This recent deep-freeze has most of us looking to "lock the vagrant winter out and lock our wandering in," as the beautiful Tom Rush lyric goes. We watch the fuel oil sight tube drop, along with our hearts and bank balance, and in tandem with this "nasty little case of the bug" which has settled in our homes like the visiting aunt from Southbridge that shows no intention to ever leave, has spurred an epidemic of "the mid-winter blahs."
I'm hoping to counterpunch with a few nostalgic columns of bygone local springtimes very soon, but for today, I offer this human interest piece of historical interest.
From May 1958, an Attleboro Sun item filed by C. S. Sherman:
Confederate entertained by local GAR 35 years ago
Thirty-five years ago tomorrow, Attleboro made the national press across the nation and all because it was having a Confederate entertained by the GAR here. It all started when George E. Nerney, commander of the Streeter Post GAR, at one of the Saturday dinners prepared by Nate Reed, suggested something to make the upcoming Memorial Day memorable - have a Confederate veteran here as the city's guest.
Mayor George Sweeney, Charles O. Sweet, George E. Nerney and C. C. Cain Jr. were named by the post as the committee to make the arrangements. The histories of 77 Massachusetts regiments were studied, and it was found a majority of them saw Petersburg, Va. To that city Mayor Sweeney and a delegate from the Sun journeyed and consulted with Petersburg's Mayor Zimmer and Col. Harris of their local paper.
Upon leaving their office, Mayor Sweeney spied a small man in a long gray and scarlet-lined cape over a Confederate uniform. The man was Capt. Carter R. Bishop, but he got his title in the local yacht club. As a boy he left Virginia Military Institute to become a soldier in defense of Petersburg, and on the next day invading Yankees cut the boys off. Later Bishop joined the A. P. Hill Camp, Confederate veterans, and was known locally as a historian of Petersburg's 10-month siege.
He accepted the invitation to visit Attleboro. City and state officials united in praise of this reunion of the blue and the gray; the Petersburg Progress-Index and other Virginia papers printed columns about Attleboro while the Sun printed more columns on Petersburg with local pupils exchanging letters with Petersburg grade-schoolers.
Hollywood donated a war epic, "The Copperhead" which was shown here in a Sunday benefit at the Bates theater to finance the local plans with Sheriff John Nerney auctioning off various war relics and photographs sent by stage and screen stars. The autographed letter of President Harding was sold and resold six times.
Congressman John Jacob Rogers of Lowell, whose widow is now a distinguished member of Congress, was the speaker on that day of May 30. All uniformed organizations of the city paraded and many of the school children marched that day. Press associations carried the story coast to coast.
"The Return of the Clock" in 1930 brought Attleboro still more national attention. It started when former Police Chief Edmond H. Gingras, an antique collector, purchased an old clock (at an East Mansfield auction) bearing the pencilled inscription: USS Ethan Allen on blockade Jan. 10, 1863. He consulted George E. Nerney, who had the GAR Dining Club search records. The Sun found out from the old ship's log kept in the Washington archives that in 1863 it had halted at St. Simon's Island, sending a boatload of men ashore for wood and water. Some unnamed sailor made off with the clock from the plantation house which had been left vacant.
Further searching of records revealed that the plantation had been owned by Thomas Butler King, a native of Massachusetts and former congressman from Georgia. His surviving three granddaughters and a grandson showed interest in having the clock returned, so the GAR club arranged the trip to Savannah and thence to Sea Island.
Northern and southern papers printed reams about the trip. Mayor Fred Briggs had Capt. Bishop as his guest and headed the party. The orators of the occasion of the clock's return were Congressman Joe Martin and Sen. Walter George. Mr. Gingras received an ovation as the clock's finder and all left flowers at the grave of Congressman King, the Bay Stater from whose plantation the clock was taken.
The last GAR man has passed away, but the club continues with a big attendance at monthly luncheons. It helped to make Attleboro "the finest city in which a GAR veteran can grow old!"
(I believe that I attended one of their suppers in the company of my grandmother when I was very young. I recall it being held in a hall which was up over Atherton's furniture and The Sun Chronicle building.)
In closing, kudos to City Councilors Ron Churchill, Peter Blais and Heather Porreca for their quick action to erect signs warning motorists of the crosswalks surrounding the railroad arch at the junction of Capron and South Main streets. Great response.
A huge thank you to former Mayor Cy Brennan and gracious wife Martha's youngest son Paul, a great old friend who I see far too seldom these days, for putting me in possession of some very old Attleboro newspapers, which I will share with you soon. Thank you also to yet another member of that notorious Orange Street Barrett clan, this time "Bucky"(Richie) for delivering them to me for Paul.
Sending along hopes and prayers for a full recovery to old friends Ralph Blackader, Tim Cook Sr., Jim Brassard, Billy "Storma" Gorman, Heidi Santos, Yen Correia, Edna Mitchell and local gadfly Steve McCarthy, who has great friends that even he didn't know he had.
Former Rocketeer gridiron buzzsaw Chris Little, rest in peace.
