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X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://freedomsway.org
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Freedom's Way National Heritage Area
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DTSTART:20210101T000000
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20260627T140000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20260627T160000
DTSTAMP:20260403T190314Z
CREATED:20260403T190234Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260403T190314Z
UID:36075-1782568800-1782576000@freedomsway.org
SUMMARY:Declaring Independence: Then & Now – Groton\, MA
DESCRIPTION:Mark your calendar for Saturday\, June 27 at 2:00 PM\, when the Groton History Center presents Declaring Independence: Then & Now at the Old Groton Meetinghouse (1 Powderhouse Road)\, built in 1755. This iconic landmark provides a fitting backdrop for an exploration of independence and interdependence. \nDeclaring Independence: Then & Now brings to life the Declaration of Independence as a forum for civic dialogue and engagement through a forty-minute performance and ensuing moderated community conversation. The script\, written by public historian Mary B. Fuhrer\, utilizes primary source material researched by citizen historians to reveal how individuals within Massachusetts towns debated and responded to the question of independence in the spring and summer of 1776\, followed by an annotated reading of the Declaration itself. \nIn commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence\, 15 community-hosted performances are scheduled across the Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area during the spring and summer of 2026. Find a performance near you! \nDeclaring Independence: Then & Now is supported\, in part\, by the Massachusetts Society of the Cincinnati
URL:https://freedomsway.org/event/declaring-independence-groton/
LOCATION:Old Groton Meetinghouse\, 1 Powderhouse Road\, Groton\, MA\, 01450\, United States
CATEGORIES:Declaring Independence: Then & Now,Performances
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://freedomsway.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/DI-2026_Stacked-Logo-for-Events.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Groton History Center":MAILTO:info@grotonhistory.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20250531T140000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20250531T150000
DTSTAMP:20250423T145134Z
CREATED:20250409T124936Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250423T145134Z
UID:27853-1748700000-1748703600@freedomsway.org
SUMMARY:Revolutionary Walk Through the Old Burying Ground
DESCRIPTION:Don Black\, of the Old Burying Ground Commission\, will talk about the graves in the Old Burying Ground related to the Revolutionary War. Accompanying the walk and talk will be a display of the Revolutionary War cannon that militia\, including members from Groton\, looted off of a British ship and used at the Battle of Bunker Hill. The cannon was restored by Earl Carter and sits atop a replica carriage Carter constructed with two-century-old wood left over from the construction of the USS Constitution. \nDATE: Saturday\, May 31st \nTIME: 2:00 – 3:00 PM \nLOCATION: Old Burying Ground\, Hollis Street\, Groton\, MA 01450 \nPARKING: Street parking is available. \nACCESSIBILITY: Walk takes place on uneven ground. \n  \nThis program is offered by the Groton History Center as part of the Hidden Treasures Festival of Nature\, Culture & History\, an annual month-long celebration showcasing events and activities hosted by local partners celebrating the unique places\, objects\, and stories of the Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area. Hidden Treasures programs are free and open to the public. Click to discover more Hidden Treasures!
