The first “Stories to Share” event of the season at the Jaffrey Civic Center will feature John Knight, Director of Historic Harrisville.
Knight will talk about “The Role of Preservation in Rural Vitality: Insights from Historic Harrisville.”
The event starts at 5 p.m. at the Jaffrey Civic Center and will be followed by a reception. The event is free, but registration is required at jaffreyciviccenter.com/stories/.
“Vitality isn’t just an economic proposition; it’s not just jobs and a tax base. We need to think about what are some other metrics of rural vitality—what makes a town truly vital, what makes it a place people want to live in and can thrive in, ” Knight said.
Knight will highlight some of Historic Harrisville’s recent projects, including the ongoing conversion of the town’s former St. Denis Catholic Church into a community and cultural center.
“That is an amazing project we have going on this year. I’ll talk about the ways we have been able to fund this project, and the ways that preservation has enabled some of our programs to happen here, such as daycare and affordable housing,” Knight said. “It’s wild what has been accomplished here; I really can’t believe it. I lucked into this organization. I haven’t been involved in all of the projects here and I feel really lucky to be a part of it.”
Credit: COURTEST HISTORIC HARRISVILLE
According to Knight, the village of Harrisville, which is a National Landmark Historic District encompassing 200 acres and 135 structures, can provide a model for other towns seeking to preserve buildings or historic districts in a way that will contribute to the economic and cultural life of the town.
“Historic Harrisville could definitely be seen as a role model for communities doing this type of work,” Knight said. ”I’ll talk about the ways in which the work we’ve done in Harrisville has contributed to that. We’re trying to think about what kind of values can be assigned to vitality and the role of vitality in a community.”
Knight, an author and editor who grew up in a historic home in Greenfield, now lives in Chesham with his wife, the author Rebecca Dinerstein-Knight, and their children.
Historic Harrisville, Inc. was founded in 1971 to preserve the town’s historic buildings and natural resources and to foster community spirit and quality life, and economic vitality for the residents of Harrisville.
For information go to: https://www.historicharrisville.org.