The name "Luneburg" was coined for King George II of England, who was also the duke of Luneburg, Germany, in 1727. The final name, Lunenburg, was probably a result of misspelling in the early records of the town. On August 1, 1728, Lunenburg was officially granted township but, as early as 1726, a variety of industries had been started and twenty-six houses had been built. In the late nineteenth century, the town returned to predominately agriculture and, today, is a rural residential comm...

An unlucky gambler who haunts the Curtis House, the ethereal White Lady who wanders among the tombs of Union Cemetery and a ghostly diner who still insists upon joining the meal are among the otherworldly residents of Southwestern Connecticut. With a long and sometimes turbulent history, the region has become a host to lingering spirits who cannot leave behind the sites of their demise. Through spirit photography and firsthand accounts, Donna Kent, founder of the Cosmic Society of Paranorm...

Although famous for his purported last words—“I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country”—few people know the real Nathan Hale. M. William Phelps brings into focus the life of this famed patriot and first spy of the American Revolution, charting Hale’s rural childhood, his education at Yale, and his work as a schoolteacher. Like many young Americans, he was soon drawn into the colonies’ war for independence and became a captain in Washington’s army. When the general was ...

A revealing tour of the opulent Newport Mansions where the Astors, Vanderbilts, and other Gilded Age families spent their summers.At the turn of the twentieth century, the wealthy families of New York would vacation at their summer homes in Newport, Rhode Island. Where the salty air once mingled with the laughter of society women in ball gowns, the houses of the Newport Cliff Walk still preside in grandeur over the crashing waves below. From the grand majesty of th...

Founded in 1973, the Greater Boston Track Club had humble beginnings but was quick to establish itself as a force of competitive runners. Initially an all-inclusive club of sprinters, hurdlers and middle-distance runners, the club evolved under the brilliant leadership of Coach Bill Squires. The club boasts nearly eighty regional, national and international titles. It has bred world-class runners such as Olympian Bill Rodgers (four-time winner of the Boston and New York marathons) and Olym...

In Books and Religious Devotion, Allan Westphall presents a study of the book-collecting habits and annotation practices of Thomas Connary, an Irish immigrant farmer who lived in New Hampshire in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Connary led a pious life that revolved around the use, annotation, and sharing of religious books. His surviving annotated volumes provide a revealing glimpse into the utility of books for a common reader—and they show how one remarkable, eccentr...

Puritan politician, lawyer, and lay theologian John Winthrop fled England in 1630 when it looked like Charles I had successfully blocked all hopes of passing Puritan-inspired reforms in Parliament. Leading a migration, he came to New England in the hopes of creating an ideal Puritan community and eventually became the governor of Massachusetts. Winthrop is remembered for his role in the Puritan migration to the colonies and for delivering what is probably the most famous lay sermon in Amer...

Monhegan Island, Maine has historically attracted a number of different visitors and workers, each with their own unique reasons for being there.The natural beauty of Monhegan Island has continuously attracted generations of artists, day-trippers, and summer sojourners. White Head, Pulpit Rock, and Cathedral Woods are names that resonate throughout New England and beyond. Long before the first ferry full of seasonal visitors arrived, the Monhegan Island fishermen had established a permanen...

Partisans on both the left and right wings of America’s theory class and political spectrum believe we’re in trouble, big trouble. The economy is limping along. Inequality has reached unprecedented levels. And we seem to be on the verge of being overwhelmed by immigrants who don’t look and act anything like our grandparents did much less the men and women who founded our country. Angry, scared, disengaged and distrustful when we aren’t openly antagonistic toward each other, Americans can’t...

The Mohawk Trail evokes visions of the ancient, recalls an abundance of historic incidents, and etches memories of nature's bounty. The trail weaves a fabric of both old and modern footprints through a historic college campus, past a fort under siege, down an old mill town's Main Street, up a barrier mountain, around a harrowing curve, and through aweinspiring expanses of nature's finest work. Nothing paints the enchantment of the trail better than the vintage postcards of the early to mid...

In 1765, settlers to the west of Providence petitioned to form their own township. Their prayers were answered, and North Providence, Rhode Island, was born. While it sheltered religious dissenters, North Providence was also the sparking point of the Industrial Revolution--native sons and industrialists Samuel Slater and Zachariah Allen reinvented the cotton industry and altered the course of the nation. In this history of North Providence, author Paul F. Caranci celebrates the town's colo...

On February 11, 1907, the steamship Larchmont collided with the schooner Harry Knowlton. Thrown from their bunks, passengers of the Larchmont panicked and ran onto the ship's deck. Haphazardly loaded lifeboats set out only partially full, and shrieks from those left behind were heard in the distance. Nearly 150 passengers were lost that night. The men and women of Block Island courageously aided those in need and dealt with the horrors that washed ashore. Controversy swirled around the con...