Medfield History Weekend 2024

Friday, Apr 26 – Sun, Apr 28

A special alert for readers of The Portal and Medfield Historical Society supporters before the big promotion begins…

Tickets are now available for Medfield History Weekend 2024! 

Highlights for the weekend include: Narrated Old Town Trolley tours, Town Clock/Steeple tours, walking tours of historic Vine Lake Cemetery and Medfield State Hospital, and a children’s scavenger hunt. The town’s most historic sites, including Dwight-Derby House, Kingsbury Grist Mill, Lowell Mason House, Medfield Historical Society Museum and Peak House Heritage Center, will offer featured attractions all weekend. Hannah Adams will also have a presence at Medfield Public Library, and Medfield TV and MEMO are involved, as well.

Of special note…  An event to kick off Medfield History Weekend will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m., Friday, April 26 at the Zullo Gallery. The gathering will provide of review of weekend festivities, while also celebrating the Zullo’s recent 35^th anniversary. Visitors will have the chance to preview the popular Student-Faculty Exhibit, and look ahead to the exciting May augmented-reality exhibit, “Evolution of a Small Town” that draws on historic inspiration. The Zullo at 456A Main Street, is housed in a circa 1900 building in the Town Center Historic District.  

Medfield History Weekend is funded in part by a grant from Medfield Cultural Council, a local agency supported by Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.

Hatmaking and 19th Century Medfield

Monday, Apr 1, 2024, 7:30 pm. First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, 26 North Street, Medfield

Join us at our upcoming April program where society president PeggySue Werthessen will delve into the fascinating history of the hat industry in Medfield that played a pivotal role in driving the development of the local economy starting in the mid 1800’s and continuing for 100 years.

Learn about the industry’s beginnings with the story of Betsy Metcalf and explore how it shaped Medfield throughout the 19th century, completely transforming Medfield from a small agrarian community of 745 in 1800 to nearly 3,000 a hundred years later. In addition to exploring the evolution of the hat industry, other industrious endeavors that helped fuel the Medfield economy during this time will be considered.

Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to learn about Medfield’s rich manufacturing history! The presentation is free and open to the public.

The History of Audio Recording & Playback with Johnny Dalton

Monday, Mar 4, 2024, 7:30 pm. UCC Medfield Great Room, 496 Main Street, Medfield

The Historical Society will sponsor a presentation on the history of audio recording and playback by Johnny Dalton, an award-winning audio engineer and musician, on Monday March 4th at 7:30 at the UCC Medfield in the “Great Room” of the building located at 496 Main St, Medfield.

A resident of Medfield and graduate of Medfield High School, Dalton will discuss how early machines and mediums brought the wonder of recorded music into the home. There will be a demonstration of some early and more recent devices for music playback. The presentation will survey the history of how technological developments over more than a century allowed for continued refinements in the quality and sophistication of recorded voices and music.

Dalton is the owner of Kung-Pow! Recording and Mastering Studio in Medfield and works with local musicians to develop high-quality and innovative recordings. He is also the sound engineer at the new Bellforge Arts Center.

This event is free and open to the public.

“An Uncommon Education” with Joe Hunter

Monday, Feb 5, 2024, 7:30 pm. First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, 26 North Street, Medfield

At our February program we will be showing a 40-minute documentary film, “An Uncommon Education” about The Allen School in Newton. The school was founded in 1854 and led by Nathaniel T. Allen who was born, raised, and is buried in Medfield.

His home, known as the Allen Homestead, at 260 North Street, is shown in the documentary. It was a stop on the Underground Railroad and was visited often by Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison.

The Allen School advanced a radical new vision of social and educational equality in the United States in the last half of the 19th century. At a time when slavery was still the law of the land and women’s suffrage yet a distant goal, the Allen School admitted Black students, foreign students, and women to a forward-looking program of study, empowering them to develop their talents, while moving society decisively toward gender and racial equality.

