In honor of Juneteenth, here are some snippets of African-American history with Lowell connections: Harry “Bucky” Lew, born in Lowell in 1884, was the first African-American to play professional basketball. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. preached in Lowell on April 12, 1953, at the First United Baptist Church on Church…
Read More »
The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons-Barrons own blog. Paul Levy was the much-admired executive director of the Mass Water Resources Authority, who, from 1988-1992, led the stunningly successful cleanup of Boston Harbor. He had previously chaired the Mass. Department of Public Utilities (1983-1987) and followed that…
Read More »
For my fellow Lowell, Mass., nerds, please note the fabulous cover on this new collection of poems by the late Michael McClure. The editor is Garrett Caples of the City Lights Books team in San Francisco, who has roots in Lowell. Here’s what he writes about the cover: “When [Michael]…
Read More »
Casino Tales By David Daniel Covid Restrictions Easing, Area Casinos Look For Jackpot – The Boston Globe 5/23/21 1. Christina’s Other World The elevator on the casino level is crowded when the Wagmans board. “Thirty, please,” Neil Wagman says. A woman standing near the panel pokes it. “The VIP lounge,”…
Read More »
Nina MacLaughlin of The Boston Globe (6-6-21) reviews Matthew W. Miller’s new book of poems, cover-to-cover about the Merrimack River and Lowell: “In his hewn and forceful new collection of poetry, “Tender the River” (Texas Review), Matthew W. Miller makes a coursing book-length portrait of the Merrimack River, its…
Read More »
Here are the overall results of the 2019 Lowell City Council election followed by a precinct-by-precinct breakdown of each candidate’s vote. Rita Mercier – 5202 Vesna Nuon – 4830 John Drinkwater – 4796 Rodney Elliott – 4745 Sokhary Chau – 4329 John Leahy – 4188 David Conway – 3745 William…
Read More »
Linda Whittenberg first connected with Ireland through her beloved Irish grandfather, Will Shannon, with whom she spent her childhood in the Illinois farmland where she was born. As a Unitarian-Universalist minister in the United States, she served congregations in the West before launching her voice as a poet. During Writers’…
Read More »
Next By Mark Cote Charlie stood on the sidewalk towards the end of the line. At 55 he looked older than is years having gone almost completely bald in his mid forties. Soon what was left was gray and white, and, coupled with his ever- expanding beer belly one could…
Read More »
Lockdown Letters & Other Poems By Paul Marion Review by Richard Howe Sixteen months ago life in Lowell proceeded at its typical late winter pace. It was cold and there was a bit of snow but all indications were that 2020 would be a busy year in the local historical…
Read More »
Boarding School Blues By Louise Peloquin Ch. 13: Reconnecting The day after the bungled film soirée was special. Blanche’s family was coming to visit. It was late October when leaves lay on the ground in an oriental rug pattern of rust, ochre and yellow. Blanche was waiting in the parlor…
Read More »