Friends of The Great Falls Discovery Center

Nice & Easy Walk
2024-12-13 13:00 - 14:00, 2024-12-20 13:00 - 14:00, 2024-12-27 13:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York) | Great Falls Discovery Center, 2 Avenue A, Turners Falls, MA, 01376, United States
Easy-paced, 1 to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for seniors, but open to all. Enjoy natural and local history along the way. Dress for the weather with sturdy footwear and bring water. Inclement weather cancels. Meet outside the main entrance.

It’s a Wonderful Night in Turners Falls … for the Birds!
2024-12-13 16:00 - 20:00
Craft bird feeders for our winter friends as part of It’s a Wonderful Night in Turners Falls —a town-wide RiverCulture event on December 13. Which birds show up at your feeder? What do they eat? Bird feeder making continues Saturday, Dec. 14, 10:00 a.m.—12:30 p.m. For all ages. Free! Meet in the Great Hall.

Nice & Easy Walks
2025-01-03 13:00 - 14:00
Easy-paced, 1 to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for seniors, but open to all. Enjoy natural and local history along the way. Dress for the weather with sturdy footwear and bring water. Inclement weather cancels. Meet at the main entrance.

First Friday: Make Your Own Paper!
2025-01-03 16:00 - 18:00
Every First Friday of the Month, Turners Falls businesses and organizations stay open late. Join us for a craft night of tin-can papermaking in the Great Hall and see just how creative you have to be to make it in the paper business. Ages 8 and up. Families welcome! Meet in the Great Hall.

Montague Reporter Fundraiser in Honor of Christopher Sawyer-Lauçanno
2025-01-04 13:00 - 16:00
Celebrate the extraordinary life of Christopher Sawyer-Lauçanno (1951-2024) in the form of a fundraiser for the Montague Reporter. Family, friends, fellow poets, artists, collaborators, community members, and colleagues are welcome and encouraged to share stories, thoughts, and dreams at this event. Christoper fostered and edited the Montague Reporter Poetry Page for many years. Donations to the Montague Reporter are welcomed but not required. Sponsored by family and the Montague Reporter. For all ages. To join the program of speakers please contact: Sarah Pruitt at sarahpruitt58@gmail.com, or Jessica Pruitt at jesprui@gmail.com. Meet in the Great Hall.

Nice & Easy Walk
2025-01-10 13:00 - 14:00, 2025-01-17 13:00 - 14:00, 2025-01-24 13:00 - 14:00, 2025-01-31 13:00 - 14:00, 2025-02-07 13:00 - 14:00, 2025-02-14 13:00 - 14:00, 2025-02-21 13:00 - 14:00, 2025-02-28 13:00 - 14:00 and 1 more date

Zine on the River
2025-01-12 14:00 - 16:00
Make a small booklet, a habitat zine, from a single piece of paper, then fill it with your nature observations for this drop-in program. Cut and draw in it to recreate your favorite river habitats. If you’d like to use paper you made on January 3, for First Friday’s Make Your Own Paper program, bring it! For all ages. Meet in the Great Hall.

The Grand Trunk Hotel
2025-01-19 14:00 - 15:00
What was so grand about the Grand Trunk Hotel in Turners Falls? The hotel, once sited next to today’s Center, was built in 1872 and demolished in 1968. Join DCR staff as we use our imaginations, old photographs, and testimonials, to piece together the story of the grand old days in Turners Falls. For youth and adults. Co-sponsored by Montague Public Libraries. Meet in the Great Hall.

Forgotten Immigrants: The Bohemians of Turners Falls
2025-01-25 14:00 - 15:00
Beginning in the 1870s, drawn by the promise of work at the John Russell Cutlery factory, almost 300 Bohemian immigrants left farms in central Europe to start life anew in the industrial village of Turners Falls. This illustrated talk by local historian Jim Bridgman, based on over 35 years of research and his new book, Forgotten Immigrants, explores the lives of these intrepid pioneers. Find out what motivated Bohemians to leave their ancestral homes, and what they found once they arrived in Western Massachusetts. Sponsored by the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association. For youth and adults. Meet in the Great Hall.

A French/Breton Jam Session
2025-01-26 14:30 - 16:30, 2025-02-23 14:30 - 16:30
All ages. An informal group of musicians gathers to play the enchanting traditional dance music from France and Brittany, commonly known as bal folk. This is not a performance but rather a coming together of musically minded friends. The event is free and open to the public to come and go at will. Meet in the Great Hall.

The Secret Lives of Turners Falls Germans
2025-02-08 14:00 - 15:00
After the canal was rebuilt in 1869, German immigrants were among the first to move to Turners Falls and first to witness the planned village’s growing pains. Join DCR staff as we use photos, news clippings, and oral history to figure out how they built their community and traditions through mutual aid and hard work. For youth and adults. Meet in the Great Hall.

