01907 Winter 2018 V2

WINTER 2018-19 

Cornering cancer ● Our house 

GAS 

explosion

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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR 

PAUL HALLORAN 

02 | 01907 

A publication of Essex Media Group 

Publisher 

Edward M. Grant 

Chief Executive Officer 

Michael H. Shanahan 

Directors 

Edward L. Cahill 

John M. Gilberg 

Edward M. Grant 

Gordon R. Hall 

Monica Connell Healey 

J. Patrick Norton 

Michael H. Shanahan 

Chief Financial Officer 

William J. Kraft 

Chief Operating Officer 

James N. Wilson 

Community Relations Director 

Carolina Trujillo 

Controller 

Susan Conti 

Editor 

Paul K. Halloran Jr. 

News Editors 

Cheryl Charles 

Roberto Scalese 

Contributing Writers 

Bill Brotherton 

Gayla Cawley 

Bella diGrazia 

Thomas Grillo 

Thor Jourgensen 

Steve Krause 

Photographers 

Spenser Hasak 

Owen O’Rourke 

Advertising Design 

Trevor Andreozzi 

Tyler Bernard 

Advertising Sales 

Ernie Carpenter 

David McBournie 

Ralph Mitchell 

Patricia Whalen 

Production 

Tori Faieta 

Mark Sutherland 

ESSEX MEDIA GROUP 

110 Munroe St., 

Lynn, MA 01901 

781-593-7700 ext.1234 

Subscriptions: 

781-593-7700 ext. 1253 

01907themagazine.com 

04 Did you know? 

05 What's up 

06 Cornering cancer 

10 Style 

12 House money 

15 Gas explosion 

Historic 

edition 

Art and history. Life and death. We figured you needed some light reading 

for the holidays. 

In this edition of 01907, you will meet Mary Flannery, a former Swampscott 

resident who lives in Nahant, who has parlayed the fantastic success of RAW 

Art Works in Lynn into GAS, a new venture where “creative collisions are a 

regular occurrence,” according to Bill Brotherton’s story. 

Steve Krause has a story on an Honor Roll that is much more impressive 

than the ones highlighting academic prowess. Police Chief Ron Madigan 

keeps in office a book chronicling the exploits of town residents who served 

in “the war to end all wars,” including the likes of actor Walter Brennan and 

John Blocksidge, for whom the field on Humphrey Street is named. 

We’ve all been to Town Hall, but you may not be aware it was once the 

homestead of the founder of GE and the person who was responsible for the 

landscape architecture also dabbled in public parks, including Central. Yes, 

that one. In NYC. 

The former residence of Elihu Thomson is located in the Frederick Law 

Olmsted Historic District, accurately described by Thor Jourgensen as a 

“carefully preserved link to Swampscott’s past.” I think you will enjoy his tour 

of the district, which is home by Gov. Charlie Baker and his wife, Lauren. 

Surely one of the most recognizable structures in town is the old depot at 

the train station, a late 19th-century building that resides on the National 

Register of Historic Places, and one that will hopefully be making a comeback 

after years of sitting vacant. All aboard for Gayla Cawley’s story. 

Did you know that before we had the Big Blue we had the Sculpins? A 

cup of Periwinkles clam chowder (Page 24) to you if you also know what a 

Sculpin is (bottom-feeding fish) and whom we can credit for cutting bait on 

that mascot. Hint, he orchestrated the greatest sports dynasty in town history. 

For that, and other tidbits of information, see "5 Things You Didn't Know 

About Swampscott." 

Here's one thing you did know: The holidays are coming. Enjoy them – as 

well as this issue. 

INSIDE 

18 Charles Henry Bond 

20 Honor Roll of service 

24 Local flavor 

26 Redevelopment on track 

28 Our house 

30 History lives here 

COVER 

Mary Flannery, founder 

of Raw Art Works, 

and her husband Chris 

Whitlock have opened 

Great Art Studio (GAS) 

in Central Square. 