This is a story that has not been told before in film and not fully told in the written histories. As such, it will restore a forgotten piece of history in Massachusetts – a state that values education and was an early pioneer in fostering inclusion. “An Uncommon Education” will help current generations make connections that point us toward a more just society.

This presentation is free and open to the public. We look forward to seeing you there.

Pre-Colonial Medfield: A Walk Through Time with John Thompson

Monday, Nov 13, 2023, 7:30 pm. First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, 26 North Street, Medfield

Did you know indigenous peoples lived in and around Medfield for thousands of years before Columbus came to America?

November is Indigenous Peoples Month. What better time to hear popular speaker John Thompson provide an overview of the post-glacial Medfield environment and consider what we know about its geography and geology. He will discuss clues we have from that time to the lives of the indigenous peoples in the area. He will also describe the potential for an Archaeological Protection District bylaw for the Town.

An unparalleled authority on the area’s archaeology, Thompson has served on the Medfield Archaeology Advisory Committee for twenty-five years and is a former member of the Board of Trustees for the Massachusetts Archaeological Society. In recent years, he has overseen the creation of the new “Overlook” park at the former Medfield State Hospital.

Return to Norumbega with Joe Hunter

Monday, Oct 2, 2023, 7:30 pm. First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, 26 North Street, Medfield

If you grew up in or near Medfield in the 1940s, 50s, or 60s, you’ll probably remember fun times at end-of-school-year outings to Norumbega Park with its tilt-a-whirl and other rides, penny arcade, and other attractions. Or maybe you even remember dancing at the Totem Pole ballroom. Here’s a chance, on October 2, for you to relive those happy days, even though the park itself was demolished and replaced in the 1960s by the Newton Marriott at the intersection of the Mass. Pike and Route 128.

The Medfield Historical Society will sponsor a showing of Return to Norumbega, a nostalgic and affectionate look at Newton’s Norumbega Park in its heyday. This documentary by Joe Hunter, a Newton resident and filmmaker who has created a number of award-winning films on local history, will be shown at the First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church on North Street in Medfield on Monday, October 2 at 7:30 p.m. Hunter will introduce his fifty-minute film and conduct a Q & A afterward.

Norumbega Park was an amusement park that drew hundreds of thousands from all over New England from 1897 until it closed in 1963. Located in the Auburndale section of Newton along the Charles River, the park featured canoeing, picnic areas, a penny arcade, a restaurant, a zoo, a carousel, and an electric fountain. Its Totem Pole Ballroom provided topnotch vaudeville entertainment, musical plays, comedies, and melodramas. It featured performances by Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Lawrence Welk, Ozzie Nelson, Frank Sinatra, Dinah Shore, and the Von Trapp Family, among others. Thousands fondly recall dancing at what was widely considered one of America’s most exciting ballrooms.

Discover Medfield Day

Saturday, Sept 23, 2023, 10 am – 4 pm. 26 North Street, Medfield

Discover Medfield Day, now in its 43rd year, is slated for Saturday, September 23rd, rain or shine! The event consists of over 150 booths highlighting Medfield businesses and organizations. To add to the fun, there will be an entertainment stage and kids’ alley filled with rides. The theme has yet to be announced, but it will be fun.

Come visit us at the Medfield Historical Society booth #39, across from the Dwight-Derby House. Bring along a few friends and introduce them to what the Historical Society has to offer.

Sheryl Faye Returns as Eleanor Roosevelt

Wednesday, Sept 13, 2023, 6:00 pm. The Center, 1 Ice House Rd, Medfield

Sheryl Faye, a popular performer of one-woman shows featuring historically significant women, will be offering her show – “Amelia Earhart: Pioneer in Aviation!”– at The Center at Medfield on Wednesday, September 13 from 6-7 pm. The event is co-sponsored by Friends of the Medfield Library, The Center at Medfield, and The Medfield Historical Society.

Admission is free, but please register in advance by clicking here or by calling The Center at 508-359-3665.

