The Oxbow & Mount Holyoke
A Two-Part Lecture Series presented by Forbes Library and Historic Northampton
A Two-Part Lecture Series presented by Forbes Library and Historic Northampton
|
The Connecticut River Oxbow:
The Story of a Changing Landscape and Community 
by Jonathan Moldover
Saturday, April 25, 2026 at 4 pm
|
Above the Oxbow:
History and Memory on Mount Holyoke 
by Danielle Raad
Saturday, May 2, 2026 at 4 pm
|
Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library and Museum
Forbes Library, 20 West Street, Northampton, MA 01060
Forbes Library, 20 West Street, Northampton, MA 01060
The lectures will be streamed live on Forbes Library's YouTube page.
The recordings will be made available afterward.
The recordings will be made available afterward.
The Connecticut River Oxbow:
The Story of a Changing Landscape and Community
The Story of a Changing Landscape and Community
Saturday, April 25, 2026 at 4:00 pm
Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library and Museum
Forbes Library - Northampton's Public Library
20 West Street, Northampton, MA 01060
Forbes Library - Northampton's Public Library
20 West Street, Northampton, MA 01060
|
After presenting to a standing-room-only crowd, Northampton resident Jonathan Moldover returns to Forbes Library for a follow-up presentation that will focus on the history of the Oxbow – from its underlying geology to the reasons why Hudson River School artist, Thomas Cole, chose this view in 1836 as emblematic of American ideology.
In his illustrated presentation, Moldover will share eyewitness accounts of the 1840 flood that cut off the oxbow and provide vivid descriptions of the changes that followed: the rise and fall of the lumber and pulp industries on the “island”; the immigrants who came to work in the mills and built homes along Island Road and Ferry Avenue; the construction of Interstate 91; followed by the creation of the Oxbow Marina, now the largest marina on the Connecticut River. Free and open to the public. Donations are welcome. |
The Oxbow Since Thomas Cole:
The Story of a Landscape, a Painting, and a Community by Jonathan Moldover |
About Jonathan Moldover
After practicing medicine in Manhattan for most of his career, Jonathan Moldover moved to Northampton in 2015, where he took a position at Baystate in Springfield. On his commute to and from work, he noticed the large Oxbow Marina from Route 91 and realized that this was “Thomas Cole’s Oxbow.” The view of the marina, buildings and highway, however, was far from Cole’s pastoral scene.
Piqued by the changes to this iconic landscape, Moldover combined his interest in creating a photo essay about the Oxbow with an oral history project initiated by Forbes Library.
Working with his wife, Rebecca, he interviewed five Island families, recording their descriptions of raising their families, coping with floods, and adapting to the changes that came with the construction of the interstate and the marina. The end result was The Oxbow Since Thomas Cole: The Story of a Landscape, a Painting, and a Community, which he self-published in 2025.
After practicing medicine in Manhattan for most of his career, Jonathan Moldover moved to Northampton in 2015, where he took a position at Baystate in Springfield. On his commute to and from work, he noticed the large Oxbow Marina from Route 91 and realized that this was “Thomas Cole’s Oxbow.” The view of the marina, buildings and highway, however, was far from Cole’s pastoral scene.
Piqued by the changes to this iconic landscape, Moldover combined his interest in creating a photo essay about the Oxbow with an oral history project initiated by Forbes Library.
Working with his wife, Rebecca, he interviewed five Island families, recording their descriptions of raising their families, coping with floods, and adapting to the changes that came with the construction of the interstate and the marina. The end result was The Oxbow Since Thomas Cole: The Story of a Landscape, a Painting, and a Community, which he self-published in 2025.
Above the Oxbow: History and Memory on Mount Holyoke
Saturday, May 2, 2026 at 4:00 pm
Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library and Museum
Forbes Library - Northampton's Public Library
20 West Street, Northampton, MA 01060
Forbes Library - Northampton's Public Library
20 West Street, Northampton, MA 01060
|
Join us for a special talk by Danielle Raad who will speak about Mount Holyoke and its history.
Drawing from her new book Above the Oxbow: Stories Entangled with a Mountain (West Virginia University Press, April 2026), Raad will explore the longstanding relationships people have had with the Mount Holyoke Range, the Summit House, and its views. She will also offer a contemporary analysis of how history, landscape, and memory intersect in this special place and how the Mount Holyoke Range is woven into our lives today. Free and open to the public. Donations are welcome. 
Author Danielle Raad
|
Above the Oxbow: Stories Entangled with a Mountain
by Danielle Raad About Danielle Raad
An assistant Professor of History and Museum Studies at the University of Georgia, Danielle Raad earned a PhD in Anthropology and a Graduate Certificate in Public History from UMass Amherst in 2021.
She previously held positions as the Curator and Assistant Director of Collections of the Stanford University Archaeology Collections and the Cullman-Payson Fellow in Academic Affairs and Outreach at the Yale University Art Gallery. |