Those Griswolds

Joseph Griswold Jr., founder of Colrain’s cotton mill.

“Those Griswolds” will be the subject of a program of the Colrain Historical Society program Thursday, Sept. 13, in Joan McQuade’s barn across from the Pitt House. The presentation by Prentice Crosier at 7:30 p.m. will follow the business meeting at 7 p.m.

When 20-year-old Joseph Griswold Jr. set up a shop making doors, sashes and blinds on the North River (just north of the current location of Marty’s Repair) in 1828, he was founding a dynasty and a cotton industry in Colrain that employed much of the town’s population for more than 100 years.
A prodigious worker who was said to have laid 7,000 shingles single-handedly in one day, as well as a former teacher, inventor, and ingenious industrialist, Griswold was an extraordinary man. Sons and grandsons would follow him in the business, which expanded to mills in Turners Falls. Despite fire, floods and economic crises, they became the wealthiest and most influential family ever in Colrain.

Brick cornice salvaged from the Griswold cotton mill in Griswoldville.

In founding the Griswold Memorial Library in 1908, Joseph III memorialized his father and mother, who bore 13 children while sharing the work in the early years of the business.

Griswold Memorial Library, opened in 1908.

Plaque commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Griswold Memirial Library in 2008.

At the business meeting at 7:00 pm, members of the Historical Society will discuss the Pitt House property situation, now that the town has voted to convey the property to the Historical Society. (Article in the Greenfield Recorder.) They will also discuss fundraising plans for a handicap-accessible ramp and other needed repairs. The meeting and talk are open to the public, and refreshments will be served.

For more information, call Joan McQuade at 413-624-8818.

Benefit Concert - Save the Date

With a nod to Colrain’s Scotch-Irish heritage and performance by a Colrain native, the Colrain Historical Society is planning a fundraising concert at the Shelburne Community Center Saturday, October 20, at 7 p.m. Taking the stage with acoustic guitar and Scotch-Irish traditional music will be Ikey’s Crossing, locally known as Martha Hollister Aschmann and her husband, James. The duo have performed the popular program across upstate New York and in Canada. 

James and Martha

Martha’s brother Kevin Hollister will provide some levity as emcee. The Historical Society welcomes support from Stoneman Brewery, West County Winery, Pine Hill Orchards and Catamount Country Store. 

Seats for the event will be limited to a capacity of 125. Tickets available soon will be on a sliding scale, $10-$20.  Contact Belden for more info: belden37@verizon.net

Tickets are available at:

• Hager's Farm Market
• Catamount Country Store
• Boswell's Books
• Nany Dole Books & Ephemera

Some background on the performers:

After spending his boyhood in the New York City area, James Aschmann went to DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. There he was in the ‘Men of Note’, a 12-member singing group affiliated with the College of Music. He was also in three plays at the college theater, two of which were musicals. Martha Hollister grew up in the Berkshire Hills of Northwestern Massachusetts. After earning a BFA degree in Art from Lake Erie College in Painesville, Ohio, she married James in March 1975. The following year the couple purchased a farm in Ellisburg. In addition to operating their farm, Martha and James raised three children and are now the proud grandparents of five.

Starting in the early 1980s, for over 30 years James sang in a duo with John McFadden. They played at various places around the North Country, most prominently for many years at the Irish Fest in Watertown. After retiring from farming in 2011, the Aschmanns have finally been able to devote more time to music and art. In 2015 they started their own duo: ‘Ikeys Crossing’. So far the main emphasis has been on Irish and Scottish music but they intend to expand their repertoire in the future.

Recently James expounded on their music: “As a boy, music was constantly in our home. My mother is a classically trained pianist; my father, a dedicated singer, was in 13 Broadway shows during the late 1950s and early 60s. My godfather, Charles Rule, was a Broadway actor and singer for approximately 45 years. Though definitely benefiting from sporadic instruction on singing from my father and godfather, I truly believe that most of my appreciation for music and love of singing occurred through osmosis. Thanks to my parents, I was inundated with good music throughout my childhood, thus enriching virtually every day of my entire life.”

“Music was also part of Martha’s family life. Her father played piano and organ; she and her five siblings all sang in the church choir. Martha’s parents got her first guitar using green stamps! During high school and college she played and sang mostly music that was popular at the time. During the next several decades, primarily occupied with farming and children, Martha still managed to play guitar and sing on a casual basis although her main focus was elsewhere. For her 60th birthday our children and I got her a very nice guitar. Since then she has been inspired to play and sing regularly. We get great joy making music together and feel the momentum building.”