TimberFest 2025: Hancock Shaker Village

Forty years, nearly to the day, Guild members will once again convene at Hancock Shaker Village in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Memories of that first Guild conference will echo through the grounds the weekend of June 13–15 as we celebrate our first forty years and the future to come at TimberFest 2025. 

With the program from that very first conference in hand, Jack Sobon is leading the way, weaving elements of that gathering into our TimberFest schedule and activities. We look forward to sharing memories, techniques, ideas, and knowledge as the Guild continues to foster education in timber framing.

TimberFest 2025 Schedule

Friday, June 13

• 12 p.m. - Check-in Open
• 2 p.m. - Raising the Frame with Heartwood
• 6 p.m. - BBQ & Beer
• 7 p.m. - Slideshow: Remember When
• Bonfire time!

Saturday, June 14

• 7:30 a.m. - Coffee and pastries available
• 8:30 a.m. - Guild Formation & Inspiration, Tedd Benson
• 9:15 a.m. - The Heartwood School, Michele Beemer & Neil Godden
• 10 a.m. - Break
• 10:30 a.m. - Guild Community Building Projects: Our Past & Future, Jackson DuBois
• 11:15 a.m. - Reflections on 40 Years of Guild Publications, Adam Miller
• 12 p.m. - Lunch
• 1 p.m. - Traditional Timber Framing Research & Advisory Group, Arron Sturgis
• 2:30 p.m. - Timber Framer's Tour of Hancock Shaker Village, including water-powered woodworking shop
• 6 p.m. - Dinner & Birthday Party at Woodlife Farm Market

Sunday, June 15

• 7:30 a.m. - Breakfast
• 8:30 a.m. - Possible Medieval Carpenters' Setting Out Methods in England and New England, Paul Reed & Nevan Carling
• 9:30 a.m. - Moses Johnson, Framing the Shaker Aesthetic, Ian Stewart
• 10:15 a.m. - Break
• 10:45 a.m. - Pilton Barn and Shakespeare's Globe Theatre: Reconstructing English Historic Timber Framed Structures, Peter McCurdy
• 12 p.m. - Wrap up and depart for an optional tour of another Shaker community, Mount Lebanon, or visit a local timber frame shop hosting an open house

Sponsor TimberFest 2025
Join us in celebrating 40 years by sponsoring this event honoring our origins, founding members, history, and timber framing. We have several sponsorship opportunities and would be happy to work with you to sponsor specific elements of this year's TimberFest, including demonstrations, speakers, the tour, the gallery showcasing member memories and experiences, or our oral history project. Contact Allison at the Guild office if you'd like to learn more and discuss the options, or click here to learn more.

Share Your Experiences
We invite attendees to share their first frame and most recent during the slideshow. Please share your images, clearly labeled with dates, locations, and any other relevant information. You can send your photos to timberfest2025@tfguild.org.

And, we have a special request for this event: if you attended the first conference or events in the early years and have photos or film, please contact us at timberfest2025@tfguild.org. We’d like to showcase your memories captured by the camera during this year’s TimberFest.

Bring Your Tools
Bring your tools for an old-fashioned tool swap! Give your unused tools a new home and find new treasured additions for your shop. 

Penny Social
We will hold a penny social during the event as a fundraiser, and we hope you'll participate! This type of "auction" offers a low barrier to entry, allowing people to buy tickets and then "bid" on items by placing a ticket in a container next to the items of their choice - the penny social is the best of both worlds, combining elements of an auction and a raffle! 

Regarding Accommodations
We've been getting inquiries about places to stay near Hancock Shaker Village. TimberFest organizer Jack Sobon recommends "look for B&Bs, hotels, and motels in Pittsfield or Richmond (in Massachusetts) or New Lebanon, New York, but not in Hancock. While Shaker Village is mostly in Hancock, the actual town center of Hancock is on the other side of the mountain! There is camping at Pittsfield State Forest about 10 minutes away."

Are you a founding member of the Guild? Contact us at info@tfguild.org or 833-862-7376 to receive a discount code for registration!