Page 11 - BusinessWest March 17, 2025

“It’s an incredibly interesting history.”
will be showcased on tour — seven in all, including the four Carnegie libraries — has been an intriguing and rewarding experience.
“I was unaware that we had Carnegie libraries, and
I have a minor obsession with Carnegie libraries in
New York City because they had hidden apartments, which, unfortunately, the Springfield ones don’t, because they were not 24-hour libraries, like New York’s,” she explained. “It was interesting to do the research to figure out how they made the decisions to create branch librar- ies, who got one first, and how they funded it — and also how they took the original Springfield Library, which was a private library, and made it something that was open to the public; it’s an incredibly interesting history.”
Jeanne Fontaine, travel coordinator for Springfield Museums, a partner on many SPT initiatives, agreed, noting that the upcoming bus tour dovetails effectively with the Springfield Museums’ own program of monthly day trips to other museums and destinations, such as the Newport Flower Show and the Metropolitan Opera.
The most recent such trip was to the American Heri-
tage Museum in Hudson, where visitors can explore the nation’s conflicts, from the Revolutionary War to today.
Swallow said the bus tour is another initiative undertaken by the SPT to bring attention to city landmarks and encourage preserva- tion of sites with historic or architectural significance, or both.
Others include its popular Second Saturday Walking Tours, which originate at the Museums and focus on the downtown area, an annual walking tour of Springfield Cemetery, and a winter lec- ture series.
There’s also the annual Historic Homes Tour. Previously a bus tour that took participants to different corners of the city, it is now a walking tour focused annually on a specific neighborhood; this year it will be McKnight, said Swallow, adding that the homes tour is how many long-time SPT members first became engaged with the organization.
From left, Rachel Gravel, Marilyn Sutin, Jeanne Fontaine, and Erica Swallow at the bust of Andrew Carnegie inside Springfield Central Library.
History Lessons
That was the case with Marilyn Sutin, who first went on the tour in 1979, became heavily involved with the Springfield Preservation Trust, and is still volunteering for the group 45 years later,
Like Swallow, she said the libraries tour is another way to bring Springfield’s past into the present and encourage others to get involved in preservation efforts.
Tickets for the bus tour can be purchased on Eventbrite; the cost is $20 for SPT and Springfield Museums members, and $25 for non-members. All proceeds go toward the trust’s mission of historic preservation in Springfield. BW
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