Great Barrington is the birthplace of W. E. B. Du Bois, an African-American academic and civil rights activist, most known for being one of the co-founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909. Du Bois was born on February 23, 1868, at a house later replaced by where present-day Route 23 would run. As a child, Du Bois attended the Congregational Church. Many of these church members donated the funds needed for Du Bois to attend college. Du Bois lived in the town until he was seventeen. The W.E.B. Du Bois Boyhood Homesite has interpretive trails and a walking tour.