Abby Epplett, Historian

Are you a fan of visiting multiple historic houses or museums in one day? Waltham, Massachusetts is an excellent city for this kind of adventure. With a rich history and a walkable downtown, not to mention plenty of free and inexpensive parking, a trip to this bustling Boston suburb is well worth the trip. I visited Stonehurst, Lyman Estate & Greenhouses, and Gore Place on my whirlwind tour of Waltham.

While I was not able to attend the Civil War reenactment at South County Museum in Narragansett, Rhode Island, which took place back on July 16 and 17, I watched a charming, fourteen-minute-long documentary about the event. Produced by the New England video company LittleFire  with support from the Rhode Island Foundation  and South County Museum, the film records the event while following a pair of reenactors, 15-year-old Jacob Bates and his father, Scott Bates. The documentary serves as a quick introduction to historical reenactment, showcasing how seriously the reenactors take their portrayals. Jacob describes his authentic replica clothing and antique rifle, along with singing a Civil War era ballad. He speaks of the reenactors’ collaboration with the National Park Service and the amount of research that must be done so the battles appear authentic to the audience. While he does smale while comparing historical reenactment to LARPing (Live Action Role Playing,...

Described as “the biggest Green Up / Clean Up in 50 years”, today’s ZAP the Blackstone event celebrated the original event on September 9, 1972. According to the official website of ZAP, at the time of the first cleanup, ecologist David Rosser found that fifty-three percent of the Blackstone River’s flow was raw sewage. The cleanliness of the river had long been in decline. Since the start of the American Industrial Revolution in 1793 with the opening of Slater Mill on the Blackstone River in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, industrial pollution as been dumped directly into the river. Dye dumping from textile mills turned the river the color of whatever clothing was dyed that day. Bernat Mill in Uxbridge, formerly known as Capron Mill and Bachman Uxbridge Worsted Company, was a longtime manufacturer of uniforms for the United States military, and company owners of the 19 th and early 20 th century were known to allow dye dumping. While I was a park ranger at Big Thicket Nat...

If you’re seeking a combination of exercise and history on the coast of Massachusetts, look no further than the Cape Cod Canal Bikeway in the Bourne Recreation Area. Managed by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers New England District , a pair of signs describing the construction and history of the Vertical Life Railroad Bridge line the paved, two-lane path. Walking, biking, rollerblading, and other similar activities are permitted, while the banks near the bridge are a popular spot for fishing. If you travel on the northwest section of the path, plenty of parking is available at nearby Buzzards Bay Park . A matching parking lot for the southeast section is on the opposite side of the Vertical Lift Railroad Bridge.

On the same trip where I visited Canterbury Shaker Village and Castle in the Clouds , I rode a train on Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad and saw art on the Meredith Sculpture Walk in Meredith, New Hampshire . Sitting between Lake Waukewan and Meredith Bay, the town of Meredith is a relaxing getaway, less busy than nearby towns border Lake Winnipesaukee and filled with history.

During the same trip where I visited Canterbury Shaker Village , I took a trip to Castle in the Clouds  (formerly called Lucknow ) and the nearby Brook Walk . Located in rural Moultonborough, New Hampshire, the overlooks from this area provide an unmatched view of nearby mountains, lakes, and rivers.

Do you like historic homes, woodland trails, traditional gardens, handmade furniture, and charismatic religious cults? Canterbury Shaker Village is the destination for you. The Village was by the United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, also known as the Shakers. This religious organization was established by Mother Ann Lee , an English woman claiming to be the incarnation of Jesus Christ. In 1792, the Shakers constructed the Village in the rural town of Canterbury, New Hampshire, and it became one of the most successful communitarian centers on the 19 th and early 20 th century. Now a National Historic Landmark >, the Village is open for visiting from dawn to dusk and provides a unique look into a nearly vanished culture.

One of my favorite places to ride my bike in Central Massachusetts is the Upper Charles Rail Trail, which is managed in part by the Upper Charles Conservation Land Trust and winds through the towns of Milford , Hopkinton , and Holliston . Highlights of the trip include going through Phipps Hill Tunnel and over 8-Arch Bridge, along with reading about the history of the area.

