History of North End unfolding

Established in 2009, the North End Historical Society, a legally incorporated non-profit Massachusetts organization, has a clear mission to collect and preserve the historical record and material culture of Boston’s North End, to preserve, catalog and present these resources in service of the wider community through publications, lectures, educational programs and exhibits, according to Co-Founder Alex Goldfeld.

One of the current accomplishments of the Society is a 40-minute video about the Street Corner Society that includes an interviews with author, William Foote Whyte, as well as North End "corner boys" featured in the book, Ralph Orlandella and Al Natale.

Visit www.NorthEndWaterfront.com to view this video which Matt Conti has made available on his website.

The Society has several Board members, some of them are North End residents or former residents.

Currently society meetings are private as it is relatively new and still working on a lot of basics, according to Goldfeld.

Anyone can join the historic related group by completing a membership form available on the Society’s website, www.NorthEndBoston.org.

In a short time the Society has legally incorporated, has also made headway on its IRS application, opened bank accounts, recruited numerous members and presented several public programs in the neighborhood and elsewhere.

"We are currently planning several members only programs for the fall and winter," Goldfeld noted in a release. "We are also hoping to have an open house for any interested parties."

In addition, the Society is preparing for the production of the first volume of the Journal of the North End Historical Society, a scholarly publication dedicated to local history. The deadline for submitting information is Monday, November 1.

The Journal will be edited by Dr. James Pasto of Boston University, who was born and raised in the North End and is a co-founder of the Society.