Susan B. Anthony Celebration to be Held This Saturday
ADAMS, Mass. — The Adams Suffrage Centennial Celebration Committee will finally hold its long-awaited event this weekend.
The committee was established in 2016 by the Board of Selectmen to commemorate the life of Susan B. Anthony. Anthony, who was born in Adams in 1820, fought to secure women's right to vote.
She died without seeing her goal realized, but in 1920, the U.S. passed the 19th Amendment, which extended suffrage to women.
The committee had originally planned to have the event last year, which was concurrently the 200th anniversary of Anthony's birth and the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment's passage but was forced to postpone it until this year because of the pandemic.
The festival is "a combination of a number of things that the committee was trying to do," Selectmem Vice Chairwoman Christine Hoyt said. "We've rolled it all into one large festival."
The outdoor event is a complement to the unveiling of the Susan B. Anthony statue at the Town Common earlier this summer. Hundreds of people attended that event, which included Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito as guest speaker.
This next event will take place on Saturday, Aug. 21, from noon to 8. Park Street will be closed from Center Street to Hoosac Street. Hoyt said most of the action will take place between the crosswalk of the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail and School Street.
Multiple musicians will be performing at the festival. Terry ala Berry will play during the afternoon for kids, and Melissa Brinton is performing an acoustic set afterwards. She will be followed by Misty Blues, and Whiskey Treaty Roadshow will cap off the evening's musical performances.
Children's activities will be concentrated on Armory Court, between the Daily Grind coffee shop and Bella Sky Gifts.
Food vendors will be present at the festival, as well as crafters beginning at 1 p.m. and the mobile vaccination van will be on the south end of Park Street from noon to 3. Several buildings will be lit up in the evening in purple and yellow, colors connected to the suffragette movement.
Actor Sheryl Faye will perform the life of Susan B. Anthony. Faye does historical performances of many famous women, including Anthony, Abigail Adams, and Eleanor Roosevelt. She will perform at the Adams Theater, "which we're really excited about," said Hoyt. This will be the first performance on stage there since the theater changed ownership.
To end the evening, fireworks will be launched from Valley Street Field. Because of its location, Hoyt said residents from all over Adams will likely be able to see them from their backyards. However, she cautioned that there will be no access to Valley Street Field itself due to safety concerns.
Park Street will be closed from noon until 9 or until the conclusion of the event. For more information on the event, click here.
Tags: street fair, Susan B. Anthony,