Faye has recently performed in Medfield to delighted audiences as Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Eleanor Roosevelt. Since 2003, she has masterfully brought to life important historical women in shows across the U.S. Her performances immerse the audience in multimedia learning experiences that captivate and spark interest to explore more. The upcoming show will depict Amelia Earhart’s fearless and adventuresome spirit, her wonder of the new “flying machine,” and passion for the science of aviation as flying becomes her career.

Medfield History Weekend 2023

Fri, Apr 28 – Sun Apr 30, Fri evening, Sat 10am -4pm, Sun 1 pm-4 pm, various Medfield establishments and historic sites

Mark your calendars for Medfield History Weekend 2023! Event planners are putting together a great list of free and ticketed activities that will take place over a three-day period.

Highlights include walking tours of Downtown Medfield and Medfield State Hospital, Town clock/steeple tour, narrated Old Town Trolley tours, and a children’s scavenger hunt. The town’s most historic sites, including Dwight-Derby House, Kingsbury Grist Mill, Lowell Mason House, Medfield Historical Society and the Peak House Heritage Center will offer featured attractions all weekend. The Hannah Adams Woman’s Club will also have a presence.

For more information about the weekend event schedule, site information and highlights and ticket information, please click on the links below:

Weekend Schedule
Site Information and Highlights
Ticket Information 

Participating partners also include MEMO and Medfield TV. The initiative is funded by a Medfield Cultural Council grant.

Sheryl Faye Returns as Eleanor Roosevelt

Tuesday, April 4, 2023, 7:30 pm. Medfield Public Library, Daley Room, 468 Main Street, Medfield

Well-known local historical reenactor Sheryl Faye will be at the Medfield Library Tuesday, April 4 at 7:30 pm. She will perform as Eleanor Roosevelt, one of the most remarkable women of the 20th century, and the longest serving First Lady in history.

Co-sponsored by the Medfield Historical Society and the Friends of the Library, the performance will be in the beautiful Daley Room at the library.

An honors graduate of Emerson College, with a BFA in acting and membership in SAG and AFTRA, Ms. Faye has appeared in dozens of movies, plays, and television productions. For 20 years she has also gone solo playing the roles of important women ranging from Susan B. Anthony to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, from Helen Keller to Anne Frank. From Amelia Earhart to Sally Ride.

Eleanor Roosevelt suffered through an unhappy childhood, losing her parents and one of her brothers. Eventually, she figured out where she could fit in and make a difference. She grew up, married FDR, her cousin, and became the longest serving First Lady of the United States.

She was the first presidential spouse to hold press conferences, write a syndicated newspaper column, and speak at a national convention. She advocated for expanded roles for women in the workplace, the civil rights of African Americans and Asian Americans, and the rights of World War II refugees. She became one of the first delegates to the United Nations.

One of the top ten most admired people of the 20th century. “As individuals we live cooperatively, and, to the best of our ability, serve the community in which we live…our own success, to be real, must contribute.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

The performance is free and open to the public., but you must preregister due to limited space.

Preregister Here

Medfield Man, In Uniform, Reenacts His Father, WWII POW

Monday, March 6, 2023, 7:30 pm. First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, 26 North Street, Medfield

At age 11, Richard Gray moved with his family from the Ozarks to California during the Depression…only to be relocated months later, after his father died at 35, to the home of an aunt and uncle in Iowa.

There, as a 16-year-old, he joined the National Guard band to earn money to help his family and to buy a clarinet. Little did he know that his small unit would soon be among the first US ground troops to go up against the Germans, taking on “Desert Fox” Rommel’s Afrika Korps.

Gray’s introduction to combat was in the Battle of Kasserine Pass in February 1943. The U.S. Army’s II Corps, under the incompetent Major General Lloyd Fredendall, were beaten, and Gray was wounded and taken prisoner. Fredendall was relieved of his command – sent back to Washington, D.C. – and promoted!

Richard’s proud son, Jonathan Gray of 87 North Street, Medfield, has been reenacting his father’s story for over 10 years, performing at schools, at scouting events in Medfield, and other Massachusetts locations. He will be performing it for the Medfield Historical Society on Monday, March 6, in the basement of the old meetinghouse, aka First Parish Unitarian Universalist church.

