In a town filled with interesting buildings, none captured my attention more than the public library in Lee, Massachusetts. While exploring downtown, I was excited to see one of the most recognizable buildings in my little world – a Carnegie Library.
I wasted no time hustling up the sidewalk and through the front doors to see the interior. Check out these doors.
But I didn’t just see the inside, I got a tour and such a warm welcome that I wished for a moment that I worked there.
The original part of the Lee Library was constructed in 1907 with help from Andrew Carnegie who gave $12,000 to the project. Unfortunately, the total price for the library and furnishings was $35,000.
My tour guide said that building the library was a source of contention in the community as some were supportive, others were vocally against, and some were on the fence. Some didn’t understand why the town needed a new library at all and certainly didn’t want to see tax dollars used for the cause. This sounds tragically familiar in 2026.
The compromise was for the additional funding to come from the town and from private donations. The town pitched in $18,300 and private donors covered the rest.
Lee Marble Works quarried and cut the marble used in the construction of the building. This was a big deal because Lee was known to have some of the finest marble anywhere. This original building is Corinthian in style.
The interior woodwork is polished birch, something that I didn’t expect but that is beautiful.
Look at this amazing fireplace! Can you read it? “A book fitly chosen is a lifelong friend.”
Indeed.
The building has since been added onto and updated but they have done a nice job preserving the original space and many original elements. The circulation desk has been relocated but is original. They have a couple of original bookshelves including one that rotates plus that gorgeous woodwork, fireplaces, and the requisite portrait of Andrew Carnegie that hangs in every one of his namesake libraries.
There’s even an unusual metal roll-up door that could be used to partition off the section of the library where books were originally shelved from the entryway.
A new wing was added in 1977, tripling the library’s square footage but they did a great job making the new addition consistent with the old. It’s clearly of a different era and doesn’t have the same workmanship but they incorporated the same local marble and honored the spirit of that 1907 space.
I want to make it clear that this library is one of the most active and busy small town libraries I have ever seen. They were busy that day, chatting with their patrons like old friends and making everyone feel seen and welcome. They even were hosting a local art show in their community room and I was invited to peruse the art which was submitted by children and adults. Plus, a staffer took the time to give me a great tour and patiently answer all my many questions.
It made my cynical little heart swell with pride for them.
This is the last remaining Carnegie in the Berkshires and it’s clear they are proud of that as well.
When out adventuring, remember that libraries are safe spaces to find a clean restroom, place to fill your water bottle, and even get local information. Librarians are some of the most helpful and knowledgeable people around. It’s even better when the building is historic and pretty!
Friends, it has been a long week. I’m on the tail end of a sinus infection, work has been busy, and I’m just plain happy to see that we have made it to Friday.
I tell you that to say this: I’m out of words for today. Here’s a pretty picture to remind you that that sometimes the picture is worth a thousand words and that it’s ok to shut up and let the photos do the talking.
This is at a small botanical garden near Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Happy Friday y’all!
Several months ago I read a story about the town where Norman Rockwell said he found some of his best inspiration. The story promoted a quaint New England town and a Norman Rockwell Museum where visitors could get to know more about the man and his work.
While Norman Rockwell has become something of a cliche to many, I tend to think his storytelling is genius and that our society could benefit from a good dose of small town innocence.
So, off we went to Stockbridge, Massachusetts in the Berkshires. This town of 2,000 residents is a year round attraction known for access to outdoor activities, small town charm, and a handful of famous folks who once made their home here.
Rockwell’s first Stockbridge studio was in the upstairs of a building that now is home to a cafe (also the same building that was home to the famed Alice’s Restaurant). He moved to the area and set up shop here when his wife came to Stockbridge for medical care.
It has north facing windows on the second floor that overlook the Main Street and would be quite the window out on the world. What I wouldn’t give for a morning of writing and people watching from that space! While he rented this studio space, he set out to have renovated an 1830s carriage house in the yard of his home in town.
This would be his creative space beginning in 1957 until his death 21 years later. He adopted Stockbridge as his hometown and said some of his best work originated here. Most of his important social commentary work was done here in this studio.
The studio is no longer located in Stockbridge. That’s because it was loaded onto a flatbed truck and moved to the campus of the Norman Rockwell Museum in 1986.
We toured the studio before we went through the museum and had a wonderful tour guide.
