Florence highlighting abolition-era women who worked to create a better society.

Location: Meet at the Sojourner Truth Memorial Statue, corner of Park and Pine streets in Florence


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Friday, May 13, 2016 | 5 to 8 pm | Opening Reception

The Great Meadow: Natural and Cultural Histories of Northampton's Meadows by Nick Baker, Claudette Lambert Peterson & Anthony W. Lee

Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out

Nick Baker, Claudette Lambert Peterson and Anthony W. Lee present photographs and illustrations of the many facets of the Northampton Meadows.

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Saturday, May 7, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Why Die For Beauty? Dorothy Wrinch's Saga through Science
by Marjorie Senechal, Smith College

Mathematician and biologist Dorothy Wrinch proposed a model for protein molecules which sparked the "protein war" of the mid-1930s.  Marjorie Senechal will focus on a puzzle that perplexed Wrinch's contemporaries: why did she cling to her model?
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Saturday, April 30, 2016 | 2 pm| Lecture

Eating New England: Key Foods of the Commonwealth
by Rob Cox, University of Massachusetts at Amherst

Rob Cox will explore the development of some of New England’s signature foods over the centuries. Cox’s talk complements the exhibition Table Talk: Food, Cooking, and Eating in Northampton Then and Now curated by Barbara B. Blumenthal

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Saturday, April 23, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

"My Buried Life": Adelene Moffat in Crete, 1903
by Frances Freeman Paden, Northwestern University


Hestia Mural 35th Anniversary Lecture Series

From 1889 to 1907, Adelene Moffat was the moving spirit of the Home Culture Clubs, a social settlement project founded in Northampton by George Cable.  In 1903, Adelene took a leave from the Home Culture Clubs to work as an archaeological artist in Crete.
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Saturday, April 16, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Very Early Youth Baseball:
Games and Sports at the Round Hill School, 1823 to 1834

by Brian Turner

Brian Turner, author of The Hurrah Game: Baseball in Northampton 1791-1953, will present his recent research on games and sports at the Round Hill School.
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Friday, April 8, 2016 | 5-8 pm | Opening Reception

Children of the Game: Northampton Little League Baseball Portraits

Featured Artist: Robert Aller

Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out

An exhibition of color photographs taken 30 years ago by Robert Aller of his son's Little League team and the player's families.

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Saturday, April 2, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

The Bran-Bread Philosopher:
Sylvester Graham and the Science of Human Life

by Christopher Clark, University of Connecticut

Lecture 3 of 4 in the spring 2016 science lecture series From Mars to Molecules: Quirky Scientists who put the Valley on the Map curated by Marjorie Senechal of Smith College.
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Saturday, March 19, 2016 | 2 pm |Lecture

Marion Dodd and the Hampshire Bookshop
by Barbara B. Blumenthal, Mortimer Rare Book Room

Bookbinder and Rare Book Specialist Barbara B. Blumenthal will speak on Marion Dodd and the Hamsphire Bookshop founded in 1916.

Hestia Mural 35th Anniversary Lecture Series
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Saturday, March 12, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Capitalism and Calamity: The Mill River Flood of 1874
by Elizabeth Sharpe

Elizabeth Sharpe, author of In the Shadow of the Dam: The Aftermath of the Mill River Flood of 1874, will speak in conjunction with Rebecca Muller's Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton exhibition, Debris Flow.

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Friday, March 11, 2016 | 5-8 pm | Opening Reception

Debris Flow: A Meditation on the Mill River Disaster in 1874 by Rebecca Muller


Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton
Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out

Debris Flow is a mixed-media exhibition based on stereopticon images of the historic Mill River Reservoir Disaster in 1874.

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Saturday, March 5, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Martians and a Hole in the Sky:
Amherst Astronomer David Todd

by George Greenstein, Amherst College

George Greenstein will speak on astronomer David Todd.  A master inventor who once worked with Thomas Edison, Todd was a leader in studies of the Sun's atmosphere and the planet Mars.

Lecture 2 of 4 in the spring 2016 science lecture series From Mars to Molecules: Quirky Scientists who put the Valley on the Map curated by Marjorie Senechal of Smith College.

