January 6, 2022 Thanks to Claire Shaw for her recent snippet about our family’s long-standing livery service. The snippet prompted the Historical Society’s David Temple to contact me about writing a deeper dive into the story of Newell’s Livery. How many small-town taxi companies, do you suppose, have ever been featured on national television? […]
From Hooves to Wheels: The Odyssey of a Family Business Read More »
Jan 6, 2022 Here’s some nostalgia for some of the great fads from the 1950s and 60s. Clothes, hairstyles, toys, and television shows all have their fifteen minutes of fame. One of the most memorable fads in Medfield had to be the hula hoop, first sold at Lord’s Department Store in the late 50s.
Celebrating and Remembering Some of the Fads From the 1950s and 60s Read More »
May 1, 2021 Farmers from Dedham first settled Medfield in 1949, only 29 years after the Mayflower landed. The colony had grown rapidly through immigration and reproduction after 1630, and in William S. Tilden’s History of Medfield, the population was reported as 18,000 in 1643. The influx forced settlers to look west for grazing land
Coyotes in Medfield: If You Can’t Beat Them… Then Feed Them? Read More »
Feb 1, 2021 I’m excited to be writing my first article as a “newer” member of the community. My family and I moved to Medfield five years ago from Richmond, Virginia and have really enjoyed getting to experience all the wonderful things that make Medfield special – one of which is the rich history of
Do You Know the “Lady of Route 27?” Read More »
Oct 1, 2020 When I was growing up in the 1950s and 60s, there was a young kid named Harry who was pretty good at finding ways to make money in Medfield. Grace Roberts was an elderly neighbor of his who lived on the left side of the two-family house at 13 Pleasant St.
Midcentury Medfield Memories: A Young Midcentury Entrepreneur Read More »
July 1, 2020 A copy of the 50-page 1964 Medfield Civil Defense Operations Plan recently turned up at the historical society. It was prepared by the CD director, Austin Chilson “Buck” Buchanan, Medfield’s CD director from 1958 to 1975 and a Medfield Renaissance man. Much more on the remarkable Buck Buchanan later. The concept of
May 30, 2020 The Coronavirus pandemic is far from the only deadly phenomenon that the town of Medfield has had to deal with throughout the years. Many longtime residents remember Hurricane Carol that hit New England back in the late summer of 1954, some 16 years after the sneak attack Hurricane of 1938 (Category 5!)
Aftermath: Memories of the Way Things Came to Be Read More »
Oct 28, 2019 In the season of Veterans Day, in addition to Ray Lambert, it’s appropriate to pay respect to Medfield men who went to war and paid the ultimate price. There are 12 such men killed in the 20th century who are honored with white on blue plaques in the neighborhoods where they lived.
Remembering Medfield’s Veterans Read More »
Oct 3, 2018 Our town of Medfield in early 1951 celebrated a special time when many people started shopping for their first black and white televisions, just becoming popular in American homes. A family could all sit together after supper and watch the news or the popular shows at that time: singer Kate Smith’s show,
Our Town – Medfield, A Story of Everyday Life in Small-Town America Read More »
May 31, 2018 On June 17th we celebrate Father’s Day. For many men, we will one day become the striking image through our personal qualities of that very man who helped bring us into the world, even if there isn’t a strong physical resemblance. It might be the way fathers hold a steering wheel of
Remembering Father’s Day: “The Child is the Father of the Man” Read More »