RESCHEDULED DATE. Join the NHS Collections Committee for a conversation about repatriation and return in small museums with Jose Vilahomat, NAGPRA Curatorial Assistant, Peabody Museum at Harvard University, and Niki Lefebvre, Executive Director, Natick Historical Society. Jose will discuss the NAGPRA process, and Niki will share examples from the NHS collections.

Advanced registration is required - space is limited. Save your spot through our Eventbrite page.

Join local historian Terri Evans for a stroll through the heart of South Natick. The tour highlights Natick’s early history as a “Praying Town” and the 19th-century residents who inspired Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, Oldtown Folks.

Tours last 60 minutes and are capped at 12 people. Advanced registration is required. Please click HERE to register. This program is FREE and open to the public.

Please meet at the entrance to the Bacon Free Library/Natick History Museum, 58 Eliot Street.

If you are interested in booking a private walking tour of South Natick, click here.

Walk Natick Center with local historian Terri Evans and learn how the railroad and the shoe industry transformed 19th-century Natick. Hear stories from the 1874 fire and discover how arts and culture inspire the “heart of Natick” today.

Please meet at the entrance to Natick's Town Hall at the corner of Park Street.

Tours last 60 minutes and are capped at 12 people. Advanced registration is required. Please register here. This program is FREE and open to the public.

If you are interested in joining us for a virtual book discussion, please email: mking@minlib.net

Everyone is welcome to join a discussion of A Spy Among Friends: by Ben Macintyre.

This program is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is FREE and open to the public.

Join us for Community Map Day at the NHS Museum. We'll have two dozen vintage maps of Natick from our collections on display for you to explore. Local map experts will be available to answer your questions, and we'll have map prints for sale, too. Enjoy light refreshments as you browse.

Please click here to register in advance.

We look forward to seeing you!

If you are interested in joining us for a virtual book discussion, please email: mking@minlib.net

Everyone is welcome to join a discussion of Untold Power: Edith Wilson by Rebecca Bogg Roberts.

This program is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is FREE and open to the public.

In the popular narrative, Rosa Parks is a work-weary seamstress whose “tired feet” compelled her to break character and single-handedly launch the modern civil rights movement. For over two decades now, historians have been writing against the conception of Parks as an accidental activist. Still, the symbolic version of Parks persists and fuels larger myths about the civil rights movement. In this presentation, Dr Greer explores how Parks’ media representation encouraged an iconic image that, while celebratory and inspiring, is at odds with her record fighting Jim Crow and its many abuses and informs current day notions about black protest.

Dr. Brenna Greer, Historian, Wellesley College

This event will be held online, via Zoom. Advanced registration is required to access the link. Please register using our Eventbrite page.

Thank you to our event sponsors, Frank and Emily Hunnewell.

Join us for our 2024 Annual Meeting and check out some of our latest accessions, including items from Natick’s Wonder Bread Factory! Together, we’ll reflect on the events of 2023, discuss what’s ahead in 2024, and celebrate our shared enthusiasm for local history.

All are welcome! Light refreshments will follow the formal program.

Please register through our Eventbrite page.

*NHS supporters are eligible to vote on a slate of candidates.

Valentines of a century ago were lacy, layered, and elaborate. Yours will be too! Come to the Natick History Museum to make old-fashioned valentines and test your Valentine’s Day trivia knowledge at our valentine-making workshop.

All ages are welcome. A $5 fee per participant will cover the cost of materials. Please register in advance through our Eventbrite to secure your spot. Space is limited so register soon!

If you are interested in joining us for a virtual book discussion, please email: mking@minlib.net

Everyone is welcome to join a discussion of Until I am Free: Fannie Lou Hamer by Keisha Blain.

This program is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is FREE and open to the public.

If you are interested in joining us for a virtual book discussion, please email: mking@minlib.net

Everyone is welcome to join a discussion of Countdown to 1945 (NF) by Chris Wallace.

This program is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is FREE and open to the public.

The Natick Historical Society and the Bacon Free Library are excited to invite you to create a snowflake ornament. Roll up your sleeves, unleash your creativity, and make an ornament using eclectic materials–from paints and brushes to glitter and ribbon. All ages are encouraged to drop in between 10am and 1pm to decorate a snowflake ornament. Bring the family!

A Bacon Free Library librarian will lead a wintry storytime for all ages at 11:30am.

