Mass Humanities Recent Grants

The Jacob Whittemore House - A Whittemore Family Biography

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Research into the multigenerational Whittemore family.
   Minute Man National Historic Park
   Concord, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
   project director: Leslie Obleschuk

The Cultural Landscape of Herman Melville's Arrowhead

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Research into the cultural landscape of Arrowhead, Herman Melville's farm in Pittsfield, during the period of his residency from 1850-1862, in order to better interpret Melville's life and work.
   Berkshire Historical Society
   Pittsfield, MA, Berkshire County (Berkshire)
   project director: Will Garrison

The Antislavery Movement in Cummington

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Support for research on the extensive antislavery activity that took place in the small rural hilltown of Cummington during the three decades that preceded the Civil War.
   Cummington Historical Comission
   Cummington, MA, Hampshire County (CT Valley)
   project director: Carla Ness

Stirring the Pot: Women in Early Massachusetts

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Funding for the hiring of a consultant to devise and execute a public outreach program for the Partnership's activities to mark the founding of Boston.
   Partnership of the Historic Bostons
   Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Metrowest Boston)
   project director: Wilfred Holton

Public Health Museum Exhibit Redesign & Reinterpretation

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Redesign of the museum's gallery spaces using PhD candidates from Harvard's History of Science department to manage the process.
   Public Health Museum
   Tewksbury, MA, Middlesex County (Northeast)
   project director: Sara Lundberg

North Brookfield Poetry Project

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A poetry residency, after-school poetry writing workshops for students, and public readings that will be open to the community.
   North Brookfield Jr.- Sr. High School
   North Brookfield, MA, Worcester County (Central)
   project director: Heather Macpherson

A Healing Landscape: Environmental and Social History of the Boston Nature Center

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Support for activities that will lead to the inclusion of history into the teaching at the Center, formerly the site of the Boston State Hospital.
   Mass Audubon
   Lincoln, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
   project director: Julie Brandlen

More Than a Number Exhibition

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

An exhibition exploring local Cambodian refugee culture, Cambodian-American culture, and non-Cambodians during and after the 1975-1979 genocide. The exhibit will address a number of themes: tolerance, acceptance and hope; the meaning of genocide, survival, healing; and re-building.
   Lynn Museum
   Lynn, MA, Essex County (Northeast)
   project director: Abby Battis

Art in Words

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

10-week after-school program for children that will focus on reading and discussion of books and instruction in drawing and watercolor techniques.
   Friends of the New Bedford Free Public Library
   New Bedford, MA, Bristol County (Southeast)
   project director: Jill Horton-Simms

Coexist and Teaching about Human Dignity

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A program designed to engage new audiences in four public high schools to reflect on moral and ethical themes: responsibility to others, the meaning of human dignity, relationships that foster human flourishing, and respect and honor for difference.
   Center For Independent Documentary
   Sharon, MA, Norfolk County (Southeast)
   project director: Adam Mazo

Hilltowns History Conference and Fair

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A Franklin County history happening, to be held at Colrain Central School. The daylong event will consist of a free history fair with activities and booths for all ages presented by organizations and individuals from around the county, as well as an indoor history conference with about 20 breakout sessions.
   Mary Lyon Foundation, Inc.
   Shelburne Falls, MA, Franklin County (CT Valley)
   project director: Susan Samoriski

Generational Legacy Project

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A nine-month project, beginning with a series of workshops for previously incarcerated women, culminating in performances to be produced by the Fort Point Theatre Channel.
   On With Living and Learning
   Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
   project director: Michael Ricca

Salem's Franco-American History: Transcribing, Translating and Developing Thematic Guide to Oral History

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Transcription and translation of 20 videotaped oral histories of former and current Franco-American residents of Salem.
   Salem State University
   Salem, MA, Essex County (Northeast)
   project director: Susan Edwards

It Happened Here: Our Towns in the American Revolution

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A collaborative statewide interactive Web exhibit featuring materials on the Revolutionary War from as many localities in Massachusetts as will participate.
   Martha's Vineyard Museum
   Edgartown, MA, Dukes County (Cape & Islands)
   project director: Nancy Cole

My Farm at Waltham Winter Multimedia Outdoor Tour at Gore Place

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Production of a mobile device audio/video tour of the grounds of Gore Place in Waltham, the Federal estate of Governor Christopher Gore (1758-1827). Gore used his summer place as a productive farm and as a place to experiment with agricultural methods.
   Gore Place
   Waltham, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
   project director: Tamar Agulian

