Education school group in the Evergreens

K-12 Group Visits

a student writing while sitting on the floor in Dickinson's bedroom

Spark your students’ imaginations by visiting the Emily Dickinson Museum.

Plan a field trip to the place she called home in Amherst, MA by signing up for The Power of Poetry tour or This was a Poet tour — learn more below!

If you’d like to work with the Emily Dickinson Museum, but don’t see an opportunity that would fit the age or needs of your students, please reach out to us at edmprograms@emilydickinsonmuseum.org. We’d love to connect with you!

Click to learn more:

Discover the ways that Dickinson embraced her unique personal vision, defying societal and literary convention to pen nearly 1800 revolutionary poems. In this participatory program, led by experienced educators, students will:

  • Tour the Homestead to learn about the poet’s early life, inspirations, and how she forged her own definition of poetry
  • Explore Dickinson’s writing process through a hands-on investigation of facsimile poem manuscripts
  • Write an original poem, reflecting on their own lives with a Dickinson-inspired prompt

Booking Information:

  • 90-minute program; anticipate up to 2 hrs on site.
  • Maximum group size: 36 (including adults). Groups larger than 12 will be divided and tour simultaneously.
  • Please book two weeks in advance. Following your request, the Museum will reach out to you to confirm the details of your visit and issue an invoice for a 50% deposit to secure your reservation.

Pricing:

  • $10 per student, one free adult per every 12 students.
  • $15 additional teachers, $17 additional adult chaperones.
  • Groups of fewer than 10 will be charged a fee to meet a $120 minimum. 
  • Amherst-Pelham public schools are free of charge.

RESERVE THE POWER OF POETRY

Thanks to a generous donation, we are offering a limited number of Massachusetts public schools reimbursements of up to $650 for transportation and admission fees, excluding $100 deposit. Scholarships will be awarded on a first-come-first-served basis — claim your scholarship by reserving your group visit today!

Apply for a Power of Poetry scholarship

Power of Poetry Supports Massachusetts Grades 6-12 Anchor Standards for Reading; Writing; Speaking and Listening; and Language

READING
Key Ideas and Details
1. Read closely to determine what a text states explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from a text. 

Craft and Structure
4.  Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.

5. Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of a text relate to each other and the whole. 

6. Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
7. Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse formats and media, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.13

WRITING
Text Types and Sequences
3.  Write narratives to develop experiences or events using effective literary techniques, well-chosen details, and well-structured sequences.

Range of Writing
10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences.

SPEAKING AND LISTENING
Comprehension and Collaboration
1. Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
2. Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

LANGUAGE
Vocabulary Acquisition and Use
5. Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.

The Museum’s general audience tours are led by knowledgeable guides who introduce Dickinson’s journey as a poet, with an emphasis on sharing her poems and letters.

Booking Information:

  • Available Thursday mornings.
  • 50-minute tour of the Homestead only.
  • Appropriate for middle and high school students.
  • Please book two weeks in advance. Following your request, the Museum will reach out to you to confirm the details of your visit and issue an invoice for a 50% deposit to secure your reservation.

Pricing:

  • $10 per student, one free adult per every 12 students.
  • $15 additional teachers, $17 additional adult chaperones.
  • Groups of fewer than 10 will be charged a fee to meet a $120 minimum.
  • Amherst-Pelham public schools are free of charge.

RESERVE THIS WAS A POET

Partnership Programs for K-12

If you’d like to work with the Emily Dickinson Museum, but don’t see an opportunity that would fit the age or needs of your students, please reach out to us at edmprograms@emilydickinsonmuseum.org. We’d love to connect with you! We can discuss:

  • How to tailor content or teaching methods to support your group
  • Experiential learning activities you’d like to develop or offer in collaboration with the Museum
Emily Dickinson's handwriting on a letter and envelope

Poetry Discussion Group Spring 2025 Series

Emily Dickinson's handwriting on a letter and envelopeJoin us for a lively virtual discussion of Emily Dickinson’s poetry and letters, meeting once a month from March to June. This program is designed to welcome newcomers and seasoned readers of Dickinson alike. 

