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Here is another in my series of excerpts from the 1926 Lowell City Directory. This post lists the job titles of Lowell city officials and the names of those who fill them: Mayor – John J. Donovan (salary $5,000) Councilors-At-Large (salary $500 each; two-year terms) James J. Gallagher (president) John…
Read More »Bonne et heureuse année!/Good and happy new year! (PIP #14) By Louise Peloquin How would Louis-A. Biron have welcomed in this new year? At the dawn of 1936, here is an excerpt of his address to L’Etoile readers. (1) ********* Just as the torrent rushes towards the abyss, time…
Read More »The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons Barron’s own blog. Few windows into today’s higher education leadership were as shocking as the testimony of three distinguished university presidents (from Harvard, Penn and MIT) before the star chamber hearing of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce…
Read More »On Tuesday, January 2, 2024, at 10 am, the newly elected Lowell City Council took the oath of office at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium. City Clerk Michael Geary chaired the event until the new Mayor was elected. Geary explained that the inauguration ceremony had been moved to the Auditorium when…
Read More »“Lowell is a Great City” (in 1926) On March 1, 1826, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts granted the town of Lowell its initial charter. Consequently, the city of Lowell will soon begin celebrating its bicentennial. I have occasionally posted items about Lowell’s founding, and will continue to do so, but I…
Read More »Food Conservation in Lowell (PIP #13) By Louise Peloquin As we gobble the holiday goodies filling our refrigerators, cupboards, cookie platters and candy dishes, let’s peek at a throwback on food management during World War I. The recommendations below, published without commentary, made L’Etoile’s front page on November 14, 1917.…
Read More »The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons Barron own blog. It’s bedtime for 2023. It has been an ugly year. Ukraine. Hamas’ October 7th attack. Bloodshed in Gaza. Wildfires and floods from global warming. House of Representatives chaos and gridlock. Biden’s slump in polls. Social media’s pollution of young…
Read More »Here are my choices for the most important political events in Lowell in 2023: Turnout in the November city election was historically low with approximately 7500 people voting. Two years ago, nearly 12,000 cast votes. While that seems like a lot compared to the total this year, remember that in…
Read More »This was originally posted on this site on December 31, 2010. Plaque erected in Quebec City marking the spot of American General Richard Montgomery’s death. “Here stood the Undaunted Fifty safeguarding Canada, defeating Montgomery at the Pres de Ville Barricade on the last day of 1775, Guy Carleton commanding at…
Read More »Sleepers, or A Long Night’s Journey into Day By Malcolm Sharps In my time living in the Baltic I discovered the joy of sleeper trains. And, once discovered, I could not think of them ever again as just another form of transport. Why travel by sleeper? The best night’s sleep…
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