Berkshire County and areas surrounding are hosting a variety of events this warm Labor Day Weekend, including artwalks, concerts, ghost tours, and more
FIRST Friday Community Picnic on Eagle Street
Eagle Street, North Adams
Historic Eagle Street will be closed to traffic from 5 to 9 on Friday for music, food and events.
Beer and wine will be served by Desperado's Mexican Restaurant on the sidewalk next to the Eagle Street parklet, galleries and businesses will be open late, and DJ DUBTC will be spinning tunes all night. The evening will also launch and digital and physical scavenger hunt that will run through First Friday in October.
The installation "Exponential" on Main Street will turn on at dusk and Bright Ideas Brewing will be offering beer and doughnuts.
Ventfort Hall's Ghost Tours with "Ghosts of the Berkshires" author Robert Oakes, returns this Saturday.
Oakes will lead guests through the rooms and halls of the estate sharing tales of its hauntings.
"Stand in the places where the encounters occurred, listen to the first-hand accounts of those who experienced them, and maybe even experience something unusual yourself. This is not an active investigation," according to the press release.
Admission is $27 and the minimum age to attend is age 12. Reservations are required. To purchase tickets call at 413-637-3206.
Please note that all tickets are non-refundable and non-exchangeable. Payment is required to make a reservation for an event. Masks are required.
It's the first Friday of the month, which means a First Friday Artswalk. The walk runs from 5 to 8 p.m. and features a dozen art shows and exhibits on view at venues around downtown Pittsfield. Most of the art being on display throughout September.
During the event, participants will have the opportunity to meet the artists. Participants can download the Downtown Pittsfield Inc. app from the Google Play or App Store to get a virtual walking tour.
Participating venues include Hotel on North, Barrington Stage Company's Wolfson Theatre Center, Lichtenstein Center for the Arts, The Marketplace Cafe, Indoors Out! Free Kids' Paint & Sip, and more
For a complete list of participating venues and artists visit the Art Walk website.
The Knights Orchestra
The Clark, Williamstown
The Clark Art Institute will be hosting two concerts for Labor Day.
The first is a large-scale outdoor concert by the Knights on the Clark's Férnandez Terrace this Sunday starting at 4 p.m.
This will be followed by a free family-friendly concert by the Knights in the Manton Research Center auditorium at noon on Monday.
This newly added performance is designed specifically for younger audiences and is intended to provide a fun and engaging introduction to classical music.
Each ticketed group must include at least one child, age 18 or younger, and at least one adult.
Award-winning banjoist, fiddler, singer and ethnomusicologist Jake Blount will be performing on the back porch this Friday starting at 7 p.m.
Participants can bring their own blankets and lawn chairs to listen to old-time bluegrass.
Blount specializes in the music of Black communities in the southeastern United States, and in the regional style of the Finger Lakes.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $25 the day of or $20 in advance; kids 12 and younger are free. Reserve tickets online or call 413-443-0188, Ext. 0.
If rain is forecast, the concert will move indoors.
'Imagination Creates Reality' Exhibit
38 Main St., West Stockbridge
The Guild of Berkshire Artists is holding its second exhibit in its new gallery this weekend.
"Imagination Creates Reality" shows the abstract artworks created by Michael Coyne and Bruce Shickmanter and will run through Monday. A reception with the artists will be from 2 to 4 p.m. on Saturday.
The gallery is open Saturday through Monday from noon until 4 p.m. and Thursday from 3 until 7 p.m.
For more information on the exhibit check out our article.
The Eagles Experience
Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield
The Eagles tribute band will be playing songs written and recorded by the Eagles this Saturday starting at 7:30 p.m. at the Colonial Theatre.
The lineup reflects the Eagles during their heyday in the late 1970s and the members of The Eagles Experience each try to emulate their respective member of the band.
Some of the tunes you can expect to hear are: "Hotel California," "One of These Nights," "Already Gone," "Lyin' Eyes," "Peaceful Easy Feeling," "Desperado," "Take It Easy," "Tequila Sunrise," "Life in the Fast Lane" and many more.
Bennington is hosting its annual Garlic Fest this Saturday in celebration of all things garlic and agriculture.
Just 20 minutes from North County, the event will feature bands, beer, food trucks, and a curated group of more than 120 vendors.
The festival will run in two areas, or "cloves," on Main Street at the old Greenberg's and on Depot Street near Bennington Station. Participants can walk or take a shuttle between cloves.
Last year's event saw more than 8,000 visitors and residents stroll around downtown Bennington with garlic and food vendors, sidewalk sales, tractor rides and more.
Tickets are $12; $5 for kids 12 and younger. For more information visit the website.
Farmers' Markets
Lenox Farmer's Market 80 Church St.
The market is open 80 Church St., formerly the Cafe Lucia, on Friday from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m.
Participants can peruse local vendors while enjoying food and listening to music.
Open Friday from 3 until 6 p.m. at First Congregational Church located at 125 Main St.
The market will feature healthy food and products from a variety of local vendors in an attempt to nourish the community by protecting "local small farms, land, bees, and economy."
Powered by Roots Rising, the market is open every Saturday rain or shine from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. through Oct. 8.
Each week the market will have fresh locally grown fruits and vegetables, along with meat, eggs, cheese, baked goods by local vendors. Participants can shop for flowers, and artisan goods while listening to music and participate in family activities.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.
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Phoebe Jordan Cast Historic Vote 104 Years Ago
By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
The ballot box that Phoebe Jordan cast her ballot in is still used for every New Ashford election (with an iPad backup).
NEW ASHFORD, Mass. — Phoebe Jordan awoke in the wee hours 104 years ago, lit a lantern and set out on the 2 1/2-mile walk down the dirt road from her farm to the schoolhouse to vote.
Did she know she was walking into history? Possibly. She was politically astute and was participating in something of an electoral stunt to splash New Ashford across the national news for being first in the nation to record results in the 1920 presidential election.
Jordan, then 56, would become the first person to vote for president that year. Oddly, her title as the first woman to cast a vote wouldn't be mentioned for another four.
Three days before this latest presidential election, Jordan's place in history was etched in stone — literally.
More than three dozen family and community members made their way to the steep New Ashford Cemetery on Saturday to see the new inscription on her marble gravestone:
"Phoebe Sarah Jordan ... first woman to vote in the United States, November 2, 1920."
Ernest Jordan, whose grandfather Arthur was Phoebe's brother, gave a hearty welcome to the gathering and the youngest in the group — six generations removed from Phoebe — helped to pull off an American flag unveiling the inscription. Then everyone headed to the 1792 schoolhouse where Phoebe cast her vote in the ballot box that's still in use and to Town Hall for cookies made from Phoebe's recipe book.
Phoebe Jordan awoke in the wee hours 104 years ago, lit a lantern and set out on the 2 1/2-mile walk down the dirt road from her farm to the school house to vote.
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