Sutton Historical Society Inc. - Sutton, Massachusetts

2021 - CALENDAR OF EVENTS

 Dates and Times may be Subject to Change
December 31 Midnight Last Night Cannon Firing M. M. Sherman Blacksmith Shop
Cannon Club 6 Singletary Avenue

LAST NIGHT CANNON SHOOT

Friday, December 31, 2021
Midnight

M. M. Sherman Blacksmith Shop, 6 Singletary Avenue, Sutton

Join us to usher out 2021 and welcome 2021 with this unique Sutton tradition.

The Firing of "Big Ben", our own Civil War cannon
All welcome!!!!

H A P P Y N E W Y E A R !!

Photos courtesy of Linda Carlson - 2020 cannon shoot.

9th Massachusetts Battery - Light Artillery
"Big Ben"

Sutton's own, "Big Ben" Alger gun returned to South Boston on November 15, 2021 for the ground-breaking for Washington Village.
The Sutton Cannon Club brought this 1862 cannon, manufactured in South Boston in the Alger foundry, for the ceremony.
Great to see and hear this piece of our history in Andrew Square—named for the Governor who commissioned the unit.

Thank You!!
Bill Reid, Chief Ranger
The Last Green ValleyThe Return of the Bald Eagle

On Tuesday, November 2, 2021 at 7 pm, the Sutton Historical Society hosted Bill Reid, Chief Ranger of The Last Green Valley, for a presentation entitled, “The Return of the Bald Eagle.” The Last Green Valley is a National Heritage Corridor covering 35 towns in Eastern Connecticut and South-Central Massachusetts with a rich history in a surprisingly rural landscape. With 84% forest and farm, The Last Green Valley is the last swath of dark night sky in the coastal sprawl between Boston and Washington DC. Information on this National Heritage Corridor can be found at thelastgreenvalley.org.

The presentation was a huge hit with over 60 attendees!!

Cemetery Tour - Enjoyed by over 100 visitors!!

Rescheduling and weather that did not cooperate did not hamper the spirits of the visitors who toured Sutton's oldest Cemetery on
Sunday, October 31.
Interpreters shared their stories about some of those interred in this historically-significant cemetery.
The Society hopes to make this an annual event!!!

THANK YOU!!!

ROBERT ERNEST HUBBARD, Author
Presentation about General Rufus Putnam

Robert Ernest Hubbard, a retired professor and author from New Haven, Connecticut, recently presented his book
General Rufus Putnam, George Washington’s Chief Military Engineer and the “Father of Ohio.”
to our Society. It was a well-received presentation.

Go to israelputnam.org to order a copy of this book in addition to one about Israel Putnam.

Prior to his presentation, Robert and his wife, Kathy, discussed how to become an author with a group of home-schooled children. This, too, was greatly appreciated.

Thank you to member, Malcolm Ketchum, for sharing his images of Sutton

2021 Membership Drive

Membership Renewals Due March 1, 2021

CALENDAR OF EVENTS FOR 2021 HAS NOT BEEN COMPLETED TO DATE GIVEN THE CONTINUED SOCIAL DISTANCING GUIDELINES MANDATED DUE TO THE CONTINUED COVID-19 PANDEMIC

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS CONTINUES TO MONITOR CURRENT GATHERING RESTRICTIONS
CALENDAR OF EVENTS WILL BE UPDATED AS EVENTS ARE ADDED

Members are available for research questions.
Reach us via our contact page above.

Cemetery headstone cleaning continues using social distance rules.
Reach us through the contact page above

Continue to practice Social Distancing
Stay Safe!

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CANNON SHOOT - FIRST NIGHT - 12-31-2020

Thank you to Linda Carlson for sharing these great images of our First Night Cannon Shoot.

Annual Meeting Update

- Donation by Mike and Sheila Moss to the General Rufus Putnam
  Museum of a framed 1915 Boston Herald photo spread of
  Purgatory Chasm prior to its being established as a State Park in 1919

- Election of 6 non-officer Board positions for a 2-year term

- Presentation of work completed on the Sutton Center Meeting
House and tour of the inside

- Update on status of Cemetery cleaning/repair at Sutton Center
and Dodge Cemetery. Almost complete. Committee will continue
work in other town cemeteries. Thank you to the countless
volunteers. This group is definitely "Quietly making noise!"
Volunteers always needed.

- Update on progress of organizing General Rufus Putnam
  Museum. Grant received through the Massachusetts Board of
  Library Commissioners to help move forward with cataloguing
  and digitizing collection. Thank you to Joyce Smith, Curator, and
Betsy Perry, Sutton Librarian, for this great effort.