He shared with us that the museum looks much the same as it did when Rockwell worked here, aside from the fact it is now perched on a rural hillside instead of in town. His easel is set up as though waiting for the master to return from lunch. His paints and brushes are on the table.
His radio and phone too.
Rockwell was a fastidious housekeeper who our tour guide said cleaned his studio several times a day. This seemed odd to me given how messy most artists are but fitting giving how squeaky clean his storytelling was. The space is light and pleasant and I can see why he said it was his best studio of all the twenty or so he worked in.
I lingered at the end of the tour and remained for a moment after everyone else had filed out. It was easy to imagine that Rockwell had just stepped out and that I might be able to perch on the couch while he began his next painting.
The property has walking trails which we didn’t take advantage of and a world class museum that we enjoyed thoroughly. I’ll take you to the museum next time.
Sometimes when we are out adventuring, dear friends, we make mistakes. Especially when visiting a new place, it’s easy to overlook something or fail to read a sign.
Today’s story comes to you from a series of such errors. My Pittsburgh pal is an incredible trip planner who knows my tastes and my budgetary preferences better than most people. She’s good at nosing out the hotel with the best deal and the restaurant with a great pescatarian menu that happens to fit well into our plans.
When we travel together, she usually provides some choices for my consideration. I will look up a few things and make some suggestions but mostly stay out of the way and ask how much cash I should bring.
The whole point of visiting Stockbridge is that I had seen a story about their connection to the artist Norman Rockwell and it seemed like our kind of town. There’s hiking, cute shops, and lots of history. You can tour Rockwell’s studio. You can also tour writer Edith Wharton’s home.
What I failed to notice in my half hearted perusal of things to do is that singer songwriter Arlo Guthrie has a connection to this town.
Let’s stop here for a moment. Most times I mention Arlo Guthrie to the humans in my life, I get a strange look. They’ve heard the name but don’t know the guy. Sometimes they’ve never heard the name and have absolutely no clue who I’m talking about at all.
Arlo Guthrie is a folk singer-songwriter who is known for his protest music against social injustice and the Vietnam War. His dad was Woody Guthrie, one of this country’s most significant folk singers of the 20th century. Woody gave us the classic song “This Land Is Your Land.”
I hope you at least grew up singing that ballad in elementary school. Click here if you don’t know it.
Ok, now that we are caught up….. I was chatting with the woman running the dressing room at the Marshalls near our hotel and she asked what all we were doing on our visit. Out of the blue she said “You know, the Guthrie Center is here. Arlo Guthrie? Alice’s Restaurant? Yeah, he went to school here.”
Wait. What?
And then she proceeds to tell me about how he graduated from school here and his famous song “Alice’s Restaurant” happened here.
What?
By no means am I an Arlo Guthrie aficionado but I did once enjoy a magical night listening to him in concert at the Midland Theater in Newark, Ohio. And since then hardly has a Thanksgiving gone by that I haven’t listened to his most famous song “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” on Thanksgiving Day.
Oh boy. Do you know Alice’s Restaurant Massacree?
Alice’s Restaurant is an 18-ish minute satirical protest song against the Vietnam War. It’s hard to describe but the song evidently is a grossly exaggerated telling of something that actually happened on Thanksgiving Day 1965 when he was visiting friends who lived in a deconsecrated church in Great Barrington, near Stockbridge. Basically, they had trash that needed to go to the town dump. They carried it over in a VW bus only to find the dump was closed for the holiday. When they noticed a random pile of trash somewhere nearby, they dumped it with that stuff and drive off.
They eventually get arrested and fined. It was 1965. What can I say?
This story takes up several minutes of the song but isn’t what the song is about as he shifts gears into the draft office where he’s trying to get out of being sent to Vietnam.
Where does Alice’s Restaurant come in?
The chorus. It comes in on the chorus which is a catchy tune that sounds like a fun jingle for how you can get anything you want at Alice’s Restaurant.
You see, Alice was one of the friends who lived in the church. She owned a restaurant in town
It’s impossible to describe but if you have eighteen odd minutes to listen to a song, it is an experience. You can click here to listen if you like. This song actually spent sixteen weeks on the Billboard 200 when it was released in 1967.
So, fast forward to the nineties when Arlo bought his friends’ deconsecrated church where all this started and turned it into the Guthrie Center. They were closed when we rolled up on a drizzly evening but I still grabbed a few pictures from beneath the big trees out front.