The presentation is free and open to the public. Mark your calendar!

The Judge Talks

Monday, Nov 7, 2022, 7:30 pm. First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, 26 North Street, Medfield

On Monday, November 7, at 7:30 pm in the old meetinghouse, retired Judge Thomas A. Connors of Medfield will speak on the legal history of Norfolk County and its courts. Amid controversy, Norfolk split off from Suffolk county in 1793, and Medfield was initially proposed as the county seat! He will talk about some of the noteworthy cases that have been heard in the 1827 Dedham Superior Court, including Sacco-Vanzetti, the Millen-Faber Needham police officers murder trial, and the 19th century Jason Fairbanks murder trial.

Tom retired in late 2020 after serving 25 years on the bench, the first nine at Dedham District Court, followed by 16 years as a Superior Court Justice, the last six years as Regional Administrative Justice for Norfolk County.

Legacies of Lowell Mason, Medfield’s Master Musician

Monday, Oct 3, 2022, 7:30 pm. First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, 26 North Street, Medfield

The Medfield Historical Society will present what promises to be a fun program entitled “Legacies of Lowell Mason, Medfield’s Master Musician” on Monday, October 3, at 7:30 pm at the old meetinghouse, aka First Parish Unitarian Church, 26 North Street. The program will include a talk and music, including one or two audience sing-alongs.

The featured speaker will be Stephen Marini, who has taught at Wellesley College since 1976. Prof. Marini, who is also a pianist and choral conductor, made a very significant donation of Lowell Mason papers, music, and memorabilia to the historical society last spring.

Lowell Mason (1792-1872), Medfield’s most famous and accomplished native son, was music director at First Parish in his youth. He went on to write some 2,000 hymns and establish the curriculum for public school music education in the United States. Today, one of the highest honors for a music teacher is to be selected as a Lowell Mason Fellow by the 130,000-member National Association for Music Education.

Prof. Marini will be assisted by Eva Kendrick, who is the current music director at First Parish. She has just discovered that she is a fifth cousin, several times removed, of Lowell Mason! 

About the October 3 program, Prof. Marini says “I plan to present a number of Mason’s legacies – spiritual (his Savannah materials), educational (public music education), performance (Handel and Haydn, etc.), compositional (the hymns), and commercial (publishing and more) – to interpret him as a quintessential 19th-century Bostonian.”  

The presentation is free and open to the public, of course. Please join us!

The Green Book with Gloria Greis

Tuesday, Apr 5, 2022, 7:30 pm. Via Zoom

In a return visit by an engaging and entertaining speaker, Dr. Gloria Greis will be featured on Tuesday evening, April 5, at 7:30 pm, via Zoom. Gloria is the long-time executive director of the Needham History Center and Museum; she was previously collections manager at Harvard’s Peabody Museum. 

Her subject will be The Green Book, which was also the title of the movie that won the Best Picture Oscar in 2018. Victor H. Green published The Negro Motorist Green Book, or more simply, The Green Book from 1936 to 1966 to enable African-American travelers to find businesses, restaurants, sleeping accommodations, entertainment and other facilities that served them along the road…not just in the south, but everywhere, including Massachusetts.  The Green Book became “the Bible of black travel” during the Jim Crow era. Gloria will discuss The Green Book as a reflection of changing social expectations and opportunities and will talk about some of its local Massachusetts venues.

Mark your calendar and please join us. 

Here’s a link to the event.

The Big Dig with David Kruh

Monday, Mar 7, 2022, 7:30 pm. Via Zoom

On Monday, March 7, at 7:30 pm David Kruh, an entertaining speaker with a wry sense of humor, will be back. Via Zoom, he’ll be speaking about the biggest public works project in American history: The $20-billion Big Dig, in which he was directly involved as a principal public relations spokesman.

