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Greenfield's common stands at the heart of a bustling city. New England town commons have always served as the center for political, social, commercial and religious life. Town founders designed them as "common" areas, to be used by residents as they see fit. Sometimes hay was grown, cattle were grazed, and goods were weighed in this undeveloped space. The buildings that surrounded it in 1905 included (left to right) Bank Row (named after the two banks that monopolized its length), the 1796 Hollister House (designed by noted architect Asher Benjamin), the Second Congregational Church, and the County Court House. Trolleys, carrying people to work, school, home or to meet friends or family can be seen in the back.

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