Holyoke Attractions

The Park Brings it All Together.

History, culture, sports and recreation all come together at Heritage State Park.  There enjoyable experiences abound for the whole family in buildings bordering a beautiful two-block state park in the heart of Downtown.  Between City Hall and the first-level canal, visitors can experience one of the top children’s museums in the country, take a ride on an antique merry-go-round, view exhibits in the Volleyball Hall of Fame, and learn about Holyoke’s beginnings in the industrial revolution at the Heritage State Park Visitors Center.
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/central/hhsp.htm

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Children’s Museum at Holyoke

444 Dwight Street
Holyoke, MA
(413) 536-7048

Playing at the replica of the Connecticut River
in the Children's Museum at Holyoke.
Photo courtesy of Charlie Lotspeich

The only Children’s Museum of its size in all of Western Massachusetts, it serves as one of the area’s main family attractions. It is situated alongside a Merry-Go-Round, in a state park in the heart of downtown Holyoke. The Museum’s hands-on, play-is-learning inspired exhibits and programs continue to appeal to families, and children’s groups from near and far.

Exhibits include: a full-size, rideable, honkable, zipped up Forklift; the Puppet Playhouse a mini-house complete with hand puppets and entertainment stage, and Exploration Place where children explore worlds familiar and unfamiliar through interactive tools, completely surrounded by animals and plants in their Rain Forest, Arctic, Desert, Savannah or Estuarine habitats.

Ongoing are the familiar favorites including the two-story curvy climber that graces the entrance, the Cityscape area where children shop for dinner in La Bodega and cook it up in the Do Da Diner. Would you like to be a weatherperson? Try your hand in the WGBYTV Studio. Holyoke’s fame as the paper capital of the world comes alive in the Paperworks exhibit where children and their caregivers can learn the art and science of making paper, and take home their own creation!

How about a birthday party on the back of a large dalmatian dog, or surrounded by chimps, elephants, a beluga whale and an armadillo?  Preschool and school group programs offered year round range from water wheels and boat building to animal adaptations, “small Frydays” and much more. How about the convenience of a Summer or Vacation camp for children 3 through 10 right there in the Museum where the Learning Laboratory is the home base for all projects and possibilities.

For more information visit new website:

www.childrensmuseumholyoke.org - complete with information on birthday parties, education and specialty programs, exhibits, museum rental, directions, and links to other local family friendly attractions. Museum hours are Tuesday - Saturday 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. Admission is $6; Seniors 61 and older are $3; children under 1 are free. For more information call: (413) 536-KIDS.

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Holyoke Heritage State Park

Visitor’s Center
221 Appleton Street
Holyoke, MA
(413) 534-1723

The Visitor’s Center within Heritage State Park features historical and multi-media exhibits of Holyoke’s emergence as a 19th-century industrial center based on water power. Slide presentations on the city’s history and ethnic diversity, plus temporary art and environmental displays are a must-see. Materials and free family programs available throughout year. It is open year-round; Tuesday through Sunday from noon to 4:00 p.m. and other times by appointment.  Admission is free. The building and site are handicapped accessible. Please call for more information.

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Holyoke Merry-Go-Round

221 Appleton Street
Holyoke, MA
(413) 538-9838

The Holyoke Merry-Go-Round brings a smile
to all who ride it's colorful horses.
Photo courtesy of Charlie Lotspeich

About 150 antique merry-go-rounds exist in North America and one very special one has a home in Holyoke. Still in working order, this gem can be ridden by children and carousel devotees every weekend at Heritage State Park. The antique carousel and band organ were restored and moved to the city park over 13 years ago after spending 65 years at Holyoke’s Mountain Park.

A five-year, city-wide effort to purchase the Merry-Go-Round, which is worth more than $1 million, was successfully spearheaded by a volunteer group of local community leaders and supported, in-part, by Holyoke school children, U.S. Postal Service employees, local artists, and state and local government.

The antique Merry-Go-Round has 48 horses and two chariots. It was hand-carved in Philadelphia by Italian and German craftsmen. Its musical band organ is the original model created at the Artizan Factories of upstate New York. The ride is open to the public on weekends, holidays and school vacations, September through May from noon to 4:00 p.m., and Tuesday through Sunday in Summer from 10:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The Merry-Go-Round can be rented for private family and corporate parties, weddings, children’s birthday parties and school field trips. Please call to confirm hours. Rides only $1 per person.  Summer camps, daycare and non-profit group rates at $.50 per person. For more information, log onto: www.holyokemerrygoround.org.

