For many years, Shelburne had a Historical Society, a group of dedicated residents who gathered, preserved and told the stories of the town of Shelburne, its early years and its growth and development. When Shelburne celebrated its 250th anniversary last summer, the energetic volunteers who rallied to ensure that the historic occasion was well-celebrated, felt that it was time to re-energize that worthy organization. The past few months have been busy ones for planning, organizing and creating the structure for a new historical society in our town.
On Tuesday, May 20 at 7 p.m., the Shelburne Historical Society will hold its inaugural meeting, an opportunity for everyone in town to become part of the society (since they are all part of the history), and to learn about a Shelburne woman who played an important part in the history of Shelburne and America.
The inaugural meeting will be held in Shelburne Town Hall. Julie Eldridge Edwards, Curator of Collections at Shelburne Farms, will be the featured speaker, sharing the story of Aileen Osborn Webb, whose recognition of the importance of crafts, based on her own love of making pottery, wood sculpting and painting, led her to play a key role in the founding of the Shelburne Craft School, and on a national stage, the founding of the American Craft Council.
At the inaugural meeting, Shelburne-born David Webster will share some historical highlights, Dorothea Penar will lead a discussion encouraging everyone present to contribute ideas for future meetings of the SHS, and Judy Frazer will explain the benefits of membership in the newly activated organization.
And for anyone who cannot attend on May 20, or who might like to hear the presentation again, the inaugural meeting will be repeated with the same program on Saturday, June 7 at 9:30 in the morning at the Town Hall, with an added feature: a tour of Shelburne Craft School following the meeting.

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