Shroudmakers, Undertakers, and Hairworkers:
Women’s Professional Death Labor in 19th-Century New England
Women’s Professional Death Labor in 19th-Century New England
A Zoom Presentation by Elizabeth Sacktor
Thursday, February 12, 2026 at 6:30 pm
Register for the Zoom link.
Sliding scale admission: $5-20.
Sliding scale admission: $5-20.
Union Block, corner of Main and Pleasant streets where the downtown branch of Florence Bank is today. The second story sign - "Mrs. J. Woodruff / Hair Work." - advertises the studio of Mrs. Jerusha A. Woodruff.
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Throughout history and in many cultures, the work of caring for the dead and dying has been the work of women. In this lecture, Historic Northampton’s Elizabeth Sacktor will explore 19th-century New England women’s personal and professional networks of death labor. She will discuss women shroudmakers, undertakers, and makers of hair jewelry who lived in Northampton and elsewhere in the valley.
In the early 19th-century men began to encroach on this historically female dominated field, attempting to "professionalize" labor women had been doing for centuries for little to no pay. Sacktor will discuss how New England women navigated this change and declared their own labor as valuable, marketable, and deserving of pay. Learn More |
Charles C. Burleigh: Human Rights Hero
A Zoom Presentation by Jennifer Rycenga
Thursday, February 19, 2026 at 6:30 pm
Register for the Zoom link.
Sliding scale admission: $5-15.
Sliding scale admission: $5-15.
Portrait of Charles C. Burleigh, Sr. (1810-1878) by Charles C. Burleigh, Jr. (1848-1882). Collection of Forbes Library.
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Charles C. Burleigh (1810-1878) was a nationally recognized abolitionist and activist in his time but has been largely forgotten in ours. Burleigh lived in Florence where he co-founded the Free Congregational Society of Florence.
In this zoom presentation, historian and Burleigh scholar Jennifer Rycenga will bring Burleigh’s struggles and accomplishments to light. In addition to being a towering figure in the abolition movement, Burleigh was one of the most eloquent critics of the death penalty. He combined a clear moral vision of human equality with tireless writing, editing, and activism. Jennifer Rycenga is Professor Emerita in the Humanities Department at San José State University and the author of Schooling the Nation: The Success of the Canterbury Female Academy (University of Illinois Press, 2025) about 19th-century educator and activist Prudence Crandall. Learn More |
Slavery and Freedom in Northampton, 1654-1783
Gallery Talks
Gallery Talks
Sunday, February 22, 2026 at 3 pm
Sunday, March 8, 2026 at 3 pm
Sunday, March 22, 2026 at 3 pm
Sunday, March 22, 2026 at 3 pm
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Join a gallery talk to explore the exhibit with Historic Northampton's museum educator Elizabeth Sacktor.
Learn more details of the lives of local enslaved individuals and the narratives of enslaved people becoming free. We will share information about the legal arrangements that kept slavery in place, how enslaved labor fueled the Northampton and regional economy, and the research at Historic Northampton, Forbes Library, and elsewhere in the Valley that underlies the exhibit. As we explore the exhibit, we will discuss personal connections to this local history and discover what questions we still have about slavery in Northampton. |
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Free. Donations are welcome. No registration is required.
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Mass Cultural Council
Card to Culture |
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EBT, WIC, and ConnectorCare cardholders receive free or reduced admission
to Historic Northampton's events, public talks, and programs.
to Historic Northampton's events, public talks, and programs.
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Historic Northampton is proud to participate in Mass Cultural Council's Card to Culture program in collaboration with the Department of Transitional Assistance, the Department of Public Health's WIC Nutrition Program, the Massachusetts Health Connector, and hundreds of organizations by making cultural programming accessible to those for whom cost is a participation barrier.
To access this benefit, EBT, WIC, and ConnectorCare cardholders can select the CARD TO CULTURE option on the event registration page. Some exclusions apply.
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