Announcement:
Please note that some events on this list may be cancelled or postponed due to health concerns related to COVID-19.
Our staff is updating event listings frequently, however many venues' schedules are subject to change at the last minute. We appreciate your patience and recommend contacting the host venue if you plan to attend a Suffrage Centennial Event.
Featured Upcoming Events
2020 BIRTHPLACE SHOWCASE: STOP BY FOR SELFIES WITH SUSAN AND RESERVE A TOUR BETWEEN AUG. 21-26 TODAY!
SOMEONE MUST WASH THE DISHES: AN ANTI-SUFFRAGE SATIRE AT VENTFORT HALL MANSION AND GILDED AGE MUSEUM
Saturday, March 28 at 3:30 pm Victorian tea
Celebrate the Centennial of Woman Suffrage with this hilarious parody of the arguments against females voting. They sound crazy now, but for 72 years, those arguments denied women the ballot and equal rights.
Someone Must Wash the Dishes: An Anti-Suffrage Satire pairs pro-Suffragist Marie Jenney Howe’s 1913 “An Anti-Suffrage Monologue” with a lively lecture explaining why women’s voting would lead to anarchy, financial ruin, and “make every home a hell on earth.”
Performed by professional actress Michèle LaRue and directed by Warren Kliewer, Someone Must Wash the Dishes has toured coast-to-coast, garnering reviews ranging from, “Better than the best stand-ups!”
to, “I would have learned a lot more in school if she had been our teacher!”
This performance is made possible thanks to the Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum’s “100 Events for 100 Years” initiative commemorating the 2020 Women’s Suffrage Centennial.
A Victorian tea will follow the performance. Cost to attend is $28 with an advance reservation and $32 the day of. Reservations are strongly recommended as seating is limited.
Call Ventfort Hall for a reservation at (413) 637-320
Event Types & Full Event Listing
Event Types
Quilt Displays
Cris Hartman, organizer of the CA Suffrage Centennial Quilt show
National Traveling Quilt to be shown in Adams, Massachusetts
Local Textile Arts and Professionals
Outdoor / Athletic Events
Cruisin with Susan
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A bicycle race featuring events for the competitive spirit.
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Join us in a relaxing ride, for those who want to stop and smell the roses. This is an event for all ages.
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Old-timey fun! Have an old bike? How about a really old bike? Take a peek at different bicycles from different eras.
HerStory Conference
The HerStory Conference, to be held in Adams, MA, provides education, entertainment and the opportunity to engage with others interested in HerStory.
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Nineteenth Century Mental Health: Women and Abuse
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Susan B Anthony and the Inner Light
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Suffrage Enfranchisement and Motherhood
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African American Suffrage leaders: reclaiming their rightful role
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Suffragewear: Textile and Fashion Collectors of Historic Clothing; Display
Historical Performers*
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Gwendolyn Quezaire-Presutti, as Harriet Tubman
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Sheryl Faye, Actress - Voice-Over Artist - Presenter
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Lynn Lewandowski, SBABM Board member, Suffragist performance
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Kelly Vincent-Brunacini, SBABM Board member, Suffragist performance
* Partial Listing
Displays
Children's Shoe Exhibit
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Practical to Pretty: A look at children's foot wear during the 19th century
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Social class identification through footwear
Exhibits
Postcard Exhibit
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Postcards as Social Media during the 19th c.
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Explore numerous postcard topics including Temperance, Anti-Suffrage, Family Harmony, and Holiday seasons
Silk Dress Display
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Cassandra Peltier, SBABM Executive Director, provides a display including her handmade 19th c. recreation of Susan B. Anthony's dress
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Learn more about the black silk dress and the details of it's creation
Full Event Listing*
100 Events for 100 Years *Updated frequently
March 5, 2020
Berkshire Law Library's Annual "Cinema of Law" film series
Berkshire Athenaeum, One Wendell Avenue, Pittsfield MA. 6:00pm
One Woman, One Vote (1995, DVD 2010) PBS documentary, 108 min. Introduced by attorney Lee Flournoy.
March 8, 2020
Marching with Mother Exhibit
Opening reception for Marching with Mother Exhibit with featured presentation by Suzanne Schnittman on her book about mothers and daughters in the Suffrage Movement. MA Feminist Pioneers and their Precocious daughters: Mothering in the 19th c.
March 10, 2020
Berkshire Law Library's Annual "Cinema of Law" film series
Berkshire Athenaeum, One Wendell Avenue, Pittsfield MA. 6:00pm
Suffragette (2015) starring Meryl Streep and Helena Bonham Carter 1 hr 46 min. Introduced by attorney Holly Rogers.