Each session is facilitated by a guest scholar with unique expertise, who leads the group in discussion following an introductory talk. Brief reading handouts will be distributed prior to each month’s program.

Topics and Leaders:

  • March: Possession and Dispossession: Jewels in Dickinson’s Poetry with Kylan Rice
    Examining Dickinson’s treatment of gemstones, with respect to her attitudes toward race and class privilege 
  • April: “Because I could not stop:” Courting Death in Apple TV’s Dickinson with Marianne Noble
    Revisiting the poetry and plot of Apple TV+ first     episode of Dickinson, with a focus on the oft-anthologized “Because I could not stop for Death”
  • May: “Sphere of simple Green -” with Renée Bergland
    A discussion on Dickinson and natural science, drawing from her recent book,     Natural Magic
  • June: “A formal feeling comes -“: Defining Nameless Feelings with Eliza Richards
    A look at poems that explore feelings with no precise definition in English, such as “After great pain, a formal feeling comes”

Format

As a registrant, you are signing up to join a small group of 25 or fewer regular participants for four 90-minute Zoom sessions. Meetings are participatory, with video and audio encouraged. Because we want everyone to feel comfortable speaking, full sessions will not be recorded. The program is designed for adult audiences (18+).

Registration

We are offering an identical program for Wednesday and Friday groups. Please review the dates carefully — space is limited.
Refunds are not available for this program.

Wednesday Group, $100 program fee (inclusive of all sessions),  limited to 25 participants: SOLD OUT
March 19, 6-7:30pm ET
April  23, 6-7:30pm ET
May 14, 6-7:30pm ET
June 11 6-7:30pm ET

Friday Group, $100 program fee (inclusive of all sessions), limited to 25 participants: SOLD OUT
March 21, 12-1:30pm ET
April 25, 12-1:30pm ET
May 16,  12-1:30pm ET
June, 13 12-1:30pm ET

For Educators:
Educators may request a certificate attesting to your participation in the program. 

Reservations are made on a first-come, first-served basis. 

Questions: Don’t hesitate to reach out to edmprograms@emilydickinsonmuseum.org with any questions about the program.

MARCH

Kylan Rice, PhD, is a scholar of nineteenth-century American poetry. His work on the subject has appeared in ELH, Arizona Quarterly, CR: The New Centennial Review, Leviathan: A Journal of Melville Studies, and Women’s Studies. He is the author of An Image Not a Book, a collection of poetry, and his creative writing has been published in numerous literary journals, including Colorado Review, Image, and West Branch.

APRIL 

Marianne Noble’s teaching and research interests include American literature, intimacy and the emotions, and philosophical approaches to literature. She is the author of Rethinking Sympathy and Human Contact in Nineteenth-Century American Literature: Hawthorne, Douglass, Stowe, Dickinson (Cambridge UP 2019) and The Masochistic Pleasures of Sentimental Literature (Princeton UP 2000), which won a Choice Outstanding Book Award. She co-edited Emily Dickinson and Philosophy (Cambridge UP 2013). Recently, she has published articles on Dickinson, Hawthorne, phenomenology, and human contact. In 2016, she was a Fulbright Scholar in South Korea.

MAY

Renée Bergland is a literary critic and a historian of science who teaches in the Department of Humanities at Simmons University where she is Program Director of Literature and Writing. Her most recent publication is Natural Magic: Emily Dickinson, Charles Darwin, and the Dawn of Modern Science (Princeton University Press, 2024). She contributed an essay, “Dickinson Emergent: Natural Philosophy and the Postdisciplinary Manifold”, to the Oxford Handbook to Emily Dickinson (2022). Bergland is writing a forthcoming general audience book examining Dickinson’s poetry as interpreted through the lens of different sciences, including astronomy, geology, and ecology. She is a member of the board of the Emily Dickinson International Society. 

