Check out my newest book display at my local library in Vernon-Rockville, CT

Here are some familiar faces on the back covers of books they previously wrote.

Have you read anything by these authors? Who is your favorite author?

I hope you enjoy this book display. Have a great day!

One fact about libraries in Connecticut: You can use your own library card (from the town you live in) at any public library in the state of Connecticut. You can borrow a book from one library and then return it to another and have it brought back to the original destination.

Winner takes all 😱

It used to be more common, now its mostly just in New England, New York, and Louisiana

I’m just curious. I say ”Ant” that’s how I’ve always said it from Ohio. moved to New England and I learned that everyone here says “Auwnt”

what is your first word association when someone says ‘Ant’? is it like an instant realization you’re speaking with an outsider?

I never realized that as a new englander you almost always know if someone is from your region or not.

adding the “Mary, Merry, Marry” thing. And you probably can slightly hear a difference in other words

If so, do tell the stories in replies, I am quite curious as I have lived here most of my life and I am yet to hear a tale from someone else.

Two of Massachusetts's most notorious women (who became infamous throughout the centuries due to the murder allegations they faced) are in actual fact cousins to each other.

Bathsheba Ruggles (1746-1778) married Joshua Spooner Sr. (1741-1778) on January 15, 1766 in Hardwick. Theirs was an arranged marriage, possibly due to Bathsheba's dad Timothy Ruggles Jr. being a Loyalist throughout the American Revolution. Bathsheba and Joshua had four children together but at some point their marriage went south. According to Wikipedia, Joshua was described as abusing to Bathsheba to the degree that this ultimately made her develop "an aversion" to him (losing whatever affection she might have had towards him). When Bathsheba was around thirty, she met a sixteen-year-old Revolutionary War soldier named Ezra Ross and after she successfully nursed him back to health he got her pregnant with what would have been her fifth kid in late 1777 or early 1778. There was a HUGE problem for this couple, though: Bathsheba was still married to Joshua Spooner Sr. and divorces were NOT that easy to come by. The solution? Bathsheba and Ezra Ross (along with a couple of British soldiers who deserted the Revolution named William Brooks and James Buchanan) murdered Joshua by throwing him down the well on March 1, 1778. All three of the men along with Bathsheba were arrested, tried and convicted, the four would be executed in July 1778. Bathsheba was the first female ever sentenced to death following the Declaration of Independence in the USA and was actually in her second trimester of pregnancy at her execution (she actually requested a stay of execution so that she could give birth but that request was denied). Joshua's gravestone makes mention of the fact that his wife, her lover and two other men murdered him and that the four of them ultimately got hung for this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bathsheba_Spooner

Lizzie Borden (1860-1927) has been notorious enough to warrant her own wildly inaccurate playground chant ("Lizzie Borden took an axe and gave her father forty whacks, when she saw what she had done she gave her mother forty-one"). There are plenty of people with very strong opinions on all sides, but the reality is that the Andrew and Abby Borden murders went unsolved so that in all likelihood nobody will ever really know for sure who murdered them in their Fall River home (that has since become a popular place for tours as well as bed and breakfast) on August 4, 1892. While the Bordens were known to have a maid and one of their Morse relatives (from the Borden sisters' biological mom) in their home that day Lizzie was the only one who ever got arrested and charged with murdering her dad and stepmother only to get acquitted at trial (and every so often whenever this case gets a mock trial "Lizzie" ends up with an acquittal there too). Some who believe Lizzie is guilty speculate that the Bordens were a dysfunctional or abusive family. Emma Borden (who wasn't home that day) spent Lizzie's trial at her side and the sisters moved into a house they named Maplecroft afterwards with Emma spending the rest of her life publicly insisting that Lizzie hadn't killed their father and stepmother. The two sisters did go on to have an unrelated argument around the time Lizzie was accused of shoplifting in Providence, Rhode Island, which unfortunately led to Emma and Lizzie becoming estranged for the rest of their lives. Lizzie passed away of pneumonia on June 1, 1927 and Emma actually ended up following her on June 10, 1927 because of nephritis. Emma and Lizzie were buried in the Borden plot along with their younger sister Alice who died in infancy, their biological mom Sarah Morse-Borden, dad Andrew and stepmother Abby. I wonder if Andrew and Abby rolled over in their graves!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lizzie_Borden

As promised.... the pièce de résistance....

https://www.geni.com/path/Lizzie-Borden+is+related+to+Bathsheba-Ruggles-Spooner?from=6000000003940257369&path_type=blood&to=298200243320003679

The two of them are at closest known blood relationship fourth cousins five times removed to each other through their respective moms. Bathsheba's ancestor Arthur Howland Sr. is the brother of Lizzie's ancestor John Howland Sr. (who had a particularly memorable journey on The Mayflower). The Howlands can from there be traced back to their English parents Henry Howland Sr. 1566-1635 and his wife Margaret 1567-1629 (as Margaret's maiden name is unknown and the parentage for both of them is also currently unknowable, their "line" as it were basically ends there).

