Adams Holiday Home Decorating Contest Registration Open

ADAMS, Mass. — The Events Committee in Adams has announced the details for the 2024 Holiday Home Decorating Contest. 

All residents within the boundaries of the Town of Adams are eligible to participate.  Entry applications are available on the Town's website and must be received no later than 5 pm on Friday, December 6, 2024.  Once all registrations have been received, a map will be created and posted online Wednesday, December 11.

Contest is for exterior decorations only, including decorations in windows that are visible from the exterior.  Judging will be done from outside the residence only and from the street; community members are not to enter the property to view back or side yards.   

Three prizes will be awarded:  One 1st prize - $150.00 Gift Card to the Adams Hometown Market, One 2nd prize - $100.00 Gift Card to the Adams Hometown Market and One 3rd prize - $50.00 Gift Card to the Adams Hometown Market.  The Community Choice award winner will receive a gift card.

The community is encouraged to drive around and view all the entries and cast a vote using the online voting form.  Judging will be done from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm on Friday, Dec. 13 – Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024.  The on-line app will be open until 8 pm on December 15 for community members to cast their votes.  A Judging Panel will choose 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners.  The community will choose the Community Choice winner. 

Holiday Home Decorating participants should ensure that all lights, animations and decorations are in place and activated for the judging periods on both nights.

Entry is free as there are no costs or fees to apply to participate.  The Committee encourages residents to be creative, festive, fun and safe this holiday season.

Visit https://www.town.adams.ma.us/ to sign up or learn more about this event.

Berkshire Museum Donates Cheshire Crown Glass to Town

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
07:15AM / Saturday, March 21, 2026

Historical Commission Chair Jennifer DeGrenier and Jason Vivori, Berkshire Museum collections manager, present the antique glass to the Select Board. 

CHESHIRE, Mass. — A piece of history has found its way back to the town with the donation of a well-preserved pane of bull's-eye glass made at Cheshire Crown Glass Works. 

 

Manufactured in 1814, the artifact was donated by the Berkshire Museum, where it had been since 1910. 

 

The glass will be on display at the town's new museum, located in the old Town Hall at the junction of Church and Depot Streets, alongside research and photographs gathered by the town's local historian Barry Emery.

 

Prior to being housed at the museum, the piece was at the Berkshire Athenaeum prior to the museum's founding, said Jason Vivori, the museum's collections manager. 

 

The glass was originally used in window making. Its distinctive bull's-eye center was formed when the molten glass was spun on a long rod to form large sheets, Vivori said. 

 

The bull's-eye rendered it unsuitable for windows today, but local historians admire the piece for its preservation, making it unique. 

 

There is another piece of Cheshire Glass in the old Reynolds store, Historical Commission Chair Jennifer DeGrenier said.