JUNE

Eliza Richards is the Director of Graduate Studies at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, where she teaches American literature with a specialization in American poetry before 1900. She is especially interested in the way historical events and changes in media networks shape and inform the way that people write poetry, as well as the ways poetry participates in cultural transformations. Her work broadens understanding and awareness of important nineteenth-century poetry written by women, African Americans, and popular writers. Her books include Battle Lines: Poetry and Mass Media in the US Civil War (U of Pennsylvania P, 2019) and Emily Dickinson in Context (edited collection; Cambridge UP, 2013), and she is currently working on The Collected Works of George Moses Horton: A Critical Edition.

 

A pen and inkwell sits on Dickinson's writing desk with light cascading through her curtains

Call for Submissions:
Phosphorescence and
Tell It Slant 2025

The Emily Dickinson Museum is now accepting proposals for our 2025 programs: Phosphorescence Contemporary Poetry Series – a virtual event held monthly from April through September AND the 13th annual Tell It Slant Poetry Festival, held September 15-21! The Museum’s poetry programming features established and emerging poets who represent the diversity of the flourishing contemporary poetry scene and fosters community by placing poetry in the public sphere.

To submit for the Phosphorescence Contemporary Poetry Series and the Tell It Slant Poetry Festival, please click on the appropriate submission link and complete the free application process. All submissions must be received through SurveyMonkey Apply (via Amherst College) using the submission links provided below. Email or paper submissions will not be considered.

If you wish to submit multiple proposals, please complete a new application for each proposal (up to 3 allowed per program).

TIMELINE:

All proposals must be submitted by Thursday, January 16 2025, 8am ET. All submitters will be notified of their acceptance status by March 5. Participating poets and presenters will be asked to sign a letter of agreement confirming participation on assigned dates.

Learn more about each program below.

About Phosphorescencea banner for PHOSPHORESCENCE Contemporary Poetry Series

Produced by the Emily Dickinson Museum, the Phosphorescence Contemporary Poetry Series celebrates contemporary creativity that echoes Dickinson’s revolutionary poetic voice. The Series is a place to connect virtually over a shared love of poetry and an appreciation for Dickinson’s literary legacy. This year, poets may read remotely from the location of their choice or travel to the Emily Dickinson Museum in Amherst, MA, to have their reading live-streamed to a virtual audience. Poets will indicate their preference for reading location on their submission form.

Featured poets are promoted on the Museum’s event web page, through a mailing list of over 25,000 addresses, and through the Museum’s social media. Each participating poet receives a $200 honorarium. There is no fee to submit proposals.

View last year’s Phosphorescence lineup

Watch past Phosphorescence readings on YouTube

READINGS: Readings will take place on Thursdays at 6PM ET on the following dates: April 17, May 15, June 19, July 17, August 21, and September 18. Each reading may feature 2-3 poets. Readings are 15 minutes long on average per reader. Poets who submit alone will be paired with other poets if selected. Poets are welcome to promote sales of their books and awareness of other media during the program. (The Museum does not sell books for this series.) Poets should be prepared to engage in a facilitated conversation after their readings.

The following submission qualities are especially encouraged:

    • Group submissions of up to 3 poets
    • Builds community
    • Features BIPOC and/or LBGTQ+ voices
    • Highlights a connection to Dickinson’s life and legacy
    • Pushes poetic boundaries

SUBMIT FOR PHOSPHORESCENCE

Only complete submissions made through the SurveyMonkey Apply (via Amherst College) platform linked above will be considered. (You may be prompted to create a free account if you do not already have one.)

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Thursday, January 16 2025, 8am ET.

