Tyringham Historical Commission
Oral History of Tyringham, Massachusetts
Oral History of Tyringham, Massachusetts is a collection of over seventy recorded interviews by and with Tyringham residents, from the 1970s through 2011, sponsored by the Hop Brook Community Club. The purpose of the interviews was to collect stories based on themes – e.g., teenage jobs, pets, fires, snowstorms, etc. -- for the town's annual newsletter, Tyringham Topics. The by-line was (and is) "Published annually by the Hop Brook Community Club to support our town and enrich our community."
These interviews took place in residents' homes, their pickups, and over the phone. Ladies from the Hop Brook Community Club would then transcribe and submit them to be included in the annual issue. The recordings are remarkable in their spontaneity, sound effects (dogs barking, teakettles whistling, wives piping in their thoughts...uninvited), and purity of rural life in a New England community.
This project was completed with help from The Housatonic Heritage Oral History Center at Berkshire Community College, a project of the Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area (Housatonic Heritage) that serves Western Massachusetts and Northwest Connecticut. The Center helps people plan and implement sustainable oral history projects, as well as properly care for their new and existing collections.
These interviews took place in residents' homes, their pickups, and over the phone. Ladies from the Hop Brook Community Club would then transcribe and submit them to be included in the annual issue. The recordings are remarkable in their spontaneity, sound effects (dogs barking, teakettles whistling, wives piping in their thoughts...uninvited), and purity of rural life in a New England community.
This project was completed with help from The Housatonic Heritage Oral History Center at Berkshire Community College, a project of the Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area (Housatonic Heritage) that serves Western Massachusetts and Northwest Connecticut. The Center helps people plan and implement sustainable oral history projects, as well as properly care for their new and existing collections.
