WESTFIELD–Did you know that Alice “Ma” Burke, former mayor of Westfield first elected in 1939, was the first ever elected female mayor in the state?
If you did then perhaps you can help Kate Deviny research the history of Westfield as part of a project for the Westfield 350th anniversary celebration and the Athenaeum.
Deviny, the archives and museum coordinator for the Athenaeum, is attempting to compile a list of significant moments in Westfield’s history, starting as early as the 1930s up until the current time, while also reviewing already-collected information before that time. The work is being done to create a calendar cataloguing these moments in the history of the Whip City that will be sold in conjunction with the city’s 350th anniversary. However, the work can be a significant undertaking for one person, so Deviny is seeking volunteers to help.
A photo of the calendar for the 250th anniversary of the city. (Photo provided by Kate Deviny)
According to Deviny, a lot of the city’s history is documented on microfilm of newspapers. These microfilms date back to 1970, she said.
“What I need are some people to look at microfilm and look for highlights of what changed from 1970 to next year,” Deviny said.
And if someone wanted to help go even deeper into the archives, then Deviny said that volunteers could assist in going through paper copies back through the 1930s.
“We’re hoping to get a great deal of trivia,” Deviny said.
The work is adding onto what was previously done for the city’s 250th anniversary in 1919, in addition to the work that Deviny does regularly at the Athenaeum. In 1919, a calendar cataloguing significant moments in the city’s history was distributed to residents up until that point. However, Deviny’s reason for doing this is to improve on that.
“Part of the reason is the early calendar doesn’t show where they got the documents,” she said. “I want to show what the source is, looking to verify.”
In addition, Deviny said that she wants to show in the calendar what steps have been taken within Westfield to help it become a modern city.
If you would like to volunteer, you can email Deviny at [email protected] or call the Athenaeum at (413)568-7833.