About the Tell It Slant Poetry Festival

Produced by the Emily Dickinson Museum, the Tell It Slant Poetry Festival celebrates the poetic legacy of Emily Dickinson and the contemporary creativity she continues to inspire from the place she called home. The Festival’s name, “Tell It Slant,” pays homage to Dickinson’s poem, “Tell all the truth but tell it slant.” This title underscores the revolutionary power of poetry to shift our perspective and reveal new truths.

The Festival is a hybrid event, with programs happening in-person at the Museum and online, for both in-person and virtual audiences throughout the week of September 15-21. We invite you to “dwell in possibility” and submit your most inventive proposals for in-person or virtual, generative workshops and panels! Submissions for virtual programs should be for live, synchronous content only. Honoraria of $350 are provided per event. There is no fee to submit proposals.

View last year’s Festival schedule

The Festival Steering Committee especially welcomes the following submission qualities:

    • From groups of 2 – 5 facilitators
    • Generative writing programs
    • Creatively encourage audience participation or foster a strong sense of community
    • Engage young attendees and/or those new to poetry
    • Ensure people with a range of abilities can participate meaningfully

The Committee is seeking submissions for the following program types:

IN-PERSON OR VIRTUAL WORKSHOPS:

  • Public poetry workshops are typically 90-minutes long.
  • Workshops must be interactive and generative, centering around skill-building activities.
  • Virtual workshops must be adaptable for large virtual audiences of around 200.

IN-PERSON OR VIRTUAL PANELS:

  • Public poetry panels are typically 90-minutes long.
  • Panels must consist of at least three people, including a facilitator.
  • Panels should foster a strong sense of community and include moments for audience participation. They may include short readings by panel members.
  • Virtual panels will be recorded and live-streamed to large virtual audiences of around 200.

SUBMIT FOR THE FESTIVAL

Only complete submissions made through the SurveyMonkey Apply (via Amherst College) platform linked above will be considered. (You may be prompted to create a free account if you do not already have one.)

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Thursday, January 16 2025, 8am ET.

SUBMIT FOR PHOSPHORESCENCE

SUBMIT FOR THE FESTIVAL

All submissions will be notified of their acceptance status by March 5. Participating poets and presenters will be asked to sign a letter of agreement confirming participation on assigned dates.

Please direct questions about submissions to EDMprograms@EmilyDickinsonMuseum.org.

archival lithograph showing the carriage house next to The Evergreens

Carriages – Be sure – and Guests – True:
A Dickinson Birthday Celebration
Tuesday, Dec. 10, 6pm ET

VIRTUAL PROGRAM
This free event has limited capacity, we encourage you to register in advance.

REGISTER

archival lithograph showing the carriage house next to The Evergreens

Reconstruction of The Evergreens Carriage House has begun at the Museum! In this virtual celebration of Emily Dickinson’s 194th birthday, we explore what it takes to re-create a historic structure, from conducting archaeology to designing an environmentally passive building within a historically-sensitive shell. Join Jane and Robert Keiter Family Executive Director Jane Wald and special guests as we go behind the scenes of this exciting moment in the Museum’s history. Along the way we’ll hear special birthday messages to the poet from fans around the world. 

All are welcome to this free VIRTUAL program. Space is limited, register in advance.

Give a Birthday Gift
It’s not a birthday party without gifts! If you’re looking to honor Emily Dickinson with a birthday present, please consider a donation to the Museum to support our free virtual programs which are made possible with your support. Gifts of all sizes are deeply appreciated.

DONATE

About Dickinson’s Birthday

Emily Dickinson, the middle child of Edward Dickinson and Emily Norcross Dickinson, was born on December 10, 1830, in the family Homestead on Main Street in Amherst, Massachusetts, now the home of the Emily Dickinson Museum. She celebrated 55 birthdays before her death in 1886. Some of the poet’s most favored themes were time and immortality; she wrote, “We turn not older with years, but newer every day.” (Johnson L379)

emily dickinson graphic standing in front of numbers 194! and balloons

[SOLD OUT] Emily Dickinson 194th Birthday Open House
Sat., Dec. 7, 1-4:30pm ET

IN-PERSON PROGRAM at the Emily Dickinson Museum in Amherst, MA

emily dickinson graphic standing in front of numbers 194! and balloonsThis program is now SOLD OUT — please join us for the virtual birthday celebration. 

