Harvard

Located thirty miles west of Boston, the town of Harvard was incorporated in 1732. With vintage photographs, some of which date from the 1860s, Harvard reflects on eighteenth- and nineteenth-century life, as well as the numerous political and spiritual philosophies that shaped the town. Shown are the Harvard Shaker community, the Alcotts' transcendentalist commune called Fruitlands, and Clara Endicott Sears, founder of Fruitlands Museums. Nostalgic scenes from the collection of local photographer William Wright capture an era of parades and picnics and community spirit.

Since 1995, Michael Volmar has been the curator at Fruitlands Museums, which supplied many of the photographs for Harvard. He began his career as an archaeologist studying Native American history. A member of the Massachusetts Archaeological Society and the American Anthropological Association, he coproduced the documentary Under Quabbin for PBS. His current research focuses on nineteenth-century life in Massachusetts and the history of the Harvard Shaker community.