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Mabel Todd First Describes Emily Dickinson

September 15, 1882
September 15, 1882

Mabel Todd First Describes Emily Dickinson

On this day in 1882, Mabel Loomis Todd first recorded her impressions of her mysterious Amherst neighbor. Emily Dickinson always wore white and had her hair arranged "as was the fashion fifteen years ago." "She...

Birth Control Pioneer Born

March 24, 1890
March 24, 1890

Birth Control Pioneer Born

On this day in 1890, birth control pioneer John Rock was born in the small Massachusetts town of Marlborough. He was a deeply religious Catholic even as a child. After college and medical school at...

Sculptor Edmonia Lewis Displays Work in Boston

November 11, 1864
November 11, 1864

Sculptor Edmonia Lewis Displays Work in Boston

On this day in 1864, sculptor Edmonia Lewis exhibited two of her early pieces at the Colored Soldiers' Fair in Boston. The daughter of a Native American woman and a black man, Lewis was the...

Vietnam Veterans Arrested on Lexington Green

May 30, 1971
May 30, 1971

Vietnam Veterans Arrested on Lexington Green

On this day in 1971, over 450 anti-war protesters occupied the historic Lexington Green and refused to leave. The Vietnam Veterans Against the War had organized a three-day march from Concord to Boston — Paul...

Native American Writer Born

January 31, 1798
January 31, 1798

Native American Writer Born

On this day in 1798, a member of the Pequot tribe named William Apess was born in Colrain, a village in western Massachusetts. Although his childhood was marked by poverty and abuse, he learned to...

Boston Jews Petition for First Cemetery

April 29, 1844
April 29, 1844

Boston Jews Petition for First Cemetery

On this day in 1844, members of Boston's first Jewish congregation petitioned city officials to set aside a corner of an East Boston cemetery for their use. When the city refused, the 40 congregants of...

Hurricane Devastates New England

September 21, 1938
September 21, 1938

Hurricane Devastates New England

On this day in 1938, a hurricane of astonishing force ravaged New England. Having gone to bed the night before to radio forecasts of scattered rain and fresh southerly winds, New Englanders woke on the...

W.E.B. DuBois Returns to Harvard

April 23, 1904
April 23, 1904

W.E.B. DuBois Returns to Harvard

On this day in 1904, W.E.B. DuBois gave a lecture on "the race question" at Harvard, where nine years before he had been the first black person to receive a Ph.D. From his childhood in...

Rocky Marciano Wins First World Heavyweight Title

September 23, 1952
September 23, 1952

Rocky Marciano Wins First World Heavyweight Title

On this day in 1952, Rocky Marciano knocked out "Jersey Joe" Walcott in the 13th round to win the World Heavyweight Championship. Growing up in Brockton during the Depression, Marciano promised himself he would find...

Berkshire-Hathaway Announces Mill Closing

May 7, 1958
May 7, 1958

Berkshire-Hathaway Announces Mill Closing

On this day in 1958, the North Adams Transcript reported that the owners of the Berkshire-Hathaway Company had passed a death sentence on their factory in Adams. The company announced that it was shutting down...

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