You are cordially invited to the Emily Dickinson Museum’s celebration of the poet’s 194th birthday! On Saturday, December 7, join us in person at the Homestead for a free open house with tours, crafts, music, cider and gingerbread cookies! All are welcome to this free program. 

Can’t make it to Amherst? Join us for our virtual birthday celebration.

Give a Birthday Gift
It’s not a birthday party without gifts! If you’d like to honor Emily Dickinson on her birthday, please consider a donation to the Museum to support our free programs which are made possible with your support. Gifts of all sizes are deeply appreciated.

DONATE

About Dickinson’s Birthday

Emily Dickinson, the middle child of Edward Dickinson and Emily Norcross Dickinson, was born on December 10, 1830, in the family Homestead on Main Street in Amherst, Massachusetts, now the site of the Emily Dickinson Museum. She celebrated 55 birthdays before her death in 1886. Some of the poet’s most favored themes were time and im/mortality; she wrote, “We turn not older with years, but newer every day.” (Johnson L379)

Dickinson's writing desk with pens, scraps of paper and her lamp

Mild Nights!
At the Emily Dickinson Museum

Dickinson's writing desk with pens, scraps of paper and her lampIN-PERSON PROGRAM

‘Mild Nights!’ at the Emily Dickinson Museum

Spend an evening in Emily Dickinson’s home, in quiet community with fellow creatives! For Dickinson, everyday life was a wellspring of poetic imagination, and evidence suggests she put pen to paper whenever and wherever that inspiration struck. Reserve a desk in one of the Homestead’s restored 19th-century spaces where the poet spent her own ‘Wild Nights!’.

On this decidedly mild night, participants can write letters, compose poetry or prose, draw, read, or contemplate for two uninterrupted hours. A tour guide welcomes the group with a brief orientation to the house, and each participant is provided with a chair and a small writing table with a desk light in their designated space. 

Looking for a more private experience? Check out our Studio Sessions program.

2025 Fall Sessions
Tuesday, October 14, 5-7pm (Sold out)
Tuesday, November 18, 5-7pm
Tuesday, December 16, 5-7pm

Pricing: $75 per person

RESERVE YOUR SEAT

“The event itself was a complete joy. Sitting in the library of the Dickinson home and writing for two hours was a dream. I felt as though I had traveled back in time. The quiet atmosphere added to the experience. So much of life is loud, but that night was quiet.” — Beth Ann J.

Rooms

 

The parlor of the Homestead

The Parlors (4 seats): A double room on the first floor with spaces for family time and entertaining. Find yourself seated near the portrait of the Dickinson children, an original Italianate marble fireplace mantel, or an 1852 square piano amid plush fabrics and cool tones once enjoyed by Amherst’s elite. 

 

 

 

 

The library of the Homestead

The Library (2 seats): A cozy room on the first floor where Emily Dickinson accessed the literary world through the family’s vast collection of verse and prose, news subscriptions, and academic texts. The poet’s conservatory opens into this room.

 

 

 

 

 

Dickinson's bedroom with the bed, desk and white dress

Emily Dickinson’s Bedroom (2 seats): The southwest room on the second floor where the poet spent her most private writing time. Find yourself surrounded by the rose-patterned wallpaper and personal effects, including her sleigh bed.

 

 

 

 

 

The northwest chamber of the Homestead

Northwest Bedchamber (1 seat): This second floor bedroom was a refuge for Emily Dickinson’s mother in her final years. The poet spent significant time caring for her mother in this space, which features an original wallpaper pattern and family art and furniture. 

