Tyringham resident John Hanson will give a talk on Early Epitaphs in the Becket Center Cemetery at the First Congregational Church (22 Y.M.C.A. Rd, Becket-off Route 8/Main St). Masks are required inside.

After the talk, John will lead a walk through the Becket Center Cemetery.

Hanson has been collecting and studying early New England epitaph verse for years. In this talk, he will share some outstanding verses on old stones in the cemetery and discuss their sources, including Scripture, hymnody, poetry, and epitaphs made-to-order for a particular individual. The talk will consider how eighteenth-century Berkshire residents might have accessed the source texts, far from the centers of commerce and publishing. Hanson will also discuss what these very personal choices tell us about early New Englanders’ attitudes towards life and death.

John Hanson is a Williamstown native, a business executive in Cambridge, and third-generation homeowner in Tyringham.

Sponsored by the Becket Historical Commission with the:
Becket Arts Center
Becket Athenaeum
Becket Cemetery Commission

This event will be recorded and posted here.

This program is funded by grants from the Becket Cultural Council, the Central Berkshire Fund of the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Fairfield County's Community Foundation, and Neenah Tech Charitable Giving.