Patch Passport

Travel Back in Time: Paul Revere's Copper Mill

Travel back in time with the Wednesday Patch Passport to discover the history of Canton. Take a look at one of the many historical sites in town.

American Revolutionary hero Paul Revere is probably best known for his "Midnight Ride," in April 1775, during which he rode through several towns in Middlesex county–just northwest of Boston–on horseback, warning American patriots, "The British are coming! The British are coming!" Now what Revere actually said during that fateful ride before the battles of Lexington and Concord has been subject to debate. But one thing about Revere that is indisputable: Canton is full of Revere history. "Revere was very fond of Canton and very fond of the people here," local historian, George T. Comeau, who is also a curator for the Canton Historical Society, said. Born and raised in Canton, Comeau said he has been fascinated with Revere since grade school…

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Who Do You Think You Are?

Nationally recognized Genealogist Michael Brophy offered research advice to a group of novice genealogists at the Canton Public Library.

Michael Brophy, a nationally recognized genealogist and researcher for the current TV series "Who Do You Think You Are?" gave a lecture on April 16 at the Canton Public Library entitled “Genealogy: Myths and Legends.” This informative lecture was a great introduction to non-professional genealogists about the many common myths that individuals encounter as they seek to research their familial heritage. One of the first myths that people encounter, is that your ancestors’ names were changed by immigration services as they immigrated through Ellis Island, as famously depicted in "The Godfather" movie with young Vito “Corleone.” In reality, it was most likely your own ancestors that chose to change their names during the naturalization …

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Where in Canton? A Bit of History

Can you figure out where these Canton photos were snapped?

As part of a new weekend feature, Canton Patch will ask our readers to put their town knowledge to the test. Can you figure out where these photos were taken? Share your answers in the comments section!

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Lisa Gentes-Hunt

1:02 pm on Monday, March 28, 2011

Correct! Stay tuned for this Sunday's "Where in Canton?"   more ›

Senior Year

Research Paper Time at Canton High

Senior gives advice to students on getting through the stressful time.

Here come the research papers! The end of February vacation normally marks the beginning of the strenuous and tedious work on research papers at Canton High School. For the most part, history and English are the only two classes that require a research paper, but unfortunately these papers happen to fall around the same time. English requires a book to be read prior to writing the paper, which makes sense for an English class. But generally, and unfortunately, we students are known for our procrastination and tend to leave reading the book until the last minute. This creates a scenario where we sometimes miss  important fact, events and circumstances in the novels. My advice? Try not to fall behind on reading your English book! For history…

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Canton Revealed: The History Patch

If Canton Walls Could Talk

A profile of a local historian who discovered history in his own home.

If walls could only talk, oh, the stories they would tell. Hidden well inside the walls in the Canton home of Jim Roache, there was quite a bit of history. It was that discovery which would also stir a quest for knowledge in Roache, leading him to uncover an even more interesting history about the town he called home. Roache, a curator at the Canton Historical Society, was born in 1952. "I was born in Canton," said Roache. "My father was born in Canton. His father was born in Canton. He had a big family in town." Roache said he never really traced his family roots but believed his ancestors originally emigrated from Ireland and settled in town. "I always liked history in school," said Roache. "But a lot of my interest has to do with the …

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Canton Revealed: The History Patch

Lighting Up Canton

A look at the early history (and cost) of streetlights in town.

The next time you stop under a streetlight at night on some road in Massachusetts, take a moment to ponder this: what would life be like without them? Streetlights or lampposts are so ubiquitous nowadays that we fail to even fathom a time when they did not light our way along a dark passageway or road. But this begs a larger question that Jim Roache, a curator at the Canton Historical Society, first asked himself before he started to delve into an extensive research project on the history of streetlights in the town. Today, Roache said, "Every car we drive has lights on it today. But do we really need street lights?" Over the years, public officials in cities and towns across the country have argued for the presence and continued expansion…

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Canton Revealed: The History Patch

Revere's Copper Helped Build USS New Hampshire

The history behind the ship constructed with Paul Revere's copper pieces.

Opening a drawer at the Canton Historical Society and you're likely to learn something new and fascinating. That was how the society's president Wallace Gibbs explained it one Sunday to a group of several school children who gathered before him, wide-eyed, as he carefully placed what looked to be a group of large rusty nails of various sizes on a display case. The rusty-looking nails turned out to be copper spikes and fastenings forged at Paul Revere's foundry in the 1800s. Further, they were recovered from the USS New Hampshire (later, known as the USS Granite State) shipwreck, off Graves Island in Manchester, Mass. "That's cool," a couple of the boys said, clearly fascinated. Gibbs shared a similar sentiment just a moment before in a …

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Canton Revealed: The History Patch

Saving The Tilden House

How local preservationists are trying to protect a historic Canton treasure.

There's a mission in progress right here in Canton to save one of the oldest homes still standing in the United States. The David Tilden House located at 93 Pleasant Street. The back of the home was built in the early 18th century, around 1709. In 1725, its owner and namesake David Tilden constructed the main portion of the home. Tilden bought the home and nearly 34 acres of land on which it was built directly from Native Americans of the Ponkapoag nation. Theophilus Lyon, a grandson of David Tilden and a Revolutionary War soldier who witnessed the birth of America, inherited the property. "It's amazing," Pat Johnson, a curator at the Canton Historical Society, said. "This house is so historic that when Tilden died, he was still a British …

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A Look Back at This Week's News

A week in review on Canton Patch.

It was a busy week of news, sports and arts here in Canton. On Thursday, a State Police K-9 discovered remains in the woods on Royall Street,  across from Reebok. Officials announced that the bones were not human and were in fact animal remains. A Canton juvenile was arrested Wednesday after calling in a bomb threat, (although fake) to the Hansen School and a natural gas leak forced a few businesses to evacuate while repairs were made. Canton Public Schools are tackling bullying and educating parents on the subject and the Chamber of Commerce tackled the economy in a recent workshop. In other local (and lighter) news, Canton Patch managed to grab Santa Claus for an exclusive interviews and demanded answers to all of the children's biggest …

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Canton Revealed: The History Patch

Researching Historic Homes of Canton

One woman's quest to document all of Canton's historic homes.

Patricia Johnson may have a high-powered career during the day writing code for financial managers and traders at Fidelity, but in her free time, she's documenting historical homes in Canton. "It's my passion," Johnson, who is also a curator at the Canton Historical Society, said. These days, Johnson spends most weekends poring over the pages of the Canton Journal. This past rainy Sunday, it's a date from the 1932 edition. Johnson explained that searching through old newspapers is the only way she'll find the stories behind dozens of homes she is reaching for a third volume in what she anticipates will be a 10-volume set of books called "Historic Homes of Canton," which could take years to complete. But she said it's hard not to get …

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Lisa Gentes-Hunt

3:51 pm on Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Thanks, John- We will pass along the request to her!   more ›