W.E.B. Du Bois was the premier architect of the American Civil
Rights Movement. He was born and raised in Great Barrington.
The Great Barrington Historical Society is a non-profit organization formed in 1977 for the purpose of collecting and preserving material pertinent to the history of Great Barrington. Its objectives are to provide an organization for people interested in learning about, recording, preserving and disseminating the history of our community, as well as stimulate an awareness of local history now and for future generations.
Please Join Us! Membership in the Great Barrington Historical Society is open to anyone interested in local history. Click on the MEMBERSHIP button found on our home page to access an application form.
VISITORS' CENTER
The Great Barrington Historical Society Visitors' Center is located on South Main Street at the W.E.B. Du Bois Center, next to North Star Rare Books. This is where we often hold our evening meetings. Our extensive collection is mostly in storage in a room on the second floor at the Ramsdell Library in Housatonic. It is not accessible to the public at this time. We do have several displays in this library room which is open by appointment only. We will do our best to answer any questions you have and apologize that our materials are not yet available to he public.
TRUMAN WHEELER HOUSE - Our future headquarters and Museum
We have been searching for a headquarters for 30 years, and recently purchased the 1771 Truman Wheeler House on South Main Street as our future museum and education center.
This is a huge undertaking as the house must be restored! We plan to be open in time for the town's 250th anniversary - less than 3 years away! For more information about our new headquarters, click on the NEWS button found on our HOME page.
MEETINGS
Bi-monthly meetings are usually held on the third Wednesday evening of January, March, May, July, September, and November. Customarily, the July meeting is a picnic and in November a dinner meeting is held at a local restaurant. Prior to each meeting a bulletin of current news and information is mailed to the membership. For up-to-date information about our meetings and other special events, click on the NEWS button found on our HOME page.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Our Visitors' Center phone number is: 413-644-9595.
Our Email address is: gbhs@bcn.net
Our mailing address is: P.O. Box 1106, Great Barrington, MA 01230
Bernard Drew’s fascinating History of
Great Barrington.
NEWSLETTER: Twice a year Editor extraordinaire Bernard Drew publishes our newsletter. Each issue is packed with fascinating stories of the history of our area. As a collection, these newsletters give a marvelous snapshot of the history of the Southern Berkshires.
BOOK: Great Barrington: Great Town Great History by Bernard Drew was published by the Historical Society in 1999. It is available at The Bookloft in Great Barrington.
On occasion, other publications are prepared by talented members who have researched special topics pertaining to local history.