 

 

 

 

 

Learn more about these spaces through the Virtual Exploration.
Find out about accessibility at the Museum.

‘Mild Nights!’ are intended to be quiet experiences, but you will likely be sharing a space with other participants. Looking for a solo experience? Check out private Studio Sessions in Emily Dickinson’s bedroom.

Program Guidelines:

  • Registration closes two weeks prior to the event date. Each session requires a minimum of six participants to run. In the case of cancelation, ticket purchasers will be notified two weeks before their session and their ticket will be refunded or rescheduled. 
  • Photo ID must be presented upon arrival for your session and a photocopy will be made which will be destroyed after your session.
  • The door to rooms in use will remain open, and staff will be present nearby at all times. Participants must remain in the designated area of the room and may not touch the historic furnishings.
  • Bags, food, and beverages other than bottled water must be left in the designated area of the tour center.
  • No pens, inks, or paints permitted. Pencil and paper or electronic device only. Other materials must be approved by special request in advance. Outlets may not be available; please arrive with your device fully charged.
  • Participants agree to help maintain a quiet environment for all.
  • Photography for non-commercial, personal use is permitted.
  • Refunding and rescheduling are at the discretion of the Emily Dickinson Museum. Unless a session is canceled by the Museum, ticket refunds or rescheduling are not permitted except in the case of emergency. 


RESERVE YOUR SEAT

Please direct questions to EDMPrograms@emilydickinsonmuseum.org.

Sweet Countrymen — Judge Tenderly of Me
A Community Poetry Hour
Tuesday, Nov. 5, 3pm ET

VIRTUAL PROGRAM

For any questions, please e-mail connect@emilydickinsonmuseum.org

This is my letter to the World
That never wrote to Me –
The simple News that Nature told –
With tender Majesty
Her Message is committed
To Hands I cannot see –
For love of Her – Sweet – countrymen –
Judge tenderly – of Me

Take a mid-day break from the uncertainties of election day for an hour of poetry.  “Sweet Countrymen — Judge tenderly of me” offers an opportunity to consider, through the poetry of Emily Dickinson and others, themes of discord and unity, the known and unknown, places of refuge and moments of hope for the future. All are welcome to join the Zoom webinar to hear the poetry reading, and to sign up to read a poem of their choice. If you wish to read a poem, please register for the program AND complete the reader request form.

REGISTER FOR THE PROGRAM

 

Emily Dickinson Poetry Marathon 2024:
Reader Expectations

Marathon Readers bring the Poet’s words to life during the annual Emily Dickinson Poetry Marathon!

Expectations for VIRTUAL/ONLINE Readers:

(Monday, September 23 – Friday, September 27)

  1. Readers must plan to attend the full Marathon session. Readers are responsible for ensuring a strong wifi connection and a device capable of capturing video and audio.
  2. During the week of the Festival, each reader will be emailed a Zoom link unique to them and their selected session. Please use this link to join the session.
  3. Arrival time in the Zoom room is 15 minutes prior to the start of the session. At this time, readers will be assigned a number that will appear in their name box (e.g. 1: Emily Dickinson, 2: Carlo Dickinson, 3: Susan Dickinson).
  4. During the session, readers read one poem at a time aloud in order of their assigned reader number. This round-robin reading loops continuously back to reader number 1 after the reader with the highest number has read. We will be reading from Ralph Franklin’s The Poems of Emily Dickinson: Reading Edition. We will use screen share to project the poems in Zoom, so don’t worry if you do not have your own copy of Franklin. Each reader typically reads 10-20 poems in total, and reader registration is capped to ensure everyone can read several poems. It will not be possible to assign poems to readers in advance of the Marathon session.
  5. Marathon sessions may be photographed and recorded.

