Abby Epplett, Historian

On a rainy day in September 2024, I went to Great Road Day hosted by several historical venues in Lincoln, RI. This town in the Blackstone River Valley is known for its history, as I had previously featured Eleazer Arnold House and its annual celebration Abraham Lincoln’s birthday . Great Road Day recognizes the early highway system, and this event meant I had the opportunity to visit several venues that I had always gone by but never gone in. My first stop was Hearthside House, part of Great Road Heritage Campus .

On the same day I visited Middleborough Historical Museum and Robbins Museum of Archaeology , I took my customary history stops around the town, including the library, town hall, churches, and war memorials. Most of these important community buildings were located in Middleborough Center National Historic District, which has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2000 . Unique features of this town are its incredibly tall town hall design, a historic bell, and signage commemorating American Revolutionary War hero Deborah Sampson . This is also an informal survey of who is on what side of the Middleborough/Middleboro naming divide.

Believe it or not, I had one more weekend left in August 2024 to go on a history adventure. I took a trip to Middleboro, MA to visit Middleborough Historical Museum . This was not your average small town history museum, as the complex combines an indoor exhibit about a celebrity couple plus mechanical musical instruments with a small collection of restored buildings and related artifacts. Once again, the weather was perfect for a summertime adventure.

In August 2024, I went on a five-day trip to Cape Cod, MA where I visited many museums and cultural organizations, along with quick history stops and trails. I drove across the bridge to the town of Wareham, which proudly calls itself “The gateway to Cape Cod” to visit a few sites owned by Wareham Historical Society . I took a guided tour of the Fearing Tavern Museum and made quick history stops at the Old Methodist Meeting House, the One-Room Schoolhouse, and the Union Chapel. I also saw the towering Wareham War Memorial and smaller Wareham World War I Memorial in Center Park, the town green.

At last, I arrive at the final section of the appendixes. After a hundred and fifty pages of comparing Middle-earth history to real-world history, I have an even stronger grasp of how Tolkien used his expertise as a philologist and historian to build a fantasy world rooted in fact. This will serve as a solid foundation for future research as I move into the dialog portion of the text and reveal vignettes for the hypothetical animated musical.

On the same street as Florence Griswold Museum, Old Lyme Historical Society wrote a self-guided walking tour available on their website . This tour provided brief histories and custom watercolor illustrations of buildings. While an audio tour would have been easier to follow, the tour was straightforward and gave plenty of information without requiring too much reading. Sidewalks for most of the route allowed visitors to safely traverse the fairly quiet center of town.

This museum season, I am completing the Passport to History developed by Old Colony History Museum in Taunton. Last Saturday, I visited three more museums in the passport book, plus a bonus museum. The Veterans Memorial Museum of Rhode Island is a remarkable collection of military and war artifacts started by Glenn Dusablon, who also gave my private tour. The museum is on the second floor of the American French Genealogical Society in Woonsocket, RI , formerly a gymnasium / auditorium accessible by elevator or stairs, and does not have external signage, but rest assured that the parking lot at 78 Earl Street is the right place to be!

Last Saturday — June 15, 2024 — I had an adventure in New Bedford, MA. My third major stop was Fort Taber Park , which included the remains of a historic fort, a paved walking trail, and Fort Taber - Fort Rodman Historical Association Military Museum . This museum was my second stop in the Passport to History developed by Old Colony History Museum , my first stop being Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton, MA on June 2, 2024 .

Have you ever wanted to explore a lighthouse nowhere near a major body of water, but very close to a major league sports stadium, and learn history along the way? If you live in New England, you are in luck. Gillette Stadium Lighthouse in Foxborough, MA is just that. This addition to the recently renovated Gillette Stadium, home to the National Football League (NFL) team New England Patriots and Major League Soccer (MLS) team New England Revolution, is the tallest “lighthouse” in America, the quotes being that while the building is a lighthouse in form, it does not serve the practical purpose of a lighthouse in guiding ships to safety. Instead, LED lights at the top of the Lighthouse are “programmed to show colors and movement”, with additional lights on its side. I visited during the day when no game was happening, so the Lighthouse was unlit.

For all my gallivanting across Massachusetts, I have never toured the Massachusetts State House! Fortunately, the government website provides a virtual tour of these space , allowing me to see panoramic images on the interior from the comfort of my home. This tour highlights nine areas in the statehouse with unique artwork and furniture. 1 st Floor The 1 st Floor of the State House has no artifacts and lists only a few points of interest: house clerk, house council, hearing rooms, house minority, and state bookstore. I wish some explanation had been offered on why this section was left blank, or that details were giving for what business happened in each of the points of interest. 2 nd Floor The 2 nd listed the state auditor, state treasurer, senate counsel, and another hearing room as points of interests in addition to listing several featured areas. Each featured area was represented by a colorful circle on the map of the floor and also in a list underneat...

