For a visual history lesson on life in Needham’s past, the best place to visit is the Needham Historical Society, 1147 Central Ave., which features exhibits of clothing, books, tools and other items from days gone by.

History of the building

The Historical Society is located in a combined building—the old Matthias Mills House makes up one part, while the “Little Red Schoolhouse” sits on another side, connected by a modern addition that allows for modern plumbing, heating and cooling systems and an elevator to make the building fully handicapped-accessible.

The Historical Society moved to the new building around 2005 after its old quarters became too cramped.

“We were looking for a new location because the Glendoon House [officially known as the Kingsbury-Whitaker House] was no longer really big enough to meet our needs and it had no parking and was hard to get to and we couldn’t make it handicapped-accessible,” said Gloria Greis, Needham Historical Society executive director.

The developer of a housing project near Newman Elementary School was looking to remove a historic home, the Matthias Mills House, to make room for new houses and suggested the Historical Society might be interested in using the building.

“The town allowed him to move it off the property onto the Newman lot while he was doing construction work,” Greis said.

Originally, the house was one of three built for the sons of Oliver Mills, who lived on the corner of Great Plain and Central avenues where the Presbyterian church is now located.

“[Oliver Mills] divided the property and built each son a house. So this was built in 1834 when Matthias Mills got married,” Greis said.

At the May 2003 annual Town Meeting, voters allowed the Historical Society to lease a portion of the Newman school property, and the Matthias Mill House stayed.

It was eventually joined by the last remaining one-room schoolhouse in Needham.

Originally known as the Upper Falls School, serving students in what is now the Eliot School district, the schoolhouse was originally located on Webster Street where it runs into Central Avenue.

“It was built in 1842 and in 1870 it was too small and too shabby and they sold it,” Greis said. “Somebody actually bought it and turned it into a little house, and it remained a house until 2001, which is why it didn’t get torn down. It was the last remaining one-room school in Needham.”

After a developer bought the property, the Needham Historical Commission and the Board of Selectmen organized a group called “Save Our Schoolhouse" to see about buying the structure.

“They succeeded in saving the building and put it on the St. Mary Street pumping station property for safekeeping for a couple of years while we figured out what to do with it,” Greis said.

Educational opportunities

Eventually, the schoolhouse was brought to the Newman property and connected to the Mills House. Today, that part of the structure still resembles a school, from its bright red paint on the outside to the chalkboard and old wood stove inside. Every year, local third graders attend a special program in the school where they learn about what it was like in an 1850s classroom.

“[The third graders] come prepared for a school day the way that a kid going to school in a one-room schoolhouse in Needham in 1850 would have done,” Greis said. “In class [before the program], they’re talking about manners and expectations, about how you related to your teacher in those days […] and general rules of behavior such as not speaking without being spoken to and not leaving your seat without permission.”

The program leaders, a mix of Historical Society staff and Needham school educators, also encourage students to dress in materials that would have been around in the 19th century—cotton, linen, wool, even jeans are OK, Greis said. They also pack items in their lunches that kids in 1850 might have eaten—which means no Oreo cookies, fruit snacks or juice boxes.

Along with the third grade program, the Historical Society recently launched a fifth grade program, which gives students the experience of participating in a 1775 Town Meeting. They review an actual warrant from Needham’s 1775 meeting and debate real issues such as whether pigs should be allowed to run loose on the Town Common and whether to join the Committees of Correspondence, essentially joining the growing rebellion against the British government.

The Historical Society also is working on a fourth grade program, which may focus on Native American history in Needham, Greis said.

Take a tour

The Needham Historical Society museum is generally open to visitors Tuesday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to noon. You also can call ahead to arrange an individual or group visit. For information, call 781-455-8860 or visit needhamhistory.org.

Exhibits do rotate. This summer, the Historical Society staff is working on a new exhibit upstairs that will present Needham’s history in the Civil War. The 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War was in April, so the exhibit is definitely timely. Greis said she hopes to have it ready for viewing by early fall, before the Historical Society's first educational programs begin in October.

The exhibit will answer the question “Did anyone in Needham ever own slaves?”, follow the history of abolition in town and provide information about the 44th Massachusetts Infantry, the regiment in which several Needham residents fought.

“We have some interesting information about the regiment and what it did during the war—correspondence, photos, memorabilia,” Greis said. “We’ll have a little run-up about abolition, which was a fairly strong movement in Needham, especially through the Congregational and Unitarian churches.”

The Civil War exhibit should run at least through the year, Greis said.

On the first floor, there are two main rooms of exhibits. One features costumes and clothing from Needham’s past—the current theme, “Needham Dresses Up,” offers a look at wedding costumes, hats and other elegant wear.

“We actually have hundreds of garments of various kinds and we’re sorting through them,” Greis said. “We’ll rotate them out and pick another theme—maybe kids' clothing or uniforms, something like that.”

The second room, which features what Greis calls “Needham’s greatest hits,” offers a mix of items from stone tools and arrowheads made by Native Americans in the area to nature journals, paintings and other pieces from the past. This exhibit, too, will be refreshed over time, Greis said.

And if you want to take something home with you, there are Needham postcards, ornaments, stickers and other items for sale in the Historical Society gift shop plus a special shopping area with antiques available for purchase, with proceeds benefiting the society.

Needham online

Can’t get out? The Needham Historical Society has a variety of history articles and photos available on its Web site, needhamhistory.org. Learn about public health reform in the 1800s, Needham’s ghost stories or “The Secret History of the Needham-Wellesley [Football] Game.” You also can download a copy of the Needham Gazette, which shares articles on history items (this month, it’s “Knitters in Needham”) as well as Historical Society news.

Pansy Day

Every April, the Needham Historical Society helps bring spring to Needham with its annual Pansy Day Festival. Visitors can tour the museum, enjoy activities and shop from a beautiful selection of pansies, with proceeds benefiting the Historical Society.

Why pansies? Check out the Historical Society’s article for the answer.

Temporary parking note

While nearby Newman Elementary School is undergoing construction (June 20 through about the first week of September), parking will be limited to a small strip clearly marked to the right of the entrance driveway.