New England Oddities

This Week’s Best Photos

Below is a selection of our best photos taken over the past week. Click to open full size. Beneath the photos you will find links to our full Flickr sets for these locations.

The railroad crossing signal at the East Portal of the Hoosac Tunnel in Florida, Massachusetts.

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Headstone Symbols – Fraternal Orders

A short walk through any cemetery in New England provides the observant eye with a wealth of symbolism, whether it be everyday things like flowers, trees, or animals, or something somewhat . . . stranger. Regardless of the symbols used, they all held a deep meaning to the deceased, so much so that they (or their families) felt they needed to declare it for all eternity by carving it in stone.

If you have ever wondered what these symbols mean, you have come to the right place. This article is the first in a series in which I will attempt to explain many of the symbols found in New England cemeteries.

First up – fraternal orders:

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This Week’s Best Photos

Below is a selection of our best photos taken over the past week. Click to open full size. Beneath the photos you will find links to our full Flickr sets for these locations.

It was a gorgeous day to be a taphophile at Miner Cemetery in Middletown, Connecticut.

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Tunnel Vision

The damming of the Nashua River to create the Wachusett Reservoir at the turn of the 20th century changed the face of Clinton, a mill town in central Massachusetts, forever.

Thousands of workers were employed during the construction of the largest hand-dug dam in history, which is still considered to be a remarkable feat of engineering. Businesses, homes and churches needed to be moved when the valley was flooded, as well as the 4,000 bodies in the local cemetery. A new railroad trestle and tunnel needed to be built to accommodate the relocation of the Central Massachusetts Railroad line.

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This Week’s Best Photos

Below is a selection of our best photos taken over the past week. Click to open full size. Beneath the photos you will find links to our full Flickr sets for these locations.

The tip of a random crane in Clinton, Massachusetts.

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Paper City Dinosaurs

Holyoke, Massachusetts, is a city best known for its rich and complex industrial history, and for being the birthplace of Volleyball. Harnessing the power of the Connecticut river through a dam and a series of historic canals, Holyoke grew from a small mill town to the booming “Paper City” as the twentieth century turned.

But who would have guessed that Holyoke’s historical significance predated the industrial revolution . . . by a couple hundred million years or so?

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Windigo: Demon of the Wild

Imagine, if you will, walking alone amongst towering oaks and maples. You’re on the path which leads to the safe confines of your home some distance away, when you hear a commotion behind you. Your view of the source of the disturbance is obscured by clusters of shadows and trees along the path. Convincing yourself it was only a falling branch, you return to the task at hand: getting home alive. Suddenly, on the path in front you, a large mass you hadn’t yet noticed catches your attention. You try to remember if it was there before. Did it move? You strain to focus, and then a calming revelation is provided by the moonlight . . . the object is only a rock. Relieved, you continue to walk, but now with a quicker pace. Some time passes and you look ahead and recognize the clearing to the field where your abode lies. You relax, thinking the journey is over and you are safe. Safe, that is, until – seconds before you reach for the door – your worst nightmare bellows a terrifying shriek, steps out from the shadows behind you and charges!

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This Week’s Best Photos

Below is a selection of our best photos taken over the past week. Right-click to open full size. Beneath the photos you will find links to our full Flickr sets for these locations.

The Smith monument at Quabbin Park Cemetery. Quabbin Park is a very large, scenic park-style cemetery in Ware, MA, and is the new home of many of the grave sites that had to be moved when the Quabbin Reservoir was commissioned.

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