Past Events

Join us for an evening of Pittsfield ghost lore in this talk by Robert Oakes, author of Ghosts of the Berkshires and ghost tour guide at The Mount and Ventfort Hall. In addition to Pittsfield ghost stories, Oakes will discuss Herman Melville's own "strange fancies," and the ghost writings of his friend and frequent Arrowhead visitor Nathaniel Hawthorne. The talk will be followed by a lantern-lit tour o Arrowhead. Use the BOOK NOW button to purchase tickets;  $20 for BCHS…

Quilter Francesca Olsen hosts an open studio n Arrowhead’s historic piazza as part of the Berkshire Artists Residency Program. She will talk about her craft and demonstrate her technique.  FREE event Francesca Olsen is a quilter, writer, and consultant. Her creative work focuses on storytelling, heritage, ritual, magic, and the power and significance held in objects and stories. Olsen is a connector whose work aims to build community by holding space for others and creating a dialogue around legacy, history,…

Bird banding at Arrowhead allows visitors an up-close opportunity to see birds and watch the process of bird banding.  Bird banding allows researchers the opportunity to study a wide array of wild birds in their natural habitat. Arrowhead’s woods, fields and shrub land make it an ideal site to monitor a broad range of breeding bird species.  Join the BBO researchers as they leverage the wonder of a bird in the hand to spark a curiosity about the natural world…

Picnic on the lawn of Arrowhead’s historic barn as The Mastheads eighth-annual summer residents perform new fiction, poetry, and theatre created in the studios this month. $10-$20 donation suggested to support public programming, including poetry workshops in Pittsfield Public Schools.  This event is sponsored by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

Join us at Arrowhead to celebrate Herman’s birthday and the launch of a brand-new audiobook  Billy Budd, Sailor, read by Paul Giamatti. We’ll have light refreshments, drinks, and cake. Listen to selections from the book and toast to the work that brought Herman out of obscurity when it was published in 1924. FREE Learn the story of how Paul Giamatti came to record this book as told by him to BCHS's own Jana Laiz. This event is sponsored by Guido's…

Join Berkshire County Historical Society and celebrate the day (August 5, 1850) when Melville met Hawthorne on a hike up Monument Mountain. Read the poem they read together at the summit and share sparkling wine (they had champagne).  The guided hike takes approximately 2 ½ hours and is appropriate for families. Hikers should meet at the Monument Mountain Reservation Parking lot on Route 7 and should be prepared with their own water, proper footwear, hiking gear and bug repellent. Parking…

Join us for an evening of Pittsfield ghost lore in this talk by Robert Oakes, author of Ghosts of the Berkshires and ghost tour guide at The Mount and Ventfort Hall. In addition to Pittsfield ghost stories, Oakes will discuss Herman Melville's own "strange fancies," and the ghost writings of his friend and frequent Arrowhead visitor Nathaniel Hawthorne. The talk will be followed by a lantern-lit tour o Arrowhead. Use the BOOK NOW button to purchase tickets;  $20 for BCHS…

Join us for an evening of Pittsfield ghost lore in this talk by Robert Oakes, author of Ghosts of the Berkshires and ghost tour guide at The Mount and Ventfort Hall. In addition to Pittsfield ghost stories, Oakes will discuss Herman Melville's own "strange fancies," and the ghost writings of his friend and frequent Arrowhead visitor Nathaniel Hawthorne. The talk will be followed by a lantern-lit tour o Arrowhead. Use the BOOK NOW button to purchase tickets;  $20 for BCHS…