March 21, 2020
Illustrating History through suffrage postcards, Carol Crossed, SBABM, Book Signing Available
Vintage Tweets: Suffrage Era Postcards by Carol N. Crossed is available for purchase at event or at https://squareup.com/store/the-susan-b-anthony-birthplace-museum/item/vintage-tweets
March 28, 2020
Someone Must Wash the Dishes: An Anti-Suffrage Satire at Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum 3:30 pm Victorian tea
Celebrate the Centennial of Woman Suffrage with this hilarious parody of the arguments against females voting. Someone Must Wash the Dishes: An Anti-Suffrage Satire pairs pro-Suffragist Marie Jenney Howe’s 1913 “An Anti-Suffrage Monologue” with a lively lecture explaining why women’s voting would lead to anarchy, financial ruin, and “make every home a hell on earth.” Performed by professional actress Michèle LaRue and directed by Warren Kliewer.
$28 with an advance reservation and $32 the day off. Reservations are strongly recommended as seating is limited. Call for reservations: (413) 637-3206.
April 1, 2020
The Merritt of Bicycles historical talk - Cassandra Peltier and Michelle Abrams - Who was "The New Woman" and what do bicycles have to do with Women's Suffrage? Abrams (a Gilded Age Art Historian) and Peltier (a Material Culture and Fashion Politics Historian) will explain the bicycle's role in sociopolitical climates and art during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
May 2020
“Cruisin’ With Susan” Bicycle festival
The first Annual “Cruisin’ With Susan” Bicycle festival will take place at various sites throughout the Town of Adams. Activities include a Bike Repair workshops, Bike Swap, Ashuwillticook Trail Ride, and performances and food vendors. Rumor has it we may receive a visit from Susan herself!
June 27th 2020
Historic Family Farm Day at Ayrhill Farm, Adams MA
Historical Family Farm Day - Games, activities and costumes from when Susan B. Anthony was a child. “Look How Far We’ve Come” - discussion of women’s rights in the 19th and early 20th century from Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Point of View, presented by historian and performer Melanie Stringer. Seeking local artisans to give demonstrations of traditional crafts such as textile work, woodworking, and leather crafting. Music and refreshments will be available.
July 18th & 19th 2020
Herstory Conference - Located in Adams, MA. Join us in downtown Adams for sessions and panel discussions about a variety of women's history topics that featured in the U.S. Suffrage Movement. Presenters including Stewart Burns, Lori Harrison-Kahan, Janet Farrell Brodie, A. Cheree Carlson, and Colleen Spellecy
will discuss racism in the suffrage movement, activism from the perspective of Quakers, experiences of women incarcerated in the Willard Asylum, voluntary motherhood and restellism in the 19th century, and dress reform as an avenue for women’s autonomy.
Steve Adams, suffrage balladeer will perform during the program. Gwendolyn QuezairePresutti will present a first-person costumed presentation in character as Madam CJ Walker.
August 2020
Centennial Year Celebration
The Adams Suffrage Centennial will host a three-day festival with performances and family activities, musical performances, food trucks, Hometown Parade, fireworks, and unveiling of a Susan B. Anthony Statue in the center of Adams.
September 20, 2020
Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day
October 24, 2020
Historic Costume Contest and Fundraiser - themed “To the future in the distance” (based on Carrie Chapman Catt quote: “To the wrongs that need resistance, To the right that needs assistance, To the future in the distance, Give yourselves.” Costume prizes, raffles, and team trivia.
November 29, 2020
Museum Store Sunday
November 29, 2020
Third Annual Homespun Holiday Crafts
Past Events
August 26, 2018
Sheryl Faye as Abigail Adams
September 22, 2018
Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day
September 26, 2018
Presentation about the SBABM and Q&A about Susan’s life and career
Pittsfield Senior Center - meeting of GE retirees
October 21 2018
ASCCC Tea Party at the Red Carpet in Adams MA
Fundraiser for ASCCC. Carol Crossed as guest speaker. Followed by meet and greet with sculptor Brian Hanlon at the Firehouse Cafe in Adams.
November 1, 2018
Voting: Around the World in 80 Years
Presentation by Cassandra Peltier for the Education Committee of the Winchester Seniors Association, supported by a grant from the John and Mary Murphy Educational Foundation.
November 25 2018
Museum Store Sunday
December 1 2018
Homespun Holiday Craft Day
December 5, 2018
Sheryl Faye Presents Clara Barton, Auburndale, MA
Golda Meir House on @ 3pm, 160 Stanton Avenue
Auburndale, MA 02466
The founder of the American Red Cross and she helped wounded soldiers during the Civil War. She helped make nursing an acceptable profession for women.
