Great Barrington — It is that time of year again as the Great Barrington Historical Society brings back its annual Old-Fashioned Christmas exhibit.
The exhibit includes antiques, artifacts, and toys tracing the history of the Christmas holidays from the Colonial period, Victorian era, through the 1950s, and into the modern era.
The exhibit features a model “Christmas Village,” complete with a miniature Stockbridge Main Street, with a model train winding its way through the village.
The Historical Society’s museum is in the former Truman Wheeler House, built between 1768 and 1771.
According to historian and Berkshire Edge columnist Gary Leveille, the house was slated for demolition back in 2007 in order to make way for a strip mall. However, the Historical Society stepped in and obtained a mortgage to purchase and save the property, which it now uses for its museum. The property was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.
In an interview with The Berkshire Edge, Historical Society Executive Director Robert Krol emphasized that the organization is in need of financial support. “The Historical Society is asset rich but cash poor, just like so many other households and nonprofits these days,” he said. “You go from month to month in survival mode. To maintain a museum and a vast collection of archives, it takes funding, and we are constantly in fundraising mode.”
According to the Historical Society’s website, the organization hosts programs for the community throughout the year spotlighting the town’s history. The organization also operates the museum, conducts historical walks, and manages an archival collection of over 50,000 items about the town’s history, including photographs, prints, paintings, and news articles.
“With the 250th anniversary of the nation coming up, there has already been an incredible amount of demands on us to provide information, programming, and exhibits,” Leveille said. “Except for Robert, who is a part-time executive director, we operate totally with volunteers. While we can apply for grants for building improvements, we can’t get grants for day-to-day operational costs. You just can’t get grants for those.”
Leveille said that operational costs for the museum, including insurance, electricity, heat, and maintenance, have “all skyrocketed over the past few years.” “Our membership donations are no longer keeping pace with all of these increased costs,” he said. “We’re really struggling with day-to-day operations. We are one of the few historical societies that still has a mortgage on its property, and it has been quite a drain on us every month.”
“It’s an emotional roller coaster,” Krol said. “It would be great to increase our membership with the new people coming into town, but they don’t have a sense of history or interest in the history of the town. The trick is to find ways to involve younger generations and the second home residents and make them realize how important it is to maintain our local history.”
The exhibit will be on display at the museum until Sunday, January 4. The Great Barrington Historical Society’s museum is located at 817 Main Street and is open on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
For more information, visit the Historical Society’s website.
