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Rockport Women Smash Liquor Barrels

July 8, 1856
July 8, 1856

Rockport Women Smash Liquor Barrels

On this day in 1856, 200 women, some of them wielding hatchets and ranging in age from 37 to 75, rampaged through the town of Rockport destroying every container of alcohol they could find. One...

Dewey Proposes Library Classification System

May 8, 1873
May 8, 1873

Dewey Proposes Library Classification System

On this day in 1873, Amherst College junior Melvil Dewey made a proposal to the faculty. He had been working in the college library and was frustrated by the lack of logic in the way...

Springfield Armory Closes

April 30, 1968
April 30, 1968

Springfield Armory Closes

On this day in 1968, there was great sadness in Springfield as the city's historic armory closed its doors after nearly two centuries as the leading producer of small arms for the American military. First...

Coast Guard Cutter Collides with Navy Submarine

December 17, 1927
December 17, 1927

Coast Guard Cutter Collides with Navy Submarine

On this day in 1927, a Navy submarine, S-4, and a Coast Guard cutter collided within sight of Provincetown. The cutter's bow sliced into the submarine's hull, sending it to the bottom of the bay...

"Good Will Hunting" Released

December 5, 1997
December 5, 1997

"Good Will Hunting" Released

On this day in 1997, Miramax released "Good Will Hunting," a movie about the collision of two Boston-area cultures: the heady, prestigious world of Cambridge academia and the proud but gritty working-class brotherhood of South...

Telephone Operators Strike

April 20, 1919
April 20, 1919

Telephone Operators Strike

On this day in 1919, striking telephone operators in Massachusetts won the right to negotiate with the New England Telephone Company. The young, single women who had flooded into the industry in the early 1900s...

Polaroid Wins Patent Suit Against Kodak

September 13, 1985
September 13, 1985

Polaroid Wins Patent Suit Against Kodak

On this day in 1985, Polaroid won a huge victory in federal court. A judge ruled that Kodak had violated Polaroid's patents for instant photography. The decision ended a nine-year legal struggle between the two...

John Adams Dies

July 4, 1826
July 4, 1826

John Adams Dies

On this day in 1826, 50 years after the Declaration of Independence was adopted in Philadelphia, John Adams died at home in Braintree. One of the great men of the Revolutionary generation and the second...

Boston's Poor Riot Over Cost of Bread

May 19, 1713
May 19, 1713

Boston's Poor Riot Over Cost of Bread

On this day in 1713, more than 200 people rioted on Boston Common over the high price of bread. The lieutenant governor tried to intervene but was shot and wounded for his efforts. This was...

Aerosmith Opens Lansdowne Street Music Hall

December 19, 1994
December 19, 1994

Aerosmith Opens Lansdowne Street Music Hall

On this day in 1994, Boston-based rock band Aerosmith opened the Mama Kin Music Hall. In the shadow of Fenway Park, the Lansdowne Street facility enjoyed moderate success as a live music venue before the...

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