Wrapped local history gifts will be available for purchase, too - books, maps, notecards, and stocking stuffers. Take a look at our online shop.

If you are interested in joining us for a virtual book discussion, please email: mking@minlib.net

Everyone is welcome to join a discussion of West with Giraffes (F) by Lynda Rutledge.

This program is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is FREE and open to the public.

Join us this holiday season to hear Diane Taraz perform a festive setlist of traditional Victorian Christmas carols. Enjoy mulled cider and wintry treats while you listen to carols and the stories behind them.

Many of our holiday traditions and much of our Christmas music was revived or created during the Victorian era, in the mid-1800's. Diane will present these beloved carols, together with fascinating stories about their origins as she performs in a hand-sewn 1850s dress and accompanies herself on guitar and dulcimer.

This event is in-person, free, and open to the public. Advanced registration is required. Please fill out this form to save your spot.

This program is jointly sponsored by the Bacon Free Library and the Natick Historical Society.

The Saunkskwa of Mystic was an important and influential leader and one of the only women in political leadership during the early colonial period. At a time when diseases like smallpox had decimated her tribe, the Pawtucket band of the Massachusetts, and settler colonists continued to encroach on tribal lands, the Saunkskwa attempted to safeguard aboriginal rights.

While historical records provide few details about her, they do provide more information about the Saunkskwa’s descendants. Her daughter, Yawata, married John Awonsamug and resided in Natick as Abigail Awonsamug. Pamela will tell us about the Saunkskwa and her descendants.

Pamela Ellis has served as Tribal Historian and Genealogist with the Natick Nipmuc Indian Council.

This event is FREE and open to the public, and is jointly sponsored by the Natick Historical Society and the Marblehead Museum. Advanced registration is required to access the Zoom link.

Register using this form.

If you are interested in joining us for a virtual book discussion, please email: mking@minlib.net

Everyone is welcome to join a discussion of First Friends (NF) by Gary Ginsberg.

This program is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is FREE and open to the public.

Join us to celebrate our 150th birthday with local bites, drinks, and good company. Together, let's give Natick's past a bright future!

Enjoy toasting to our 150th birthday with local bites, drinks, and good company in the historic cinema room at The Natick Center for Arts (TCAN).

We'll share 150 images from Natick's past on the big screen, reflect on 150 years of the NHS, and celebrate the1875 firehouse that is now TCAN. We're counting on you to bring your lively conversation and passionate support of Natick's past.

All guests are encouraged to enjoy the silent auction featuring local and historical experiences, foods, and gifts. You can bid on your next "best time" all while supporting the NHS.

Our gratitude goes out to early event sponsors: TCAN, South Natick Foreign Motors, Middlesex Savings Bank, Needham Bank, Aon Risk Services Northeast, Jack's Abby, Lola's, Roche Brothers, and more to come. And a big thanks to our silent auction donors - you'll hear more about them soon.

Please note your ticket includes one complimentary drink. There will be a cash-only bar.

<< Click here to purchase tickets>>

Please meet at the entrance to the Bacon Free Library/Natick History Museum, 58 Eliot Street.

Join local historian Terri Evans for stroll through the heart of South Natick. The tour includes discussion of the 17th-century “Praying Indian” settlement and of the 19th-century local residents who inspired the characters in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, Oldtown Folks.

Tours are capped at 12 people. This program is FREE and open to the public. The tour will last 60 minutes. Advanced registration is required. Register using this form.

If you are interested in booking a private walking tour of Oldtown with the Society, click here.

**This tour is currently at capacity. If you would like to be put on the waitlist, please email Rachel at rsb@natickhistoricalsociety.org with your name and the number of people in your party. She will be in touch if a spot opens up.**

Please meet in front of Natick Town Hall at the corner of Park Street.

Walk Natick Center with local historian Terri Evans and learn how the arrival of the railroad and the rise of the shoe industry shaped 19th-century Natick. Discover the community’s response to the 1874 fire and how arts and culture have inspired the “heart of Natick” today.

The tour is capped at 15 people. Advanced registration is required. This event is FREE and open to the public. Please register using the form HERE.

Please meet at the entrance to the Bacon Free Library/Natick History Museum, 58 Eliot Street.

Join local historian Terri Evans for stroll through the heart of South Natick. The tour includes discussion of the 17th-century “Praying Indian” settlement and of the 19th-century local residents who inspired the characters in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, Oldtown Folks.