Earlier today — Sunday, August 14 — I was a Volunteer-In-Parks (VIP)  at Blackstone River Valley National Historic Park (BRVNHP)  during “World War II Comes to the Valley”, an event that took place at Open Sky Community Services in the historic village of Whitinsville, Massachusetts . This park also contains Slater Mill , where I volunteered during World Ranger Day .

On the same day that I visited Frederick Law Olmsted NHS , I perused a pair of parks in Brookline, MA.

Did you know that the year 2022 marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of American landscape designer Frederick Law Olmsted? Olmsted 200 is celebrated through the country at notable sites, including his home and office in Brookline, Massachusetts. Now part of the National Park Service as Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site, I finally made the long-awaited visit to the house museum.

Note: I received this book as an advance copy from Goodreads. This is the first time I read a book by award winning author-editor David Maraniss , and the book did not disappoint. Path Lit by Lightning: The Life of Jim Thorpe is an incredibly detailed biography of an internationally renowned athlete whose reputation as a dominant figure in multiple sports was frequently overshadowed by his Native American ancestry. The book’s title emphasizes this overshadowing, as it is one translation of his Sac and Fox name, Wa-Tho-Huk. I won’t roll off additional facts about Jim Thorpe, as the book does this plenty, dispelling myths about his life while adding concrete dates and locations to the lore. Maraniss has clearly done his research, more so than any previous writer of a Thorpe biography. The information on Thorpe’s relatives, teammates, coaches, and failed business ventures clears up the mistruths floating around the internet, originally propagated by contemporaries...

Today is World Ranger Day! As a former park ranger and current Volunteer-In-Park , I volunteered at Slater Mill , part of Blackstone River Valley National Historic Park (BRVNHP).

Several weeks ago, on July 3, I visited Roseland Cottage in Woodstock, Connecticut. Called the “Pink House” by locals, the house and grounds are the only Connecticut property managed by Historic New England  (HNE). Constructed in 1846 by the Bowen family, Roseland Cottage combines a 19 th century Gothic Revival exterior with several generations of renovation on the interior. The property is listed as a National Historic Landmark as the Henry C. Bowen house.

During my trip to Bristol, Connecticut, where I also visited the New England Carousel Museum and Rockwell Park, I went to the American Clock & Watch Museum , a member of the New England Museum Association (NEMA). The museum resides in a building constructed by Bristol resident Miles Lewis in 1801. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places managed by the National Park Service as part of the Federal Hill Historic District .

On the same day as my visit to the New England Carousel Museum , I took a walk around Rockwell Park in Bristol, Connecticut . This small city park is a great outing for the people of Bristol and the surrounding area.

A few weeks ago, I visited the New England Carousel Museum in Bristol, CT. This delightful member of the New England Museum Association (NEMA) is among the largest permanent collections of carousel animals in the country. The museum explained the history of carousels, demonstrated how carousels animals were constructed, and highlighted modern carousel creators. As a bonus, the museum had a working carousel inside the building.

The town of Northbridge, Massachusetts has been celebrating its 250 th birthday. Incorporated on July 14, 1772, the last major celebration was held during the bicentennial in 1972. Small town birthdays are not what they use to be, but the cute parade down Main Street contained several highlights from New England history. Here are a few of my favorites.

I visited Eleazer Arnold House and Clemence-Irons House on the same day, as they are very similar houses! Both are stone-enders, a 17 th century style located in Northern Rhode Island. These houses earned their name from their distinct “stone end”, a side of the house completely covered by a massive limestone chimney. Inside the house, three fireplaces over two floors connect to that same chimney. Although similar in design, visitors to Arnold House and Clemence-Irons House can immediately tell them apart. Arnold House was referred to as a “Splendid Mansion”, although it pales in comparison to modern houses, while Clemence-Irons was a standard, upper middle class family home in its day. Although the buildings appear authentic, historians and architects do not know if the houses appeared exactly this way closer to the time of their construction. Both houses underwent extensive renovation in the past three hundred years and more. Their current state reflects the research of...

