John O. Curtis

John O. Curtis
1936 - 2024
Brimfield
John O. Curtis, 87, passed away April 3, 2024. He was born on May 1, 1936 in Philadelphia, PA to the late John and Phyllis (Darch) Curtis, and later moved to Pleasant St. in Newton, MA, where John was raised. John graduated from Colby College in Waterville, ME , majoring in Architectural History. After graduating, he briefly worked at Fort Western, a pre-civil war fort, guarding shipping along the Kennebec River in Hallowel, ME.
In 1960, John was hired as Curator of Architecture by the Old Sturbridge Village Museum in Sturbridge, MA, and in 1968, he was promoted to Director of the Curatorial Department. He played an instrumental role in moving many of the buildings to OSV from other locations, including Thompson Bank, the carding mill, and the Asa Knight General Store.
John left the village in the mid to late eighties and worked part time as Curator of History at the Springfield Museum throughout the nineties.
John loved history. He still owned and drove his very first car, a 1912 Ford Model T, that he bought as a teenager and restored with his dad, though it has not been a daily driver since the 1950's.
John is survived by his loving wife, Susan, married on March 29, 1961; his sons, John and partner Susan, and Ben Curtis; grandsons, Ben and Joe Lawton-Curtis and their mother Heather Lawton; his brother, David and wife Elizabeth Cabral-Curtis; nephews, Nate Cabral-Curtis, and Sam Cabral-Curtis and partner Sinclair Teruzzi; great nephews and great niece, Theo, Angelo, Caspian, and Leopolda.
A period of visitation will be held on Monday, April 22, 2024 at Brimfield Congregational Church from 9:30-11:00am with a funeral service to begin at 11:00am. Burial will immediately follow in Brimfield Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations in John's memory can be made to the Salvation Army. Please visit www.beersandstory.com to extend online condolences.