Who Do You Love? Valentines for Wildlife
2025-02-09 10:00 - 17:00
For all ages, stop by our Welcome Desk to make Valentines to give to the ones you love, keep for yourself, or give to your favorite wildlife biologist — all in honor of your favorite animal.

Postponed until March 1st: A Bridge Too Far
2025-02-16 14:00 - 15:00
We are postponing our program ‘A Bridge Too Far’ until March 1st, 2-3 p.m. See you then! Here are the details:What about building new bridges in Gilded Age Turners Falls drove neighbors and whole towns against each other? How do these dramas and debates that played out in newspapers and town meetings still impact us today? Join DCR staff as we piece together the stories and lessons of these burning questions affecting all five villages in Montague during the late 1800s. For youth and adults. Meet in the Great Hall.

Ongoing Great Hall Exhibit— Cameron Schmitz: Where We Are, Together
2025-03-01 - 2025-05-26
The Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association (PVMA), in partnership with Montague Public Libraries, celebrates its eighth National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Big Read. Focused on Ross Gay’s book of poetry, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, exhibits and events explore this year’s theme of “Where We Live.” Enjoy the paintings of Greenfield artist, Cameron Schmitz, who uses color and mark-making as her language of expression. “Dashes of paint and gestural strokes tell a story— orchestrated by movement, intuition, and the shifting of time.” Our Great Hall room is also a programming space. If there is a program in progress, you are welcome to visit the Great Hall to view the exhibits.
* The Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association (PVMA), in partnership with Montague Public Libraries, celebrates its eighth National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Big Read. Focused on Ross Gay’s book of poetry, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, exhibits and events explore this year’s theme of “Where We Live.” NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.

A Bridge Too Far
2025-03-01 14:00 - 15:00
What about building new bridges in Gilded Age Turners Falls drove neighbors and whole towns against each other? How do these dramas and debates that played out in newspapers and town meetings still impact us today? Join DCR staff as we piece together the stories and lessons of these burning questions affecting all five villages in Montague during the late 1800s. For youth and adults. Meet in the Great Hall.

To Breathe Freely: Tenements of Turners Falls
2025-03-02 14:00 - 15:00
As the brick blocks went up, the Turners Falls tenements tested every aspect of the town, from its ability to deal with disease to what laborers expected from their lot in life. Join DCR staff as we use photographs, maps and news clippings to step back in time and learn about life in the tenements. Ages 12 and up. Meet in the Great Hall.

Haiku Tiny Books *
2025-03-23 13:00 - 15:30
Co-sponsored by PVMA and Montague Public Libraries, join Denise Fontaine-Pincince in this hands-on workshop to create a ‘Tiny Book’ to showcase a haiku of your choice. Bring up to five of your favorite haikus. Registered participants receive a sample selection of modern-day haiku prior to the workshop to help you choose. All book-making materials are provided for free. View sample ‘tiny books’ on the YouTube video— Haiku Gifts: art with poetry by Denise Fontaine-Pincince. For adults and young adults ages 16 and up. Limited space. Registration is required: call the Carnegie Library at (413) 863-3214. Meet in the Great Hall.
* The Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association (PVMA), in partnership with Montague Public Libraries, celebrates its eighth National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Big Read. Focused on Ross Gay’s book of poetry, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, exhibits and events explore this year’s theme of “Where We Live.” NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.

Artist reception: Cameron Schmitz: Where We Are, Together *
2025-03-29 15:00 - 17:00
View Cameron Schmitz’s exhibit of paintings, enjoy refreshments, and meet the artist. Cameron Schmitz uses color and mark-making as her language of expression. At 4:15 p.m., Cameron speaks briefly about her work, with a Q&A. Sponsored by PVMA and Montague Public Libraries as part of the Big Read. Meet in the Great Hall.
* The Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association (PVMA), in partnership with Montague Public Libraries, celebrates its eighth National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Big Read. Focused on Ross Gay’s book of poetry, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, exhibits and events explore this year’s theme of “Where We Live.” NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.

Artist talk by Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude cover artist Arista Alanis *
2025-04-06 14:00 - 15:30
Meet Arista Alanis and hear how her painting “on down the road” became the image used for Ross Gay’s Catalogue of Unabashed Gratitude book cover and about her creative process. Sponsored by PVMA and Montague Public Libraries NEA Big Read of Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude. Meet in the Great Hall.
* The Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association (PVMA), in partnership with Montague Public Libraries, celebrates its eighth National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Big Read. Focused on Ross Gay’s book of poetry, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, exhibits and events explore this year’s theme of “Where We Live.” NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.