When thinking of historical houses in New England, we often picture a Georgian style from around the mid-18th century or the time of the American Revolutionary War, or an opulent mansion from the late-19th to early-20th century, also called the American Gilded Age or late Victorian Era. However, Gropius House was build in 1938, right before World War II, by a German family fleeing the Third Reich of the Nazi party. Walter and Ise Gropius designed the unique house, which still houses its original furniture and décor, while their thirteen-year-old daughter Ati gave input. Not far from Codman Estate in Lincoln, MA,  the house belongs to Historic New England (HNE) and was designated as a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service in 2000. The house combines elements of a traditional New England Colonial style and the German Bauhaus style. Other external features of the house include a winding metal staircase connected to Ati’ s bedroom, climbing roses, and an ou...

A few weeks ago, I visited Codman Estate , called “The Grange” by former owners, which is located in Lincoln, Massachusetts and operated by Historic New England . Built as a plantation house and later serving as a summer estate, five generations of the Codman family lived in the house and filled it with their extensive collections. Because the house was gifted to HNE by the family in 1968, all materials in the house are original and belonged to the Codmans and their relatives. The house currently hosts two regular tours, the Servants Tour and the House Tour , which take place on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month.

All across Conanicut Island are sites maintained by Jamestown Historical Society . The sites opened to the public for the first time that year on the day I visited Jamestown. I visited three of the society’s sites: Jamestown Windmill, Conanicut Friends Meetinghouse, and Jamestown Museum & Town Hall. Jamestown Windmill The gray cedar shingled Jamestown Windmill was built in 1787 by the Watson family, the same people who owned Watson Farm down the street. The windmill was used for grinding corn in cornmeal. The windmill was in operation until 1896 when modern industrial methods of grounding corn made the business unsustainable.

Last Saturday, after a visit to Casey Farm in Saunderstown, Rhode Island, I crossed the bay on Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge and visited  Watson Farm in Jamestown, RI. While both properties are owned by Historic New England (HNE)  with 18 th century farmhouses and heritage breed animals, not to mention that they are located a quick seven minute drive apart in southern Rhode Island, the farms could not be more different.

Last Saturday, I visited Casey Farm , a Historic New England (HNE) property located in Saunderstown, RI . The property spans over 300 acres between Narragansett Bay and the Pettaquamscutt River and includes a Georgian style house, multiple barns and outbuildings, more than ten miles of stone walls, a family cemetery, working gardens, heritage breed animals, and a weekly farmers market. There is a lot to take in!

Last weekend, I attended birthday celebrations for Rhode Island Historical Society (RIHS) and the city of Worcester, Massachusetts. As a Smithsonian Affiliate and member of the New England Museum Association,  RIHS is celebrating the 200th anniversary of their founding throughout the this year with parties themed in 50 year intervals . The 1872 Jubilee Birthday Party was held on June 11 at the John Brown House in Providence, RI and was the second in the series. The event was free and open to the public.  Kevin Doyle's Roscommon Soles  provided live music. Named for a county in Ireland, the four-person group combined traditional Irish music on flute, guitar, uilleann pipes, and bodhrán with intricate tap dance. Doyle is an award-winning dancer who has been recognized by the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts and National Heritage Fellowship, and his skilled steps brought extra energy to the performance. Another highlight of the celeb...

Managed by the Emerald Necklace Conservancy  since 2001, this series of gardens was design by American landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted over a period of eighteen years, from 1878 to 1896. Other well-known public gardens designed by Olmsted include Central Park in Manhattan, New York and the U.S. Capitol Grounds in Washington, D.C. Additionally, Olmstead designed landscapes for privately owned homes, including Biltmore in Asheville, North Carolina for the Vanderbilt family, and his own estate in Brookline, Massachusetts, which is now part of the National Park Service .

Last Saturday, I visited a unique museum in Boston, Massachusetts. This experience can be described with a number of different names related to the the church of Christian Science. These descriptions can be confusing if you are looking on the web to visit, so I'm going to explain the layout before jumping into the experience. The entire facility is called the Christian Science Plaza, which serves as the center of Christian Science. Within the Christian Science Plaza are the Mary Baker Eddy Library, the Mother Church, and the Christian Scientist Publishing House. The Mary Baker Eddy Library is named for the founder or "discoverer" of Christian Science. She lived in New Hampshire and Massachusetts from 1821 to 1910. A brief biography of her life can be found on the Christian Science website and on the Library website . Many books have been written about her by both Christian Scientists and historians.