Past Grants Awarded

A three-part event on the history of Frederick Douglass' alliance with Susan B. Anthony and his enduring relevance.

A parade and public discussion during the Reading Frederick Douglass event in Fitchburg, co-sponsored by many local organizations.

Research and an overview history of local factory labor based on materials in the collection of the Museum and other sources.

A three-lecture series about the relationship between photographic processes and the "truth" in photography.

A series of lectures and community conversations marking the 150th birthday of founder Caroline Emmerton.

A weekend symposium on race, bias, and culture in present-day America held in conjunction with their production of "American Son."

A series of five community conversations about writers of the American renaissance in the Pittsfield in conjunction with the City's new writers' residency program.

A public film series, focused on issues relevant to the local Lawrence community.

Creation of classroom-ready multimedia study guides and lesson plans, including optional events programming, about the life and work of James Baldwin.

A series of six dialogues entitled "Muslims in America: Dialogue Across Divides" on the issues shaping misperceptions of Muslims in the U.S. and in the greater Pioneer Valley.

Creation of discussion materials and a series of conversations in Boston Public High Schools using clips from the film "The Circle: A Story of Murder and Reconciliation in Boston".

Research and creation of a traveling exhibit focused on the history of Latino immigration in Worcester, MA.

An internship program whose purpose is to inventory new acquisitions and engage local and immigrant audiences in Fitchburg.

A new storytelling program about the history of Boston Harbor.

Support for the 2016 Provincetown Tennessee Williams Theater Festival.

Distribution of a curriculum to accompany the film "Touching Home in China," including videos, trainings, and presentations about Chinese history and culture.

Support for the annual history day on Boston Common, in which more than 1,000 Boston school third-to-fifth-grade school kids usually participate.

A slate of programming around the theme of women in politics, especially the life and work of the progressive Nichols sisters.

A public reading of Frederick Douglass' "What is the Fourth of July to the Slave" in the three major languages of Brockton.

A Common Good Reads discussion series that will cover texts that ask participants to consider contemporary anti-Islam rhetoric in larger historical contexts.

Common Good Reads discussion series that uses discussion, theatre, storytelling, reading, and writing to engage residents in conversations about Douglass Blackmon's Pulitzer-Prize-winning book "Slavery by Another Name" and Loftin's play "When the System Swallows You."

A Common Good Reads discussion series that will cover texts that ask participants to consider the relationship between diversity, culture, migration, and the social contract.

Funding to inventory, evaluate, photograph and re-house their collection of 750 garments dating from the 19th and 20th centuries. Materials will be used in a digital presentation of their entire costume collection, an exhibit of WWI era clothing and a planned exhibit exploring the diversity of Norwood's participation in the Great War.

Funding to inventory the Leverett Town Meeting Record and Municipal Archives in order to asses and catalogue town collections for their research potential.

Funding to inventory, catalogue and preserve four boxes of records, invoices and papers from Baldwin's Extracts Company, est. 1865, ranging from the late 19th through early mid 20th centuries. The material will be part of an on-going series of talks and remembrances celebrating West Stockbridge and its families.

Funding to inventory, photograph, and index 39 family albums and scrapbooks made by village residents from pre- civil war time on. Selected albums will be featured in an upcoming exhibit about what life was like for families in the village during the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Funding to conduct and film interviews and to perform archival research for the documentary film, "The Philadelphia Eleven," about the women who were ordained as priests in 1974 as an act of civil disobedience within the Episcopal Church.

Planning and implementation of a one-day symposium on the effects of federal and state urban renewal programs on Lawrence and other industrial cities.

Performer Jonathan Mirin's expansion and development of a new version of "Mill, Mountain, River: A Child's Eye View of Older Colraine," a local history theatre piece adapted to different communities which share Coleraine's mill history and to be performed at the SYRUP Festival in Shelburne Falls.

Initial filming, research, and the creation of a project website and plan for a documentary that follows prisoners as they work with programs intended to help them establish a foothold in society after being released from incarceration.

Educational programming in conjunction with the production of "History Theater at the Old State House: Blood on the Snow," a collaborative theatre project with educational components surrounding the aftermath of the Boston Massacre.

Design and building of an interactive educational website in order to publicize and foster discussion around the feature-length documentary film "GI JEWS: Jewish Americans in WWII."

A symposium series in conjunction with theatrical productions that explore the connections between religion, science, and identity.

Support for the Family Festival & 15th Annual International Film Series, featuring international film and documentary premiers and focusing on international cultural understanding.

A five-month exhibition that explores and dramatizes the cultural heritage of various Native peoples of the Pacific Northwest through myths and stories embodied in art, artifacts, and performances.

Development of a walking tour mobile application explores Boston's early religious history, with a particular focus on the decision-making practices and contentious issues that characterized life in seventeenth-century Boston.

A program for 36 students in the school's Advanced Digital Photography program to create a town-wide large-scale photo installation of the historic places, people, and culture of the town.

Expansion and updating of the exhibit Long Road to Justice: The African American Experience in the Massachusetts Courts, a chronicle of the legal struggle for civil rights of African Americans in Massachusetts.

A program to introduce 36 high school juniors and seniors from nine public charter schools to live theater through six live shows and post-performance discussions.

A reading and discussion program for pre-teens and their caregivers, particularly focused on participation by male caregivers.