Events

The Great Falls Discovery Center hosts community programs and events, rotating art exhibits in our Great Hall and a Coffee House hosted by the Friends of the Great Falls Discovery Center.

  • Great Hall Guest Speaker: King Philip’s War in Your Backyard 1675-76

    Great Falls Discovery Center 2 Avenue A, Turners Falls, MA, United States

    David Brule reviews the events that happened nearby in the central Connecticut River Valley starting in August 1675 and continuing into May 1676 and beyond. David focuses on the latest results of the National Park Service-sponsored study of the massacre at Peskeompskut falls and the Native counterattack over a 7-mile route through Greenfield. Learn from […]

    Free
  • Nice and Easy Walk

    Great Falls Discovery Center 2 Avenue A, Turners Falls, MA, United States

    Easy-paced, 1- to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for older adults, but open to all. Enjoy some 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.

    Free
  • First Friday: Turners Falls Tenement Tour

    Great Falls Discovery Center 2 Avenue A, Turners Falls, MA, United States

    Discover how tenements tested every aspect of the town, from sanitation to wages. On this May Day tour, learn about the storekeepers and laborers who made this planned industrial community. Meet DCR staff outside the Great Hall for a 1.5-mile guided walk through downtown Turners Falls. Ages 8 and up.

  • Historic Boston Virtual Event: What Really Happened at Turners Falls? The Story of a Massacre

    https://www.eventbrite.com/e/what-really-happened-at-turners-falls-the-story-of-a-massacre-tickets-1980596687007?aff=oddtdtcreator Overview Captain Turner's forces killed 300 Native people and his monument proclaimed victory. What really happened? Join this deeply informed panel. This monument to Captain William Turner sums up an old and perhaps familiar telling of history. We have a colonial hero, later slain in battle. Small but mighty colonial forces overcome the odds. […]

    Free
  • Nice and Easy Walk

    Great Falls Discovery Center 2 Avenue A, Turners Falls, MA, United States

    Easy-paced, 1- to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for older adults, but open to all. Enjoy some 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.

    Free
  • Kidleidoscope Story Hour – Fish

    Great Falls Discovery Center 2 Avenue A, Turners Falls, MA, United States

    For ages 3-6, accompanied by an adult. Learn more about our wildlife neighbors in the Connecticut River Watershed. Program includes a story, activities, and crafts. Activities are indoors and outdoors, weather permitting. Siblings and friends are welcome. Meet in the Great Hall.

    Free
  • Great Falls Coffeehouse Presents: Lara Herscovitch & The Highway Philosophers

    Join us for the Friends of the Great Falls Discovery Center's concert series featuring local talent. Lara Herscovitch & The Highway Philosophers offer a rich tapestry of songs with themes that will stay with you. Refreshments available. Sliding scale suggested donations, in support of educational programming at the Center. All ages.

  • Battlefield History Walking Tour with David Brule

    May 19th marks the 350th anniversary of the massacre at Peskeompskut. Join David Brule, local historian and coordinator of the Battlefield Advisory Committee (a National Park Service American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP)-funded study), to learn about this attack and its significance within the King Philip's War. This program will take place along the bike path […]

    Free
  • Park Serve Day: Pick a Park, Give a Day, Make a Difference

    The Department of Conservation and Recreation invites you to the Great Falls Discovery Center to lend a hand during this day of volunteer service to our state parks. Bring your own water and snack. For registration visit mass.gov/info-details/dcr-park-serve-day. For ages 6 and up. Meet at the main entrance.

  • Nice and Easy Walk

    Easy-paced, 1- to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for older adults, but open to all. Enjoy some 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.

  • Artist Reception: All Our Relations – To Honor the Wampanoag Supreme Sachem Pometacomet on the 350th Anniversary of the Great Falls Massacre

    Enjoy conversation and coffee with Wampanoag artists Deborah Spears Moorehead and Robert Peters in the Great Hall to view and learn more about their shared exhibit. Sponsored by Friends of the Great Falls Discovery Center, the Nolumbeka Project, and funded by the Montague Cultural Council. a local agency supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a […]

  • The Nolumbeka Project Presents: Day of Remembrance

    Great Falls Discovery Center 2 Avenue A, Turners Falls, MA, United States

    A commemoration of the Great Falls Massacre, May 19, 1676, and Metacom's Resistance (aka King Philip's War) 350 Years Ago, 1676-2026. Tribal members and non-Tribal public are welcome. Honored presenters include: Eastern Medicine Singers, Strong Eagle ‘Many Feathers' Daly, Liz Coldwind Santana-Kiser, Roger Longtoe Sheehan, Dr. Margaret M. Bruchac, Martín Espada, Deborah Spears Moorehead, Robert […]

    Free