I was in the library on completely unrelated business this past weekend when I spotted a display case of old images featuring the school and town in relation to the Mohawk Trail. It turns out that the opening of the Mohawk Trail in 1914 as a scenic tourist route and the Mohawk Trail Pageant in North Adams was arguably a much bigger deal for the people than the first World War would turn out to be. I knew about this event but it kind of slipped to the back of my mind because at the time I didn’t feel it was relevant and I didn’t realize how important it was for the town. After pursuing further research on the subject I’m excited to devote a significant portion of my website to this event.
The image that caught my eye in the library is a group photo from the pageant featuring faculty and students form the North Adams Normal School
EDIT:
I forgot to mention Mary Curran! I found her name in the city report under leave of absence for military service and googled her name on a whim. It turns out she was a very active figure in the North Adams community as well as the other places in which she lived. She grew up in North Adams and taught at one of the schools here. There is a collection of her papers open for research at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Unfortunately they are not digitized but I am more than willing to make the trip as she seems like an important figure to discuss. I still have not been able to find out the nature of her leave of absence for military service.
Very interesting! So, life goes on in North Adams. The Mohawk Trail opening will make an interesting addition to your site. And Mary Curran sounds fascinating. Will stay tuned for more information about her leave of absence.
I’m very interested in how all our schools and communities seem to have such different reactions to the war. I’m really interested in tourism (especially the heritage variety) and so I can’t wait to hear more about the trail. Any theories as to why North Adams doesn’t seem as strongly impacted by the war?