Feasts and Festivals
Public feasts and festivals – whether they are splashy parades through downtown, communal events in city parks and neighborhoods, religious processions, or celebrations of cultural heritage – have long been a central part of Fall River life. The Feasts and Festivals exhibition features about 250 photographs of the city’s feasts and festivals from the 1950s to the present. It is also a collaborative exhibition that invites residents of Fall River to share their memories and stories. The aim is to provide an opportunity to reflect on the city’s rich traditions and offer innovative, fun, and safe ways for us to create meaningful connections with one another.
The exhibition photographs are selected from the archives of Fall River’s Herald News and the work of anthropologist, Andrea Klimt. The Herald News has been providing Fall River residents with city news and images of local events since 1892. University of Massachusetts Dartmouth anthropologist, Andrea Klimt, has been taking photographs of Fall River’s public celebrations for over a decade and founded the collaborative photography project, Fall River Portraits. Debra Charlebois, Gallery Director at the Bay Coast Bank Gallery at the Narrows Center for the Arts and Andrea Klimt curated the exhibition. Colin Furze, photography editor at Fall River’s Herald News, selected the Herald’s photographs.
Please help make this exhibition a collaborative experience.
- To add your own photos or view the photos contributed by visitors, go to the Community Contributed Photos tab.
- To add your comments on the exhibition and personal memories and stories or see other visitors’ comments, go to the Comments/Memories/Stories tab.
- To add your comments on individual photographs or see other visitors’ comments, click on the comments icon on the lower left bottom of each photograph.

Citywide Festivals – Part 1
Citywide festivals have long been an important part of life in Fall River. This series brings together images from the 1950s to the present of events held in North Park and Fall River Heritage State Park as well as the annual Memorial Day Parade. VIEWING TIPS: Click...

Citywide Festivals – Part 2
Citywide festivals have long been an important part of life in Fall River. This series brings together images from the 1950s to the present of events such as Fall River Celebrates America, parades down Main Street, and the Quequechan River Rail Trail Festival. VIEWING...

Food behind the Feasts
Sharing food brings people together and often offers connections to traditions and heritage. What is St. Patrick’s Day without boiled cabbage and corned beef? Who doesn’t have cherished memories of the malasadas, sopas, and grilled sardines on plentiful offer at...

Portuguese Feasts
People with family origins in Portugal, especially the Azores, make up well over half of Fall River's population. Portuguese-American traditions thus are an extremely important part of the city's cultural life. This series of images focuses on Fall River's Holy Ghost...

Multicultural Medley
The community of Fall River is made up of people who hail from many different corners of the world. Successive waves of immigrants - from Poland, Ireland, French Canada, Lebanon, Portugal, Greece, Central and South America, Cambodia, Cape Verde - have made the city...

Faces of Fall River
People of all ages and backgrounds come together to enjoy the feasts and festivals held in the public spaces of the city. VIEWING TIPS: Click on the image to get full-screen. Then click on the info 'i' icon on the lower left to view the caption. To add a comment or...

Neighborhood Parties
A block party brings residents of the Flint neighborhood together for fun and food. VIEWING TIPS: Click on the image to get full-screen. Then click on the info 'i' icon on the lower left to view the caption. To add a comment or view visitors' comments, click on the...