Last updated: 10/1/2008
Natick, Massachusetts
Address
58 Eliot StreetNatick, MA 01760
phone: 508-647-4841
fax: 508-647-4841
e-mail: info@natickhistoricalsociety.org
web: www.natickhistoricalsociety.org

Hours

Tuesday 2:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Wednesday 2:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Saturday 10:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Admissions

Free

Staff

Jennifer Hance
phone: 508-647-4841
Description

The Natick Museum is the place to learn about Natick¹s colorful past. Located downstairs in the Bacon Free Library building the Museum features among its collections the Indian Bible of the 17th century missionary, John Eliot, founder of the Natick Indian Community. The Museum collection also includes artifacts of Archaic and Woodland as well as Christian Indian cultures. The Museum tells the story of Natick’s transformation from Praying Indian village to colonial village and from cottage industry to factory floor through tools and furnishings, textiles, maps and photographs. Distinguished Natick citizens are represented through memorabilia from Harriet Beecher Stowe, Horatio Alger Jr. and former U.S. Vice President Henry Wilson. The Wilson Memorial Shoe Shop stands on the West Central Street, honoring “the Natick Cobbler.” The Museum remains true to its beginnings in natural history with an outstanding collection of Birds of the Americas.

Mission

Organized in 1870 at the very birth of the museum movement in America, the Natick Historical Society has become the central storehouse of Natick’s history. Our mission is to inspire an interest in Natick’s rich and varied history from its unique origins as a Praying Indian Plantation to the present day.

Artifact Collections

Housed on the lower level of the Bacon Free Library building in South Natick, the collection includes artifacts of Archaic, Woodland and Christian Indian cultures of Natick. Among the collections is the Indian Bible of the 17th century missionary, John Eliot, founder of the Natick Indian Community. Students of literature and history will find memorabilia of many of Natick’s distinguished citizens including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Horatio Alger, Jr., and Henry Wilson, 20th Vice-President of the United States. Early maps, photographs, furnishing, tools and costumes are displayed to illustrate the community’s daily life in earlier periods. The Society also holds an outstanding collection of birds of the Americas.

Research Collections

The museum library contains material relating to Natick and surrounding towns, local authors, genealogy, and natural history.

Library
Access: General Public
Appointment required: No
Services
Gift Shop
ADA
Wheelchair Accessible
Exhibitions
Museum Events
DISCLAIMER
This information, including business hours, addresses and contact information is provided for general reference purposes only. No representation is made or warranty is given as to its content or the reliability thereof. User assumes all risk of use. Stories USA, Inc. and its content suppliers assume no responsibility for any loss or delay resulting from such use. Please call ahead to verify the dates, the location and directions.

MUSEUM CONFERENCES

2024 Colorado-Wyoming ANNUAL MEETING

May 1 - 4, 2024

Worland, Wyoming

West Virginia Association of Museums 2024 Conference

June 6 - 8, 2024

Shepherdstown, West Virginia

Ohio Museums Association 2024 Conference with AMM

July 24 - August 3, 2024

Columbus, Ohio

South Carolina Federation of Museums 2024 Conference

September 16 - 18, 2024

Laurens, South Carolina

Florida Association of Museums 2024 Annual Conference & Exposition

October 13 - 16, 2024

Daytona Beach, Florida

RECENT UPDATES

Museums

04/16 Laurens County Museum

Laurens, South Carolina

03/07 Liberty Science Center

Jersey City, New Jersey

Museum Vendors

10/30 Museum Fabrication Group, LLC

Denton, Texas

03/07 ConservArt Inc.

Boca Raton, Florida

Museum Associations

03/07 Florida Association of Museums

Tallahassee, Florida

03/07 Association of Midwest Museums

Saint Louis, Missouri

03/07 South Carolina Federation of Museums

Columbia, South Carolina

03/07 Association of Children's Museums

Arlington, Virginia

03/07 Ohio Museums Association

Columbus, Ohio