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Volleyball Hall of Fame

444 Dwight Street
Holyoke, MA
(413) 536-0926

Volleyball is the second most played sport in the world today.  The Volleyball Hall of Fame is located just a few blocks away from the site of the original YMCA where the game was invented by William G. Morgan in 1895.

Sports enthusiasts and volleyball fans from around the globe and from every state in the union have come to the Hall to experience the excitement and history of the game.

Current exhibits include: an interactive video presentation, the model half court and life-sized player silhouettes, the large scale graphics, and the displays and memorials to the sport’s great men and women, teams and organizations.  A merchandise area provides unique Hall of Fame gifts, souvenirs, and activewear.

The Hall of Fame also maintains a schedule of exciting events.  Foremost is the Induction Celebration held every year in mid-October.

Open Tuesday from noon to 4:30 p.m. Call or email to schedule group tours. Anyone interested in visiting the Hall, attending its events, or seeking additional information can access the website at www.volleyhall.org or send e-mail to info@volleyhall.org.

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More Arts and Recreation

Holyoke is a city of diverse opportunities. Large public festivals combine with established museums, sports programs, cultural and educational events, and fun in the great outdoors to provide residents and visitors with a wide variety of leisure- time activities.

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St. Patrick’s Parade

Holyoke, MA
(413) 533-1700

2006 Grand Marshal Fred Sullivan Family.
Photo courtesy of Grynn & Barrett Studios

The second largest St. Patrick’s Parade in the nation occurs in Holyoke every year.  It’s a parade on a grand scale, festive and colorful and known throughout the country for the quality of its presentation and the crowds it attracts (more than 250,000 in 2006).

Spectacular floats and dozens of marching bands, from bagpipes to Mummers, have made the event a powerful attraction for 54 years.  The parade is also the focal point for a month of activities involving famous Irish entertainers, Irish restaurant menus, and days and evenings packed with special events, including a 10-K road race with thousands of participants, many famous international runners.  All of that activity is promoted through the Chamber’s “Holyoke on the March” promotion that brings visitors to Holyoke in ever larger numbers to enjoy this community’s special “harbinger of spring.”

The Holyoke St. Patrick’s Parade will next be staged on March 18, 2007.

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Farmers’ Market

City of Holyoke and Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce
HOLYOKE, MA
(413) 322-5511

An outdoor Farmers’ Market is held every Thursday from noon to 5:00 p.m. (May through October), on Dwight Street in front of City Hall. Now in its 27th year in downtown Holyoke, the Market features about 15 growers from around the area. The Farmers’ Market is sponsored by the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with the City of Holyoke and the Holyoke Food Council. This year the Farmers’ Market will feature festivals celebrating Flowers, Strawberries, Corn, and the Fall Harvest. Please call for details.

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Holyoke Civic

Symphony Orchestra
Holyoke Community College
Holyoke, MA
(413) 256-1760

The Holyoke Civic Symphony, conducted and directed by David Kidwell, performs free concerts at Holyoke Community College; at times other locations throughout the city. The regular season consists of five programs from September through May. This accomplished community orchestra is made up of about 50 volunteer performers.

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Holyoke Public Library

335 Maple Street
Holyoke, MA
(413) 322-5640

The Library’s mission is to provide residents with free, equal, and convenient access to materials, information, services and programs that will satisfy, foster and enhance their literacy, educational, cultural, occupational and personal growth needs.

Our reference service assists patrons with: assignments, research, reference and referrals, local history and genealogy, library instruction, use of technology and databases in personal decision making and life-long learning

Our special collections include: the local history room, microfilms for the Holyoke Transcript-Telegram, the Springfield Union-News and the Springfield Republican, large print books, books-on-tapes or CDs, special materials in Spanish, language tapes, educational CD-ROM, periodical index, wide selection of videotapes, reproducible Federal and State tax forms, daily newspapers and monthly magazines, databases and internet access; multimedia collection includes puppets, puzzles, games, kits, museum passes, and more.

Library Hours: Monday through Wednesday, 8:30 am to 6:00 pm, Thursday & Friday 8:30 am to 5:00 pm.  Winter Hours: Closed Sundays and Holidays; Adult’s Section & Children’s Room: Monday through Thursday, 8:30 am to 8:30 pm, Friday & Saturday, 8:30 am to 4:00 pm; Holyoke History Room: Monday, 9am- 2 pm, Tuesday, 12:30-8pm, Wednesday, 1-6pm; Summer Hours: Closed on Saturdays and nights from Memorial Weekend (May) until Labor Day (September).For more information, log onto www.holyokelibrary.org.