Kruh has had an exceptionally interesting and diverse career. With degrees in American history and broadcast engineering, he’s been a freelance lecturer, author, and playwright, with over 60 publications to his credit…broadcast writer-producer-director-engineer- on-air talent…PR spokesman for the Big Dig …programmer and high-tech marketing director.

Mark your calendar and please join us. 

Here’s a link to the event.

All About Rail Trails from Craig Della Penna

Monday, Feb. 7, 2022, 7:30 pm. Via Zoom

Before the automobile, there were railroads, transporting people and goods – and thereby creating neighborhoods and connecting us as people.  Then, alas, along came automobiles. In return for taking us directly where and when we wanted to go somewhere, automobiles unintentionally created suburban sprawl and hindered the growth of new walk-around neighborhoods.

A vestige of the railroad age remains: railroad rights-of-way where trains once ran.  They are being used recreationally everywhere, including Medfield, as rail trails for walking and bicycling, and in some places, horseback riding and snowmobiling. Often rail trails go through historic areas.  There are some 350 miles of rail trails in Massachusetts.

Craig Della Penna, our February speaker, is a nationally-known rail trail expert and irrepressible enthusiast. For details on his fascinating life, click here.

David Kruh on the 101st Anniversary of the Ponzi Scheme

Monday, Nov. 1, 2021, 7:30 pm. Via Zoom   

One hundred and one years ago this year Charles Ponzi was in the middle of a pyramid scheme that would make Bernie Madoff blush. And he did it here in Boston, right under the noses of suspicious Yankees and normally inquisitive newspapermen. Relive the days of Boston’s most outrageous rogue with author and playwright David Kruh.

Reading resident David Kruh is the author of several books, notably two on Boston’ s Scollay Square. David has also had several dozen columns and article published in the Globe, Herald, and other publications. His research for a film project on Charles Ponzi also resulted in the presentation he will give on November 1^st at 7:30 pm via Zoom.

The History of Route 128

Monday, Oct. 4, 2021, 7:30pm. Via Zoom

Yes, some of it sounds weird – but this was the most delightful and entertaining local history presentation that I’ve attended in recent years. In Dedham, David Kruh spoke about an unlikely subject: the history of Route 128, the road we all know and love to hate. So, he’s going to be presenting for the Medfield Historical Society on Monday, October 4, 7:30 pm via Zoom.

Kruh has had an exceptionally interesting and diverse career. With degrees in American history and broadcast engineering, he’s been a freelance lecturer, author, and playwright, with over 60 publications to his credit…broadcast writer-producer-director-engineer- on-air talent…PR head of The Big Dig…programmer and high-tech marketing director.

Discover Medfield Day

Saturday, Sept 25, 2021, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm. Medfield Center

Discover Medfield Day, now in its 41st year (would be 42nd but we had to skip 2020!), is slated for Saturday, September 25, rain or shine! The event consists of over 150 booths highlighting Medfield businesses and organizations. To add to the fun, there will be an entertainment stage and kids’ alley filled with rides.

Come visit us at the Medfield Historical Society booth (#39), across from the Dwight-Derby House. Bring along a few friends and introduce them to what the Historical Society has to offer. While you’re there, be sure pick up a copy of Richard DeSorgher’s new book, This Old Town, On the Banks of the Charles, and get it signed by Richard himself!

Celebrating 100^th Anniversary of Women’s Right to Vote

Monday, Oct. 5, 2020, 7:30pm. First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

Monday, Oct. 5, we will feature Thea Iberall, playwright and co-producer of the long-running play, We Did It for You! Women’s Journey Through History. Thea will talk about some of the key personalities and events in the 70-plus year campaign as women struggled to obtain the right to vote, as guaranteed in 1920 by the Nineteenth Amendment to the U. S. Constitution.

Selected skits from We Did It for You! will be performed at this historical society presentation.

We Did It for You! is a musical that tells the story of how women finally won their rights in America, told by the women who were there. It began New England performances in Medfield in 2017 and is currently touring the Metrowest area.

For more information, including performance dates, click here. The presentation is free and open to the public. Please join us!

