Location: Fellowship Hall, First Floor, UCC Medfield, 496 Main Street Medfield, MA 02052
Fair: 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Event Promotion: Please share Medfield TV’s promotional video on Facebook and Instagram, invite your friends to the Facebook Event page, and also share any of the attached graphics with your email newsletter subscribers.
The 2024 Grant Recipients of the Medfield Foundation’s Legacy Fund celebrated with midyear reports at the Zullo Gallery on Thursday night, December 5th. 2024 Legacy Fund Grants were awarded to the Peak House Heritage Center for a Traveling Trunk exhibit, Medfield TV for Podcast Equipment and the Dwight Derby House for their East Parlor Project, honoring one of its extraordinary residents, Mary Derby.
Director of the Gallery, Bill Pope, welcomed everyone to the Zullo, which received a Legacy Fund Grant itself in 2023 for the creation of an innovative Augmented Reality Exhibit. According to Pope, the exhibit is still hosted on the internet and can be seen around town with the app, Hoverlay.
This year’s Legacy Grants have already made a big difference. The excitement was gushing from Wheelock’s 3rd grade teachers about their plans for the Traveling Trunk as a multidiscipline time capsule in their 3rd grade curriculum.
And the energy for the Dwight Derby House has been transformed. Their East Parlor Project will honor Mary Derby, a single mother who ran a bonnet manufacturing business from her home while raising a son destined for greatness.
To paraphrase Rob Babson of the Peak House Heritage Center, he said, “Thanks to the grants from the MFi Legacy Fund, impressive talent has been brought to Medfield and ‘cross pollinated,’ amplifying and raising the quality of our offerings and excitement for our town.”
Stay tuned for news on Legacy Fund’s next “Call for Grant Applications.” To learn more, visit MedfieldFoundation.org.
The MFi’s key fundraiser, the Angel Run 5K / Run / Walk is happening this Sunday, December 8th at 11:30am at the Medfield High School. Come celebrate the season and support a great cause!
The Medfield Foundation is a volunteer run 501-(c)(3) nonprofit charitable corporation whose mission is to build community by supporting nonprofit initiatives, raising funds for those in need and distributing grants that positively impact Medfield.
The MFi Legacy Fund is a professionally managed, community-supported Endowment Fund empowering residents to make permanent gifts to improve the community and town of Medfield. Through a competitive “Pitch It” process, Medfield based non-profit initiatives or town agencies can apply for grants to benefit the town. To date, almost $100,000 in grants have been given away. Planned gifts to the MFi Legacy Fund are encouraged and will keep the granting going strong.
Posted onOctober 28, 2024|Comments Off on Girl Scouts tour Dwight-Derby House
From Geoff Sauter, the enthusiastic and dedicated man in charge of the Friends of the Dwight-Derby House, Inc. The Dwight-Derby House is one of the dozen oldest houses in the US. It a national treasure, that the Friends of the Dwight-Derby House, Inc. take care of for the Town of Medfield. Tours of the fascinating Dwight-Derby House are available to anyone who asks. –
I thought you should know about what went on.
Yesterday morning, I hosted a session for the Medfield Girl Scouts to explain the materials and construction techniques used in colonial homes. The young ladies are working on a badge called, “Cadettes who Build”. With exposed beams and open walls, the Dwight-Derby house was the perfect place to start.
The next phase is a visit to Home Depot to look at currently available building materials.
Best,
Geoff
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Posted onJuly 5, 2024|Comments Off on More Dwight-Derby House input
The email below and images are from Goeff Sauter, President of the Friends of the Dwight-Derby House, Inc. this afternoon –
Hi Pete,
Thanks again for making yourself available this morning. Attached are three pictures as follows:
The sketch by George Horatio Derby, the “father” of satire in the United States. Electa Kane Tritsch uncovered this sketch in the archives on Derby family at West Point. It was probably drawn as a teenager and shows his view of the meeting house from an upstairs bedroom. I interpret this drawing to be showing the Meeting House which is now the Unitarian Church facing North Street. Sometimes when conducting fast-paced tours, we neglect to also point out a drawing that George did on the inside of the door leading to our gift shop. The sketch is clearly the Dwight-Derby House itself, and it is a credit to both the many owners of the house and preservation contractors that the sketch was not inadvertently removed! Please tell your readers to stop in if they missed seeing it on a previous tour.
