Historian to Discuss Dr. Samuel Jones and Arnold Print Works at North Adams Library

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The North Adams Public Library will host historian and graphic designer Samuel M. Trudel on Wednesday, May 14, at 6:00 p.m.

Trudel will discuss his recently published two-book series on the history of the Arnold Print Works from 1868 to 1942, focusing on Dr. Samuel M. Jones' ownership (1915-1942).

The presentation will cover Jones' acquisition of the North Adams-based textile manufacturer, the company's survival through the Great Depression, its return to profitability, and its eventual sale to Sprague Electric in 1942 due to World War II. At the time of the sale, Arnold Print Works employed 2,500 people.

Trudel's presentation will include previously unpublished photographs of the company's operations, samples of original Arnold Print Works fabrics, and family photographs and letters.

The event will be held in the 3rd-floor community room of the North Adams Public Library, located at 74 Church Street, North Adams, MA, 01247. It is free and open to the public and is co-hosted with the North Adams Historical Society.

North Adams Updated on Schools, Council President Honored With 'Distinction'

By Tammy Daniels iBerkshires Staff
12:31PM / Wednesday, March 25, 2026

Superintendent Timothy Callahan gives a presentation on the school system at Tuesday's City Council meeting. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The City Council got an update on what's up in the school system and its president was inducted into the mayor's Women's Leadership Hall of Fame.

 

Mayor Jennifer Macksey, as the city's first woman mayor, established the Hall of Fame in 2022, during March, Women's History Month, to recognize local women who have had a positive impact on the city. Past inductees have included the council's first woman president Fran Buckley, Gov. Jane Swift and boxing pioneer Gail Grandchamp. 

 

She described President Ashley Shade as a colleague and a friend and a former student. 

 

"Ashley is known not just for her leadership, but for her compassion, her ability to listen, to understand and to stand up for those whose voices are often gone unheard," the mayor said. "She has been a tireless advocate for the LGBTQ plus community and marginalized communities at both the local and national level here in North Adams."

 

Elected in 2021, Shade is the first openly transgender person to hold the role of council president in Massachusetts. She also leads the first-ever woman majority council in the city's history. 

 

The McCann Technical School graduate also has served on boards and commissions, "always working to make our city more inclusive, equitable and welcoming," said the mayor. "Ashley not leads not only with strength, but with a heart, and our community is a much stronger place because of it."

 

Shade, wearing her signature pink suit, was presented with a plaque from the mayor designating her a "woman of distinction."