Anne Barrett—Rounders to Baseball: The History of Baseball

Monday, March 2, 2020, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

Anne Barrett, a historical reenactor from Topsfield, traced our national pastime from its origins, noting games like stoolball which was played in Plymouth on Christmas day, 1621, but was broken up by Governor Bradford, perhaps because it had the reputation of “inciting open flirtation and personal liberties between sexes.” 

Rounders, cricket and town ball were other precursors played with bats and balls, but baseball began in earnest when Alexander Cartright published the first formal baseball rulebook in 1845. Baseball was often played as a diversion by troops on both sides during the Civil War, and the first professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, was established in 1869.

Anne wore a Red Sox shirt for her presentation and, as expected, devoted a significant part of her talk to Red Sox history. For the record, the Sox won the World Series nine times, in 1903, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918, 2004, 2007, 2013, and 2018. They won the American League pennant but lost the series in 1904, 1946, 1967, 1975, and 1986.

DeSorgher Presents “Medfield Under Attack!”

Monday, February 3, 2020, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

For years Town Historian Richard DeSorgher has been the historical society’s most popular speaker, and his presentation on February 3 was no exception!

Addressing a standing-room-only crowd, he explained the causes and events of the deadliest war in New England and Medfield history. The local attack occurred February 21, 1676, when about 20 people were killed, and 32 homes (half the houses in town) were burned.

Although Richard has told this story before, he presented new slides and an evolving, more nuanced interpretation. The core issues were land disputes, the population explosion between European settlers and, of course, politics, especially among the native tribes.

For a complete synopsis of his presentation, click here.

John Thompson’s Latest on the Medfield Hospital Project

Monday, November 4, 2019, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

John Thompson is one of our most popular guest speakers. He oversaw the environmental cleanup and other aspects of the state hospital redevelopment planning, and his guided tours there have drawn large and enthusiastic crowds. John enthralled a crowd of about 50 with slides of little-known aspects of the former state hospital.

Exiled French Neutrals in Medfield and Other New England Towns
Monday, October 7, 2019, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

The story of the brutal plight of the French Neutrals in Nova Scotia and their expulsion to Massachusetts kicked off the historical society’s 128th season. Historic reenactors Steve and Bronya Joanis made the presentation in costume in front of an enthralled audience of 35.

Their presentation was recorded for future broadcast on Medfield TV.

The Great Expulsion began in 1755, but its origins dated back to 1605, when the French colonized Canada. In Europe, the War of Spanish Succession ended in 1713 with the Treaty of Utrecht; France kept most of Canada but ceded to Great Britain the region of Acadia, which was renamed Nova Scotia (Latin for “New Scotland”).

The French-speaking, Roman Catholic Acadians continued living there in peace until the French and Indian War loomed, prompting the British to fortify Nova Scotia…and question (with little justification) the loyalty of the 12,000 Acadians.

In 1755, the British decided to forcibly resettle some Catholic Acadians to their Massachusetts colony, where Catholics were despised and treated badly.

From London, British officers in Nova Scotia were ordered, “If fair means will not do, you must proceed with most vigorous measures, not only compelling them to embark but depriving any who may escape of all means of shelter or support by burning their homes and destroying everything that afford their means of subsistence in the country.”

Several ships with Acadian deportees were unable to land and instead had to spend the winter of 1756 anchored in Boston harbor; many deaths resulted.

Some Acadians, notably from the Robichaux family, ended up in Medfield, Walpole and Wrentham. Acadians were also shipped to other colonies and to Britain and France. Some of those taken to Europe eventually went to Louisiana, where they became known as Cajuns.

The French Neutral/Acadian issue might seem like a minor footnote to the complex history of the mid-18th century, but the audience was very engaged and peppered Steve and Bronya with questions for a long time after the formal presentation.