URL:https://freedomsway.org/event/revolutionary-walk-through-the-old-burying-ground/
LOCATION:Groton’s Old Burying Ground\, 44 Hollis Street\, Groton\, MA\, 01450\, United States
CATEGORIES:Hidden Treasures,Tours
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://freedomsway.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/DSC_1591.jpeg
ORGANIZER;CN="Groton History Center":MAILTO:info@grotonhistory.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20241102T113000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20241102T123000
DTSTAMP:20241029T172130Z
CREATED:20241029T172004Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241029T172130Z
UID:25514-1730547000-1730550600@freedomsway.org
SUMMARY:Edmund Tarbell: The Poetry of Painting with Mary Minifie
DESCRIPTION:November 2\, 11:30 AM\n(Boutwell House open 11-2)\nGov. George S. Boutwell House\, 172 Main Street\, Groton \nJoin the Groton History Centery in welcoming award-winning portraitist and still life artist Mary Minifie to speak about Edmund Tarbell’s career and legacy. \nOnly an artist can explore the poetry\, imagination\, and keenness of perception that goes into creating a work of lasting beauty and emotional resonance. Award-winning Groton artist Mary Minifie brings her rigorous artistic background\, sensibility\, and appreciation to her talk\, “Edmund Tarbell: The Poetry of Painting\,” at the Groton History Center’s Boutwell House on Saturday\, November 2. \nMinifie’s multi-media presentation on “what a painter thinks about when he’s composing and making a painting\,” will start at 11:30 am\, during the History Center’s Open House (running from 11 am to 2 pm that day). She will draw on the unique gathering of Edmund Tarbell’s artwork currently on display at the Boutwell House thanks to the Tarbell Charitable Trust\, as well as allowing viewers a glimpse into the process behind one of her own exquisite portraits. \nInfluenced by Edward Manet and others\, the Impressionists broke with the academic past to discover “the amazing\, magical properties\,” as Minifie puts it\, of natural light. Along with fellow students William Paxton\, Frank Benson and others\, Groton native Edmund C. Tarbell brought his classical training in drawing and painting at Académie Julian in Paris to his engagement with this new way of seeing. Mary Minifie brings to her portraits\, still lives\, and figurative work a similar legacy. She studied under portrait painter Paul Ingbretson\, a modern master who received his training from Ives Gammel\, a student of Paxton’s\, who was\, like Tarbell\, a member of the famed Boston School of Painters. \nUniversal access available to the first floor (where the exhibition is on display) and grounds. \nMary Minifie was educated at Wellesley College and earned an M.F.A. from Boston University School of Fine Arts. For the next ten years she lived and worked abroad in Cairo\, Egypt\, Oxford\, England\, and Vienna\, Austria\, exhibiting widely. In 1985 when she returned to the U.S.\, she began her study of portrait and the figure with portrait painter\, Paul Ingbretson. \nFree and open to the public. Thanks to the Tarbell Charitable Trust and the Groton Cultural Council \n  \nImage: My Family at Cotuit\, Edmund C. Tarbell\, 1898
URL:https://freedomsway.org/event/edmund-tarbell-the-poetry-of-painting-with-mary-minifie/
LOCATION:Groton History Center\, 172 Main Street\, Groton\, MA\, 01450\, United States
CATEGORIES:Talks,Open House
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://freedomsway.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/ghows-FD-2c87d93e-9747-0575-e053-0100007fc298-445ce251.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Groton History Center":MAILTO:info@grotonhistory.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20240519T110000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20240519T140000
DTSTAMP:20240425T164741Z
CREATED:20240425T164622Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240425T164741Z
UID:21271-1716116400-1716127200@freedomsway.org
SUMMARY:19th Century Parlor Games & Amusements
DESCRIPTION:The Groton History Center is part of GrotonFest Spring! Come visit the Gov. George S. Boutwell House on Sunday May 19th between 11 AM and 2 PM. Members of the Footwork and Frolick Society will be in costume demonstrating a selection of parlor games and\, weather permitting\, outdoor activities. The amusements to be highlighted were popular in mid-nineteenth century New England. Audience participation will be welcome\, with options available to suit a range of ages. \nPARKING & ACCESS: Street parking available.\n \nImage courtesy of the Footwork & Frolick Society \nThis program is offered by the Groton History Center\, Footwork & Frolick Society\, and the Groton Business Association/GrotonFest Spring as part of the Hidden Treasures Festival of Nature\, Culture & History\, an annual month-long celebration showcasing events and activities hosted by local partners celebrating the unique places\, objects\, and stories of the Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area. Hidden Treasures programs are free and open to the public. Click to discover more Hidden Treasures!
