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Date: 4/19/2022
SOUTH HADLEY – The South Hadley Public Library will host an event to highlight the origins and growth of the town’s farming and dairy district called “300 Years of Farming in South Hadley & Granby.”
It will take place in the library’s Community Room on April 27 at 6:30 p.m. Leo Labonte, a member of the Historical Society, will host the talk.
“He’s been doing some research on the town for quite some time and I heard he was doing a talk about the farming and dairy industry in South Hadley and parts of Granby and thought it could be interesting,” said Adult Services Librarian Desiree Smelcer.
Labonte will highlight some of South Hadley’s homes from the mid-1700s from their origins to the 1720 proprietors. He will also discuss New England farm growth from 1850 to 1880 and the history and development of the dairy industry in 1900.
According to Smelcer, the event will last about an hour before ending with a question and answer session. It is free and open to the public.
“It will be part lecture, part Powerpoint and we’ll have lots of pictures, maps and drawings. Some of them are dating all the way back to 1702,” she said.
Smelcer said that she is most excited to learn about the town’s oldest homes and to see which still operate as functioning farms.
“It’s just amazing to think that some of these farms have been around since the late 1600s,” she said.
She encouraged residents to attend the event to learn about the town’s interesting and unique origins.
“ A good chunk of the town was founded on farming and around specifically the dairy farmers in the town and I just think people might find it interesting to see some of the origins of the town dating so far back,” said Smelcer. “It will be fun, I think, for them to see a little bit not just about our history but about a lot of our interesting town tidbits.”
Those interested in learning more about the event are encouraged to visit the library’s website at https://www.shadleylib.org/.
Smelcer said that the library has many other exciting library events coming up as well. At the end of May, the library will be hosting a Democracy Works lecture by state Sen. Jo Comerford. There will also be numerous events for the summer under the theme “Read off the Beaten Path.”
These will all continue to be posted on the library’s calendar, available on its website.