Menu
The Business of Valentine Cards: From Howland to Hallmark by Marie MassMoments tells us this morning that in 1849 – the first American-made Valentine cards were created and sold in Worcester, Massachusetts by Mt. Holyoke graduate Esther Howland. Modeled on the English-style Valentine, her fancy designs, embossed, cut and colored…
Read More »Over on the “Forgotten New England” blog there’s another installment in the Fires of Lowell, Massachusetts series. This story of the Sacred Heart School fire in 1967 tears at my memory, my heartstrings and the fabric of my family history. My grandfather – Patrick J. Kirwin was a member of…
Read More »MassMoments reminds us that on this day February 11, 1812 the infamous political creature known as the “Gerrymander” was born in the Massachusetts State House – conceived by then Governor Elbridge Gerry – a staunch Democrat-Republican. Caught in a nasty campaign for control of the government, Gerry sign a redistricting bill…
Read More »The Lowell Sun is reporting that longtime Greater-Lowell Area State Senator Susan Fargo – Democrat of Lincoln – plans to retire and not run for reelection to her Third Middlesex District seat. The district includes the local community of Chelmsford as well as Bedford, Carlisle, Concord, Lexington – Pcts. 3, 8,…
Read More »For all you Superbowl fans and others who’ve seen the Clint Eastwood “Halftime in America” ad , don’t miss Washington Post opinion writer E. J. Dionne’s take today in “Clint, Rick and the limits of pessimism.” Dionne reminds us that “Franklin Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton all understood that Americans…
Read More »Last Fall I wrote a blog post about a series launched by the Springfield Republican that was to chronicle the role of Springfield, Massachusetts in the Civil War and of how the community and environs weathered the difficult years of the War. Springfield native and local historian Wayne Phaneuf – who…
Read More »In yesterday’s New York Times Douglas Martin wrote of Lowell-born Roger Boisjoly who died a few weeks ago just before the anniversary of the 1986 Challenger Space Shuttle disaster. Why link these two events? Remember the O-ring question? An O-ring seal in Challenger’s right solid rocket booster failed at liftoff – a situation that…
Read More »President Obama has had an ongoing focus on helping veterans and their families. In his State of the Union remarks last week President Obama announced his plan for American Jobs Act to spur police and firefighter hiring in 2012. This action as well as a plan patterned on FDR’s Civilian Conservation Corps are targeted towards helping veterans. Today the…
Read More »In today’s New York Times op-ed colummist Paul Krugman puts former Massachusetts Governor and GOP Presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s lack of concern for the poor “in context.” His statement: “I’m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there.” has yet again got the pundits and his…
Read More »The Boston Globe is reporting that the current Chancellor for the Archdiocese of Boston James P. McDonough has decided to step down after six years on the job. Complimenting McDonough for getting the finances of the archdiocese on a sound footing, Cardinal Sean O’Malley announced that he has chosen John E. Straub…
Read More »