Last Saturday, I took my first daytrip of the 2024 museum season. For the first stop, I visited General Artemas Ward House in Shrewsbury, MA. This historic house museum has been owned and maintained by Harvard University since a member of the Ward family donated a much larger property in 1925. The hour-long house tour follows multiple generations of this family, beginning with General Artemas Ward himself, who briefly served as the commander of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and as second-in-command under George Washington. The house has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1976.

Back in November, I took a trip to Cumberland, RI to walk the trails around the former Cumberland Monastery , formerly called  Our Lady of the Valley Monastery . Once the home to Cistercians or Trappist monks, this property now contains the Cumberland Public Library , Cumberland Senior Center , and the Office of Children, Youth, and Learning for the town of Cumberland .

In early November 2023, I took a stroll through Air Line Trail State Park in Connecticut and visited West Thompson Cemetery . This easy walk and historic burial ground were a great way to enjoy one of the last warm and sunny days of the year before the winter set in, along with learning about less commonly known local history.

The 2024 season of Parked at Home hosted by Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park (BRVNHP) returned last night — March 8, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. — with guest speaker and park ranger Samantha Baranski of First State National Historical Park (FSNHP) in Delaware.

At last, I reach the conclusion of my journey to visit all thirty-eight properties owned by Historic New England (HNE) . In late September 2023, I made a special day trip to Yarmouth, MA on Cape Cod to visit several historic sites. My first major history stop was Winslow Crocker House , built in nearby West Barnstable around 1780 by maritime trader Winslow Crocker . I received an especially warm welcome from the excellent guides and celebrated my completion of the HNE passport book. This lovingly renovated home filled with antique furniture was the perfect way to bring this phase of my adventure to a close.

Back in September 2023, the day after touring Amesbury, MA, I went north to Portsmouth, NH to continue my history adventure. I had previously visited Portsmouth in September 2022, covering well-known historic attractions including but not limited to Strawbery Banke , Historic New England’s Governor John Langdon House and Rundlet-May House , Moffatt-Ladd House & Garden , and Wentworth-Gardner House . During this visit, my first stop was to see Wentworth-Coolidge Mansion and Little Harbor Chapel located on the outskirts of Portsmouth.

In the second part of my two-part series on quick history stops in Amesbury, MA, I marched across a training field used during the American Revolutionary War, walked a wooded trail, passed by multiple historic buildings, and visited two monuments.

Back in September 2023, I had a history adventure in Amesbury, MA and neighboring Portsmouth, NH. During my first four major stops, I visited Historic New England’s Rocky Hill Meeting House , Lowell’s Boat Shop , a Mary Baker Eddy Historic House , and the Industrial History Center in Amesbury . During this busy day, I also made many quick history stops. For the first post in a two-part mini-series, I visit several houses of worship, two banks, two murals, a library, and a statue, all located in downtown Amesbury.

In September 2023, I went on another long weekend adventure to northeastern Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire. My first major stop was Rocky Hill Meeting House , a church turned museum owned by Historic New England (HNE) This is the only building out of the thirty-eight HNE properties that was never residential. Rocky Hill Meeting House was built with a vision in mind: creating a Congregationalist church in preparation for the population boom that was sure to come. A smaller meeting house had stood near the site since 1716, but the parishioners wanted bigger and better things. Reverend Samuel Webster had pastored the church since 1741 and dedicated his entire career to this one church community. He had already led the church for forty-four years when he proposed a new building for the coming revival. During construction in 1785, only two years after the end of the American Revolutionary War, this property was part of Salisbury, MA, as modern Am...

Back in August 2023, I visited Cambridge, MA. This is my final post about that adventure. My main stops were Longfellow House Washington Headquarters , Cooper-Frost-Austin House , and Harvard Art Museums . I also visited several quick history stops during my adventure. Part 1 covered the houses of Brattle Street, Part 2 focused on houses of worship in Cambridge, and Part 3 highlights memorials and buildings at Cambridge Common . At sixteen acres in size, this city park provides a paved walking path, monuments to a multitude of historical events, and the Alexander W. Kemp Playground completed in 2009. An abandoned cannon from the American Revolutionary War sits on a red brick paver patio across from Prince Hall Memorial. This set of five granite plaques placed in a semicircle honors the founder of the first Masonic Lodge for Black Americans. Prince Hall led the free Black community in Boston through his support for education and abolition. Beginning in 1775,...