The Elm House hotel on the Common in 1875. (Photos courtesy of Harvard Historical Society)
The General Store and center schoolhouse around 1900.
What buildings moved? What burned? Why are things the way they are? Learn answers to these questions and more on Sunday, April 30, 3 p.m. at the Harvard Historical Society, 215 Sill River Road, in an interactive program titled “A Common History: The Story of the Town Center.” Visitors are welcome at 2 p.m. to view a new exhibit; the program will begin at 3 p.m., followed by refreshments and conversation. The main format of the program will be a series of town meetings, starting in 1732, in which “citizens of the time” will talk about their values and livelihoods. Municipal buildings, stores, churches, and homes will appear on a map at the time they were built, and visitors will see how Harvard’s center changed over the decades. Admission is free, but donations are welcome.