- Sutton Cultural Council grant received and utilized for the
creation and production of a brochure on Society holdings to
be distributed at events. Thank you to member, Dave Pizzi, for
his efforts.

Cemetery Project Update - June 2020

During the period of higher COVID-19 restrictions, members of our Restoration Committee cut and burned a lot of brush and wood debris while maintaining the individual "social distancing" guidelines in this open area.
Still more to do, but the difference is very noticeable in the Sutton Center Cemetery.

More recently, some stones have been reset, including repaired stones, and others cleaned. A few photos are below.

As we have now reached the second round of re-openings, we are going to proceed with our original planned workdays at Sutton Center Cemetery on the second Saturday of each month.

Weather permitting, start day will be Saturday, June 13. We will be on-site starting at 9:00 am

Come with a mask or face shield.

PROGRESS PHOTOS - SUTTON CENTER CEMETERY (behind Town Hall)

BEFORE AFTER

Image above is Elliot stone reset and cleaned. GREAT JOB - Restoration Committee!!!

1816 - The Year without a Summer

Our ancestors weathered crazy times before us.
See a few events noted below

The year 1816 was known as ‘The Year Without a Summer’ in New England because six inches of snow fell in June and every month of the year had a hard frost.

Temperatures dropped to as low as 40 degrees in July and August as far south as Connecticut. People also called it ‘Eighteen Hundred and Froze to Death’ and the ‘Poverty Year.’

The Year Without A Summer had a far-reaching impact. Crop failures caused hoarding and big price increases for agricultural commodities. People went hungry. Farmers gave up trying to make a living in New England and started heading west. Politicians who ignored the melancholy plight of their constituents found themselves out of office.

Flurries fell in Boston on June 7. The snow was 18" deep in Cabot, VT, on June 8. One June 11, a temperature of 30.5 degrees was recorded in Williamstown, MA. Frozen birds dropped dead in the fields. Some Vermont farmers who had already shorn their sheep tried to tie their fleeces back on, but many froze to death anyway.

Many people believe the Year Without a Summer was caused by a massive volcanic explosion on Mt. Tambora in Indonesia, killing 15,000 instantly. Soon after, another 65,000 perished of disease and starvation. The volcanic ash and debris thrown up into the stratosphere is thought to have blocked the sun and caused a gradual lowering of temperatures.

The Influenza Epidemic of 1918
Sutton

The great Influenza Epidemic of 1918 appeared in the Blackstone Valley in September 1918. It is believed that Patient 0 was a soldier from Company D 75th Infantry from Camp Devens, who came to Whitinsville to visit. He died in Whitinsville on September 19, 1918. By September 1918, Fort Devens had 9,000 dead, dying and sick.

Sutton's first death came on September 30, 1918. The individual was employed by Whitin Machine Works.

Between September 30, 1918 and December 30, 1918, Sutton lost 19 of its approximately 2,800 residents, including the renowned Manchaug physician,
Dr. Pierre Couilliard.

For more information about the
1918 Influenza Epidemic
Click on Image below
to view film
pbs.org

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All events open to both Society members and the general public

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GRAVESTONE MAINTENANCE WORKSHOP
GREAT SUCCESS!!!
August 25, 2019

Thanks to all who joined in the workshop on Sunday, August 25, 2019 and those restoring the Reverend Hall memorial crypt.
Special thanks to Betty & Carlo Mencucci for sharing their vast knowledge, demonstrating proper methods and giving us opportunities to learn hands-on

Plans are in the works for a workday in September at the Town Center Cemetery. The exact day and time will be determined soon.
The notice will be emailed to those who signed up at the previous event, will be passed out at the Labor Day breakfast, will be published in the
Millbury-Sutton Chronicle and posted on the Sutton Historical Society website and Facebook.

The focus that day will be on resetting the front or back leaning gravestones - which are the most prone to breaking - and honing the skills that Betty & Carlo have taught us. Also, if your preference is to put your effort into cleaning of the gravestones and memorial stones, please join in. And, if you have friends who have expressed interest in - or curiosity about - restoration, please bring them along!

SPECIAL THANKS TO
Tiny Leaf Designs Photography, April Eaton Brown
for the amazing images below from the April 25 event!!!

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STOLEN PUMP UPDATE!!!
Thank you to the Moss Family for their generous donation of a replacement pump for the Eight Lots School House!! Thank you also to the several other families who offered pump replacements.

HELP US RECOVER THIS SPECIAL ITEM

The well pump (pictured below) was stolen from the
Eight Lots School House Property!!
If you have any information about this incident, please reach out to us at the above "contact" tab.

Local police have been notified.