Events

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A Day in the Life of a Local Archaeologist

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States +1 more

Archaeologist David Gutbrod will share experiences and discoveries encountered in his professional life. David is a member of a local archaeological firm and serves as Chair of Westford’s Historical Commission. He also did the research for the very first application of Acton’s new Archaeological Protection bylaw, providing an extensive report on a significant site in […]

Free

Acton 250: One for the Revolutionary Road: Taverns and the American Revolution with Malcolm Purinton

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States

Countdown to April 19th, 1775: One for the Revolutionary Road: Taverns and the American Revolution Tuesday, November 12, 7:00 PM Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main Street, Acton, MA Northeastern University Professor Malcolm F. Purinton discusses the role of the tavern in local society as the colonies headed into the American Revolution. There were few places […]

Free

Acton 250: The Hidden History of Black Boston with Joel Mackall

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States

Discover Boston’s rich 400-year African American history! Many vibrant Black communities flourished in Boston stretching back to early colonial times. We will delve into the rich narratives of neighborhoods and pivotal sites, events, and figures from the eras of Faneuil Hall and Long Wharf, which marked Boston's connection to the Atlantic world, all the way […]

Free

Changes in the Land Book Discussion

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States

Join a group discussion of this landmark environmental history by William Cronon, which offers an original and profound explanation of the effects European colonists’ sense of property and their pursuit of capitalism had upon the ecosystems of New England. Updated with John Demos, this ethno-ecological history provides a brilliant inter-disciplinary interpretation of how land and […]

Free

Burying the Trowel: A History of Controversy and Innovation in New England’s Cultural Stone Features Debate

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States +1 more

Unusual stone features dot the woodlands and hillsides of New England, and their provenance has been subject to many theories and debate. Kitty O’Riordan is a cultural anthropologist who has been studying the people, methods, and literature surrounding the cultural stone features debate in New England for nearly a decade. She earned her Ph.D. from […]

Free

Ancient Winters at the Flagg Swamp Rockshelter

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States +1 more

Eric Johnson, Lecturer in the University of Massachusetts – Amherst Anthropology Department will provide a retrospective on the 1980 laboratory analysis and results from the excavation of this remarkable site in Marlborough, Massachusetts. He will discuss the identification of animals now or recently extinct in Massachusetts, how the site was used as a winter home […]

Free

Acton 250: Acton Center Walking Tour with Amy Cole

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States

Acton 250 Committee presents: Acton Center Walking Tour with Amy Cole  -  Friday, October 11th 1:00 – 2:30 PM Please meet Amy at the Acton Memorial Library parking lot at 12:50 PM. The walk is free, but registration is needed and capped at 20 attendees per walk. Registration opens September 28th at 9:00 AM: https://tinyurl.com/ATCW1011 […]

Free

Archaeological Discoveries in New England

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States +1 more

Peabody award winning Smithsonian filmmaker Ted Timreck will share documentary footage from two little known discoveries that show the potential of what might be found anywhere in the New England countryside. After the viewing Ted will explain how the controversial "diffusion" discoveries of the 1970's made by amateurs in local communities evolved into the discovery […]

Free

Acton 250: Acton Center Walking Tour with Amy Cole

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States

Acton 250 Committee presents: Acton Center Walking Tour with Amy Cole  -  Saturday, September 28th 1:00 – 2:30 PM Please meet Amy at the Acton Memorial Library parking lot at 12:50 PM. The walk is free, but registration is needed and capped at 20 attendees per walk. Registration link: https://tinyurl.com/ACTWSEP28. Professional tour leader Amy Cole […]

Free

Acton: 4000 to 7000 Years Ago

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States

Extending a popular talk archaeologist Kimberley Connors gave last year, 4000 to 7000 Years Ago focuses specifically on Acton’s archaeological sites from the Middle Archaic period (4000-7000 years before present). The most well-known of these is the Pine Hawk site in South Acton, but there are several other sites along the Assabet River and its […]

Free

Recurring

Connecting Communities: Walks & Talks — “How We Remember” in Acton Center

Acton Memorial Library 486 Main Street, Acton, MA, United States

Join us as we kick off Freedom's Way National Heritage Area's 2024 Connecting Communities: Walks & Talks program with a walking tour of Acton Center sponsored by the Acton 250 Committee! SPACE IS LIMITED TO 20 FOR EACH WALK; REGISTRATION REQUIRED! Click here to register for the April 6th walk. Click here to register for […]

Free