winter in new england

A Winter Getaway

The holidays are in the rear-view mirror and spring is a long way off.  It’s winter, and if you’re a snow lover or not, you’ll want to take a break at some point during these long, cold months. Here in Deerfield, winter is a time when everything seems to slow down. The snow that blankets … Read More

The Holidays Are Just Around the Corner

It seems like we start hearing about the holidays from the retail world earlier and earlier every year. More and more it’s before Halloween that we start to see sales for decorations and holiday movies on TV. Needless to say, now that the calendar has turned to November, it’s time to get ready for the … Read More

Deerfield in the fall

Fall is in Full Swing!

It felt like autumn would never get here, as the weather was very warm, humid and rainy for the first few weeks of the season here in New England. The trees have even been a bit delayed in their annual display of color, but we’re finally starting to see some pretty colors and some crisp, … Read More

Things to Do in Western Mass-Visitor Center

So Many Places to Go and Things to Do in Western Mass!

How is it the middle of August already? Where did the time go? With the last weeks of summer ahead of us, we were thinking about all the great things to do in Western Mass (and when we can make the time to get to all these places!)  If you are looking for great last-minute … Read More

Deerfield Inn at dusk

Duties of Innkeepers, 1810

Historic Deerfield Inc recently acquired a broadsheet from about 1810, issued by the state of Massachusetts, entitled Duties of Innkeepers. We are in dereliction of quite a few of these duties – we fail on the no dice and cards about the house, we definitely allow dancing and revelry, and we are sorry, but there … Read More

Oriole perched on a branch

The Pioneer Valley and Birders Go Together

The Pioneer Valley is a hot spot for birders. Fans gather every year in the spring for  hawk watching, especially along the ridge line at Mount Tom in Easthampton, and the muddy road down to the south meadows in Deerfield was clogged when a young snowy owl landed up here for a few weeks. The … Read More

Overview of Deerfield MA

New Exhibitions at Memorial Hall Museum

The Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association was founded in Deerfield, Massachusetts in 1870 as the very first historical society in Western Massachusetts. It is a charming three-storied building with 19 rooms of art, culture and history, all housed in the original 1798 Deerfield Academy building, acquired by antiquarian and historian George Sheldon to house the collection … Read More

Woman and child churning butter

Practical Housekeeping :: Tips from 1883

Here are some rather charming housekeeping hints from a book called Practical Housekeeping, Buckeye Publishing Co., 1883 that I picked up at one of the super secondhand bookshops around here. These hints seem as good now in 2016 as they were in the year before our Deerfield bed and breakfast was built. And read on down … Read More