Books, maps, and DVDs we recommend
The Puritan Village Evolves: A History of Wayland Massachusetts First Edition
by Helen F. Emery (1981)
A chronological history of the town from 1638 to 1980, written by a local historian and scholar.
$ 20.00
Available: Wayland Historical Society, Wayland Depot
Wayland Historical Tours (1976); revised 2013
Edited by Barbara Robinson (Paperback)
The story of Wayland’s first three centuries told through three historical tours.
$ 10.00
Available: Wayland Historical Society, Wayland Depot
Click here for a free PDF version.
Wayland A to Z (2004)
by Evelyn Wolfson, Dick Hoyt (Paperback)
THE book to own if you can have only one Wayland history – full of meticulously researched stories and details about the town of Wayland, MA
$ 10.00
Available: Wayland Historical Society, Wayland Depot
Legendary Locals of Wayland (2015)
by Evelyn Wolfson (Paperback)
A multitude of photos accompanies visionaries who have influenced both Wayland and the country, along with current town folks who continue in their footsteps.
$18.67
Available: Amazon, Arcadia Publishing, Wayland Depot.
Growing up in Wayland: Life in a Massachusetts town during the Depression (1997)
by George K Lewis (Paperback)
Beautifully written memoir of a very active and observant boy who grew up to be a professor of geography at Boston University and local historian.
$ 10.00
Available: Wayland Historical Society, Wayland Depot
Wayland’s 375 Cookbook (2014)
This is Wayland 375th anniversary year’s celebratory recipe book, written for town residents (including those from centuries past). Linking the 17th to 21st centuries with popular foods, drinks, and “this and that” (i.e. boiled hot soap or teething cookies), this book contains more than 250 recipes.
$ 15.00
Available: Wayland Historical Society, Wayland Depot
Map: 1881 Copy of James Sumner Draper’s 1776 Map of Wayland
Unframed 18 x 24” copy of map made by James Sumner Draper (1811-1896) of what he thought Wayland was like in 1775/6. The original is owned by the Wayland Historical Society. There was no Boston Post Road, (Route 20), west of the First Parish Church in Wayland Center, nor did Commonwealth Avenue, (Route 30), go west of the School Street intersection in Cochituate.
$ 10.00
Available: Wayland Historical Society, Wayland Depot
FIVE MILES ASTRIDE THE RIVER (2014)
DVD: by Zander Cowen and Jacob Sussman
Our most ambitious work, Five Miles Astride the River is a 20-minute film exploring the development of our hometown, Wayland, Massachusetts. Showcasing the village’s evolution over 375 years of history, the film explores three distinct eras of American life and illustrates how the town’s past has shaped its present.
$15.00
Available: Pelham Island Pictures, Wayland Depot
Wayland: Images of America (2002)
by George Lewis (Paperback)
More than 200 photographs, selected primarily from the extensive collection of the Wayland Historical Society, of farmers, factory workers, trolleys, and schools help to tell the unique and fascinating history of Wayland’s two separate neighborhoods, Wayland Center and Cochituate Village.
$21.89
Available: Amazon, Arcadia Publishing, Wayland Depot
Puritan Village: The Formation of a New England Town (1963)
by Sumner Chilton Powell
A detailed account of the early government and social organization of the town of Sudbury, Massachusetts, present- day Wayland.
$ 20.84
Available: Amazon.com
Lydia Maria Child: The Quest for Racial Justice (Oxford Portraits) (2002)
by Lori Kenschaft (Hardcover)
This dynamic nineteenth-century writer who, through her pen and at great personal cost to her literary career, spoke out for those silenced in society — slaves, Native Americans, women, and the poor—lived in Wayland for much of her life.
$32.95
Available: Amazon.com
Postcards from Cochituate
"Postcards from Cochituate” with Sheila Carel Forty people gathered at the Community Methodist Church on Thursday evening for Sheila Carel’s presentation "Postcards from Cochituate”. Along with those in person another 35 people joined in remotely to enjoy Sheila’s...
Greenways
Wednesday, June 26, 2024 Retired Historical Society President Gretchen Schuler presented the history Greenways, home of Frank Cabot Paine and his wife Virginia from 1926 to 1988, for the public open house at the Residence at the Paine Estate.A History of Greenways I...
Lydia Maria Child Award
Retired Historical Society President Gretchen Schuler is this year’s winner of the Lydia Marie Child Award. The award, which was presented on June 26, is given annually in recognition of active volunteer leadership in the betterment of Wayland’s quality of life or in...
Strategic Plan 2024
Summary The Wayland Museum & Historical Society (WM&HS) at the Grout-Heard House Museum (GHHM) has been an integral part of the Wayland community and central to documenting and honoring Wayland’s history for the past 70 years. The aim of the following...
Executive Director Opening
The Board of Managers and Trustees of Funds of the Wayland Museum & Historical Society seek a dynamic and energetic leader to be its first Executive Director. The Executive Director will lead the Museum, engage the public, and help to preserve this unique property...
Tom Largy
Tom Largy: A Half-Century of Casting Lines and Serving the Public in Waylandby Brian E. Moore I was strolling along Pelham Island Road recently enjoying the view of Heard Pond when I came across a familiar sight: Tom Largy fishing. As I approached him, I asked Largy...
HVAC
The Wayland Historical Society will be replacing the heating and cooling system (HVAC) serving the Grout-Heard House at 12 Cochituate Road in the spring of 2024. The application is for Historic Preservation monies of the Community Preservation Fund to replace the...
Dollhouses
In many ways, dollhouses embody-in miniature-the lives and the aspirations of their owners. For generations, dollhouses have facilitated imaginative play and have helped kids develop life skills and make sense of the world. These dollhouses will delight you with their...
WHS Director Honored for Leadership
Neil Gordon, WHS Director and Grout-Heard House Museum Long Range Plan Committee member, was recently selected winner of the 2023 Nonprofit Excellence Award in Leadership for his work as CEO of the Discovery Museum in Acton. The award, presented in June, recognizes a...
New Wayland Street Named for Draper Family Member
There is a new street in Wayland. Emmeline Path was created when the property at 105 Plain Road was sub-divided subject to a Conservation Cluster permit. The road is named after Emeline (correct spelling) Draper. The development consists of 4 detached homes and is...