Attractions Near the Mohawk Trail

Located in a Historic Mill Building on the Green River has seen continued industrial use for three centuries.

This museum tells the story of the rich industrial history of the area.

Visit our family friendly exhibits – open Saturday afternoons 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm during the summer or schedule an appointment to visit another time.

Exhibits of Early Cutlery, Tools, Gages, Machinery and other products from the area.

Main Gallery is a permanent exhibit telling the core story of Franklin County's rich industrial history. Take a chronological tour starting with the development of America's first industrial scale Cutlery manufacturing through to current day high precision manufacturing that carrys on this heritage.

Technology - Transportation & Trade - Early Water Power History in the Small Hill Towns

Water Power made Franklin County hum with industrial activity in the 18th, 19th and early 20 centuries. Technology - Transportation & Trade is an exhibit that's part of the Main Gallery also. The exhibit focusses on the smaller hill towns of the region which were the first to adapt mechanical water power from the abundant small streams and rivers. In 1905 the combined towns of Franklin County produced mechanical water power of 14,751 Horsepower, the equivelent to produce 11 megawatts of electricity.

Museum Tool Room

Guided and supervised by museum staff, adult visitors to our Open Houses (and adolescents accompanied by an adult) can try their hand at both our woodworkers’ bench and a re-created Goodell Pratt machine shop in our Hands-on Workshop down the hall from the exhibit gallery.

While the Workshop  is only in action for Open Houses, Teacher Workshops,  Special Interest Tours, and by chance on Summer Saturdays, it  is always open for viewing during the museum’s open hours.

Gage Room

This exhibit was created as part of a "Teaching American History" program that the museum participated in. Through a NEH grant, teachers from all over the eastern half of America came to the Connecticut Valley to learn about the early industrial history here centered on the Springfield Armory Historic site. The companies in Greenfield are noted for close cooperation with the Armory by developing precision thread systems and quality control systems. Learn about Greenfield's role in setting national and world wide mechanical standards and about the manufacturing culture that supported it. Here in the gage room which is modeled after a typical factory R&D or quality control area, one can learn about the basic concepts of mass production quality control developed here and known as the "American Manufacturing System" of "Armory System" and which has been adopted all over the world. View and use a variety of precision measuring instruments made by local pioneering companies.

The Bridge of Flowers is the only one of its kind in the world. Built in 1908 as a trolley bridge across the Deerfield River, between the towns of Shelburne and Buckland, the 400-foot, five arch concrete span was abandoned with the passing of the trolley line 1928.

Antoinette and Walter Burnham's vision of transforming the structure into a flower bridge became a reality in 1929. The project was spearheaded by the Shelbrne Falls Woman's Club and is still under their leadership through the Bridge of Flower Committee.

Over 500 varieties of annuals and perennials are planted and tened by local volunteers who work with the head gardner and her assistant to ensure continuous blooming throughout the season.

Open from early spring through late fall