PHOTO BY 

Spenser Hasak

FRESH • TIMELESS • LUXE 

Interior Design • Retail Showroom 

Diana James 

Photo Credits: Cory Silken 

East Coast Design Inc. 

34 Atlantic Avenue 

Marblehead, MA 01945 

(781) 990-5150 

livingswellmarblehead.com


5 

(We 

Things 

Bet) 

you didn't know about 

Swampscott 

BY GAYLA CAWLEY 

Stanley Bondelevitch's status 

as Swampscott's legendary 

high school football coach is 

cemented in legend, but not 

everyone knows Bondelevitch took 

exception with calling the football 

team "Sculpins" and said the name 

referred to bottom-feeding fish. He 

looked out to sea and grabbed "Big 

Blue" for the team's name. 

On Sept. 30, 1950, a military jet 

crashed on Preston Beach. 

The pilot ejected and landed 

safely but the crash caused live 

ammunition to be spread across the 

beach and curious residents and 

beachgoers converged on the site. 

Swampscott is credited 

with hosting the first sex 

education talk to students 

in 1890 when the School 

Committee invited two doctors 

to conduct a lecture on "moral 

purity." 

There are many variations on 

the basic design of the small 

coastal fishing boat called the 

dory but Theopolis Beckett is 

credited with designing the dory 

style common to Swampscott that 

went unaltered from its debut in 

1840 until the introduction of the 

Boston Whaler. 

Newly-graduated from Swampscott High School 54 years ago, Neil 

Rossman picked up a camera and spent part of the summer of 1964 

taking photographs of life along Fisherman's Beach, including this classic 

image of a fresh catch being unloaded. 

A foghorn called Swampscott 

residents to Town Meeting in 

1924 after the moderator realized 

the meeting did not have enough 

members to call a quorum for voting 

purposes and arranged to sound the 

foghorn typically used to assemble 

residents to fight a local fire.

WHAT'S UP 

WANTED: Scarves, Hats, and 

Gloves - Oh My! 

WHAT: Spread Some Holiday 

Cheer 

Help share the holiday spirit by 

donating to the needy. 

WHERE: a box located in the lobby 

of the Swampscott Public Library, 

61 Burrill St. 

WHEN: the month of December 

Happy Birthday, Emily 

Dickinson! 

WHAT: Emily Dickinson's birthday 

is December 10 and in honor of 

the great American poet librarian 

Janina Majeran will hold a lecture 

about her life and poetry. 

WHERE: Swampscott Public 

Library, 61 Burrill St. 

WHEN: Thursday, Dec. 13, 7 p.m. 

Register by Dec. 3 at 781-596-8867 

Baby, It's Cold Outside… 

WHAT: Celebrate National Cocoa 

Day at the library with a hot cocoa 

beverage. For kids, there will be 

reindeer pop crafts they can make 

and take home. 



WHEN: Thursday, Dec. 13 

Connect with the Spirit 

World 

WHAT: Platform Mediumship 

Demonstration 

Join the Swampscott Church 

of Spiritualism's Reverend Jason 

McCuish and Reverend Oshada for 

an evening of evidential messages 

and connections with loved 

ones in the spirit world. $30 for 

members/$40 for non-members 

WHERE: Swampscott Church of 

Spiritualism, 59 Burrill St. 

WHEN: Friday, Dec. 7, 7-8:30 p.m. 

Tim Cronin and his 36 Ford Cabrolet and Steve Benson with his 1956 Chevy Pick-up chat during the 8th 

annual Classics by the Sea carshow held in Monument Square. 

PHOTO: OWEN O'ROURKE 

Writers Unite! 

WHAT: The Swampscott Scribblers 

A supportive writing group that 

can help writers get their work off 

the ground. Join librarian Janina 

Majeran, whether you are just 

starting out and need direction or 

have something prepared that you 

would like feedback on. 



WHEN: Thursday, Dec. 27, 6:30 p.m.