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Saturday, February 27, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Rediscovering the Folly Cove Designers

by Jennifer Scanlon, Bowdoin College

Jennifer Scanlon, professor of Gender and Women's Studies at Bowdoin College, will present her research on the Folly
Cove designers, a mid-20th-century group of American artists block printing in Gloucester, Massachusetts, on Cape Ann.   The talk is presented with the Massachusetts Review in conjunction with the Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton exhibition, Keeping Busy.

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Saturday, February 27, 2016 | 10 am | Quarterly Meeting

Meadow City Historians Quarterly Meeting

This new group is open to all people who are doing research on any aspect of local history related to Northampton, Massachusetts.

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.  We welcome both amateurs and professionals, part-time and full-time researchers, and both local residents and out-of-towners.


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Friday, February 12, 2016 | 5 to 8 pm | Opening Reception

Keeping Busy: Five Contemporary Artists Respond to Henrietta Lambie's Mourning Quilt, circa 1884

Curated by Esther White
Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton

Opening Reception | Northampton's Arts Night Out

Artist and arts organizer Esther White has brought together five contemporary artists - Angela Zammarelli, Anna Slezak, Annie Sollinger, Kat Howard and Lucy Trainor - to create new artwork in response to Henrietta Lambie's Mourning Quilt started in 1884.

Saturday, February 6, 2016 | 2 pm | Lecture

Science in Exile: Albert Francis Blakeslee and Sophie Satin in Northampton

by C. John Burk, Biological Sciences Department, Smith College

C. John Burk will speak on Albert Francis Blakeslee and Sophie Satin, eminent geneticists who conducted botanical research at Smith College.  Lecture 1 of 4 in the lecture series From Mars to Molecules: Quirky Scientists who put the Valley on the Map curated by Marjorie Senechal of Smith College.

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Accessorize This!
with Amy Halliday

First Night Northampton 2016
Thursday, December 31, 2015 | 2 to 5 pm

Drop into Historic Northampton for family-friendly crafting activities inspired by the collection. Make your own decorative paper fan, bead a friendship bracelet, or strike a pose in our photo-booth.

Open to ages four and over with First Night buttons.
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Sunday, December 6, 2015 at 3 pm

Fast Forward Film Series Fall 2015: Artifacts of Fixation

Harun Farocki: Still Life
(1997, 58 minutes)
In his film Still Life Harun Farocki connects the contemporary advertising of consumer objects to the 17th century Flemish tradition of still life painting.

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Hestia Mural 35th Anniversary Lecture Series

Lydia Maria Child and Anti-Slavery Work in Northampton

a public lecture by Patricia G. Holland

Saturday, December 5, 2015
2 pm


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Rediscovering Northampton
a six-part lecture series with naturalist Laurie Sanders

Sunday, November 22, 2015, 2 pm
Weinstein Auditorium, Wright Hall at Smith College

Lecture #6 of 6
Northampton's Poor Farm & the City's Most Accessible Conservation Area: Barrett Street Marsh
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Meadow City Historians
Saturday, November 21, 2015 at 10 am

The inaugural meeting of Meadow City Historians.

This new group is open to all people who are doing research on any aspect of local history related to Northampton, Massachusetts.


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Sunday, November 15, 2015 at 3 pm

Fast Forward Film Series: Artifacts of Fixation
Featured Filmmaker: Hope Tucker


A screening of 6 films by artist and Hampshire College professor Hope Tucker.  The filmmaker will be present at the screening to discuss her work and answer questions.




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Saturday, November 14 at 2 pm

Light: Capturing the Elusive

Speaker:  Robert Hallock, University of Massachusetts

Bob Hallock will discuss the physics of light in conjunction with the Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton exhibition Farewell to Another Technology by filmmaker/photographer Abraham Ravett.

Funded by the Arts Angels Fund of the Community Foundation for Western Massachusetts.


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Farewell to Another Technology
an exhibition by Abraham Ravett

Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton

Opening Reception (Arts Night Out)
Friday, November 13, 2015, 5-8 pm

An exhibition of experimental Polaroids by Abraham Ravett and historical photographs from the collection of Historic Northampton

Exhibition Dates: November 13 - December 20, 2015


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Rediscovering Northampton
a six-part lecture series with naturalist Laurie Sanders

Sunday, November 8, 2015, 2 pm
Weinstein Auditorium, Wright Hall at Smith College

Lecture #5 of 6
Burt's Pit, Peat Fever, Abolitionists, and Avarice
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Hestia Mural 35th Anniversary Lecture Series

Every Delicate Shade Imaginable:
The Adventurous Lathrop Artist-Sisters (and their Black Sheep Brother)
a public lecture by Eve M. Kahn

Eve M. Kahn will discuss what's known and what's still mysterious about the artists Clara Lathrop, Bessie Lathrop and Susanne Lathrop.

