XXII - Number 5

June -- 1992

FLAG'S DOWN . . . After more than twenty-two years and one-quarter of a million words, ye old Ed will no longer be producing this newsletter. To perpetuate fond memories, he takes with him the title Old & New and the now-familiar rural mail box, leaving as his small legacy the motto he conceived in the issue of May, 1975: "Preserving the Worthwhile Past."

ASTUTE MEMBERS will have noticed that for some time now we have had horse-drawn vehicles passing by the mail box on the front of this newsletter. Those same members may wonder why we used a caboose on this final issue of Old & New, apparently deviating from the practice. Think about it ... the caboose is traditionally the last car on a train pulled by an ''iron Horse*

THE ANNUAL MEETING in May resulted in only a few changes in the makeup of the official Historical Society family. Currently, our officers are: President, Aina McMann; Vice-President, Jack Timmons; Treasurer, Nat Lanigan; Clerk/Secretary, Alan Beale; Membership Secretary, Amelia Drummey; Arcivist, Alice Petruzzo; Curator, Ed Meserve; Historian, Howie Hansen. Two directors were installed: Albie Petruzzo and Mary Daly.

WE REMIND our members that dues are due on June 1 for the 1992-93 season. Current rates are $6.00 for an individual and $10.00 for a couple. We also remind members that our regular open hours at the Lucius Clapp Memorial are Wednesday afternoons s.t two o'clock, Thursday evenings at seven o'clock and one to four o'clock on the third. Sunday of the month.

LEFTOVERS are frequently just a little bit better than when first served. True or not, here are some leftovers from the past two decades:-

#1..Stoughton's Fire Department in 1900 consisted of the Stoughton Steamer company, the Washington Hook and Ladder Company, the North Stoughton Hose Company and the West Stoughton Volunteers. Two years later, the equipment included one steamer, two hook and ladders, one hose reel, 3000 feet of hose, a wagon at the Steamer House; one hose reel, 400 feefc; of hose at West Stoughton; one hose wagon and reel at North Stoughton. Some of this equipment was hauled to fires by horses hired for the purpose. In 1903, one hand tub was added at Dry Pond. (Until 1906, when the Fire Department owned its horses, the first team to arrive was the one to be paid and all others were left out. Hence, there frequently were exciting races to determine who would get the job and some teamsters tried to remain near the center of town in order to assure being first.) #2..Capital of the Stoughton Trust company in 1911 was a whopping $100,000. #3..In the 1891 edition of the Encyclopaedia Brittanica we find the following entry, "Stoughton, a post village of Norfolk County, Mass., about nineteen miles from Boston on the Old Colony railroad, at the terminus of the Stoughton Branch of the Boston and Providence road. It has four churches, two weekly papers, a high school, and manufactures of boots and shoes, knit and woolen goods, awls, lasts, paper boxes, bonnet frames and screens. The population in 1890 is stated at 5,183."#4..Is it PONKa poag or PUNKapoag? There is great variety with the spelling of Indian names, particularly those of towns and. other geographical locations. This has come about because North American Indian is not a written language, resulting in those names being spelled phonetically and, frequently, incorrect1y.

Published by the Stoughton Historical Society — Written and edited by Ed Meserve

                         THIRTY . . . The oldtime telegrapher

                                                                             tapped out his news and at the end put the

number "3 0". It became the symbol for

the end, not only for telegraphers,

but for all news people.

And that is what it means here —

3 0, the end. For this is the final issue of

There is a time

 

There is a time to begin. That was Winter, 1970. There is a time to end, and that is now, Summer, 1992

Sincere thanks to several friends for helpful acts, encouraging words, useful ideas and pleasant interludes in the past years.

 

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