EVENTS
1630: from shawmut to boston
WALKING TOUR, TUESDAY, JULY 22, 2025, 6-7:30pm
RAIN DATE: TUESDAY, JULY 29, 2025, 6-7:30pm
ROXANNE REDDINGTON-WILDE
Led by our knowledgeable guides, you’ll follow in the footsteps of the Puritans who built colonial Boston, rejecting the possibility of coexistence with Massachusett people to create a town in their own English image. Why did the Puritans leave their English homes and what did they hope to achieve in Massachusetts? Delve into the ideas and people of 1630s Boston.
A STORM OF WITCHCRAFT
VIRTUAL BOOK CLUB, WEDNESDAY, JULY 23, 2025, 7-8:30pm ET
EVANA ROSE TAMAYO
More than three centuries ago a wave of witchcraft hysteria swept through Massachusetts, as fear and accusations spread across the region. What really happened? How do we understand the fear, the willingness to testify against a neighbour, the turning on others that led to 20 deaths? Our online book discussion of Emerson Baker’s acclaimed A Storm of Witchcraft, limited to ten people, immerses you in these questions as, together, we consider the past. SOLD OUT
A STORM OF WITCHCRAFT
VIRTUAL BOOK CLUB, WEDNESDAY, JULY 30, 2025, 7-8:30pm ET
EVANA ROSE TAMAYO
More than three centuries ago a wave of witchcraft hysteria swept through Massachusetts, as fear and accusations spread across the region. What really happened? How do we understand the fear, the willingness to testify against a neighbour, the turning on others that led to 20 deaths? Our online book discussion of Emerson Baker’s acclaimed A Storm of Witchcraft, limited to ten people, immerses you in these questions as, together, we consider the past. SOLD OUT
A STORM OF WITCHCRAFT
VIRTUAL BOOK CLUB, SATURDAY, AUGUST 16, 2025, 11AM-12:3PM ET
EVANA ROSE TAMAYO
We’re back! In the third of our discussions of Emerson Baker’s masterful A Storm of Witchcraft, we’ll explore what really happened in 1692, and ask: how do we understand the fear, the willingness to testify against a neighbour’s, the turning on others that led to 20 deaths? Our online book discussion will consider the many unanswered questions of the past - and what they might say about our present. Places limited to 10 (plus waitlist).
A STORM OF WITCHCRAFT
VIRTUAL BOOK CLUB, SATURDAY, AUGUST 30, 2025, 7-8:30pm ET
EVANA ROSE TAMAYO
This fourth and final discussion of Emerson Baker’s acclaimed A Storm of Witchcraft considers the many unanswered questions of Salem’s notorious past - and what they might say about our present. Join talented moderator Evana Rose Tamayo in an exploring a time of fear and blame. Places limited to 10 (plus waitlist).
The Other: understanding witch hunts
ONLINE, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2025, 7-8:30pm ET
EMERSON BAKER, SARAH JACK AND JOSH HUTCHINSON
Join award-winning historian Emerson “Tad” Baker in this wide-ranging discussion of New England witch hunts, guest moderated by podcasters Sarah Jack and Josh Hutchinson of End Witch Hunts. Why did neighbours turn on neighbours? What motivated the accusers? And why were some people singled out, turned into a dangerous, spiteful, satanic “other”? An utterly illuminating conversation.
resistance: stopping witch hunts
ONLINE, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2025, 7-8:30pm ET
EMERSON BAKER, SARAH JACK AND JOSH HUTCHINSON
In this second of two discussions, renowned historian Emerson “Tad” Baker talks to podcasters Sarah Jack and Josh Hutchinson of End Witch Hunts about the resistance: the people who defended friends, relatives and even strangers - at risk to themselves. What role did the New England leadership play, if any? How did communities heal? Another fascinating discussion, this time of the courage of people who simply said “no more”.
gathered into a church
ONLINE, MONDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2025, 7-8:30pm ET
LORI ROGERS-STOKES
For centuries Congregationalism has been studied as a purely English faith - a legacy of the Puritans. But as author Lori Rogers-Stokes’ groundbreaking research shows, in fact its congregations were mixed: white, black, and Indigenous. The church itself, as the case of Hasanamisco illustrates, was shaped by its Indigenous members in its most foundational aspect: how to be a full church member. Join us for an eye-opening evening and celebrate the launch of Lori’s new book!
“This presentation nailed it - and should cause people to sit back and realize that mankind has done a lousy job of planning for pandemics because they don’t pay attention to history.”
participant, reading group