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By Josh Perry
Hometown Weekly Staff
The Needham Historical Society will screen the premier of “Beautiful & Bizarre: William Baker’s Ridge Hill Farms,” a documentary film that “examines the visionary and eccentric personality that produced one of the country’s first amusement parks,” which was located in Needham.
The free screening will take place in Powers Hall, on the second floor of Needham Town Hall at 1471 Highland Ave., on Saturday, March 19 at 2 p.m.
According to the Historical Society press release, “In 1868, William Baker retired at forty after amassing a large fortune from his highly successful sewing machine company. He purchased nearly 800 acres of land in Needham and transformed it into a summer fun land, complete with bear pits, an underground crystal grotto, rides for children, and a luxury hotel.”
The park coupled Baker’s political views and humor for the next 20 years. The release added that Baker did more than simply entertain. He also introduced a concept of hygienic farming and even attempted to secede from the town and form a community called “Hygeria.”
The film was directed by Derick Risner, narrated by Gary Gillis (both Needham residents) and produced by the Needham Historical Society in collaboration with The Needham Channel.
For more information, contact Executive Director Gloria Greis at 781-455-8860 or greis@needhamhistory.org.
