Watch "Reading Frederick Douglass"
On Thursday, July 2, members of the Natick community came together on the Morse Institute Library lawn for a shared public reading of Frederick Douglass’ famous speech, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” from 1852. Inspired by the Mass Humanities’ Reading Frederick Douglass series, the Natick Historical Society gathered fifteen young people from Natick schools to take turns reading portions of Douglass’ speech.
CLICK HERE to watch a recording of the event by Natick Pegasus.
CLICK HERE to read an article by the Metrowest Daily News covering the event.
CLICK HERE for the full text of the speech courtesy of Mass Humanities.
Thank you to Mass Humanities for the inspiration and resources, Natick Pegasus for filming the event, the Morse Institute Library for lending their space to us, Wellesley College Associate Professor of History Brenna Greer for her introductory remarks, and, of course, to our incredible readers: Laila, Maya, Kevin, Hildy, Alexa, Helen, Tia, Andy, Juliana, Marley, Daniel, Gabe, Ilir, Ellery, and Arwen.
Photographs courtesy of Mike Pojman.
Watch "Natick Remembers" with John H. Garabedian
We are delighted to share “Natick Remembers” featuring John H. Garabedian, founder of Natick's radio station WGTR/1060 AM, and a nationally recognized radio and television personality. John’s talk with Joe Weisse covers his early years in AM radio at WORC in Worcester and his work running WGTR in Natick. You’ll learn a lot and smile as he describes what it was like to oversee the first radio show to cover the Boston Marathon - en route in Natick!
Thank you to Natick Pegasus, Joe Weisse, and, of course, to John H. Garabedian.
CLICK HERE to watch.
Watch "Natick Remembers" with Ricky Ball
We're delighted to share "Natick Remembers" featuring Ricky Ball, the first woman to serve on Natick's Board of Selectman. Her interview with Joe Weisse is both informative and deeply moving. You won't want to miss it! Thank you to Natick Pegasus, Joe, and, of course, Ricky.
CLICK HERE to watch.
Natick Days Trivia Quiz!
Thanks to everyone who stopped by our table at Natick Days last weekend, especially those who took the Natick Historical Trivia Quiz challenge! Congratulations to Mike Linehan, who won the drawing for a free copy of one of our historical maps. See the answers to the trivia questions below:
1. Where was the Worcester Turnpike?
A: Present-day Route 9
2. What stands on the site of the Natick Drive-In?
A: Cloverleaf Mall, mostly (and part of the Hampton Inn)
3. What man, son of a Natick Indian mother, was one of the first casualties of the American Revolution?
A: Crispus Attucks, who was killed in the Boston Massacre
4. How did Natick get its nickname "Home of Champions"?
A: From the Natick Union Hook & Ladder Co's 1891 victory in a "world championship" among fire companies in a series of contests, including hooking up hoses and erecting ladders*
5. What author made Natick famous with the book "Oldtown Folks"?
A: Harriet Beecher Stowe
BONUS QUESTION: What year did Natick's now-famous July 4 parade begin?
A: 1955
*Learn more about the history of the Natick Fire Department at our fall event on Oct. 30th!
Edward Rodino is the 2019 Natick Historical Society Scholarship Recipient
Congratulations to Edward Rodino, recipient of this year’s Natick Historical Society Scholarship and a graduate of Natick High School class of 2019. At Natick High School, Rodino was deeply involved in varsity athletics and ROTC. He also served as Vice President of the Key Club and led multiple community service events. Teachers describe Edward as “passionate” about history. Edward plans to major in history at Stonehill College in the fall of 2019. Good luck, Edward!
Edward Rodino is the fourth recipient of the Natick Historical Society Scholarship Award, established in 2016.
Play Ball! Channel 5's Chronicle Features Natick's Baseball History
On April 2, 2019, Natick and the birthplace of modern baseball were featured in an episode of Chronicle on WCVB Channel 5. Natick Historical Society director Niki Lefebvre told the story and showed some baseball artifacts in the Natick History Museum. To see the feature, CLICK HERE.
The artifacts pictured in the feature are currently displayed at the Natick Historical Society.