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BURDETT MANSION

Home of

Woburn Historical Society

7 Mishawum Road

PO Box 91

Woburn, MA  01801

781.933.5002

Info@WoburnHistoricalSociety.com

*   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *

OFFICE HOURS:

Mondays and Wednesdays

10 am to 2 pm

Saturdays

10 am to 12 pm

Bill and ​Joyce Cummings

The Society is extremely grateful to be a recipient of a Cummings Foundation Grant.

Thank you to these Woburn businesses for their generous support!

SPONSORS

George's Auto Body

Lynch-Cantillon Funeral Home

J. Mul​kerin Realty

J. Sallese & Sons, Inc.


BENEFACTORS

Kiwanis Club of Woburn

Lawton Real Estate, Inc.

Little Folks Day School


SUPPORTERS

Ellen Baugh

Kevin J. Greeley

Andrew Libsett

McLaughlin-Dello Russo Funeral Service

Tocci

WHS YouTube Channel

As part of the Woburn Historical Society's 15th Anniversary, we created the 

Woburn Historical Society YouTube Channel 

where you can watch our past programs, PowerPoint presentations and award-winning DVDs, 

on-demand and at your convenience. 

Make sure to subscribe to our Channel so you won't miss any new uploads!

More videos will be added periodically.

VIDEOS

Visit The Woburn Historical Society's YouTube Channel

Click on the button below the video you'd like to watch to be taken to that particular video.

Back to School

September 2009

1:14:59

A PowerPoint presentation by Sue Ellen Holland of the history of Woburn’s school system, from the first “dame schools,” an early form of private education; the district schools of the 1700’s; the Centre Grammar School built in 1713; the building booms of the 1850’s and the 1960’s; to the new Woburn Memorial High School.

A Conversation with

"The Fighter"

Irish Micky Ward

April 2011

1:16:58

Kathy Lucero conducts an interview with Micky Ward, the Lowell welterweight professional boxer whose story was captured in the Academy Award winning movie, The Fighter. Short film clips of his most memorable fights are shown.

Count Rumford

The Life and Legacy of Benjamin Thompson

November 2009

0:43:19

A film on the life of Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford, the famous statesman, scholar, soldier, scientist and spy.





The Gelly: 97 Years of Atlantic Gelatin

September 2016

0:49:51

A documentary about the Atlantic Gelatin Co., one of the areas largest employers for people living in the Woburn, Winchester and Stoneham, MA area. A nostalgic look back at the humble beginnings and the changes to personnel and plant equipment highlights a time when the company was considered the worlds largest supplier of gelatin.

The History of 

Howard Johnson's

November 2014

1:06:20

Anthony Sammarco presents a PowerPoint presentation on the history of Howard Johnson’s. With its orange roofed ice cream stands and restaurants, HoJo’s was popular for introducing 28 flavors of ice cream, the “Tendersweet” clam strips, and a menu of delicious and traditional foods that families eagerly enjoyed.

A History of the Woburn Fire Department

Part 1

April 2010

0:53:36

A dynamic film on the history of the Woburn Fire Department, promises to be an eye-opening look at an institution that has unflinchingly served our City. Archival photos, first-person interviews and historical records trace the department’s roots and chronicle the changes in what it means to be a firefighter today.

A History of the Woburn Fire Department

Part 2

April 2010

1:05:55

A dynamic film on the history of the Woburn Fire Department, promises to be an eye-opening look at an institution that has unflinchingly served our City. Archival photos, first-person interviews and historical records trace the department’s roots and chronicle the changes in what it means to be a firefighter today.

A History of the Woburn Police Department: To Serve and Protect

Part 1

June 2008

1:04:22

The history of the  Woburn Police Department from its inception in 1848 to 2008, using a combination of archival photographs and city records along with interviews of retired officers. Retired Chief Philip Mahoney and former Mayor Thomas McLaughlin, a retired Lt. Colonel in the State Police, were also interviewed.

A History of the Woburn Police Department: To Serve and Protect

Part 2

June 2008

0:49:34

The history of the Woburn Police Department from its inception in 1848 to 2008, using a combination of archival photographs and city records along with interviews of retired officers. Retired Chief Philip Mahoney and former Mayor Thomas McLaughlin, a retired Lt. Colonel in the State Police, were also interviewed.

Horn Pond Day

June 2017

0:09:56

This fun family festival was one of the events celebrating Woburn's 375th Anniversary, including a family fishing derby, spin art, free kayak use on Horn Pond, and more on a beautiful New England summer day.



In the Cause of Liberty: Woburn in the Civil War

December 2013

1:36:25

This film chronicles the lives of Woburn soldiers and the battles they were in; Gettysburg, Weldon Railroad, Petersburg, etc., made in collaboration with the Trustees and contributions of the Woburn Public Library, with additional historical contributions by Leon Basile. 


