New England Holocaust Institute Open In Adams

Darrell English has set up displays from his massive World War II collection at the Adams Free Library. He hopes to find a permanent home in Adams for his New England Holocaust Institute.

ADAMS, Mass. — Darrell K. English, owner of the New England Holocaust Institute, said he is excited to be in Adams and he hopes the town can become the museum's permanent home.

After having to vacate his location on Eagle Street in North Adams, English was approached by Adams Town Administrator Tony Mazzucco about locating a portion of the collection in Adams temporarily with the hopes of finding a more permanent location there.

The town settled on the trustees room on the top level of the library.

English said the room is smaller than his North Adams location and he will have to rotate in artifacts of his expansive World War II collection, which includes militaria to ephemera to posters to Holocaust memorabilia.

"It will work for what I have planned, and I am very appreciative towards the town of Adams," English said. "I want to kind of ease into this. It's a room I have to work with."

English said "history is not one picture, it is a mosaic" and he hopes to draw a more complete picture of World War II and rotate his collection in a way to establish continuity. He said the small elements of history that lead to the bigger picture often get pushed toward the back.

"I bring the artifacts that put the puzzle together and help bolster that whole event and tell a more a complete story of what happened," English said. "People know something happened, they just don't know the order in which events fall and that's my job, to help clarify those points."

English gave the example of a German newspaper he recently acquired from 1934 that printed a story about the "Night of Long Knives," during which the SA was knocked out of power within 48 hours allowing the SS to become the prominent Nazi organization that "turned into one of the most vicious and violent organizations."

He hopes to provide a better understanding of the events leading up to and during World War II that are more complete than what people learned in school or have seen on television.

English said he has two locations in mind right now for a permanent location: the old TD bank building on Park Street that is for sale and the Adams Armory. He said the library will work for now and he would like to hold presentations in the Grand Army of the Republic Hall, work with local schools and start a curating program.

He hopes residents become interested in his collection and that an "enthusiasm" develops that did not exist in North Adams. He said his North Adams location was the "kiss of death" even though his museum received national and international attention.

The fact that Adams has showed interest and is willing to "gamble" on him has returned some of his faith in locating in the region where he grew up.

"I think it will work. At least maybe with the enthusiasm I am seeing with Adams ... I think that might transfer over to others," English said. "Adams came to me and offered me this and said they wanted to help ... I wasn't asking for millions, I was just asking for a little guidance and a little help."

He said this kind of affiliation did not exist in North Adams and he hopes to rally more people around his institute.

English said his museum helps broaden the area and add to the "palette" of things to do. He said he felt like only art was given aid in North Adams.

"You have to have in an area more attractions than just one constant theme to try to get other people to come and stay," he said. "And I am hopefully that bellwether individual that might get people to want to do something more."  

English said museums around the country have asked him to move with his collection, but he wants to stay home and allow the area to benefit from his artifacts.

"I keep digging my heels in the ground," he said. "I haven't given up on my area even though my area may have given up on me. I've seen the spark on the national and international level and that is heartwarming ... I am going to try to make this happen, I am going to try to make this work here, and I hope to go bigger and I hope to go bigger in Adams."

The exhibit is open on all days the library is open. 

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