George Sheldon (1818-1916), Deerfield, Massachusetts’ oldest citizen, rides in a motor car in 1916. Sheldon, founder and former president of the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, was 98 years old when this picture was taken. He is riding in the back of an open touring car that was built around 1912, if the distinctively flared fender is any indication. Sheldon came from one of Deerfield’s oldest families. His great-great grandfather owned the Old Indian House, the home that sustained attacks during the famous 1704 Deerfield raid when his great-great grandmother Hannah Chapin was taken captive. She was later “redeemed,” or purchased back, from the atackers.

Behind the touring car stands the Deerfield Post Office, built in 1912, on the site of the old Grange Hall. The building was remodeled in 1952, to resemble Deerfield’s Third Meetinghouse.