Park-McCullough Historic Governor's Mansion

08/30/2026

So excited, can't wait to hear from these two talented authors!

🤩🥳 So excited to announce Prospect Street Writers House ‘s August readers, Miciah Bay Gault and Ann Dávila Cardinal !

This event takes place on Monday, August 31st, 5:00pm-6:30pm, and is part of the Carriage Barn at Park-McCullough House Reading Series. You can find us in the Park-McCullough House Carriage Barn at 1 Park Street, North Bennington, VT!

👾Miciah Bay Gault will read from her newly released novel, The Nobody Code, alongside Ann Dávila Cardinal, who will share excerpts from her forthcoming thriller, Hear the Dead. 👾

About the authors:
💛 Miciah Bay Gault is the author of the novels The Nobody Code and Goodnight Stranger, which was nominated for a Shirley Jackson award and longlisted for the Center for Fiction’s first novel prize. Her fiction and essays have appeared in Tin House, The Sun, Agni, The Southern Review, The Harvard Review, The New York Times Modern Love Column, Poets & Writers, and other places. She teaches in the MFA in Writing program at Vermont College of Fine Arts and directs the Vermont Book Awards at Vermont Humanities. 🌟

💛 Ann Dávila Cardinal is a Puerto Rican, Vermont-based author and educator. Her eight books include the October 2026 punk rock thriller Hear The Dead, magical realist novels The Storyteller’s Death and We Need No Wings, young adult horror novels: Five Midnights, Category Five, Breakup from Hell, and You’ve Awoken Her, and a middle grade biography of Bad Bunny. She has an MFA in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts, teaches in the University of San Francisco’s MFA in Writing for Young Readers, and is a powerlifter and part time bookseller. 🌟

We, of course will be there with 🪎 treasure, books! 📖🖊️

See you there ;) 👻

📚🛋️Happy reading!

⌚️We’re open Mon - Sat 10am -5pm, Sun 12pm - 4pm! Or 24/7 📲💻📦 🎧 at benningtonbookshop.com and audiobooks at libro.fm/benningtonbookshop (Links in Bio 🔝)

📚

08/28/2026

FROM THE COMMUNITY ARCHIVES: There will be lots of music coming from the veranda this Saturday for “International Play Music on the Porch Day”, 11:30AM to 5:30PM. As you can see here, it’s been a tradition for quite some time (albeit not the same genre of music)! These were taken for the Battle Day celebration in August 1972. Does anybody recognize the now – not – so – young musicians or have any memories of this event? We’d like to add these photos to our community archives!

08/25/2026

Please join us to commemorate this grassroots celebration of community and connection through music with our roster of talented and unique musicians, each bringing their own inspired sound. International Play music on the Porch Day is swiftly approaching. Saturday August 29th 11:30am to 5:30 pm! Are you ready to make and decorate your own kazoo? Are you tying on your boogie shoes to dance with us on the front lawn? Or maybe you are more excited to enjoy a slice from Sage Pizza Co.? (Chow down on the a classic Pepperoni or take step onto the wild side and try a slice of the Butternut Squash pizza!) Bring your own instrument and join a jam sesh with the folks of the Lake Paran Community Jam Band at 4:30!

Look below to see a map of all those who will be celebrating along with us around the globe!

08/20/2026

FROM THE COMMUNITY ARCHIVES: For our community archive initiative, one of our volunteers is digitizing our photographic slides from past events. Throughout the summer, not only for a fun, shared trip down memory lane, but also to learn more about the people/events/circumstances around them. These three slides are from the 1981 Waltz Ball, which was meant to raise money and awareness about the house. Do you remember this event, or recognize anyone in the slides? Comment and let us know! If you'd like to learn more about the Community Archives Initiative, take a look at the new page on our website!

08/12/2026

Did you know that both Elizabeth “Lizzie” Park McCullough and her daughter, Bess, liked to knit? Both were captured on this family film from the 1930s, showing Lizzie working on her knitting and Bess playing with the family dog “Pins.” This was one of many artifacts and stories found during the creation of our current exhibit at the House in collaboration with Bennington College. Join us on Thursday, August 20th for the next iterations of the History & Heritage Lunch series (this one will be a book discussion on “With Her Own Hands“ by Nicole Nehrig), and Arts & Ancestry Circle series (we will be trying our hands at needle felting!). Both series were created in support of the current handwork exhibit.