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Holyoke Creative Arts Center

South Street Plaza
400 South Elm Street
Holyoke, MA
(413) 532-0465

For 85 years, the Holyoke Creative Arts Center, formerly known as the Holyoke Home Information Center, has been offering very affordable, high quality fine arts and home crafts education to adults and youths in Holyoke and communities throughout the Pioneer Valley. The Center offers day and evening classes throughout the year in upholstery, sewing, oil painting, watercolors, woodcarving, calligraphy, colored pencil drawing, decorative painting, and more. Children’s classes are also available.

Classes and workshops at the Center are supported in part by fees, the Holyoke Cultural Council, and the City of Holyoke. The large selection of classes has something for everyone, which explains why the Holyoke Creative Arts Center has been around for almost a century!

Hours are:  Monday - Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. and Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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Mount Tom State Reservation

Routes 5 and 141
Holyoke, MA
(413) 527-4805 – Visitor Center
(413) 534-1186 – Reservation Headquarters

The 2,200 acres of Mount Tom State Reservation has 20 miles of marked trails for hiking, picnicking, cross-country skiing, fishing and natural history programs. On the grounds of the reservation are Lake Bray, Bray Tower, Goat’s Peak, Goat’s Peak Tower, Stonehouse Visitor Center, playground, and a universal access trail and dock area. (A newly built pavilion is available for a small rental fee.) The Reservation is open from 8:00 a.m. to 8 p.m. during the summer, seven days a week and charges a $2.00 fee per car on weekends and holidays. Weekdays are free. Season pass is $35 for state residents and $45 for out-of-state residents. Senior citizens and handicapped are free of charge. (Call for hours during daylight savings time.)

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Wistariahurst Museum

238 Cabot Street
Holyoke, MA
(413) 322-5660

This is a Beaux Arts staircase in the
Great Hall of Wistariahurst.
Photo courtesy of Richard Bordeau

This historic house museum, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was the home of two generations of Skinners, prominent Holyoke silk manufacturers. Built in 1874 and remodeled extensively until 1928, the building reflects the great prosperity and cultural life of the early twentieth century. Wistariahurst is decorated with carved mahogany paneling and columns, leather and silk wall coverings, and parquet floors. Permanent collections include antique furniture, textiles, and paintings.

Wistariahurst offers tours to the public, a visual arts gallery featuring changing exhibits, performing arts in the Music Room, and educational and seasonal programs. A self-guiding tour of the gardens and grounds is available featuring fossils of dinosaur  footprints and labeled botanical specimens. Open Saturday, Sundays and Monday, 12:00 to 4 p.m. year-round. Admission donation is $5 for adults, $3 for students and seniors and under 12 is free. Visit the website for more information at www.wistariahurst.org.

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Robert Barrett Fishway

1 Canal Street
Holyoke, MA
(413) 536-9333

Every year, the Robert Barrett Fishway at the Holyoke Dam attracts approximately 10,000 visitors who watch a unique natural event—shad, salmon, and a wide variety of fish species migrating upstream. More than 250,000 fish are lifted over the dam each year during the facility’s 5 week operating period. Visitors can observe the fish from large viewing windows and an observation platform. Along with 4.5 miles of canals, the Fishway is maintained by the Holyoke Gas & Electric Department. The Fishway is open Wednesdays - Sundays during May and June, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For more information call (800) 859-2960.

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Greater Holyoke YMCA

171 Pine Street
Holyoke, MA
(413) 534-5631

The Greater Holyoke YMCA, newly renovated, has been promoting spiritual, mental, physical, and emotional wellness throughout Greater Holyoke since 1886. Programs offered for children, adults, and families include after school child care, a wide range of fitness and aquatic classes, and youth and adult sports leagues. Facilities include a modern aquatic center, double gymnasium, two racquetball courts, a free weight room, a cardio theater/aerobic room, a nautilus exercise center and locker rooms with sauna and steam.

Call for more information.

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Enchanted Circle Theater

4 Open Square Way, suite 421
Holyoke, MA
(413) 534-3789

Enchanted Circle Theater's production of Roots,
Rythm and Rapture.
Photo courtesy of The Republican

www.enchantedcircletheater.com

Enchanted Circle Theater is a 30-year-old theatrical organization headquartered at Open Square. Specializing in multi-ethnic productions for schools, businesses, and organizations, the theater’s professional touring productions travel far and wide. They feature the integration of drama, dance, music, visual arts and literature for both children and adults. Recently expanded, the organization also operates a “theater in the mill” next to the Black Sheep, offering historical and educational productions to the local community at various times during the year.