Celebrate UMass

Celebrate UMass

by | May 26, 2023 | Blog

UMass graduation is this weekend, so it is appropriate to remember that the Massachusetts Agricultural College was founded 160 years ago, in 1863. It was founded as a result of the Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862, ‘… to teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and the mechanic arts…’  MAC’s sister institution, focused more on the mechanical arts, is the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The Massachusetts Agricultural College was renamed the  Massachusetts State College in 1931, and then became the University of Massachusetts in 1947. And for its 150th birthday in 2013, WGBY aired a one-hour show, The Radical Idea, which traced the institution’s founding, early years, and evolution. And in 2017 the Amherst Historical Society hosted a talk by the late Dr Rob Cox on diversity in the early days at Mass Aggie.

History of the Emily Dickinson Museum

History of the Emily Dickinson Museum

by | Apr 14, 2023 | Blog

The Dickinson Homestead was built by Samuel Fowler Dickinson in 1813. It was occupied by his son Edward, and then by Edward’s two daughters, Emily and Lavinia. The house was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1963, and in 1965 it was sold to the Trustees of Amherst College, who used it as faculty housing, with some rooms open to the public. In 2003 the Emily Dickinson Museum was established; it has since become such a vital and vibrant part of the Amherst community that one can hardly imagine Amherst without it.

On Friday, April 14, at noon, we will hear the Museum’s Executive Director, Jane Wald, describe the history of the Emily Dickinson Museum, and the changes it has gone through.
Here is the Zoom link:   https://us02web.zoom.us/s/83249382098#success
Please note that we have discovered a conflict with the date of our next History Bite, Occupying Massachusetts. The presentation by Sandra Matthews and David Brume will be postponed until the week of May 11.
Gardens at the Museum

Gardens at the Museum

by | Apr 10, 2023 | Blog

April is National Garden Month, and soon our friends in the Garden Club of Amherst will be tending the Museum’s flower gardens, just to the east of the Museum. Already the east lawn is a mass of color from the blue scilla growing wild there.

In 2015 the Historical Society helped the Garden Club celebrate their one hundredth anniversary, as Elaine Barker and Patricia Holland gave a talk about the history of the Garden Club; you may view the video of the talk here.

In her talk, Ms Holland mentions a 1950′s-era film about growing tobacco in the Connecticut Valley; Tobacco Valley. Some of us still remember the fields of Hadley and Hatfield when they were covered with tobacco netting; a video of the film is available for viewing here.

And next Friday, April 14, Jane Wald will give a talk on the history and development of the Dickinson Museum. The talk will be at noon over Zoom; here is the link.

History of the Amherst Record

History of the Amherst Record

by | Mar 30, 2023 | Blog

The Amherst Record was founded in 1844 by John and Charles Adams as the Hampshire and Franklin Express. It served Amherst, Hadley and Belchertown; it became the Amherst Record in 1868 and was a daily between 1978 and 1980.  The Record published Town Hall news, lots of columns, and information from surrounding towns.  “The Policeman’s Lot” was a precursor to the Bulletin’s police log. The Record published the voting records of Town Meeting candidates, box scores of ARHS baseball games, plus recipes and movie guides. It ceased publication in 1984.

Phyllis Lehrer started working for the Amherst Record in 1977. She started part time covering the schools. She was paid $10 for each meeting attended. The Amherst School Committee met once a month and the Regional school Committee twice a month. She became full time and covered other town boards and committees, elections, Town Meeting and occasionally the news from other town.

Phyllis will give a talk on the history of the Amherst Record on Friday, March 31, at noon, in the Woodbury room of the Jones Library.

Mabel Loomis Todd

Mabel Loomis Todd

by | Mar 26, 2023 | Blog

In Woman’s History Month, the Amherst History Society is pleased to remember Mabel Loomis Todd, who founded the Society in 1899.

World traveler, author, and lecturer, Mabel was instrumental in editing and publishing the first three volumes of Emily Dickinson’s poetry, as well as two volumes of her collected letters — her partner in these efforts was Thomas Wentworth Higginson.

The Amherst History Museum will be mounting a special exhibit on Mabel when we open in May. Stay tuned!

Coming up next week: History Bites will return on Friday, March 31, as Phyllis Lehrer will talk about the history of the Amherst Record newspaper. The lecture will be live at noon in the Woodbury Room of the Jones Library.