Recent Stories

The end of World War I did not come all at once; rather it occurred over a period of several days.  There had been false reports during the first week of November that the war was about to end as the news services had received word from Germany of…

A few things catch the eye as one looks through the Report of the Board of Health of North Adams from 1917. For one, the causes of death. July in particular seemed to be an odd month—“acute indigestion” was the demise of four North Adams residents…

Spires is the Massachusetts College of Liberal Art’s student literary and arts journal. This version of the literary journal began publishing in 2001 and just recently published their twenty-third edition. The magazine, however, has a much longer…

In the wake of the centennial anniversary of the 19th Amendment, it seems only fitting to spend some time focusing on the role of women in society prior to earning the long sought-after vote. It is often assumed that because women could not vote,…

Albert Charles Houghton, though born in Stamford, Vermont, became North Adams’ first mayor in 1895. He was first drawn to the area by business interests. Alongside his brother, he ran a chemical manufacturing business, Houghton Chemical Works, which…

The Smith House, home to MCLA’s admissions office, is the second oldest building on the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts campus. Although it was officially named for Roy Leon Smith in 1967, Smith House was re-dedicated on June 8, 1985, during…

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Historic North Adams

Historic North Adams is a free website and mobile app that puts North Adams’ history at your fingertips. Explore interesting people, places, and events in North Adams’ history, and take historical walking tours of the city. With a growing list of interpretive stories, each point on the interactive GPS-enabled map includes historical information about the location, along with historic images from archival collections and historical publications.

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