A TELLY AWARD

WINNING FILM

The Merry Minstrels

Raise a Glass to 

St. Patrick

March 2019

1:12:15

Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with song and dance with the Merry Minstrels.








The Middlesex Canal: Woburn's First Interstate

February 2012

1:20:45

This program, presented jointly with The Burbeen Lecture Series and the Woburn Historical Society, includes archival photos and documents from the Woburn Public Library and follows the planning, construction and operation of the canal (linking Boston and points north), to its ultimate demise. Using modern satellite technology, the audience will take a tour of the canal over today’s Woburn.

Old Ironsides:

Our National Treasure

October 2014

1:02:46

This film depicts the USS Constitution’s role and Woburn’s participation in the War of 1812. The film features an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the ship arranged by Woburn resident, Petty Officer Mark Comeiro. 


Photo courtesy of the

USS Constitution Museum Collection

Play Ball!

Woburn Baseball during the 1860s to 1960s

June 2011

1:23:19

Learn how Woburn’s children caught the spirit of baseball as it became ingrained in the life and culture of our City through early high school teams, City leagues, PONY league, American Legion league, and the start of Little League in 1952.


Photo of the North Woburn Tigers courtesy of the Ferullo Family

Preserving Woburn's Past Using Ground Penetrating Radar

May 2017

0:16:42

The First Burial Ground (1642-1749) is hallowed ground that houses the final resting place of Woburn's early settlers, military heroes, church leaders and oldest families. The Woburn Historical Society documented 249 remaining gravestones in 2017, and with the use of Ground Penetrating Radar, another 430 unmarked graves were located.

Rag Rock to Okinowa:

A Memoir from 

Robert L. Martin

May 2014

1:18:22

Sue Ellen Holland presents a PowerPoint program illustrating her father, Bob Martin’s memoir with an account of what he witnessed, felt, lost and gained from his 18th birthday and enlistment with the United States Marine Corp to the point at which the US dropped the atomic bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima.

Rededication of the 

Cowl from the 

USS Maine

June 2016

0:08:57

Rededication ceremony for the new housing for the Cowl from the battleship, the USS Maine, displayed on Woburn Common.  The project was paid for by the Friends of Woburn Veterans and constructed by Bob Shure of Skylight Studios.

Remembering the Shopping Experience of Days Gone By

June 2012

0:38:55

Sue Ellen Holland hosts a PowerPoint presentation about the old stores that used to line Main Street and beyond in Woburn, bringing back many memories.

Silent Film Fest

with Live Piano Accompaniment

March 2015

1:52:41

Join in on the fun as the Society revives the era of Silent Movies...a time when there was no TV, and radio was not yet perfected! Our host, pianist and entertainer Richard Hughes, will transport us back 100 years showing three vintage silent comedy films while providing live authentic piano accompaniment.

Stealing Rembrandts

March 2014

1:31:32

Anthony Amore, Director of Security at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, presented a program on several thefts of Rembrandt paintings from Massachusetts museums.

This program was presented by the Woburn Public Library as part of the Woburn Reads Program and sponsored by the Woburn Historical Society

Striking a Blow for Freedom: 

Woburn Patriots

June 2014

0:50:34

This film depicts the rich and patriotic history of Woburn’s founding fathers and the traditions that carried through to Woburn’s patriots who fought for freedom in the Revolutionary War.  

Voices from Vietnam

May 2018

1:42:15

This film focuses on the personal experiences of five Woburn residents who served in the Vietnam War in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. Paul Devlin (US Marines), Larry Guiseppe (US Marines), Frank Haubner (US Army), Tom Quigley (US Marines) and Dave Wall (US Marines) recount their experiences of enlistment, boot camp and deployment…some of the experiences were funny, some tragic…some very emotional.

Woburn's 

375th  Anniversary

Event Review

January - December 2017

0:21:13

A short film highlighting the great events held over the course of 2017 as Woburn celebrated its 375th Anniversary.

Woburn: From Family Businesses to the Industrial Age

June 2018

1:15:06

This PowerPoint presentation explores the evolution of Woburn’s business community from the small family-owned shops along Main Street to today’s large business campuses along Routes 93 and 95, followed by an interview with Bill Cummings, Founder of Cummings Properties and New Horizons.

Woburn:

A Farming Community

May 2011

1:27:23

Reminisce about Woburn’s agricultural past and the proud families who owned and worked the truck farms, greenhouses, dairies and piggeries. Family names such as Cummings, Shannon, Gentile, Crawford, Spence, Schneider, Lundquist, Johnson, and Everberg are but a few that made up our Woburn farming history.


A TELLY AWARD

WINNING FILM

Woburn:

A Leather City

February 2007

0:37:46

This film vividly describes the history of the tannery industry and how it became the economic and social background of Woburn for two centuries.


A TELLY AWARD

WINNING FILM

Woburn:

High Times & High Jinx

November 2015

1:02:02

overview

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