| The Georgetown Historical Society,
Georgetown, Massachusetts, was incorporated in 1962, and is open to all who wish to join. The membership now
numbers approximately 150 persons. The original home for the society was The
Dickinson-Pillsbury-Witham House, a circa 1700 First Period structure located in the
northwest corner of town. This house was sold (with preservation covenants) in 1975
when the Captain Samuel Brocklebank house was made available to the organization by the
Spaulding family. The Brocklebank house has been home to the society ever since and has become a repository for
the many hundreds of artifacts from Georgetown’s past which have been collected by
the members. The Society is in a sense a trustee of the town's heritage and as such
views the gathering and preserving of mementos from the past as an on-going process.
The Historical Society presents
programs of general historical interest for its members and townspeople
throughout the year. In addition, the members have gathered and organized a collection of over 600
slides of old Georgetown from which several memorable (and well attended) shows have been
staged. The slide shows as well as the books which have been published represent
part of the continuing commitment of the Society to reaching out to the general community,
especially the young people of Georgetown.
It is in
this context that the Historical Society offered the land next to the Museum to be used as
a site for the only remaining one-room schoolhouse in Georgetown. Schoolhouse #3 was moved
from a location on Andover Hill to its present site next to the museum in 1984 through the
efforts of many citizens of the town. It is now owned by the town and maintained by
The Georgetown Historical Commission. The school is complete with
original blackboards, desks, and the wood-burning stove. The
preservation of this schoolhouse has allowed many Georgetown youngsters
to get a glimpse of the past. The museum is open for tours by the
general public on selected Sundays from 2-5 p.m. from July through Columbus Day in October.
On request, tours of the School house can also be arranged for during
this same period. Special tours of both the school and the museum at other times
may also be arranged by contacting the Georgetown Historical Society
as indicated on the Calendar Page
(Go to Calendar Page). Tours are conducted by volunteer Brocklebank Museum
guides through a cooperative effort of the Commission and the Society. |
About the Georgetown Historical Society: