Trending Moments

First Legal Sea Foods Lost to Fire

January 16, 1980
January 16, 1980

First Legal Sea Foods Lost to Fire

On this day in 1980, fire destroyed the original Legal Sea Foods fish market and restaurant in Cambridge. The restaurant re-opened, but the business soon outgrew the neighborhood. Today there are 30 family-owned Legal Sea...

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...

Brookfield Woman Put to Death

July 2, 1778
July 2, 1778

Brookfield Woman Put to Death

On this day in 1778, an intelligent and high-spirited beauty from Brookfield became the first woman to be executed in the new American republic. The 32-year-old's crime was indeed horrific: she had arranged for the...

Town Meeting Auctions Poor Woman to Lowest Bidder

October 18, 1786
October 18, 1786

Town Meeting Auctions Poor Woman to Lowest Bidder

On this day in 1786, Malden's selectmen put up for "vendue" Mary Degresha, who was unable to support herself. They auctioned her off to the lowest bidder, who agreed to accept payment of six dollars...

"Mill Girl" Writer Lucy Larcom Dies

April 17, 1893
April 17, 1893

"Mill Girl" Writer Lucy Larcom Dies

On this day in 1893, Lucy Larcom died. A popular poet during her lifetime, she would be forgotten today except for a work of prose that she wrote in 1889. Her autobiography, A New England...

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...

Mayor Curley Jeopardizes Election

November 3, 1929
November 3, 1929

Mayor Curley Jeopardizes Election

On this day in 1929, James Michael Curley, heavily favored to win his third term as mayor of Boston, used a radio appearance to defame a school committee member who had spoken out against him....

Central Artery Project Announced

August 8, 1954
August 8, 1954

Central Artery Project Announced

On this day in 1954, The Boston Globe announced the opening of the first elevated expressway in the United States. Hailed as an engineering marvel and a model of urban planning, the Central Artery incorporated...

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...

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...

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