Trustees of Reservations: Celebrating and Protecting Medfield’s Special Places

Monday, April 1, 2019, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

On April 1, the featured speaker was D. A. Hayden of the Trustees of Reservations. Most people know of Rocky Woods, but there are five other Trustees properties in Medfield and well over 100 others, including museums, farms and natural conservation sites all across Massachusetts. D. A. Hayden, general manager for the Charles River Valley, offered both an overview of the Trustees’ history and some specifics about the nonprofit’s six properties in Medfield (the largest concentration in a single town of 117 locations in the state).

For a complete recap of her presentation, click here.

Leigh Montville on Sports, Including the Medfield-Ted Williams Connection

Monday, February 4, 2019, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

An unusually large crowd of some 50 people jammed the basement of the Old Meetinghouse to hear noted sportswriter, biographer and Medfield resident Leigh Montville speak.

Leigh was a sportswriter for the Boston Globe and Sports Illustrated, and he has written books about Ted Williams, Babe Ruth, Muhammed Ali, Dale Earnhardt, Evel Kneivel, and other sports figures. Leigh started by talking about what goes into preparing and writing a biography and spoke about some of the people he’s written about.

On 100th Anniversary, A Look at the Flu Epidemic in Medfield

Monday, November 5, 2018, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

2018 is the centennial of many significant events—the end of the Great War (as it was known before Hitler plunged Europe into World War II), the last World Series win for the Red Sox before an 86-year drought and the Spanish flu pandemic, which struck one third of the world’s population and killed an estimated 50 million people.

Linda Morse, formerly of Medfield and now in Millis, teaches several history and other courses at Foxborough Regional Charter High School. She also edits the New England Journal of History. At the meeting she spoke about this most deadly flu epidemic, particularly about how it impacted Medfield and the state hospital.

Frairy Tales

Monday, October 1, 2018, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

The 2018–2019 historical society presentations began with a roaring start on Oct.1 with “Frairy Tales,” about the life and times of John Frairy, one of the original 13 settlers who left Dedham in 1649 to found Medfield.

Over 50 people came out to hear Richard DeSorgher, who calls himself “Medfield town historian in exile,” kick off the season with his usual verve and energy.

Introduction to Genealogy
Monday, Feb 5, 2018, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

If you Google “family history” you will find 278 million hits, so the February 5 crowd of 25 was a little smaller than expected. But they kept genealogist Seema Kenney talking for well over an hour and then peppered her with questions about how to do family research.

Genealogy has become a very popular hobby, Seema said, in part because it’s so easy to get started and it costs very little. For materials, you can begin with two basic forms, available free online: a pedigree chart, outlining parentage; and a family group chart showing parents with all their children.

Another reason for its popularity is that you can meet and make friends with many new cousins you never knew existed.

Much genealogical information available free online from familysearch.org. Ancestry.com is a good site, but it is necessary to pay for some of it. But you still have to get out from time to time and dig through paper records at historical societies, town halls and other resources.

Walt Disney’s Medfield Connection

Monday, March 7, 2017, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

This year’s student curators, Evan Springer and Camille Kerwin, presented a program about the Disney-Medfield connection.

Ours is the only city or town anywhere named Medfield. In the 1950s, Walt Disney used to visit his good friend Justin Dart and Dart’s wife, the 1930s actress Jane Bryan. The Dart family lived at Holiday Farm in Medfield, on Elm Street between the grounds of Wheelock Elementary School and Adams Farm. Disney would occasionally fly in and land his private plane at the Darts’ private airstrip. Today, this airstrip has been converted into some of the soccer fields behind Wheelock School. Portions of the airstrip are still visible today.

Disney chose Medfield College as the name of a fictitious institution that was the location for several of his movies, including The Absent-Minded Professor. The cornerstone of Medfield Middle School, formerly Medfield High School, has a quote from Walt Disney inscribed on it: “Our greatest natural resource is in the minds of our children.”

The Illustrious and Prolific Wheelock Family

Monday, October 3, 2016, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

Rick Sullivan of Northborough was the principal speaker at the October 3 meeting, sharing stories of the illustrious and prolific Wheelock family.