One of the most expensive rare artifacts on our list for the East Parlor Project is an early 18th century women’s sewing table. These tables are unique because the bottom drawer has a large pouch or bag underneath where a seamstress could easily store an uncompleted project with all of the component pieces in a convenient place. It occurred to me that someone who reads your blog might have one of these tables or know someone who does. We are not expecting a donation of a sewing table but plan to procure one at the best possible price.
In the same vein, we are seaching for an early 18th century cabinet where Mary Derby would have stored, ribbons flowers, and other raw materials for making hats an bonnets. The picture I have enclosed was taken in the general store at Old Sturbridge Village. We will be working with antique dealers, flea markets, Craigslist, Ebay, estate sales, and all possible sources to find something like it.
Best, Geoff
NB, by OLP: I just noticed a couple of more differences in the sketch from the current existing First Parish Meeting House:
there is no front porch in this sketch
the steeple today is flush with the front of the building
today there is no side window that is not rectangular.
As part of my Select Board office hours this morning I met with Geoff Sauter, the President of the Friends of the Dwight-Derby House, Inc. Geoff shared with me the drawing below that Geoff said George Horatio Derby drew when a youth from his bedroom window in the Dwight-Derby House.
What becomes clear as one looks at the drawing is that the First Parish Meeting House building was then facing North Street. At some point the building was rotated 90 degrees to its current orientation – I wonder why? Other changes I noted were the different steeple, the bump out behind the alter that is no longer exists, and no town clock. I heard that the church’s steeple blew down in the 1938 Hurricane and was reconstructed.
I like seeing the model sailboat on the pond, as it reminds me that I sailed model boats in large fountains or artificial ponds in parks in London as a kid.
Welcome! During the Holiday Stroll on December 1st, I was approached by a number of people who had moved to Medfield over the last few years and knew nothing about the history of the Dwight-Derby House or its significance. Given the demands of families, careers, and other social obligations, it’s no surprise that people who are new to the area (and even many who aren’t!) have overlooked the little yellow garrison colonial house on Baker’s Pond at 7 Frairy Street. It seems that The Friends of the Dwight-Derby House can and must do a better job of keeping everyone up to date, whether they are new in town or were in Medfield in 1996 when the property was acquired by the Town of Medfield. And there is so much to say. Since 1997, The Friends of the Dwight-Derby House has managed, maintained, operated and funded the house in order to keep it preserved and open both as a museum and an event rental. And thus, the birth of this newsletter, the Squibob Herald. President, Friends of the Dwight-Derby House
Squibob Musings
Who Is This Squibob?
Some of you have never heard of Squibob, which was a nom de plume of George Horatio Derby (1832-1861), the most famous resident of the Dwight-Derby House, and a man considered by many to be one of the original satirists in the United States. George’s writings were admired by both Abraham Lincoln and Samuel Clemens. It is therefore in honor of George and the San Diego Herald, who published his work, that we call this newsletter the Squibob Herald. A drawing of “Squibob,” who was one of George Horatio Derby’s most popular characters. (From SQUIBOB An Early California Humorist by George Horatio Derby.)
Inside the Dwight-Derby House
Touring the House We want to accommodate everyone who wants to tour the house and realize that two Saturday mornings a month are not always convenient. By prior arrangement and subject to docent availability we will offer free tours seven days a week during daylight hours. To request a tour, fill out a Contact Us form on our website. We will be open on April 27th and 28th from 10 am to 4 pm for guided tours during Medfield History Weekend. We look forward to seeing you then!
