Dwight Day
Saturday, June 21, 2025
10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Dwight Chapel, 885 Federal Street, Belchertown
Dwight Day 2025 event poster.
Come discover the magic, people, and history of the extraordinary village of Dwight, Massachusetts, including a portrayal of poet Emily Dickinson and music with Tracy Grammer & Jim Henry.
Dwight Day will feature nature talks with the Kestrel Land Trust and MassWildlife, children’s activities, food, trivia, live music, antique autos, a cemetery tour, and history of the once well-known, nineteenth-century railroad destination and farming community in North Belchertown.
Local musicians Tracy Grammer and Jim Henry perform at 4 p.m.
The Day will feature a series of talks focused on a broad range of land conservation and wildlife topics, from pollinators to bears to birds of prey. The community gathering also will host a portrayal of Poet Emily Dickinson in conversation with Dwight’s once-famous 19th century editor, J.G. Holland.
Among invited guests are Heidi Dollard, Pollinator Network Steering Committee Co-Chair; Lee Halasz, Conservation Manager, Kestrel Land Trust; Meghan Crawford, Community Engagement Biologist, Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife; and Tom Ricardi, Birds of Prey Rehabilitation Center; and Brianne Zulkiewicz, Trivia Host and Public Historian.
Other presenters include Michael Carolan, History Writer and Correspondent for The Springfield Republican; Amy Lanham, Historical Interpreter, and Elizabeth Pols, Artist and Local Historian.
The event is funded in part by the Belchertown Cultural Council through the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the Belchertown Historical Association.
“We are putting this fascinating and unique village on the map again,” said Tom Stockton, president of the Belchertown Historical Association. “This ten-square-mile area has rich historical significance for the entire region, and possesses a great variety of natural features, from scenic waterfalls and swimming ponds to former old-growth forests and prime agricultural land. We are looking forward to the community spirit that will emerge from this special event for all of Belchertown and eastern Hampshire County.”
Noontime music will be provided by the Dwight-based ensemble Flies in the Kitchen.
Children’s activities will include performances by Magician Fran Ferry.
Food by Antonio’s Pizza and burgers by Austin Brothers Valley Farm. The event is free and open to the public.
Talks at Dwight Day include:
Emily Dickinson and Josiah Gilbert Holland in Conversation. Emily wrote more than 90 letters to J.G. and his wife Elizabeth. J.G. Holland was born in Dwight and sold more books in his lifetime than Mark Twain did in his. The conversation will provide insights into the life-long relationship between Emily, who never married, Elizabeth, a woman raising a family, and her husband J. G., the author and editor whose newspaper printed the only poems Emily published in her lifetime.
Pollinators, Conservation Areas and the Natural World. Dwight is home to more than half of Belchertown’s conserved land, with hundreds of acres of land including its crown jewel, Holland Glen. Over the decades, Kestrel Land Trust has facilitated the acquisition and stewardship of most of these properties. Their presentation will speak not just to the delights that these areas provide for hiking and recreation, but to the importance of Dwight’s forest land in securing and maintaining the critical wildlife corridor from the Holyoke Range to the Quabbin Reservoir. Heidi Dollard from the Massachusetts Pollinator Network will present on pollinators and invasive species; Meghan Crawford from MassWildlife will talk about our local bears; and local hero Tom Ricardi will delight us with his rehabbed birds of prey.
Come to hear about:
- Pansy Park’s renowned horticulturalist whose seeds were sent across the globe.
- The meeting between Poet Emily Dickinson’s sister-in-law Susan and the two boys fishing along a local brook, which helped reinvigorate the hamlet.
- The actual organ that Susan Dickinson helped purchase.
- Pollinators talk at 10:30 a.m. Emily & J.G. conversation: Morning and afternoon. Nature talks at 1 p.m. Dwight Cemetery tour at 3 p.m. Tracy & Jim at 4 p.m