Rick has been an avid genealogist for the last 20 years, concentrating on the family history of his mother, Betty Jean Wheelock. In 1997 he created the website WheelockGenealogy.com, and has been enhancing and growing the Wheelock genealogy ever since. He has communicated with Wheelock family members all over the United States and has had the good fortune to collect family stories from all branches of the Wheelock tree. He believes that family history belongs to all of us, and it should be openly shared without reservation. As a consequence, all of the Wheelock genealogy and family history that he has accumulated can be read and downloaded from WheelockGenealogy.com.

Antique Weapons Experts Speak

Monday, April 6, 2015, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church

Is our Medfield musket America’s oldest? Locked in its vault in the former Medfield Cooperative Bank, the historical society has a significant collection of old swords, rifles, pistols, etc.

For years we have tried without succes to learn their history, value and care. A few months ago, we were lucky. A random phone call from Adams Shipman of Natick led to a two-hour meeting and an extensive write-up in Man at Arms magazine. The article is entitled,“The Medfield Musket—could this be the oldest intact military longarm used in America?”

Stuart Mowbray, editor, and Joe Pouleo, technical editor, internationally-known experts in antique guns and swords, with John Turner’s musket, presented their surprising and fascinating findings about our collection.

The History of the Norfolk Hunt Club

Monday, November 3, 2014

The Norfolk Hunt Club’s 50-acre tract at 240 North Street, Medfield, encompasses much of the land on the west side of North Street between School and Farm Streets. Once a golf course, for over a century it’s been the site of horse shows, polo matches and, most importantly, drag fox hunts, wherein the scent of a fox is spread across the ground to excite the hounds, who are then pursued by riders on horseback. Tally-ho!

David W. Lewis, Jr., of Dover gave a droll and engaging account of the early history of the hunt club, which was founded in 1895. Lewis was the editor of the definitive history of the hunt club, “The Norfolk Hunt: One Hundred Years of Sport.” He has been a member of the club for decades and was master of the hounds from 1973 to 1980.

Slavery in Colonial Medfield: A Tale of Three 18th Century Medfield Families

Monday, March 3, 2014, First Parish Church

In pre-revolutionary America, several respected Medfield families were slaveholders.

In March, former society curator Alice Crawley presented the stories of three Medfield men and their families: Warwick and Newport Green brought here as slaves, and John Greene, a Boston merchant and slaveholder who voluntarily came to Medfield from Boston in the early 1770s.  [related article]
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When Medfield State Hospital Was Still in Operation

Monday, February 3, 2014, First Parish Church

In this program we stepped back in time to an era when thousands of people lived on the large campus of the Medfield State Hospital. Back in those days, when people in Medfield—less worried about political correctness—used to quip, “I’m from Medfield, where half the town is crazy.”

Marge Vasaturo headed a line-up of people who worked at the hospital and knew the place intimately. She shared memories of working there summers while in college in the 1950s, and later as a member of the Board of Trustees for nearly 20 years.

She was joined by Darel Nowers, who grew up on the hospital grounds and whose father, Rod, managed the hospital’s farm operation; and by Mary Calo, R.N., who worked there as a nurse for 30 years, as well as a few others. Here’s a link to the Medfield TV video of the program.

The Kingsbury Grist Mill: The Rebirth of a Medfield Treasure

Monday, October 7, 2013, First Parish Church

Constructed almost 300 years ago, the Clark Kingsbury Grist Mill endures as a snapshot in time and is one of Medfield’s most visible historic landmarks. Located on Spring Street, the Route 27 gateway into Medfield, the mill fell into disrepair over 100 years ago, but has recently been given a new lease on life. 

Curator Andrea Cronin opened by sharing the history of the origins and early use of the mill. Dick Judge and other members of the Kingsbury Pond Committee then revealed the details of the restoration efforts undertaken by the Committee in the late 1980s and ’90s that allowed the property to be saved. He explained how the mill acquired its new 10-foot-diameter custom waterwheel and showed a brief video of the actual installation. Photos of this important and monumental effort will be on display as will artifacts discovered on-site.