Local history walk to celebrate the women of Fitchburg

FITCHBURG — The Friends of Fitchburg Cemeteries will present a Spring Equinox Local History Walk beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 20, at Forest Hill Cemetery.

In celebration of International Women’s Month, the theme of the walk is “Fitchburg’s Fabulous Females.” This is a partnership event with the Women’s Fund of North Central Mass Community Foundation and Friends of Fitchburg Cemeteries.

“Join us and learn about many of the women who shaped Fitchburg’s history,” said organizer Sally Cragin, who serves as a Fitchburg City Councilor-at-large, and will present the walk with researcher/genealogist Eunice Halbedel.

“We will start with artist Adeline Adams, a writer and sculptor, and move on to the Crocker family,” Cragin added. “Barbara and Fay Bigelow Crocker were instrumental in creating Fitchburg institutions such as the Lucy Helen Hospital, Stratton Players, the Girls’ Friendly Society at Christ Church, and many others.”

Barbara Crocker had the vision when Fitchburg was about to celebrate its bicentennial in 1964 to gather writers and researchers and compile the story of our town, in “The City and the River,” and “Around the World in Fitchburg.”

Poet and Artist Sybil Deane Fairbanks was the earliest preservationist in Fitchburg, who raised the alarm when the gravestones in our Revolutionary-era cemetery, Dean Hill were in danger of decay.

World War II veteran Isabel Demmon had a remarkable career in India, and the Far East, in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps. She later moved to Rockport where she founded an art gallery and wrote poetry.

Participants are asked to meet at the main entrance of the cemetery, located on Mt. Elam Rd.

“We will walk from Mt. Elam Road, over the hill to the Rollstone Street side of Forest Hill Cemetery,” Cragin said. “The event is -pay-what-you-can’ and all are welcome.”

The Friends of Fitchburg Cemeteries is supported by Trustees of Public Burial Grounds, Cemetery Commission, Fitchburg Historical Society and Fitchburg Cultural Council.

For more information, or to RSVP, please call 978-320-1335 or e-mail friendsoffitchburgcemeteries@gmail.com.