Tours are capped at 12 people. This program is FREE and open to the public. The tour will last 60 minutes. Advanced registration is required. Register using this form.

If you are interested in booking a private walking tour of Oldtown with the Society, click here.

All are welcome to join local tour guide Vincent Vittoria for a walking tour of Natick's historic Walnut Hill neighborhood. Come learn about the people, historic mansions, and other stories that give Walnut Hill such a fascinating history.

The tour will meet downtown by Moran Park (right beside the Eastern Bank on South Ave by the T tracks, with the World War II memorial) and begin at 3:00 pm. It will last about 90 minutes.

This tour is capped at 20 people. This program is FREE and open to the public. Advanced registration is required. Please register using the form here.

Enter the world of 19th century New England regional writer, Sarah Orne Jewett with this theatrical presentation. Meet a family embroiled in a family curse, an odd stranger who comes to a small town, and an old woman who may or may not be immortal.

This event will be held in person at the Natick History Museum and is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is free and open to the public. Advanced registration required.

Please click HERE to register for this free event via the Bacon Free Library website.

If you are interested in joining us for a virtual book discussion, please email: mking@minlib.net

Everyone is welcome to join a discussion of An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States (NF) by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz.

This program is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is FREE and open to the public.

Please meet at the entrance to the Bacon Free Library/Natick History Museum, 58 Eliot Street.

Join local historian Terri Evans for stroll through the heart of South Natick. The tour includes discussion of the 17th-century “Praying Indian” settlement and of the 19th-century local residents who inspired the characters in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, Oldtown Folks.

Tours are capped at 12 people. This program is FREE and open to the public. The tour will last 60 minutes. Advanced registration is required. Register using this form.

If you are interested in booking a private walking tour of Oldtown with the Society, click here.

Please meet in front of Natick Town Hall at the corner of Park Street.

Walk Natick Center with local historian Terri Evans and learn how the arrival of the railroad and the rise of the shoe industry shaped 19th-century Natick. Discover the community’s response to the 1874 fire and how arts and culture have inspired the “heart of Natick” today.

The tour is capped at 15 people. Advanced registration is required. This event is FREE and open to the public. Please register using the form HERE.

This month, we'll hear from local leaders in community arts: Ginger McEachern, Denise Girardin, and Jane Ellen Newman. Join us as we discuss their commitment to bringing public arts projects to and inspiring the arts within Natick. This event will be held via Zoom.

This event is FREE and open to the public. Advance registration is required: register here.

The Natick Historical Society's Meet Our Neighbors Series shines a light on the many cultural, educational, service, and other organizations that have shaped Natick over time.

Is there a neighbor you'd like to hear from? Let us know! contact@natickhistoricalsociety.org

**This tour is currently at capacity. If you would like to be put on the waitlist, please email Rachel at rsb@natickhistoricalsociety.org with your name and the number of people in your party. She will be in touch if a spot opens up.**

Please meet in front of Natick Town Hall at the corner of Park Street.

Walk Natick Center with local historian Terri Evans and learn how the arrival of the railroad and the rise of the shoe industry shaped 19th-century Natick. Discover the community’s response to the 1874 fire and how arts and culture have inspired the “heart of Natick” today.

The tour is capped at 15 people. Advanced registration is required. This event is FREE and open to the public. Please register using the form HERE.

If you are interested in joining us for a virtual book discussion, please email: mking@minlib.net

Everyone is welcome to join a discussion of The River of Doubt (NF) by Candace Millard.

This program is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is FREE and open to the public.

Please meet at the entrance to the Bacon Free Library/Natick History Museum, 58 Eliot Street.

Join local historian Terri Evans for stroll through the heart of South Natick. The tour includes discussion of the 17th-century “Praying Indian” settlement and of the 19th-century local residents who inspired the characters in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, Oldtown Folks.

Tours are capped at 12 people. This program is FREE and open to the public. The tour will last 60 minutes. Advanced registration is required. Register using this form.

If you are interested in booking a private walking tour of Oldtown with the Society, click here.

If you are interested in joining us for a virtual book discussion, please email: mking@minlib.net

Everyone is welcome to join a discussion of Beautiful Country (NF) by Qian Julie Wang.

This program is co-sponsored with the Bacon Free Library. It is FREE and open to the public.