Expectations for IN-PERSON Readers:

(Saturday, September 28 & Sunday, September 29)

  1. Please arrive at the Emily Dickinson Museum in Amherst, MA, 10 minutes prior to your reading to check in. Readers must plan to attend the full session. 
  2. During this round-robin reading, we will be reading from editor Ralph Franklin’s The Poems of Emily Dickinson: Reading Edition. Because Dickinson did not title most of her poems, Franklin identifies all 1,789 poems by a number. Don’t worry if you don’t have your own copy of this book; we will provide copies for readers to use. We anticipate that each reader will read 10-20 poems in total. It will not be possible to assign poems to readers in advance of the marathon session. 
  3. This program occurs inside the heated Festival tent and employs a shared, hand-held microphone. Readers are asked to be seated when it is your turn to read, for the benefit of the live stream for listeners at home. In the case of inclement weather, you will be notified of an alternate location.
  4. By signing up to read you agree to be filmed and livestreamed to virtual attendees through the Festival’s virtual platform.

 

2024 Tell It Slant Poetry Festival Schedule


Support The Tell It Slant Poetry Festival and Honor Someone Special:
Admission to all Festival events is free, but online donations, especially those made in honor or memory of family, friends, or colleagues are heartily encouraged and vital to the future of this beloved annual event. All gifts are tax deductible and will be recognized as part of the Festival.

Reconstruction of The Evergreens Carriage House

On Tuesday, August 27, 2024 the Emily Dickinson Museum began the reconstruction of the Dickinson family Carriage House that once stood east of The Evergreens, the home of Emily Dickinson’s brother Austin and his wife Susan. The project flows from a recently-completed long range plan, which maps programmatic and capital enhancements over the next decade at the Museum’s historic downtown Amherst location. 

Digital rendering of completed Evergreens Carriage

Digital rendering of completed Evergreens Carriage House (edmsSTUDIO)

The John and Elizabeth Armstrong Carriage House–scheduled for completion in 2025–will initially serve as a much-needed site for visitor welcome, orientation and services to enable a third and final phase of Dickinson Homestead restoration. In the longer term, the reconstructed carriage house will be dedicated to student and visitor learning and engagement. By expanding access to the Museum and its programs for both onsite and online visitors, the changes firmly establish the Museum as the premier center for the study and celebration of Dickinson’s life and work, and as a source and site of inspiration for new generations of poets, artists, writers, and thinkers.

The carriage house reconstruction project is supported by a major pledge of $750,000 from former Board members and long-time friends John and Elizabeth Armstrong. “We’ve always been proud of our association with the Museum, recognizing its importance to our regional community and now–through the wonders of technology–to the world.” stated Elizabeth, adding “We’ve been drawn over the years to supporting singular projects that open multiple possibilities for the Museum. The Carriage House is just such a project.”

The Museum continues to raise funds for the project. “We were incredibly fortunate to have wonderful support from John and Lise Armstrong, which enabled us to put shovels in the ground today,” says Erin Martin, Senior Director of Development. “Because this project is a very visible demonstration of the Museum’s ambitions for the future, we are asking our loyal donors and friends to support the project – as a community.” Martin says the Museum is seeking additional funding to help fit out the interior spaces of the new Carriage House to optimize its flexibility and energy efficiency.

ABOUT THE PROJECT
The design calls for reconstructing the exterior historic appearance of the carriage house as faithfully as possible while optimizing interior functions and flow. At the outset of the design phase, museum staff worked with architects at edmSTUDIO to track down details of the original structure in historic maps, deeds, insurance documents, photographs, and archaeological reports. The original structure may have been built as early as the 1840s as an outbuilding associated with the modest cottage owned by the poet’s father, which was incorporated into The Evergreens dwelling, built for Austin and Susan Dickinson in 1856. In a photograph taken in about 1870, the carriage house appears as a prominent yet simple vernacular structure with window and door openings barely visible. Insurance maps from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries revealed that it was a wood frame structure with two levels and a metal roof. Details such as these gave the design team guidance about the exterior appearance and finishes.