The East Parlor Project As March is National Women in History month, there couldn’t be a more appropriate time to unveil an exciting new exhibit in the works, the “East Parlor Project.” This new exhibit will recreate the women’s millinery shop that Mary Townsend Derby set up in the east parlor of the house in 1825. The redecorated east parlor will essentially be a tribute to Mary Townsend Derby who, as a young single mother of two children, launched a business at home to support her family and the small farm on the “road to Wheeler’s Bottom” as Frairy Street was called in those days. While there is scant historical information available as to exactly what wares were offered, there is ample evidence that bonnets were a mainstay. According to Electa Kane Tritsch in her book Medfield’s Dwight-Derby House, published in 2009, Mary and her friend Julia Butterfield established “an in-house commercial operation in Medfield that would provide income for her own family and respectable employment for other women short on funds.” And, as we know, this occurred in a period where women could neither own property nor vote. Volunteers Needed! We will also need volunteers to decorate and perhaps even make hats. The bottom line is that we would love to hear from you if you are interested in being part of this effort. You can contact me, Geoff Sauter, via email or just stop in when you see the “Open” flag displayed at the end of our driveway.
The Last Word If any of you have kept track, this is at least the third attempt by The Friends of the Dwight-Derby House to reach out to the community with a newsletter to keep you all in touch with our activities. The first two newsletters preceded the Internet, in 1999 and again in 2001.
Posted onMarch 15, 2024|Comments Off on Dwight-Derby House update – tours available
From Geoff Sauter, President Friends of the Dwight-Derby House, Inc. –
Hi Pete,
I was pleased to make your acquaintance last night and especially pleased with your offer to add updates regarding the Dwight-Derby House to your blog.
I am in the process of putting together a quarterly newsletter to keep your electorate abreast of the goings on at 7 Frairy St. and will let you know when it’s finally available for distribution. Your support will help me develop an email list so that we get it out to as many interested residents as possible.
More importantly, you can report on your next blog that I am making the Dwight-Derby House open by appointment for guided tours 7 days a week. We have found that being open two Saturdays a month from 10:00 to 12:00 was not adequate and did not meet with everyone’s schedules. I can be reached directly at Coptersauter@gmail.com or through the Contact Us tab on our website, which is dwightderbyhouse.org. The tours typically take about an hour.
Attached are some current pictures to spice up your blog.
Best,
Geoff Sauter, President
Friends of the Dwight-Derby House
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Posted onJanuary 15, 2021|Comments Off on Friends of the Dwight-Derby House Announce New Website
From Laurel Scotti, President, Friends of the Dwight-Derby House –
Date: January 14, 2020
Friends of the Dwight-Derby House Announce New Website
The Friends of the Dwight-Derby House announces the launching of a new website at dwightderbyhouse.org.
The Dwight-Derby House is the story of two Medfield families who lived in the house that still stands at 7 Frairy Street dating back to 1651.
Some of the new features of this new site include George Horatio Derby Artifacts and Satirical Writing collections. George Horatio Derby was America’s first satirical writer, an explorer and a Captain who served in the U.S. Army of Topographical Engineers. His childhood home was the Dwight-Derby House, of Medfield.
Added to the site are a family timeline, restoration photos from the 1996 renovation when the house was purchased by the town of Medfield, online events, site rental information, and online shopping at The 1651 Shoppe.
A special thanks to Medfield Photographer Mark Hickey for his time and talent invested in the must-see interior room photography shown on the new website as well as editors Claire Shaw and Jo Ellen Heck.
For the safety of our visitors the museum is currently closed due to COVID-19. We look forward to seeing you as soon as we reopen.
We welcome feedback after you tour the upstairs rooms for the first time!
I started this blog to share the interesting and useful information that I saw while doing my job as a Medfield select board member. I thought that my fellow Medfield residents would also find that information interesting and useful as well. This blog is my effort to assist in creating a system to push the information out from the Town House to residents. Let me know if you have any thoughts on how it can be done better.
For information on my other job as an attorney (personal injury, civil litigation, estate planning and administration, and real estate), please feel free to contact me at 617-969-1500 or Osler.Peterson@OslerPeterson.com.
774-478-5262 
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