Preview of Next Month’s Event

Our thanks to Dennis Picard for a fascinating talk about Hessian soldiers in the American Revolution and their presence locally. As you can see in the photo above, he dressed the part and also brought some historic artifacts to examine. Many in the audience commented how much they enjoyed his lecture.

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We are very pleased to announce the presentation for next month: the installation and unveiling of our new display case for the Inshaw Rifle.  The Historical Society is deeply grateful to the Chicopee Public Library for hosting this historic piece on permanent loan to share with the community.
 
Ms. Laura Bovee, Director of the Chicopee Public Library, will also speak at the event, and we thank her for her participation and support of this project.
 
We are also indebted to two members of our group, Atty. James F. Gregory, for his help in guiding us through the process of obtaining permission from City departments to place the Inshaw Rifle at the library; and Mr. Larry Gwozdz, for helping us obtain funding from the American Society of Arms Collectors.
 
The talk will take place in the Bazan Community Room of the library, but the museum display case will be located in the local history room.   Everyone will have a chance to see the Inshaw Rifle in its new home, and for many, this may be the first time for them to actually visit the local history room, which is an excellent source not only for Chicopee history, but for material and help to work on family genealogy.  For those who have never visited this room, it will be a fine opportunity to become acquainted with this important archive.
 
The Inshaw Rifle installation event will take place Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. at the Chicopee Public Library, 449 Front Street.  The event is free and open to the public.
 
The display case was manufactured by the Small Corporation of Greenfield, which specializes in archival exhibit cases and other conservation products for museums and libraries.
 
The funds for purchasing this case came in part from the sale of our book, Richard B. Inshaw: A Craftsman’s Life and Work in Chicopee, Massachusetts and the sponsor ads that appear in the book, but the chief source of funding came from a generous grant from the American Society of Arms Collectors.  We thank them most sincerely for helping us achieve this long-anticipated goal.