Abby Epplett, Historian

With all my excitement about my winter holiday trip, I forgot to share my adventure at Aldrich School in Whitinsville, MA back in November 2025! This former public school was recently purchased by Whitin Community Center with plans to renovate the building , turning it into a childcare facility as part of a $10 million project, $8 million of which is earmarked for the school. I had the chance to explore the inside before its pending facelift. The building was constructed in 1890 by the Whitin family using extra bricks from the Whitin Machine Works just across the street and named in honor of Eleanor Williams Aldrich , a teacher in the Northbridge public school system for almost forty years who passed away at sixty-one while still doing what she loved. The building is now part of Downtown Crossroads Historic District.

During the same trip that I visited the Grand Rapids Public Museum, I took a holiday tour of Felt Estate in Holland, MI. This three-story, early 20 th century estate was home to the Felt family, led by self-made millionaire inventor Dorr Felt . The tour covered two floors of the three-story mansion and was festively decorated for Christmas. Both the story of the property and its decor are fascinating, so I am dividing the blog into two parts. The first part covered the history of the property, and this second part will cover its design.

During the same trip that I visited the Grand Rapids Public Museum, I took a holiday tour of Felt Estate in Holland, MI. This three-story, early 20 th century estate was home to the Felt family, led by self-made millionaire inventor Dorr Felt . The tour covered two floors of the three-story mansion and was festively decorated for Christmas. Both the story of the property and its decor are fascinating, so I am dividing the blog into two parts. This post will cover the history of the property, and the next post will cover its design.

The Ringwraiths, also known as the Black Riders or the Nazgûl in Black Speech, were nine mortal Men transformed into evil, undead horrors due to their rings of power addiction. Sauron used them as his top servants, ordering them to track down the One Ring and terrorize the Free People. Despite their power, they were not particularly effective in much of what they did, to be seen in future chapters. In this week’s essay, I will explore the folkloric motifs that may have inspired Tolkien and explain the etymological differences between different categories of undead people appearing in The Lord of the Rings . I will also present a brief literature review on what other experts say about the Ringwraiths, along with sharing portrayals by other illustrators.

During the 2025-2026 winter holiday season, I took a trip to western Michigan. During this adventure, I visited the Grand Rapids Public Museum , which is receiving its own three-part mini series. The first part featured the history of the museum, the temporary dinosaur exhibit, a permanent exhibit about the people of Grand Rapids, a permanent exhibit about animals in Michigan, and a special exhibit featuring LEGO models. The second part featured an exhibit near the planetarium, signed baseballs, a large map of Michigan, skeletons, transportation, and exhibits in the Gallaria. In the third part, I visited a scale model of a city street, saw many Santas, and enjoyed a pair of unexpected artifacts just outside the giftshop.

During the 2025-2026 winter holiday season, I took a trip to western Michigan. During this adventure, I visited the Grand Rapids Public Museum , which is receiving its own three-part mini series. The first part featured the history of the museum, the temporary dinosaur exhibit, a permanent exhibit about the people of Grand Rapids, a permanent exhibit about animals in Michigan, and a special exhibit featuring LEGO models. The second part includes an exhibit near the planetarium, signed baseballs, a large map of Michigan, skeletons, transportation, and exhibits in the Gallaria.

During the 2025-2026 winter holiday season, I took a trip to western Michigan. During this adventure, I visited the Grand Rapids Public Museum , which is receiving its own three-part mini series. In the first part, I will review the history of the museum, the temporary dinosaur exhibit, a permanent exhibit about the people of Grand Rapids, a permanent exhibit about animals in Michigan, and a special exhibit featuring LEGO models.

While taking a walk around downtown Plymouth, MA , I saw several pieces from the art installation Seal’d with Art: Plymouth Harbor Seals . This is the third time the Plymouth Area Chamber of Commerce has given the opportunity for local businesses to sponsor artists in creating a themed sculpture, the first two being lobsters and seashells. The seals debuted in Spring 2025 and remain on display through Fall 2027, so you have plenty of time to see this whimsical art. Below are my favorite seals out of the twenty-five in the exhibition.

Yesterday, as part of celebrating American250, I watched the historical fiction movie A Great Awakening produced by Sight & Sound Theatres  during a visit to Elm Draught House Cinema in Millbury, MA. Featuring talented actors, its signature musical style, and beautiful cinematography, the movie introduced the story of renowned traveling minister George Whitefield through his somewhat embellished relationship with Founding Father Benjamin Franklin. At two hours and nine minutes, the film captivates a receptive audience with a carefully constructed storyline, and yet it does not cover some key points in the lives of its subjects.

This week, I am releasing another section of music for “Book II, Chapter 2 The Shadow of the Past”. In this brief section, Gandalf began explaining the story behind Frodo’s ring and sang the famous theme song of the series, which originally appeared as the Epigraph in the text and was sung in the “Prologue” of the animated musical . While no new musical themes are introduced in this section, I used motifs occurring in previous sections to develop a cohesive score. This essay focuses mostly on music theory, but history-themed essays will be back in two weeks.