Attleboro Industrial Museum Screens Jewelry History Films Oct. 10

Four legacy manufacturers that helped define Attleboro, Massachusetts, as a global jewelry capital will take center stage Saturday when the Attleboro Area Industrial Museum premieres a new series of oral history films.

The screening begins at 2 p.m. Oct. 10 inside the museum at 42 Union St. Admission is free.

Each of the four 15-minute documentaries profiles executives and artisans from companies deeply embedded in the city’s industrial identity: Mark Fisher of Swift & Fisher, Tom Greene of Balfour Jewelry, Andrea Guyot Twombly of Guyot Brothers, and Rachel Benavides alongside Pret Stevenson of the Reeves Company. The interviews trace individual corporate histories while examining how Attleboro’s dense manufacturing ecosystem shaped their operations.

Filmmaker Ian Opaluch of IO Digital Marketing produced, directed and edited the project.

The release falls under Voices of Industry, an ongoing archival initiative designed to capture firsthand accounts from regional factory workers, business owners and tradespeople before their institutional knowledge disappears. Executive Director Victoria Antonucci leads the effort to expand the museum’s video library, which feeds into rotating exhibitions and local educational programming.

Attleboro earned the moniker “Jewelry Capital of the World” during the early 20th century, when dozens of factories along the Ten Mile River produced the majority of gold-filled and costume jewelry sold in the United States. Companies like Balfour became nationally recognized for manufacturing class rings and fraternal regalia, while firms such as Guyot Brothers specialized in precious metal findings — the small components like clasps, settings and pins required for finished jewelry. Although globalization and shifting consumer markets drastically reduced the city’s factory footprint after the 1970s, several specialized manufacturers continue operating in the region today.

Saturday’s event functions as the latest installment of the museum’s Second Saturdays series, a monthly public program exploring distinct facets of the area’s commercial and cultural past. A question-and-answer session with participants will follow the screenings, with light refreshments provided.

Funding for the Voices of Industry project comes through the Massachusetts Cultural Council, coordinated locally by the Attleboro, North Attleboro and Wrentham cultural councils.

The nonprofit museum itself has operated since 1975, occupying a historic Union Street building where it maintains a permanent collection of manufacturing artifacts, trade catalogs, machinery and photographic archives documenting the region’s transition from agrarian roots to heavy industry.

Programming schedules and archive access details are available at industrialmuseum.com.