Connecting People with the Past: Natick Historical Society Plans a Busy 2021
Dec 30, 2020 01:50PM ● By cythia Whitty
Niki Lefebvre has been the Natick Historical Society’s (NHS) director for nearly three years. During the pandemic, she has pivoted the nonprofit organization from one that offered an in-person experience to a virtual one, continuing to fulfill its mission: Build community by inspiring connections to local history.
Research Requests
Have Increased
“In-person experiences were central to our work—and they will be again soon—but we have found new footing by sharing more content online and on social media,” Lefebvre said. “We’ve also partnered with our neighbors at the Bacon Free Library to bring the history book club online, and we’ve developed other successful programs to help people connect with the past. Although we can no longer welcome in-person research visits, we have fulfilled a record number of research requests. I think a lot of people have used an abundance of time at home to read and learn more, and we’re working hard to provide opportunities for everyone to connect with the past from the safety and comfort of their homes. We’ve learned a lot about how to bring history to our community even when they can’t come visit us.”
New: Natick History
Timeline
A new project this past year is the Natick History Timeline. “I’m very proud of our new Natick History Timeline,” Lefebvre said. “It chronicles nearly 100 stories about Natick and our region over 12,000 years. We had the support of two incredible researchers: Rebecca Sgouros, an archaeologist, and Rachel Speyer Besancon, who is now the Marg M. Balcom Archival Fellow at the Natick Historical Society. What’s really cool about the timeline is that it’s also a living document. We encourage everyone who takes a look to tell us about an event or moment in our local history that they think should be represented in the timeline. We’re hoping to learn from our community, too!”
2021: Underrepresented Voices and Other Projects
In the coming year Lefebvre has plans to gather and share underrepresented voice. “In 2021 we plan to do more to gather and share underrepresented voices from Natick’s history,” she said. “For most of the 20th century, small historical societies like ours focused on collecting artifacts and documents that told stories about wealthy and influential white people. Those stories are important, but there is so much more to tell about Natick’s past. We have a lot of ground to make up in earning the trust of and collecting artifacts and stories from indigenous people, people of color, people with less privilege, and other long-overlooked groups.”
Several other projects are in the works for 2021. “We are excited to work with the Shirley Brown Collection, which was recently donated to us and will help tell a story about Civil War veterans and the women who helped care for them and their families in Natick. Although our plans for a physical exhibition were interrupted and we are working on how best to share those materials virtually, we would also like to see a physical exhibition move forward for some time next fall. Fingers crossed!”
“I’m also eager to share with the community some collaborative work we are doing with Historic Newton to tell the story that ties our town’s histories together in the middle of the seventeenth century. And, finally, we are looking forward to building and continuing to build relationships with communities that have been underrepresented in Natick’s past and present. Certainly, 2021 promises to be a busy and exciting year!”