08/04/2026

A few moments from the first Arts & Ancestry Circle meet-up in July (Berta shared her work and demonstrated the chicken scratch technique). The next is this Thursday, 8/6, 6 - 7:30 PM. Cianna will be sharing her crochet and knitting, with a brief intro to the history of crochet and some notable artists' works. She will follow with an intro to cross-stitch, where participants who wish to learn can experiment with a pattern she created from a chair seat in the Park-McCullough! Supplies will be provided. For others with personal projects, bring them along to work on, and enjoy some tea and great company. Would you like to join this free gathering celebrating fiber-based handwork and personal history? Email info@parkmccullough to reserve your seat.

07/31/2026

DID YOU KNOW? According to an oral history done in 1999, part of the reason Power’s Market is still white and green is because of Esther McCullough, daughter of Elizabeth “Lizzie” McCullough. According to Lawrence Powers, “My father bought Sheppard’s Store and the man that had it before him had painted it red. And Esther came down to the store, they had just barely moved in, and she came in she had a big long stride. And she said, Mr. Powers, would you do me a favor? Now if she had told him to stand on his head, he would have. Okay. Would you allow me to paint this building? She said, It’s always been green and white and it should be again. Well he said, Yes, Ma’am, glad to have you. Had a crew there the next day.” This story comes from our Community Archives initiative, to learn more about it, visit our website! We would like to congratulate the new proprietor of Powers Market, Sean Mitchell. Both a farmer, and a chef, Sean is bringing his value system and great food to his version of Powers. We are looking forward to following all that you are doing, Sean!

07/28/2026

Just four more nights—don't miss it!! We've had a great time watching this season's run of The Tyrant Play... and you've got one more week to see it for yourself! The Tyrant Play, written and directed by Randolyn Zinn, is celebrating Living Room Theatre's 15th anniversary season in a serious-comedy sort of way. Reviews have been fantastic—you don't want to miss it! Contact: [email protected] to reserve your tickets, or, call 802-442-5322.

07/27/2026

We're really excited about tonight's readings with Peter Cameron, Brad Kessler, and our friends from Prospect Street and Bennington Bookshop! Join us in the Carriage Barn from 5 - 6:30 PM!

Announcing our July readers, Peter Cameron and Brad Kessler!

This event takes place on Monday, July 27th, 5:00pm-6:30pm, and is part of the Carriage Barn at Park-McCullough Reading Series. You can find us in the Park-McCullough House carriage barn at 1 Park Street, North Bennington, VT!

About the authors:
Peter Cameron is the author of seven novels and three collections of short stories. His fiction has been published in The New Yorker, The Paris Review, and Rolling Stone. He teaches at The Bennington Writing Seminars and lives in Sandgate, Vermont and New York City, New York.

Brad Kessler is a critically acclaimed novelist whose work has been translated into several languages. He won the Dayton Literary Peace Prize in Fiction for his novel Birds in Fall, A Rome Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, as well as a Whiting Writers Award. He is an educator and farmer, and author of the literary non-fiction Goat Song: A Seasonal Life, A Short History of Herding, and the Art of Making Cheese. His other books include North, a novel, a finalist for the 2022 Dayton Literary Peace Prize in fiction and the 2022 Vermont Book Award; Lick Creek, a novel; and The Woodcutter’s Christmas. He is the editor and co-creator of Deep North: Stories of Somali Resettlement in Vermont (2023). His work has appeared in many publications, including the New York Times Magazine, The Kenyon Review, The New Yorker, and Lit Hub. He’s received a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship and the Lange-Taylor Prize from Duke University’s Center for Documentary Studies. He teaches creative writing at the MFA program at Antioch University and has lectured at, among other places, Northwestern University, Smith College, the New School University, and the Kenyon Writer’s Workshop. He is a graduate of the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma and runs a small goat dairy in Southwestern Vermont alongside the photographer and activist, Dona Ann McAdams.

07/23/2026

We're thrilled to be hosting this evening! Shires Young Professionals is opening their traditional mixer to the community. Stop by for a free guided tour, hors d'oeuvres, and a cash bar. We look forward to seeing you! Thursday, 7/23, 5:30 - 7:30 PM, Park-McCullough veranda.

Join us on Thursday, July 23rd Park-McCullough House in North Bennington for a fun evening of food, drinks, and socializing. Complimentary food will be available thanks to Heritage Family Credit Union
This event is made possible by a Fund for North Bennington Grant and is open to everyone in the community! RSVP at shiresyp.com/events