WHATELY — The Whately Historical Society dug deep to bring its annual Fall Festival back to town on Sunday.
The festival, sharing the day with a nearby silent auction and library book sale, showcased local pottery as its main draw. Whately pottery artifacts and experts, live music from the “Pandemic String Band,” and various vendors looked to breathe life into the Historical Society’s museum grounds.
Neal Abraham, President of the Whately Historical Society, said the festival was an opportunity to celebrate the organization and raise awareness for the rich history of Whately pottery.
“Whately as a town center had 22 master potters,” he said. “It’s one major point of pride in the history of Whately.”
Abraham said Whately’s collection includes 80 examples of stoneware, a pottery variety that was historically lucrative in the town on a national scale.
“This is a major local production specialty,” he said.
One of the festival’s highlights was the presence of Historic Deerfield Assistant Curator Dan Sousa, who attended to identify public-volunteered shards of pottery by age, place of origin, material, artist, and other classifications. His station showed that locals shared the Historical Society’s enthusiasm for pottery. Before Sousa even arrived, several shards were waiting for him on the table to be identified.
“It provides a snapshot of what people owned during the time period,” Sousa said. “Sometimes, it can even lend insight to what people were doing inside the home.”
The collection amassed at Sousa’s station included local redware, yellowware, stoneware, and porcelain pottery shards that exemplified material and methodical diversity in Whately and beyond. Some of the shards, Sousa said, likely came from places as far as England and China, something he said reflects the town’s involvement on the world stage.
“It really shows the international breadth of this material,” he said. “It just speaks to how people are looking internationally for goods, as well.” Inside the museum building, special pieces from the Historical Society’s pottery collection and pieces from private collectors were on display. Glass cases toward the middle of the showroom boasted large pottery pieces to mirror those lining shelves along the wall.
Abraham said the festival, a decades-old tradition, consistently excites the community. Having drawn 150 to 250 attendees annually over the course of its history, the event’s return after a COVID-19-imposed hiatus is a continuation of what has been great momentum for Whately.
“It’s a lively time in the Whately town center,” Abraham said.
Reach Julian Mendoza at 413-772-0261, ext. 261 or jmendoza@recorder.com.