December 24 2018
Winter Stories & Snowflake Crafts
December 28 2018
Yarn Day with SBA
December 31 2018
Book Making Workshop
February 17, 2019
“I Can’t Die But Once” A Performance by Harriet Tubman (Annual Birthday Celebration)
March 7, 2019
Cassandra Peltier spoke as panelist for BART charter high school International Women’s Day Assembly, alongside Andrea Harrington (first female Berkshire County D.A.) and Linda Tyer (first female
mayor of Pittsfield
March 25 2019
Birthplace featured on WGBY’s Connecting Point
March 14, 2019
Gwendolyn Quezaire-Presutti as Harriet Tubman
“Looking Things Over”
Zora Neale Hurston Barre Women’s Club
March 2019
Carol Crossed
Women’s History Month, University Club
February 28, 2019
Gwendolyn Quezaire-Presutti as Harriet Tubman
Callahan Center, 535 Union Ave, Framingham MA
January 24, 2019
Sheryl Faye Presents Helen Keller in Paxton MA
@ 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Join me in this touching story about the girl who showed the world there are no boundaries to courage and faith. I will perform Helen Keller at The Richards Memorial Library on January 24, 2019 @ 6:15PM, 44 Richards Ave, Paxton MA 01612, (508) 754-0793
February 11, 2019
Sheryl Faye Presents Eleanor Roosevelt at The Hanover Senior Center, MA
@ 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Come join me as celebrate Eleanor Roosevelt, “First Lady of the world” at
The Hanover Senior Center @ 1pm, 665 Center St, Hanover, MA 02339.
March 20, 2019
Sheryl Faye Presents Eleanor Roosevelt at The Arbors at Stoughton
@ 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Join me on March 20, 2019 @ 2pm as we celebrate Women’s History Month with Eleanor Roosevelt at The Arbors at Stoughton
April 28, 2019
Sheryl Faye Presents Abigail Adams in Belmont
1:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Please join me as I perform Abigail Adams for The Belmont Women's Club on April 28, 2019 @ 1:30pm. The performance will be held at The Plymouth Congregational Church, 582 Pleasant Street, Belmont, MA
https://www.facebook.com/SherylFayePresents
May 5 2019
Ringing in Spring
Family day of historical games and crafts to celebrate spring and Mother’s Day - including tissue paper sunflowers, Victorian-inspired mother’s day cards, fan-making activity, and hobby horse races.
Enjoy storytime with Kristen Demeo, author of Susan.
May 10, 2019
Presentation on Daniel Read
The Berkshire Family History Association
Presenter: Jim Loughman, Board of the Adams Historical Society and the Susan B Anthony Birthplace Museum, Adams, MA.
Quilt Exhibit Opening
Chris Hartman’s 2018 Susan B. Anthony Art Quilt featuring scans of SBA letters from 1903.
May 26, 2019
Museum “Behind the Scenes”
Community clean up day, volunteer appreciation reception, prospective volunteer tours, exclusive look at some items from collection storage and installation process of our upcoming exhibit on mills. Vote on new exhibits for 2019 and 2020! Raffle and free refreshments!
May 30, 2019
Living History Day
SBABM Board Members Lynn Lewandowski and Kelly Vincent-Brunacini travel to State University of New York Fredonia to take part in a day long History performance event.
June 1 2019
Mills in Berkshire County
Opening of exhibit about mills in Berkshire County, Historical talk on the “Bread and Roses” Lawrence Textile Mill Strike of 1912 presented by Michelle Abrams and Cassandra Peltier
June 21 - September 15, 2019
Mourning a Loved One
View a 19th Century funeral fashion display. Berkshire Art Museum, North Adams, MA 01247. Created by Greg La Fave
June 29, 2019
Revolutionary Change in Women's Clothing
Free Lecture at Lynda's Antique Clothing Loft, 2:00 PM, 41 Park Street, 2nd Floor, Adams, MA 01220
July 6 2019
Frederick Douglass Day and Community Round Table Discussion
Reading Frederick Douglass Together Family Day and Community Round Table Discussion:
From 10 am until 1pm the museum will host educational and fun activities which teach about Frederick Douglass’ life and career including:
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- bookmark crafts to encourage reading and highlight Douglass’ emphasis on literacy
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- community storytelling activity, honoring Douglass’ talent as a storyteller and encouraging collaborative creativity
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- Victorian photo room, celebrating Douglass’ status as one of the most photographed individuals of the 19th century, with explanation of historical social context of each prop and the symbolism it lent to 19th century portraits. Photos will ideally be taken with a Polaroid camera to provide visitors with a souvenir
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print-your-own newspaper activity with educational materials on historical typesetting, printing, and engraving techniques. List of common 19th century vocabulary provided to enrich visitors’ articles
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Read selections from the Columbian Orator, the first book Frederick Douglass bought and one of his most treasured volumes.
