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There was no Lowell City Council meeting this week so in today’s newsletter I’ll write about some Lowell political history, specifically our representatives in Congress since 1960. 1960 – F. Bradford Morse – Republican Edith Nourse Rogers had represented Lowell’s Congressional District since 1925. When she died on September 10,…

Nun Too Happy! By Leo Racicot The good Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur would be horrified to see or worse try to read my spidery, hieroglyphic scrawl; they labored tirelessly to drum into us students the Palmer Penmanship Method. I sometimes can’t read my own writing a minute after writing it.…

Living Madly: Lighter than Air By Emilie-Noelle Provost Joy can be hard to come by these days. In my case at least, the last seven years have often felt like one long street fight. In early 2019, my mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer. The following year, because of the…

A weekly report on things I’ve read, heard and seen since last Wednesday.  Article: “Dear Client, thieves may be eyeing your home. No worries.” By Ron Lieber for New York Times on August 31, 2026. This longtime Times business columnist returned from vacation to find a letter from the bank…

Two years ago, Louise Peloquin began sharing excerpts from L’Etoile, a French-language newspaper published in Lowell from 1886 to 1957. At my urging, she has agreed to compile some of her previous posts with added contextual information into a book manuscript to be called, L’Etoile: A Star on Prince Street.…

The Lowell City Council met on Tuesday, September 8, 2026. The council is still on its twice-monthly summer meeting schedule which typically yields a very long meeting, however, this one lasted just over two hours, which is concise by summer standards. Contributing to the brevity of the meeting was the…

A poem to commemorate the anniversary of the death of Edith Nourse Rogers on September 10, 1960. Rogers represented Lowell in Congress for 35 years.  For Edith Nourse Rogers By Suzanne Beebe Memorial Day in 1950s Lowell — with Color guards, and marching bands, and U.S Military men and vehicles,…

In recognition of the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, here are some items on those events that have appeared on this website: Notes from September 11, 2001 By Richard Howe (on Sept 11, 2011) Within days of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, I sat down with a pencil…

Tony: Movie Review By Leo Racicot I can’t say I ever had much of an interest in author, world traveler, culinary supernova, Anthony Bourdain. His Kitchen Confidential thug demeanor was a turn-off. Though he hit the nail on-the-head with his portrayal of how crude, rude and crass kitchen workers can…

A weekly report on things I’ve read, heard and seen since last Wednesday.  Exhibit: The Great Elephant Migration. This is a temporary public art display on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall from Dartmouth to Fairfield Streets in Boston. It depicts 100 life sized elephants sculpted in India from plant materials. The…