Bidwell House Museum to Host Online Discussion on Historical Interpretation

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MONTEREY, Mass. — The Bidwell House Museum will present an online lecture titled "Creating History: The Art of First Person Interpretations" on Thursday, April 24, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. via Zoom.

The program will explore the process behind historical reenactments, particularly in relation to the museum's living history events. Past participants in the Bidwell House Museum's American Revolution reenactments will discuss their approaches to historical interpretation, their interest in history, and their preparation for such events.

The speakers for this program include:

  • Emma Cross, a historian from Williamsburg, Virginia, with 29 years of experience in museum work, including 22 years at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. She is the owner of Meadows and Stars, llc, a historical performance company. At the Bidwell House Museum in October, she will portray Frederika Charlotte Riedesel.
  • Michele Gabrielson, a public school history teacher and 18th-century historic interpreter specializing in colonial women printers, 18th-century chocolate makers, and Mercy Otis Warren. She is the secretary for the Mercy Otis Warren Society and the coordinator for the Battle Road Guides for the Battle of Lexington and Concord reenactment. Gabrielson has received awards including the Rising Star Award for Public History by the Massachusetts History Alliance and has been recognized by the Massachusetts Daughters of the American Revolution and the Massachusetts Society of the Cincinnati. She will portray Mercy Otis Warren at the Bidwell House Museum in October.
  • Sandy Spector, a Revolutionary War reenactor since 2000, who currently interprets Martha Washington. She has portrayed Mrs. Washington in various states and venues, including the National Park Service’s Washington’s Headquarters. Spector is also writing a book about Martha Washington from her perspective. She will portray Martha Washington at the Bidwell House Museum’s opening program on May 17.
  • Richard Smith, who has lectured and written on antebellum United States history and 19th-century American literature since 1995. He has worked as a public historian and Living History Interpreter in Concord for 26 years, portraying Henry David Thoreau. He has authored or edited 11 books and is a regular contributor to “Discover Concord.” He will portray Henry David Thoreau at the Museum in October.

Registration is required for the online lecture and can be completed on the Museum website at https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/event/creating-history-the-art-of-first-person-interpretations/. Access details will be emailed to registrants in advance.

The lecture is free for Bidwell House Museum members and $15 for non-members, with one registration required per household.

The grounds of the Bidwell House Museum are open daily from dawn until dusk, free of charge. Guided tours of the historic house will be available by appointment starting on Memorial Day. The museum’s full program of events is available at www.bidwellhousemuseum.org.

 

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Pryor & Peacock's Whimsical Furniture Environmentally Friendly

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
 

The company uses digital printing to create the upholstery fabric, saving water and saving vintage furniture from ending up in landfills.

STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. — A unique furniture store has popped up on Elm Street this month.

Mom-and-daughter store Pryor & Peacock is hosting the pop-up storefront from Aug. 13 to Aug. 25 at 6 Elm. The New Marlborough business is co-founded by Rosalina Wright and Luca Shapiro, who is also the creative director. 

Their online shop was created in 2024 but they wanted people to see the pieces in person, so they're renting the space for a limited time before a long-term tenant moves in.

The store sources prints to create unique fabrics and reimagines vintage and antique furniture acquired at auctions, local shops, and online.

"We source prints from all over the world that date from the late 1600s up through mid-20th century, and Luca turns those prints into fabric by manipulating them, scanning them, oftentimes has to add or subtract things, and then we manufacture the fabric using only digital printing, which is very environmentally friendly, unlike traditional textile printing," Wright said.

Upholstering the furniture can take weeks of work. Shapiro looks for the perfect design for each piece and, if need be, uses Adobe Photoshop to extend the art work to fit or enhance the print.

"One of the most difficult parts comes in marrying the fabric to a piece of furniture because we only use antique and vintage frames also to be earth friendly, and they're also more beautiful and durable than new furniture," Wright said. "So the image has to go with the furniture, so that takes a lot of work."

One of Pryor & Peacock's missions is to be environmentally friendly. Digital printing doesn't use the same amount of water as traditional textile productions do nor does it contaminate water with ink according to their website.

Not only are they saving water, but they are saving furniture from going into the landfill while also using more durable furniture that doesn't break as easily as current pieces. They started their business to create something unique and to help the environment together.

"It's creating something nobody else is doing. People can't continue to buy throwaway furniture. Six percent of American landfills is furniture, and digital printing not only opens up the possibility of being able to put unique images on a piece of furniture, but it also is, as I said, environmentally friendly. So, for us, the excitement is to take an old East Lake settee that somebody's going to store in their barn and forget about, and make it something completely new and surprising," Wright said.

They hope their furniture helps bring a pop of fun to someone's home.

"We think our furniture is very whimsical and surprising, and most furniture today is oatmeal colored couches and gray neutral chairs, and it's boring," she said.

The two named their business after their mothers' maiden names to honor them and believe the name reflects their pieces.

Shapiro works in interior design outside of the business and the two liked working together and thought it would be great to start a business together. Shapiro says they can work well together and that her and her mother, Wright, has flipped houses before and have the same eye for design.

"So it's very easy for us to work together. When we see something, generally we agree on whether it works or doesn't work on a piece. We agree on the color schemes and that sort of thing. So it's very fun and fulfilling to work together," Shapiro said. 

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