Saturday, November 7, 2015
2 pm
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Rediscovering Northampton
a six-part lecture series with naturalist Laurie Sanders

Sunday, October 25, 2015, 2 pm
Weinstein Auditorium, Wright Hall at Smith College

Lecture #4 of 6
Northampton's History of Conservation in Context with the Nation
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The New Haven and Northampton Canal
by Carl Walter

Wednesday, October 21, 2015 at 6:30 pm
Location: Forbes Library, Calvin Coolidge Library


Carl Walter will focus on the terminus of the canal, which is the site of a new boathouse for Northampton Community Rowing.  This talk is sponsored by the Meadow City Conservation Coalition, Northampton Community Rowing, Historic Northampton and Forbes Library.


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Rediscovering Northampton
a six-part lecture series with naturalist Laurie Sanders

Sunday, October 11, 2015, 2 pm
Weinstein Auditorium, Wright Hall at Smith College

Lecture #3 of 6
“An Ever Present Danger:”
Fire and the Creation of Northampton’s Water Supplies

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Saturday, October 10, 2015, 2 pm

Playing in the Past: Objects of Childhood in Early America
a public lecture by Nan Wolverton

Nan Wolverton will speak on the world of childhood from early America to the early 20th century, as attitudes changed toward work, play, furnishings and decor.

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Opening Reception, Toyz n' Totz III
Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton


Friday, October 9, 2015, 5 - 8 pm
Opening Reception - Northampton's Arts Night Out

Christin Couture & William Hosie

Exhibition Dates: October 9 - November 7
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Fast Forward Film Series Fall 2015: Artifacts of Fixation

Sunday, October 4, 2015 at 3 pm

Featured Filmmaker: Abraham Ravett
Lunch with Fela
(2005, 59 min. color, sound, dvd)

Tziporah
(2007, 7 minutes, color, silent, 16mm)

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Gallery Talk with artist Donnabelle Casis

Saturday, October 3, 2015
3:30 pm in Gallery III

Donnabelle Casis will present a gallery talk to discuss her process in working with the artifacts from the Historic Northampton collection for her Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton exhibit, twixt & tween.

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Hestia Mural 35th Anniversary Lecture Series

Ahead of Her Time?: Anne Laura Clarke,
Travelling Lecturer of the 1820s

a public lecture by Granville Ganter

Saturday, October 3, 2015
2 pm

Anne Laura Clarke, a multi-talented schoolteacher, writer and visual artist, lectured on topics ranging from English grammar to biblical and American history in numerous cities from 1822 through the mid-1830s.

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Rediscovering Northampton
a six-part lecture series with naturalist Laurie Sanders

Sunday, September 27, 2015, 2 pm
Weinstein Auditorium, Wright Hall at Smith College


Lecture #2 of 6
Agriculture, art, tourism and the natural history of the Northampton Meadows: 1654-present

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Fast Forward Film Series Fall 2015: Artifacts of Fixation

Sunday, September 20, 2015 at 3 pm

Featured Films:
heartbeats for conjunction. (2014, 23 minutes)
by filmmaker Jeremy Johnston

The Hummingbird Wars (2014, 11 minutes)
by filmmaker Janie Geiser
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Saturday, September 19, 2015, 2 pm

Gothic to Goth: Romantic Era Fashion & Its Legacy
a talk by Lynne Zacek Bassett

Lynne Zacek Bassett, costume historian and former Historic Northampton curator of collections, will present Gothic to Goth, a public talk about Romantic Era fashion and its legacy.  This talk is presented in conjunction with the Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton exhibition, twixt & tween by Donnabelle Casis.

