Bidwell House Museum

05/26/2026

Our first history talk of the 2026 season is this Saturday at 11 am via Zoom! It is going to be a fascinating look at why Massachusetts towns rejected the first state constitution. Head to our website here to sign up: https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/event/the-first-massachusetts-constitution-and-how-town-actions-derailed-it/

05/22/2026

The Museum's 2026 season begins this weekend! Our opening concert takes place on Sunday at 2 pm (pre-registration is required) and then house tours, by appointment, begin on Monday.

Head to our website for more information: https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/

05/12/2026

The Bidwell House Museum 2026 season begins in less than 2 weeks! We start with a concert on May 24th by local favorite Diane Taraz. Then on Memorial Day, May 25th, tours of the Museum, by appointment, start again. Click on the link below to get your tickets for the Diane Taraz concert. For more information on how to book a tour, head to the "Tours" page under "Plan Your Visit" on the Museum home page. We hope to see you at the Bidwell House Museum this season!

https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/event/surprising-but-true/

05/07/2026

We are now taking reservations for tours this season! The Museum opens on Memorial Day and you can book a tour for Monday, Thursday, Friday or Saturday at 11 am, 1 pm or 3 pm. We are a small shop so we do request that you book 24 hours in advance. For more information head to the Tours page on our website. We hope to see you this season! https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/the-museum/guided-tours/

05/05/2026

The gardens are waking up after their long winter slumber! Grounds and trails are open daily, and we reopen for the season on Memorial Day weekend. Head to our website for trail maps, tour info and a list of upcoming events. https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/

04/16/2026

We are excited to partner with the West Stockbridge Historical Society to present a wonderful program this Saturday by the Massachusetts Poet Laureate Regie Gibson. Learn more about the program and get your tickets here: https://www.weststockbridgehistory.org/event-details/massachusetts-a-song-of-itself

02/25/2026

There is still time to sign up for our Zoom program about The Life of a Continental Soldier! Head to our website here for more information: https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/event/the-life-of-a-continental-soldier/

2026 is the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and we are excited to present two off-season programs about the Revolutionary War.

Join us on Zoom for the first talk, with Asher Lurie, on February 26 at 7 pm where he will give us a glimpse at the life of a Continental soldier during the American Revolution. Click here for more info and to get your ticket: https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/event/the-life-of-a-continental-soldier/

02/20/2026

Welcome to installment 223 of Bidwell Lore! Today, we continue the story of Agrippa Hull that we reintroduced on February 3: this week with a look at the Reverend Jonathan Edwards.

To read more, visit the link in the comments.

Image: Henry August Loop (1831-1895), after Joseph Badger (1708-1765) "Rev. Jonathan Edwards." 1860. Oil on canvas. Collection of Princeton University

02/13/2026

2026 is the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and we are excited to present two off-season programs about the Revolutionary War.

Join us on Zoom for the first talk, with Asher Lurie, on February 26 at 7 pm where he will give us a glimpse at the life of a Continental soldier during the American Revolution. Click here for more info and to get your ticket: https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/event/the-life-of-a-continental-soldier/

02/05/2026

Welcome to installment 222 of Bidwell Lore! Today, we go back to a series we first shared in 2023, which tells the story of Agrippa Hull (1759-1848), the son of formerly enslaved Black parents who fought in the Revolutionary War and was a well-known landowner in Stockbridge. In honor of Black History Month, it felt like a good time to reintroduce Agrippa to our email list and especially to those not subscribed until recently. We will stay with his story for the next several installments of Bidwell Lore.

Read more here: https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/blog/2023/02/14/bidwell-lore-introducing-agrippa-hull/

If you enjoy this newsletter and would like to support the Museum, please consider making a donation or purchasing a membership. Funds donated to the Bidwell House Museum go towards our educational programming, historic preservation, and maintenance of the 194 acres of gardens and grounds. https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/support/

Image: Portrait of Agrippa Hull, unknown artist, unknown date. Acc # 47.002. Courtesy of the Stockbridge Library Museum & Archives. Painted from an 1845 daguerreotype taken by Anson Clark in West Stockbridge, also in the collection of the Stockbridge Library Museum & Archives.