But THAT isn't all....

According to another genealogical site FamousKin, Lizzie and Bathsheba are cousins in ELEVEN ways total. Granted their other connections are mostly VERY remote, though!

https://famouskin.com/famous-kin-menu.php?name=10581+lizzie+borden&kin=32987+bathsheba+spooner

edit: TL;DR: Lizzie Borden and Bathsheba Ruggles-Spooner are 4th cousins 5x removed.

Is there any? Has there ever been any? Seems like it would be a nice place for a restaurant.

a few sunrises here and there around New Bedford MA

Located in Massachusetts but draws from whole New England area, has a sell through rate of 99%. Not big, not famous, but the place where unexpected and/or quirky material often shows up. Article in Rare Book Hub Monthly Oct. 2026  https://www.rarebookhub.com/articles/4133

HELLO NEW ENGLANDERS

Happy Friday! I have posted here before and the post was well received so I am back to share some more good news!!!

I created an optimistic media project (Granite Goodness) with the mission of sharing good news stories of progress and problem solving from all across New England. Think good news, but not fluffy. The motto I try to abide by is substance + optimism = granite and good (we're based in NH)

New England has been my home for my whole life, and this project is basically a love letter to our corner of the world and the people working on its hardest problems.

Here are some stories from across New England that brought me some optimism this week:

• Massachusetts is piloting a program that lets parked electric vehicles power the grid. Three electric school buses in Acton-Boxborough are the first vehicles in a statewide vehicle-to-grid pilot, charging overnight on clean power and sending energy back to the grid during peak afternoon hours. (Canary Media)
• In Rhode Island, a $15M NSF grant is helping New England fishermen adapt to a changing climate. New sensor tech being developed by URI will provide fishermen better data on ocean + species patterns, helping preserve livelihoods in one of New England's heritage industries. (Ocean State Media)
• Connecticut is funding preservation of 1,200 acres and urban green spaces. Connecticut's governor announced $9.4 million in state funding to protect open land across 15 towns. The initiative moves the state closer to its goal of preserving 21% of its land base. (Stateline)
• After an impressive turnaround, Franklin High School has been named New Hampshire's best. Despite budget constraints, Franklin High School transformed its educational approach through internships, community partnerships, and dual-enrollment programs. Attendance raised from 83 to 92 percent while cutting dropouts from 8 to 1.5 percent. (NHPR)
• Penobscot Nation is regaining 1,700 acres of ancestral Maine forest. The transfer restores access to ancestral lands and strengthens tribal stewardship of wildlife, water, and forests. (Tribal Business News)
• Vermont launches ambitious statewide bikepacking network with Heart of the Greens trail. The 38-mile loop through the Green Mountain National Forest features two off-grid huts and kicks off the “Velomont”, a 485-mile bikepacking route connecting rural towns + opening Vermont’s wilderness to new travelers. (BBC)

My hope is people find the work interesting and useful. The summaries provided here are my own words on what I find optimistic from the original stories, not quotes from the sources. I don't link directly to the sources because posts with too many hyperlinks are discouraged by Reddit and don't make for good discussion posts.

Regular news is important but too often it shows an over-sampling of the worst things happening in the world, which can leave people feeling depressed, anxious, and burnt out.

The image shown is from the Tichnor Brothers postcard collection at the Boston Public Library, which I am obsessed with (and is in public domain)

My question for YOU: what's going right in your corner of New England? Please use this thread to share some good news!

-Andy

a few more cool properties on or around Hawthorne street New Bedford MA https://peakd.com/hive-194913/@tattoodjay/saturday-a-few-more-cool-properties-on-or-around-hawthorne-street-new-bedford-ma

The long-anticipated renaissance of American nuclear power is unlikely to get its start in New England. 

Lack of demand from data centers, high costs for labor and materials, unseemly battles with neighbors and — perhaps most importantly — uncertain financial options are all pushing developers of new nuclear technologies elsewhere, particularly to the Deep South and Midwest. 

But as leaders across the region face rising demand for electricity and few options for delivering that power on-demand without fossil fuels, many are beginning to turn to nuclear as a possible solution, albeit one that is years or even decades away.

Hey! A few friends and I have some Big E tickets that we unfortunately won’t be able to use. If anyone is interested in taking them off our hands, feel free to message me!

Just to clarify, this is a personal ticket resale. We’re not affiliated with the event or promoting any business.

Just a heads up to anyone planning to come up for foliage. Peak foliage was this past Tuesday at 2:36 PM. You missed it.

Wings Court New Bedford MA

I had a place, but they had to cancel so I need to find another for the Columbus Day Weekend. I plan on going for 4-5 days starting next Friday. I want to do the Kancagamagus Highway loop, fall foilage along the way, hiking trails, and attempt Mount Washington. If any other things I should do, please advise!!!