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Rediscovering Northampton
a six-part lecture series with naturalist Laurie Sanders

Sunday, September 13, 2015, 2 pm

Lecture #1 of 6
Understanding the Northampton Landscape: A Sense of Place


Location: Hallie Flanagan Studio Theatre, Smith College

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Friday, September 11, 2015   5 - 8 pm

twixt & tween
by featured artist Donnabelle Casis


Opening Reception on Northampton's Arts Night Out

An exhibition of works by artist Donnabelle Casis inspired by artifacts in the collection of Historic Northampton

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Ice Cream Social, 2014
Saturday, August 29, 2015 from 5 to 7 pm (rain or shine)

ICE CREAM SOCIAL!   A Free Event Sponsored by:
      Historic Northampton
      Ward 3 Neighborhood Association
      Meadow City Conservation Coalition.  


At 5 pm, Steve and Judy Herrell will give a short talk:
A Tasty History of Ice Cream followed by ice cream from
Herrell's new trailer Herrell's on the MOOVE.

Music by the Florence Community Band and games for kids.

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Saturday, August 22, 2015 at 2 pm

Caleb Cooley Dickinson: Eccentric, Lunatic or Something Else

a public talk by W. Michael Ryan

W. Michael Ryan will speak on Caleb Cooley Dickinson, the Hatfield farmer who left
his $100,000 estate to build a hospital in Northampton for the “sick poor” of Northampton, Hatfield and Whately.  Predictably, the heirs-at-law sued to break the will, claiming Uncle Cooley was insane and incapable of executing a lawful will.


At left: Caleb Cooley Dickinson by Nicholas Biddle Kittell, 1861, courtesy of Cooley Dickinson Hospital via Stan Sherer 


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Saturday, August 15, 2015 at 2 pm

Remembering Pro Brush: A Panel Discussion
with Dorrie Blakney, Tom Gagnon and Terry Minnick


This panel discussion is the official launch of the Remembering Pro Brush oral history project.  This new oral history project, directed by Stan Sherer and Marjorie Senechal, will record the stories and memories of people who worked at the Pro Brush Company.
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Friday, August 14, 2015, 5 to 8 pm

Water as Cure and Transformation
Opening Reception on Northampton's Arts Night Out


by featured artist Katie Richardson

A contemporary interpretation of the Round Hill Water Cures inspired by documents and objects from the museum’s collection.
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Sunday, July 26, 2015: Drop-In from 1 to 4 pm

Spinning a Silken Story:
An Interactive Silkworm Exhibit presented by Faith Deering



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Sunday, July 19, 2015, 2 pm
Speaker:  Christine DeLucia
Title:         What Mean These Stones? 
Native American and Colonial Placemaking along the Great River









Friday, July 10, 
2015, 5 pm
Opening Reception (Arts Night Out)
Artist:  Neal Parks
Title:   Muse Memory Museum
Dates:  July 10 - August 9


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Saturday, June 13th at 11 am
Walking Tour of Bridge Street Cemetery
Led by Susan Stinson

Co-sponsored with Ward 3 Neighborhood Association

Meet at Parsons Street Entrance of Bridge Street Cemetery

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Saturday, May 16, 2015 | 2 pm

Not Your Grandmother's Cursive: Teaching Handwriting in America from Colonial Times to the Computer Era
a public talk by Rosetta Cohen, offered in connection with Elizabeth Pols' exhibition Letters from Away

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Friday, May 8, 2015 5 to 8 pm 
(Arts Night Out)

Opening Reception for the exhibition, Letters From Away
by artist Elizabeth Pols
part of the series Contemporary Art at Historic Northampton 

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Sunday, May 3, 2015 at 3 pm
The Cycling Craze of the 1890s:
A Story of Race, Gender, Sport & Society

a public talk by Lorenz Finison, author of Boston's Cycling Craze, 1880-1900: A Story of Race, Gender, Sport and Society, 

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Monday, April 27, 2015 7:30-9:00 pm
The River Runs Through Us: Life Along the Mill River
A presentation by students in the course Public History Workshop, University of Massachusetts Amherst, in partnership with the Mill River Greenway Initiative.

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Saturday, April 25, 2015, 2 pm
Thoughts on Turning 200
In conjunction with the exhibition, Fair People: Continuing a Tradition, Bruce Shallcross will give a public talk on the Three County Fair as it nears it 200th anniversary. Shallcross is general manager of the Three County Fair Association.

HISTORIC NORTHAMPTON
46 Bridge Street Northampton, Massachusetts 01060
info@historicnorthampton.org | 413-584-6011

Museum Hours
Historic Northampton will be closed from December 24, 2022 to January 31, 2023.  Regular hours are expected to resume on February 1, 2023.
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