Old Bridgewater Historical Society to host lecture by Stephen O’Neill

The Old Bridgewater Historical Society will be hosting a lecture by Stephen O’Neill at 2 p.m. Oct. 17 at the OBHS Memorial Building, 162 Howard St., West Bridgewater. 

The title of the program is “Surveying the Commonwealth in 1795.”  

In 1794, the Massachusetts General Court ordered every town in the commonwealth to conduct a survey of boundaries. The new survey maps created by this order were submitted the following year in 1795. Each one is a hand-drawn map, listing natural features, roads and mills. This illustrated talk will explore how the surveys were conducted using surveyor’s compasses and Gunter's chains to measure out boundaries. Examples of the maps for the towns of Bridgewater, Boston and the North River towns will be used to show the artistry and skill that went into their creation. 

O’Neill is a graduate of Boston College and Boston University. He is currently the executive director of the Hanover Historical Society. He has taught at Suffolk University since 2005 as senior lecturer in the history department where he has taught courses on the history of Plymouth Colony, history of piracy, material culture, public history and cultural heritage and history curating and exhibiting. From 2004 to 2016, O’Neill was the Associate Director and Curator of Collections at Pilgrim Hall Museum in Plymouth, where he curated more than 20 temporary exhibitions. He has been a guest curator for exhibits on New England pirates at The Bostonian Society and Heritage Museums and Gardens. He has lectured widely on Plymouth Colony history, pirate history and lead tours of many burying grounds and cemeteries. O’Neill is a lifelong resident of the South Shore of Massachusetts, a member of the Old Colony Club in Plymouth, a life member of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts and a proprietor of the Boston Athenaeum. 

This program is free and open to the public. Donations are gratefully accepted. For the safety of guests and volunteers, masks will be required in the building. 

The Old Bridgewater Historical Society, a private organization, started in 1894, is dedicated to the collection, preservation and publication of history relating to the original Bridgewater township, which includes the towns of Bridgewater, East Bridgewater, West Bridgewater and the city of Brockton. For more information, visit https://oldbridgewater.org.