The following is an excerpt from “Sound the Alarm,” the latest installment of True Tales from Canton’s Past by local historian George T. Comeau. The article tells the story of the Ponkapoag Fire Station and the current efforts to memorialize the firefighters through the preservation of the station’s original bell. … The building was dedicated […]
The following is an excerpt from “The Gift,” the latest installment of True Tales from Canton’s Past by local historian George T. Comeau. The little girl sat straight, her hands in her lap, holding a pink flower. Mary dared not smile; she simply fixed her gaze at the painter as he worked to capture her […]
There could be no more a prominent citizen than Congressman Elijah Adams Morse, and when he died in 1898, the entire community wept at the loss of this lion of a man. All factories, stores and places of business suspended operations and closed their doors during the services, and representatives of all classes of society, […]
Paul Folkman and Jim Lamarr are developers. And, quite honestly, being branded a developer in a small town like Canton is usually a bad thing. It is the developers that receive the scorn of neighborhood associations, who see encroachments as personal attacks upon the value of their homes. Developers are branded as greedy, irresponsible, and […]
The imagery that stirs the loudest in the Ken Burns documentary The Civil War is that of the letter from Sullivan Ballou to his wife, Sarah. In his now-famous letter to his wife, Ballou endeavored to express the emotions he was feeling: worry, fear, guilt, sadness, and most importantly, the pull between his love for […]
As Joe Bagley speaks, his passion for archeology flows. Standing in front of an overflowing room, Bagley looks the part of an archeologist — rugged boots, tough pants, and a boyish smile. The audience hangs on his every word. This is the Friends of the Blue Hills’ 35th anniversary meeting, and the city of Boston […]
The following is an excerpt from “Images on Glass,” the latest installment of True Tales from Canton’s Past by George T. Comeau. The full version of this story, along with a page of “Then and Now” photos depicting
At 38 years old, the author had amassed a small fortune and was in a position to purchase the country estate in Ponkapoag. After laboring for 20 years in the editorial mill and publishing seven volumes of poetry and four bestselling books, he had established himself as “one of the most delightful writers of his […]
The Rockland Street neighborhood was just that — a neighborhood. Everyone knew everyone else, and in 1912 it was predominantly composed of immigrant families. A look at the census sheet tells the story — names like Casey, Ward, Roache, Fitzgerald, and Sullivan. The occupations further paint the picture: mason, bookkeeper, laundress, assembler, seamstress, and blacksmith. […]
A question was recently posed on Facebook that asked, “What would you consider the Golden Era of Canton?” There were only a handful of answers. Sarah Titus answered, “Now. Schools are great, streets are clean, seniors getting a new clubhouse, new walking trails at the eyesore airport, good things happenin’!” But of course, my answer […]