How We Live Today: Challenges of Globalization

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Eight public discussions on the ramifications of the global economy, which will also be broadcast via public radio and podcasts. The discussions will focus on global engagement in military, political, and economic terms.
   Cambridge Forum
   Cambridge, MA, Middlesex County (Greater Boston)
   project director: Patricia Suhrcke

The Carlos Vega Collection of Latino History in Holyoke

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Inventory of the papers of Carlos Vega, one of Holyoke's most vocal and prolific Latino activists.
   Wistariahurst Museum Association, Inc
   Holyoke, MA, Hampden County (CT Valley)
   project director: Penni Martorell

Inventory of Nylander Papers

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Inventory of the Robert H. Nylander Collection of research notes and maps related to the original Iron Work Farm land grant and the extant Jones-Faulkner Homestead and Jones Tavern for a permanent exhibition on the extent and evolution of the Jones and Faulkner land holdings throughout the town of Acton and nearby communities.
   Iron Work Farm In Acton
   Acton, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
   project director: Anne Forbes

Medford Circa 1855

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Cataloguing of materials relating to Medford during the transitional ante-bellum period, c. 1855.
   Medford Historical Society
   Medford, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
   project director: Barbara Kerr

1763 Peace of Paris Commemoration Planning Phase

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

An exhibit and public programming on the historical legacy of 1763 Peace of Paris treaty to coincide with its 250th anniversary in 2013. Credited with ending the last in a series of international conflicts known as the French and Indian wars, the treaty shaped the roles of Britain, France, and Spain on the North American continent and is seen as the precursor to the American Revolution
   Bostonian Society
   Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
   project director: Donald C. Carleton

StoriesLive 2012

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A series of assemblies and classroom workshops that teach teenagers about public speaking and storytelling techniques, and culminates in a competitive story slam, a live event with judges and prize money for finalists.
   Massmouth, Inc.
   Brookline, MA, Norfolk County (Greater Boston)
   project director: Norah Dooley

Homefront & Battlefield Exhibition Implementation

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

An exhibit that will explore the relationship between textiles/textile artifacts and the escalation of conflict during the Civil War and its aftermath. The exhibit will display slave cloth, soldier bandages, and the noose used to hang John Brown, among other key objects.
   American Textile History Museum
   Lowell, MA, Middlesex County (Northeast)
   project director: Diane F. Affleck

The Temperamentals

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Two post-performance forums during the run of The Temperamentals, a play about the founders of one of the first gay rights organizations in the pre-Stonewall United States. The grant will also support interactive elements for audiences attending.
   The Lyric Stage Company of Boston
   Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
   project director: Nora Long

The Meaning of the Highlands Neighborhood Today

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

An out-of-school program for six to 10 teens that will explore the rich history of the Highlands neighborhood (the one-time home of abolitionist Frederick Douglass), and lead to a video-theatre piece based on oral history interviews with residents.
   The Highlands Coalition
   Lynn, MA, Essex County (Northeast)
   project director: Wendy Joseph

The Amherst Survival Center Music Project

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A series of 12 lunchtime concerts at the Center that will feature world music and accompanying lectures about that music.
   Amherst Survival Center
   Amherst, MA, Hampshire County (CT Valley)
   project director: Bob Weiner

African Americans in Early New England Project: A Crisis of Conscience and Memory

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A podcast and printed tour of African-American sites in the village of Old Deerfield as well as K-12 online lessons that will illuminate the history of local slavery in Old Deerfield.
   Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association
   Deerfield, MA, Franklin County (CT Valley)
   project director: Timothy Neumann

Troilus & Cressida

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Free public events and participatory programs for diverse audiences pertaining to the production of Troilus & Cressida.
   Actors' Shakespeare Project
   Somerville, MA, Middlesex County (Greater Boston)
   project director: Lori Taylor

Boston Busing/Desegregation Project: Can We Talk?

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A series of public education forums that examine Boston's desegregation history and its current public education needs in order start an informed conversation among various constituencies about public school quality and equality.
   Union of Minority Neighborhoods
   Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
   project director: Donna Bivens

Julien Hudson Exhibition; Lecture Series

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

A lecture series, art history course, children's program, and a series of radio interviews to accompany its exhibit on Julien Hudson. Hudson was an early American portrait painter of African descent who explored race and the South in his work.
   Worcester Art Museum
   Worcester, MA, Worcester County (Central)
   project director: Honee Hess

Will We Ever Learn?.. The Struggle for Equality, One Group at a Time

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:45:51 +0000

Three hour-long segments of its morning program, The Roundtable; the segments will explore parallels between various struggles for equality in American history. Interviewees will include such important figures as Anita Hill, Robert Reich, and Alex Keyssar, among others.
   WAMC
   Albany, NY, County ()
   project director: Joe Donahue