About Bonnie Hurd Smith Bonnie Hurd Smith is a professional manager of projects, organizations, public relations, media relations, government relations, and publications relating to the history and culture of Boston, Cambridge, and the North Shore. She has served as the executive director of the Ipswich Historical Society, president of the Sargent House Museum in Gloucester, and director of the Boston Women's Heritage Trail before creating a similar trail in Salem, Massachusetts.In 2003, Bonnie wrote and designed a specially-commissioned exhibit and book on Ralph Waldo Emerson for his bicentennial. Bonnie is the author of books and monographs and has created a website on the eighteenth century Gloucester essayist Judith Sargent Murray. She is a frequent speaker on Murray at historical societies, libraries, museums, and bookstores. Bonnie served as the project manager for the dedication of the Peabody Essex Museum's Armory Memorial Park and "Walkway of Heroes." As interim director of the Salem Partnership, she worked closely with local civic and state government officials to revitalize Salem's courts, roads, and parking. At the state level, Bonnie achieved recognition as the first director of external affairs for the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities where she interacted with state legislators and grant recipients throughout the Commonwealth to raise awareness of the humanities. Much of this work was achieved under the umbrella of Hurd Smith Communications, the company Bonnie founded in 1990 after working for many years in the Publications Office at Boston's Museum of Science. She believes in a collaborative approach -- strong teams, clearly defined roles, and achievable goals. By following this philosophy, Bonnie delivers effective business practices to nonprofit or small business initiatives. Bonnie currently serves as a commissioner of the Essex National Heritage Commission, and on the board of the North of Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau. Bonnie earned a B.A. in history and an M.S. in communications management from Simmons College in Boston. She is a native of Concord, Massachusetts, but currently resides in Salem. CURRENT PROJECTS Bonnie is currently writing two books about Judith Sargent Murray: Mingling Souls Upon Paper: An Eighteenth-Century Love Story, and The Letters I Left Behind: Judith Sargent Murray Papers, Letter Book 3. She is working with the Essex National Heritage Commission to develop a "trail" of First Period architectural sites in Essex County (those constructed between 1625-1725) and hosting a weblog starting early December 2006. She is consulting with Salem Preservation, Inc. and the Salem Witch Museum on collaborative projects between the museum and Salem in 1630 (Pioneer Village). She continues to consult with the president of the Ipswich Historical Society, and she is assisting a committee of Ipswich civic leaders, government officials, and curators to bring the "Ipswich Charter Hangings" from Ipswich, England, to Ipswich, Massachusetts. (Photo by Susan Wilson) home / contact us