To us (Linda and Phil), owning Brook Farm Inn, in Lenox Massachusetts,  is more than running a business.  It’s also the maintaining  of  the building’s rich history. We researched the history of the inn through deeds, maps, and historical newspaper clippings (also very dusty ancient tax records in the basement of Town Hall), and the results of our search are posted on the website www.brookfarm.com/history.html.   So that’s how we were discovered by Michael Kraus, whose grandfather purchased the property in 1914. Michael’s grandfather was Charles Bleyman, who owned the property until the 1930’s.  Michael and his wife, Susan, stayed with us recently, and furnished  photos of Bleyman and other family members.   So watch for updates to be posted on the Brook Farm Inn’s  history page, and thank you, Michael!

There is poetry here….   And one of our most memorable poetry readings was the one given by Peter Bergman, Executive Director of the Millay Society.  We’re glad to share the Millay Society’s new website www.millay.org.  You can go there to find out about the progress at Steepletop,  Edna St. Vincent Millay’s home in the Berkshires.  There are also upcoming events.  Steepletop is a lovely place to visit any time, where you can walk the Poetry Trail, a wooded path, with poems posted along the way, ending at the peacefully sheltered gravesite.

Peter Bergman reading Millay at Brook Farm Inn

The Berkshire Bach Society has always been a favorite among guests of Brook Farm Inn.  A special treat will be the Berkshire Bach String Quintet, performing with Simone Dinnerstein, on Saturday, October 3rd at 8 PM.  It’s at Simon’s Rock College in Great Barrington, MA. (The auditorium is comfortable, and there are no bad seats.)  We still have some rooms available, so you can join the guests who have already purchased tickets.

  Bach in a 1748 portrait

“Zany” and “freewheeling” are two of the adjectives being used to describe Shakespeare & Co.’s new offering, opening tonight in Lenox, Massachusetts. “The Hound of the Baskervilles” is, of course, based on the story by Arthur Conan Doyle.  Three actors play 16 characters, including Watson and Holmes.  At Brook Farm Inn, we’ve already purchased our tickets, as some of the guests have done as well, since you can walk to the theater from here.  The play runs through November 8th, and is a welcome attraction for the foliage season. We’ll tell more about it after we see the performance.

Sherlock Holmes (Sidney Paget, 1904)

Here in the Berkshires, we treasure the Trustees of Reservations.  As a conservationist organization, they provide beautifully maintained, scenic hiking trails, historic homes to visit, and lovely gardens.  Among our favorite places is Naumkeag in Stockbridge (a gorgeous Stanford White home with gardens), and also Ashintully Gardens in Tyringham.  This weekend we’ll have perfect weather for hiking some of the trails as well, so at Brook Farm Inn we’ll be glad to provide maps and directions.  All the sites are close to Lenox.

Sunday, September 6th, the Muir String Quartet will open the South Mountain Concert series at 3 PM.  This chamber concert series runs for 5 Sunday afternoons in September and October.  It’s held in a most unusual wooded setting, in a building constructed solely for this purpose.  Situtated on a wooded slope in the midst of the Berkshires, the hall is listed on the National Register of Historic Buildings.  Its intimate atmosphere provides a unique setting to enjoy chamber music, and the performers are world reknowned.  It’s a 10-minute ride from Brook Farm Inn, and we can provide you with all the information.

Frederic Church was one of America’s most important landscape artists, and his home, Olana, is close enough to the Berkshires for a day trip.  A trip there from Brook Farm Inn yesterday took under an hour, and it was worth the trip. Church, a  Hudson River School painter, developed Olana as a 3-dimensional work of art; a totally integrated environment embracing architecture, art and landscape.  The views of the Hudson River — seen in his paintings – are spectacular, and the house tour was fascinating.  We intend to go back to enjoy the hiking trails on the property.

Tonight’s the opening of “The Torch-Bearers” at Williamstown Theatre Festival, in Williamstown, MA.  This theater has been renowned as a Berkshires tradition for 55 years.  The play is a 1920’s side-splitting farce about a bunch of amateurs trying to produce a play, sort of like “Noises Off.”

Williamstown is about 40 minutes from Brook Farm Inn, and guests can enjoy a full day there at the Clark, the Williams College Art Museum, and some great restaurants and shops.