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From 1pm until 2pm light refreshments will be available for free at the Adams Visitor’s Center and families are invited to bring their own picnic lunches. BART student artwork honoring Frederick Douglass will be displayed and a projection screen will play a slideshow of images and information from Douglass’ life.
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From 2pm to 3pm BART students, MCLA faculty, and a CCSU professor will welcome the assembly and lead the community reading of Douglass’ 1852 speech.
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From 3pm until 4pm the professors will facilitate a roundtable discussion and answer any lingering questions from the assembly.
Tours of the Quaker Meeting House: The place of worship of the Anthony Family.
May through October
Maple Street Cemetery Grounds, Adams, MA
By the Town of Adams Historical Society
Every Sunday, 1 – 4 pm.
August 17, 2019
Manor House Fundraising Tea for the Anthony Statue
Cassandra Peltier, Executive Director of the Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum portrays Alva Belmont
Manor House, Adams, MA
August 18, 2019
Kiosk Unveiling, Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum
1-3 pm , All are welcome to this free event.
August 26 2019
Vintage Tweets Book Signing with Author Carol N. Crossed
Seneca Falls Historical Society, Seneca Falls, NY
Vintage Tweets: Suffrage Era Postcards by Carol N. Crossed is available for purchase at event or at https://squareup.com/store/the-susan-b-anthony-birthplace-museum/item/vintage-tweets
September 21, 2019
Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day
October 5, 2019
The Bedquilt: Two Vibrant Vintage Stories Of New England Women
In this “riveting” program, two vibrant vintage stories spirit us off to old-time New England, where a gaggle of townswomen—and a solitary spinster—create remarkable art for everyday use. Dorothy Canfield Fisher’s The Bedquilt reveals the suspenseful journey of an unlikely heroine: Aunt Mehetabel. Elderly and unmarried, she is taken for granted by her New England family . . . although she is “clever in the way of patching bedquilts.” As the story unfolds, Mehetabel grows, winning admiration and finding self-respect. She painstakingly devotes herself to realizing her ideal: “a pattern beyond which no patchwork quilt could go.” The Bedquilt, written in 1906, is introduced by the gleeful account of A Quilting Bee in Our Village, penned by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman, eight years earlier. In Freeman’s little town, good food, gossip, and games make a successful bee—sewing is just the start.
Professional actress Michèle LaRue creates a dozen distinctive characters in the program, which she concludes with the surprising story behind the writing of The Bedquilt.
October 5 - October 20, 2019
Women's Suffrage Centennial Film Series
Turner Free Library, Randolph, MA
The film series, including Iron Jawed Angels, will also feature the Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum's travelling display of vintage postcards. For more information, visit the library's website:
October 19, 2019
Family-Friendly Costume Party and Fundraiser Celebrating Women's History - themed “Not for Ourselves Alone: Women Shaping America”
Local musicians and caller will teach dances popular during the Civil War and Victorian Eras. Judges from local theatre, art, and historical organizations will distribute prizes in a variety of categories including “best use of unusual materials,” “best group costume,” “most historically accurate,” “best costume maker under 12” and “most creative interpretation of the theme.” There will be a silent auction and raffle of items from local businesses and all proceeds will go to the Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum and the Adams Suffrage Centennial Celebration Committee to fund 2020 programming.
November 9 2019
Vintage Tweets Book Signing with Author Carol N. Crossed - Location TBA
Vintage Tweets: Suffrage Era Postcards by Carol N. Crossed is available for purchase at event or at https://squareup.com/store/the-susan-b-anthony-birthplace-museum/item/vintage-tweets
November 24 2019
Second Annual Homespun Holiday Crafts
December 1 2019
Museum Store Sunday
January 18, 2020
ASCCC’s Musical Bingo
Basswater Grill, 5:30-8:30pm. Join Ed & Jill St John as they host a fun night of Musical Bingo!! Registration starts at 5:30pm and the game will kick off at 6pm! Entry fee gets you 2 cards and there will be 6 games played. Music is from all genres and is fun for everyone! We are going to have some great prizes! You don't want to miss this!!
February 15, 2020
ASCCC’s Red and Black Gala Fundraiser
Berkshire Hills Country Club 5:30-8 pm, tickets $60.
Live music, buffet dinner, SBA birthday cake, auction.
February 16, 2020
Annual Birthday Celebration
Adams Free Library, 3:00 pm. Free and Open to the Public.
Anthony family descendants will perform music and Deb Burns. The audience will enjoy a video wishing Susan a happy 200th Birthday, and a local college-bound high school student will be awarded our first annual "Organize, Agitate, Educate" Scholarship.