URL:https://freedomsway.org/event/19th-century-parlor-games-amusements/
LOCATION:Groton History Center\, 172 Main Street\, Groton\, MA\, 01450\, United States
CATEGORIES:Hidden Treasures,Living History,Open House
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://freedomsway.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Gilded-Age-2022-activities-2.MP_.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Groton History Center":MAILTO:info@grotonhistory.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20240323T140000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20240323T160000
DTSTAMP:20240229T185108Z
CREATED:20240229T185108Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240229T185108Z
UID:20534-1711202400-1711209600@freedomsway.org
SUMMARY:Georgianna Boutwell’s Legacy
DESCRIPTION:March 23\, 2-4 PM\nThe Groton (Senior) Center\, 163 West Main Street\nGroton History Center’s Executive Director Kara Fossey will give an illustrated presentation on the life and legacy of Georgianna Adelia Boutwell\, daughter of Gov. George S. Boutwell. \nThis program is free and open to the public thanks to the Commissioners of Trust Funds. \nPhoto courtesy of The Groton Women’s Club
URL:https://freedomsway.org/event/georgianna-boutwells-legacy/
LOCATION:The Groton Center\, 163 West Main St\, Groton\, MA\, 01450\, United States
CATEGORIES:Talks
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://freedomsway.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/IMG_0287-1-scaled-1.jpeg
ORGANIZER;CN="Groton History Center":MAILTO:info@grotonhistory.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20230520T110000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20230520T140000
DTSTAMP:20230421T185512Z
CREATED:20230421T185512Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230421T185512Z
UID:17868-1684580400-1684591200@freedomsway.org
SUMMARY:Revolutionary War Cannon on Display
DESCRIPTION:The Groton History Center‘s Open House on May 20 will be accompanied by the display of a Revolutionary War cannon on our grounds. Come chat with our volunteers and Earl Carter\, who carefully restored the cannon and rebuilt its carriage\, about this important piece and its connection to Boston and Groton. \n  \nThis program is offered by the Groton History Center as part of the Hidden Treasures Festival of Nature\, Culture & History\, an annual month-long celebration showcasing events and activities hosted by local partners celebrating the unique places\, objects\, and stories of the Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area. Hidden Treasures programs are free and open to the public. Click to discover more Hidden Treasures!  \n  \n 
URL:https://freedomsway.org/event/revolutionary-war-cannon-on-display/
LOCATION:Groton History Center\, 172 Main Street\, Groton\, MA\, 01450\, United States
CATEGORIES:Hidden Treasures,Exhibits,Open House
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://freedomsway.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/DSC_0595.jpeg
ORGANIZER;CN="Groton History Center":MAILTO:info@grotonhistory.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20221023T140000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20221023T153000
DTSTAMP:20221004T152327Z
CREATED:20221004T152327Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221004T152327Z
UID:15749-1666533600-1666539000@freedomsway.org
SUMMARY:Margaret Fuller and Elizabeth Bishop: Two Women of Central Massachusetts
DESCRIPTION:The Groton Center\, 163 West Main Street\, West Groton\nCo-sponsored with the Groton Public Library \nProgram immediately follows brief business meeting\nRegistration required \nThese two seemingly contrasting women writers—the 19th century activist and scintillating conversationalist Margaret Fuller\, and the shy 20th century poet Elizabeth Bishop\, whose eloquence was confined to the printed page—actually have a great deal in common.  Most often associated with urban centers or watery coastlines\, both writers had formative experiences in inland Massachusetts towns\, Groton and Worcester.  Both struggled with questions of identity and purpose from childhood\, recording moments when realizing that “you are an Elizabeth\,” or asking “How is that I seem to be this Margaret Fuller?” struck them like thunderbolts.  Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Megan Marshall will illuminate these and other surprising congruities as well as outline the important contributions each woman made to her (and our) world with her work. \nMegan Marshall is the author of three biographies: The Peabody Sisters\, winner of the Francis Parkman Prize\, the Mark Lynton History Prize\, the Massachusetts Book Award in Nonfiction\, and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Biography; Margaret Fuller: A New American Life\, winner of the Pulitzer Prize in Biography and the Massachusetts Book Award in Nonfiction; and Elizabeth Bishop: A Miracle for Breakfast\, a finalist for the Christian Gauss Award in Literary Criticism of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.  She is the Charles Wesley Emerson College Professor at Emerson College\, a past president of the Society of American Historians\, and the recipient of the 2022 BIO (Biographers International Organization) Award for “contributions to the advancement of the art and craft of biography” as well as the 2022 Walter G. Harding Distinguished Service Award for “scholarly achievement that furthers the mission of the Henry David Thoreau Society.” (author website) \nThis program is free and open to the public thanks to the Groton Commissioners of Trust Funds
URL:https://freedomsway.org/event/margaret-fuller-and-elizabeth-bishop-two-women-of-central-massachusetts/
LOCATION:The Groton Center\, 163 West Main St\, Groton\, MA\, 01450\, United States
CATEGORIES:Talks
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://freedomsway.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screen-Shot-2022-10-04-at-11.20.47-AM.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Groton History Center":MAILTO:info@grotonhistory.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20220619T140000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20220619T150000
DTSTAMP:20220808T170709Z
CREATED:20220616T164701Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20220808T170709Z
UID:14324-1655647200-1655650800@freedomsway.org
SUMMARY:George S. Boutwell & the Emancipation Proclamation
DESCRIPTION:Likely you know that Groton‘s George Boutwell was the twentieth Governor of Massachusetts. But did you know that while serving as Abraham Lincoln’s Commissioner of Internal Revenue\, he was also the president’s close political ally and confidante?  His\, the voice that made Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation a reality by stating publicly (after the Battle of Antietam in 1862) what the president for political reasons couldn’t yet say: that the Civil War would not be won until we “take slavery by the throat and destroy it.” \nIndeed\, as writer\, historian\, and science policy specialist Jeffrey Boutwell puts it\, “For seven decades\, George Boutwell sought to “redeem America’s promise” through racial equality\, economic equity\, and the humane use of American power abroad.” \nJoin Jeffrey for his talk “George Boutwell and the Emancipation Proclamation: Saying What Lincoln Couldn’t Say” on Sunday\, June 19\, at 2 pm at the Groton Center\, 163 West Main Street\, Groton.  This free presentation in celebration of the Juneteenth holiday and the abolition of slavery is made possible by the Commissioners of Trust Funds. All are invited.
URL:https://freedomsway.org/event/george-s-boutwell-the-emancipation-proclamation/
LOCATION:The Groton Center\, 163 West Main St\, Groton\, MA\, 01450\, United States
CATEGORIES:Talks
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://freedomsway.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/groton-boutwell.jpeg
ORGANIZER;CN="Groton History Center":MAILTO:info@grotonhistory.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20220319T140000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20220319T153000
DTSTAMP:20220428T150409Z
CREATED:20220302T191554Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20220428T150409Z
UID:12534-1647698400-1647703800@freedomsway.org
SUMMARY:Our War Too: American Women in WWII
DESCRIPTION:Kara Fossey\, Executive Director of both the Groton History Center and the Fort Devens Museum\, will present an illustrated program about the various roles American Women played during World War II\, military\, civilian\, and volunteer. Special emphasis will be placed on Fort Devens and women from Massachusetts. \nCo-sponsored with Fort Devens Museum
URL:https://freedomsway.org/event/our-war-too-american-women-in-wwii/
LOCATION:Groton History Center\, 172 Main Street\, Groton\, MA\, 01450\, United States
CATEGORIES:Talks
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://freedomsway.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/devens-ma_fort-devens-museum.jpeg
ORGANIZER;CN="Groton History Center":MAILTO:info@grotonhistory.org
END:VEVENT
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