Here’s a quote from their website:
Arlo Guthrie sought to provide a place to bring together individuals for spiritual service, and founded the Guthrie Center, an Interfaith Church, in 1991. It fulfills Arlo’s aim to meet the ongoing needs of the community, and support cultural preservation and educational achievement. The Trinity Church where the song “The Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” began and where the movie “Alice’s Restaurant” was filmed, continues to service the local and international community.
You can learn more about the Guthrie Center and see their upcoming events on their website. Click here for that.
Ok. So that’s all pretty cool. But in the mayhem of all the things we were doing, I failed to put 2 and 2 together that the restaurant might still be around. After all, in that area, they do take care of their things.
Long story short (yes, I am aware it’s too late for that) Alice’s Restaurant isn’t there anymore but the space is and it’s located in the back part of the building that also once housed Norman Rockwell’s first Stockbridge studio.
I don’t believe that it’s operating as a restaurant at this time but there’s still a sign pointing that way. I noticed the sign in a photo after I came home.
It’s just barely visible but the bottom part says “Alice’s Restaurant entrance.” This was the fourth photo that I made in the great state of Massachusetts. I literally had just gotten out of the car but failed to read the sign.
Friends, I missed my opportunity to head down the alley and geek out in front of the famed Alice’s Restaurant which got a song named after it even though the song wasn’t about the restaurant.
Ha!
So, there you go, friends. This is why we pay attention. This is why we read signs and do more research before we hit the ground in a new place. In my defense, I was exhausted by the time this trip came around and didn’t really care where I was as long as it wasn’t here.
But still. Half the fun is in the anticipation and half the fun is in the discovery when you’re there. Balance is important.
Also, this is why we talk to locals. Museum docents know where the best stuff is kept. Waiters know where the locals go. And sometimes dressing room employees are excited about something you didn’t think to seek out.
If you’re interested, the song was turned into what is by all accounts a pretty terrible movie in 1969. I sometimes see it in thrift stores and am told that it is sometimes available on streaming services around Thanksgiving.
Do with that what you will.
Come back tomorrow for a story that is less unhinged. I promise to stay out of any rabbit holes!
Our first glimpse of Stockbridge, Massachusetts came as the sun was slipping below the horizon. Rocking chairs on the porch of The Red Lion Inn were all occupied but the sidewalks appeared empty.
This is the kind of town where you might joke that they roll up the sidewalks at supper time and there is some element of truth to that joke. The thing is, that quiet and slowness is part of the undeniable charm of the place.
The sky was pink with streaks of orange as we traveled through town, admiring the tree lined streets and magnificent old stone churches. We stayed in nearby Great Barrington and got to enjoy a fiery orange sky along the wooded route just before the sky descended into pure darkness.
This is a place where you can still see the stars at night. It was all so mesmerizing I didn’t think to take a single photo to remember it by.
It was chilly that evening as we lugged all our stuff into the Marriott which would be our home away from home for the week. The next day, we delighted at the mist rising over the mountains in the early light.
We had tickets for the Norman Rockwell Museum and studio at 11 a.m. but first we went for a stroll around Stockbridge.
Here we found a couple of older gentlemen already sitting in the Adirondack chairs outside the library and a cafe packed with early diners. A few fallen leaves gathered at the feet of the stone lions outside the inn and enormous old homes in groves of trees beckoned for our attention.
There was a good bit of traffic that morning but motorists are mostly courteous to pedestrians. Plus, the sidewalks are wide with plenty of shade making for truly pleasant walking conditions.
Everything is old but it’s well tended and there’s a sense of respect for what has always been. Taking care of what you have is a way of life and one that is increasingly rare in this country.
The sign outside this place said 1850.
I liked it.
I liked it all.
I liked the old cemetery in town and the character of old houses. I liked the way delivery truck drivers held traffic so we could cross the street. I liked the way store clerks so carefully wrapped our treasures because we were clearly visiting and needed to get them home safe. I liked the way things are so laid back literally no one cares what you do as long as you’re not hurting anyone.
The place is calm and calming. There’s history everywhere you look and people who, in their very rural laidback ways, are glad to make your day better.
There’s a reason why Norman Rockwell stayed. There’s a reason why so many people who live there are transplants. It feels like your hometown even when you have been there for just a minute.
Tomorrow I’ll take you to one of my favorite places in town. Hint: it’s an old church. You had to know I would find one of those on this trip!