Quick History Stops: Berkley, MA

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A black, white, and dark blue striped header image with the text Quick History Stops: Berkley, MA

For the final leg of my trip back on Sunday, July 14, 2024, I made several quick history stops around Berkley, MA, including the town’s Carnegie library, nearby church, historic homes, and Dighton Rock State Park. That final stop was also part of the Passport to History created by Old Colony Museum in Taunton, MA.

Berkley Public Library was established in 1893 and housed in the building that now serves as Berkley Historical Society. The current library building, constructed in 1918, is a Carnegie library donated by Andrew Carnegie, an American steel industrialist who lived in Lenox, MA in the Berkshires. The other Carnegie libraries featured on this blog so far were the reimagined William Allan Neilson Library at Smith College in Northampton, MA and Lee Library in Lee, MA.

Three-quarters view of Berkley Public Library; a small, two-story red brick building Front view of Berkley Public Library; a small, two-story red brick building
Carnegie Library Sign; small white sign with black text on a red brick building reading 1918 Berkley Public Library A Carnegie Library Berkley Public Library Sign; white wooden sign reading Berkley Public Library est. 1893 Little Historic House Near Berkley Public Library

Located down the street from the library and historical society, Berkley Congregational Church was originally called First Church of Christ. It began in 1737, just two years after the incorporation of the town in 1735 by taking land from neighboring Dighton and Taunton. The church experienced a schism in 1847 after disagreement about how much to pay the pastor, and Trinitarian Congregational Church was founded at that time. That church reorganized as Methodist Episcopal Church of Berkley in 1873 and today is called Myricks United Methodist Church. While I did not make it out to the village of Myricks to see that building, I checked it out online, and it looks similar to other classic whitewashed New England churches.

Berkley Congregational Church; a classic white-washed New England church building Parsonage at Berkley Congregational Church; a two-story whitewashed home with blue shutters

Dighton Rock State Park was a truly bizarre experience made better by Joe the park ranger. A large rock covered in petroglyphs sat inside a tiny museum building on the edge of the Taunton River. The museum told the convoluted tale of European historians and linguists attempting to decipher the language on the rock with attempts made by English, Scandinavian, and Portuguese translators each with their own political agenda. What did not make it onto the signage, as related to me during the guided tour, was that a story told to an English colonist by a local American Indian back in the 17th century was repeated nearly verbatim to researchers by another American Indian from the same language group who lived near the Great Lakes a couple of centuries later. If this story were true, then the rock would not be a mystery but a clear historical record obscured by willfully bad research. The British Museum and Rhode Island Historical Society made guest appearances on museum signage as preservers of Dighton Rock sketches.

Dighton Rock Museum; a single story whitewashed garage-like building with double doors to enter standing on the banks of the Taunton River Sign on the Ecology of the Taunton River; includes a map of the area and some illustrations of landscapes and fishers Three-Quarters View of Dighton Rock; a large rock with vague carvings Front View of Dighton Rock; a large rock with vague carvings
National Register of Historic Places Certificat for Dighton Rock Sign about the Dighton Rock Sketch Held by the British Museum Sign about the Dighton Rock Sketch Held by Rhode Island Historical Society Dighton Rock State Park Official Sign

This series of history stops ended one of the most delightful day trips I have ever taken. Rural Berkley was a fun and relaxing trip through a critically underrated town. I hope others with an interest in local history will travel to the quiet area.

Location: Berkley, MA 02779, USA