The Wellesley Historical Society was in full celebration mode last weekend, holding two events (one for the public, one for members only) to mark the grand opening of the new Wellesley History & Exhibit Center. Crowds circulated around the first floor’s four galleries, where the Center’s debut exhibit, “Wellesley Through Time,” traces the town’s history through places, people, and community.
Visitors were welcomed by Historical Society executive director Faith Ellis and board members, and turned loose to tour the town’s most recently restored historic building.
With the opening of the Center, the Historical Society now officially operates out of two buildings in town—The History & Exhibit Center, and the Tollhouse Shop, which remains as office space, continues to stores some collections, and fundraises via a small volunteer-run shop. Both properties are located on busy Washington St.
The 3-story, 5,000 sq.ft. Wellesley History & Exhibit Center gives the Historical Society what it’s long craved—safe storage space for its extensive collection of Mary Brazleton and other paintings (thanks to a brand-new HVAC system); good lighting; and gallery space. The project came in at $2.7 million. A donor’s wall and a wall to honor Wellesley’s veterans is part of one of the first floor’s four galleries. The second floor includes office and storage space for textiles, photographs, and audiovisuals. Library collection items and important records are housed on the third floor. And the basement holds maps, the butterflies, archives, objects, and art.
President of the Board of Directors, Peter Mongeau. What’s not to smile about? The Center not only hit its opening goal of fall 2025, the year also marks the Wellesley Historical Society’s 100th Anniversary.
Left, Tory DeFazio, a past president of the Wellesley Historical Society; and Advisory Board member and Center project designer Teresa Ettinger, who put her elegant stamp on everything, including the gardens.
Historical Society board members Andrew Komjathy (left) and William Ellis beside the renowned Denton Butterfly Collection, which has migrated from storage and into the light.
Who wouldn’t want to have meetings in this second-floor space? “Typically this is where everyone is spread out, and the table is protected with padding and a cover,” Ettinger said.
Oh, we’d been wondering where Horatio Hollis Hunnewell (1810-1902) got to. Painted by renowned painter and Wellesley resident Mary Brewster Hazelton (1958-1953), the portrait for years hung in the Wellesley Free Library, on loan from the Historical Society. H.H., a successful banker, railroad financier and generous philanthropist, funded the town’s original library. He’s also responsible for the town’s name, a mash-up of “Wellesley,” for his wife (Isabella Welles) and “ley,” deriving from the old English (leah means open field, meadow). In 1881, when the town separated from West Needham, the town adopted the Wellesley name.
Wellesley resident and USMC Staff Sergeant Todd Bowers, also known as “the luckiest man in Fallujah” has loaned his personal military artifacts to the Historical Society. His luck came when, in 2004 during a security patrol in Iraq, his helmet and safety glasses were blown away by the impact of a bullet. The damaged scope, which his father had sent him as an extra safety measure, stopped the bullet just half an inch from Bowers’ eye. You can see this display and learn more about the story, and Wellesley’s veterans, at the Wellesley History & Exhibit Center.
The first floor of the Wellesley History & Exhibit Center is accessible. A ramp welcomes mobility-challenged visitors from the parking lot into the 1918 building
Wellesley History & Exhibit Center hours & fees
Wednesday-Friday, and every 2nd and 4th Saturday of the month, from 11am-4pm. Visiting the center is free for members, $10 for non-members. There are different membership levels, starting at $35 for individuals.
