Massachusetts – Page 13 – WANDERLUST FAMILY ADVENTURE

Bicentennial Chair – Gardner, Massachusetts

June 27, 2020 Joseph Candora Architecture, Historic Sites, Massachusetts, New England, North America, Statue / Sculpture, United States

Gardner, Massachusetts is know locally as “chair city.” Once home to the Heywood-Wakefield Furniture Company Gardner has taken its signature industry to heart with a series of giant chairs over the years. The Bicentennial Chair was built in 1976 to take back the title of world’s largest chair from a chair in North Carolina. There have been giant chairs of one type or another in Gardner since 1905 and even though this one is no longer the world’s largest it is still a wonderful roadside attraction sitting in front of the Helen Mae Sauter Elementary School. The current chair stands over twenty feet tall.

New photo by Wanderlust Family Adventure / Google Photos

Dunn State Park – Gardner, Massachusetts

June 26, 2020 Joseph Candora Canoeing, Hiking, Lake/Pond, Massachusetts, New England, North America, State Parks, United States

Dunn State Park in Gardner, Massachusetts is a day use area open to swimming, fishing and boating. The park can be crowded on hot summer days but can be a nice place to take a dip. The park is administered by the Gardner Heritage State Park.

Restaurant Review – Old Mill Restaurant & Cracker Barrel Pub (Westminster, Massachusetts)

June 26, 2020 Joseph Candora Architecture, Bridges, Covered Bridges, Historic Sites, Lake/Pond, Massachusetts, New England, North America, Restaurants, Reviews, United States

The Old Mill Restaurant in Westminster was purchased by Ralph and Ruth Foster in 1946. The mill has been operating as a restaurant for 98 years and has been in the same family for the past 73 years. Originally a saw mill the mill has been a business for 258 years.

The mill was converted into a tea-room in 1921. The location is idyllic with a covered pedestrian walking bridge, outdoor seating areas and ducks swimming in the pond.

The menu has a cuisine representative to the setting with some fine dining options as well as some more casual fare.

First Congregational Church – Gardner, Massachusetts

June 26, 2020 Joseph Candora Architecture, Church/Cathedral, Massachusetts, New England, North America, United States

The First Congregational Church in Gardner, Massachusetts has an interesting square spire with a clock face near the top. The church was built in 1878, the distinctive brick Victorian gothic church and tower replaced a more traditional meeting house which had been on the site since 1787.

Prudence Wright Overlook – Pepperell, Massachusetts

June 26, 2020 Joseph Candora Architecture, Bridges, Covered Bridges, Historic Markers, Historic Sites, Massachusetts, Mountain, New England, North America, Rivers, United States

Like many siblings Prudence Wright had disagreements with her brother. In this case however the disagreement reached another level. In 1775 Prudence was married, had six living children, was 35 years old and lived in Pepperell, Massachusetts. She was an ardent patriot but her brother was a Tory, a supporter of the English crown.

Prudence discovered that her brother and another Tory, Benjamin Whiting, were going to deliver a message to the British about the secret location of a gunpowder store. With most of the menfolk called up to the militia Prudence called on several women who she knew shared her patriotic leanings. Jewett’s Bridge, the current location of the Pepperell Covered Bridge, was where the women decided to stop the Tory spies. With an assortment of farm implements they waited for the horsemen to cross the bridge. Both men were dragged from their horses and the dispatches were confiscated. They were taken to a nearby tavern and held before being taken to Colonial authorities in the morning. Prudence became a Revolutionary War icon with stories and accounts documenting her escapades.