Preserving the Past
When you hear the word “peddler” what comes to mind? Looking at it from today’s perspective it would probably be someone who sells beverages or hotdogs at a ballgame, or possibly a dealer surrounded by empty boxes displaying his or her wares at a flea market. But over the centuries there were many other varieties of peddlers. One of the […]
» Read moreA common name around Middlesex County is Eliot. You would be hard pressed not to see a signpost in Ashland, Natick, or any other of our neighboring communities that didn’t have “Eliot” in it somewhere. Most of us remember John Eliot as the Puritan that “converted the heathens and ministered the settlers” around the middle of the 17th century. A […]
» Read moreIt comes as no surprise that the descendants of our early settlers stayed in the area. Travel wasn’t as convenient as it is today, and families were probably apt to stay in the homestead or nearby unless called for war or attending school. Today, along with others, we are looking at David Whiting Eames who was a descendant of Captain […]
» Read moreEvery September, Ashland holds a community day called Ashland Day. It is a day where townsfolk can meet each other and enjoy all the finest that living in New England has to offer. There are food concessions, parades (well, most of the time), information booths, music, games, raffles, and a stage at the gazebo for recognizing the people that contribute […]
» Read moreAshland has no shortage of notable people, past and present. What would the electric clock look like if not for Henry Warren? Would diabetes research and treatment be where it is today without the help of Dr. Priscilla White? For today’s luminaries, all one has to do is look at the Wall of Fame at Ashland High School. There are […]
» Read moreAshland has no shortage of notable people, past and present. What would the electric clock look like if not for Henry Warren? Would diabetes research and treatment be where it is today without the help of Dr. Priscilla White? For today’s luminaries, all one has to do is look at the Wall of Fame at Ashland High School. There are […]
» Read moreWe have visited the mail system in Ashland before, but it is nice to re-visit on occasion. In today’s world where communication is instantaneous there is less of a need for “snail mail” as it is now referred to. Why sit down and pen something, stick it in an envelope, find a stamp, and drop it in the mailbox when […]
» Read moreIt’s fun to look at old buildings in town and wonder about their origins. I look at Lunker’s next to the downtown fire station and remember Bean’s and the Ashland News Store. Others remember the old Hunt and Denver or maybe Ozzie’s Market depending upon your age. A lot of these buildings still exist, and a lot have burned to […]
» Read moreOccasionally, I like to take a look around Ashland and try to envision what the town looked like “way back when.” We all know that Ashland is a relatively new town compared to Framingham, Holliston and Hopkinton, but we also know that Ashland is comprised of these three elder towns: equal parts of Framingham and Hopkinton, and a smaller part […]
» Read moreI was sorting through the volumes of Ashland Directions when I ran across an article by Kay Powers from 1998. It was about a former Curator of the Ashland Historical Society that was overlooked in a previous Stories of Ashland that listed all the former Curators. Leon Warren Davis was not born in Ashland, but spent the majority of his […]
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