Archival photograph of The Evergreens and Carriage House (in middle ground of photo)

Archival photograph of The Evergreens and Carriage House (in middle ground of photo)

As new construction, the carriage house gives the Emily Dickinson Museum an opportunity to combine its sustainability and historical priorities. Since 2006, the museum has recognized that full interpretation of the historic Dickinson site and the poet’s life cannot be completely understood from a functional and aesthetic perspective without reconstruction of the outbuildings. While the current project is being carried out as a “historic reconstruction,” it also gives the museum the opportunity to advance its sustainability goals. Working with Monica Del Rio Perez and Tim Widman of edmSTUDIO, the design calls for construction techniques and materials selections that will produce significant energy savings and carbon reduction for heating and cooling. The museum has engaged Teagno Construction, Inc., as general contractor for the project.

Jane and Robert Keiter Family Executive Director Jane Wald says, “Reconstruction of the Evergreens carriage house is a true milestone for the Emily Dickinson Museum. It’s the linchpin of our future plans to complete the Homestead restoration – an effort that’s already transformed our sense of who Emily Dickinson was and how she lived. Not only does the carriage house begin to fill out the Dickinson landscape, but its flexible interior also offers greater comfort, better service, and much-needed space for public and educational programming that’s already on the drawing board.”

Margaret Maher and The Celtification of Emily Dickinson
Sunday, Sept. 29, 11:30am ET

HYBRID PROGRAM — in-person at the Emily Dickinson Museum AND streaming live for online registrants

This program is FREE to attend. Registration is required. 
Part of the 2024 Tell It Slant Poetry Festival!

Join us for the 12th annual Tell it Slant Poetry Festival, a week of events happening both online and in-person at the Museum! Register here to access the Festival schedule:

REGISTER FOR THE FESTIVAL

Musical performance featuring the poems of Emily Dickinson with music and lyrics by Rosemary Caine!
If the Irish can claim they saved civilization, then the Wilde Irish Women dare to claim that Margaret Maher saved Emily Dickinson’s poems. Experience the lauded musical play that reveals the unlikely story of a humble Irish maid’s influence on her reclusive mistress, Emily Dickinson.
Margaret Maher defied Emily’s deathbed decree to burn her poems. Her brave, independent thinking and courageous action came from being born in Ireland, a country where poems are respected, not burned. But there is so much more to the story…
Rosie Caine and the Wilde Irish Women explore this fascinating aspect of Emily’s life in “The Celtification of Emily Dickinson.”

Learn more about the show on Ireland’s national broadcast program Nationwide.

About the Performers

Founded by Rosemary Caine of Ardee, County Louth, Ireland, Wilde Irish Women is a collaborative performance group based in Western Massachusetts. The ensemble comprises musicians, actors and singers who have been together since the early 2000’s. Its mission is to illuminate through original music and story the lives of Irish geniuses of literature and legend — saints and sinners included! The focus is on Irish culture, as well as the forgotten women of Irish history and always delivered with Caine’s signature good humor.

The cast is a constellation of musical and acting talent from the Pioneer Valley and beyond. Wilde Irish Women is proud to be a community centric arts group and is host to some of the Pioneer Valleys great talents including famed Hollywood director Michael Haley, astronaut Cady Coleman, UMass professor Michael Morgan, gifted multi-instrumentalist and fiddle phenom Chris Devine, and a constellation of musical, theatrical and artistic stars from all walks of life. 
wildeirishwomen.com/the-celtification-of-emily-dickinson


Support The Tell It Slant Poetry Festival and Honor Someone Special:
Admission to all Festival events is free, but online donations, especially those made in honor or memory of family, friends, or colleagues are heartily encouraged and vital to the future of this beloved annual event. All gifts are tax deductible and will be recognized as part of the Festival.

2024 Tell It Slant Poetry Festival Schedule