The Athol Public Library is proud to invite you to view Crossroads: Change in Rural America, a traveling exhibit on loan to us from the Smithsonian Institute. The exhibit is on the library's second floor and will be here for six weeks.

Crossroads: Change in Rural America offers small towns a chance to look at their own paths to highlight the changes that affected their fortunes over the past century. The exhibition will prompt discussions about what happened when America’s rural population became a minority of the country’s population and the ripple effects that occurred.

Despite the massive economic and demographic impacts brought on by these changes, America’s small towns continue to creatively focus on new opportunities for growth and development. Economic innovation and a focus on the cultural facets that make small towns unique, comfortable, and desirable have helped many communities create their own renaissance. The future is bright for much of rural America as small towns embrace the notion that their citizens and their cultural uniqueness are important assets.

In conjunction with the museum exhibit, the library staff and area partners have planned an exciting series of field trips, lectures, and participatory conversations that look at our past, celebrate our present, and will have us talking about our future. We also will have on view locally curated exhibits highlighting Athol's history, modern farm life, and creative spirit. For a full list of events, please visit our library calendar or pick up a printed brochure at any of our circulation desks. We hope to see you at these exciting events!

Attendees who complete and mail a comment card to Mass Humanities will be eligible to win a family membership to Old Sturbrige Village.

Crossroads is part of Museum on Main Street, a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and state humanities councils nationwide. Support for Museum on Main Street has been provided by the United States Congress.