Lynch/van Otterloo YMCA Executive Director Gerald MacKillop helped create the Corner Stone program, which is a new initiative that supports cancer patients, 

cancer survivors and their families. 

C O R N E R I N G 

CANCER 

BY BILL BROTHERTON 

Lindsay Northrop was a young wife 

and mother of two boys, ages 5 and 7, 

when she was diagnosed with breast 

cancer in 2014. 

"I was taking care of two young 

children, and trying to take care of myself 

through the cancer. My husband took on 

a lot. It was hard, for me, my husband, and 

my sons," said Northrop, a Swampscott 

native and Marblehead resident. 

Two years later, the cancer returned. 

Support outside of the home was difficult 

to obtain, she said, especially for a young 

woman. The average age of women 

receiving a breast cancer diagnosis is 62. 

Catherine Foley, a Beverly native living 

in Lynn, faced similar difficulties. She, too, 

was diagnosed with breast cancer in her 

30s. "It's a scary thing. I was filled with 

fear and anxiety and uncertainty." 

Northrop and Foley, who today are 

both in complete remission, met at a 

support group recommended by their 

surgeons. They were considerably younger 

than everyone else in attendance. "It 

was the first time I ever went to a group 

meeting," said Foley. "Before that, it was 

like the Underground Railroad. Someone 

would say, 'Oh, call this person.' I'd call, 

and that person would be helpful, and 

give me another number to call. I'd call 

that person. That's how things went." 

After the meeting, Northrop tapped 

Foley on the shoulder as they were 

walking out. The two shared their stories 

and recognized the urgent need for a 

young women's support group. Statistics 

show that one in eight women in the 

United States will be diagnosed with

WINTER 2018-19 | 07 

breast cancer during their lifetime. 

Northrop and Foley have started 

the Young Women's Breast Cancer 

Support Group, hosted by the Lynch/ 

van Otterloo YMCA in Marblehead. 

It coincides perfectly with the local Y's 

innovative, first-in-the-nation Corner 

Stone program, a collaborative program 

providing essential daily-living support 

to individuals with cancer and their 

immediate families. 

Gerald MacKillop Jr., executive 

director of the Marblehead-based Y, is 

a former Lahey Health executive and 

has been involved with Corner Stone 

since the beginning. He and Martha 

Potvin, coordinator of the Y's health and 

wellness programs, "were 100-percent 

onboard" with helping the young 

women's group, said Northrop. 

Foley said young women face a 

complex set of challenges during 

treatment for breast cancer: They are in 

the prime of their life, juggling families, 

careers and relationships. Northrop said 

the group provides peer-to-peer support 

and mentorship. It meets at the Y the first 

Monday of every month at both noon and 

6:30 p.m.; and there is a private Facebook 

page where members can offer support 

and share resources as needed. 

"I thought of all the women behind 

me, and wondered 'Are they going to go 

through the same things I did?' I had so 

many questions when I was diagnosed. I 

was processing so much. We don't want 

other women to feel like we did," said Foley. 

"Most cancer organizations are 

focused around fundraisers," she 

continued. "They serve a very important 

service, but at the time of my diagnosis 

the last thing I wanted was to walk or 

run a 5K. I needed support and help with 

my emotions. I had cancer. That was my 

new normal. It was lonely and isolating, 

no matter how many people you have 

around you. That starts to disappear 

when you talk with others who have 

been through it." 

MacKillop said Corner Stone 

participants will have no-cost access to 

YMCA-sponsored health and wellness 

resources, programs and support to help 

them in their cancer fight. The initiative 

includes access to all seven YMCA of 

the North Shore locations. 

"Every family is touched by cancer," 

said MacKillop. "Corner Stone will 

provide a safety net (…) If a person has 

to cancel a doctor's appointment because 

there is no one to take care of their 

children, we will take care of the kids 

"I thought of all the 

women behind me, and 

wondered 'Are they going 

to go through the same 

things I did?' I had so 

many questions when 

I was diagnosed. I was 

processing so much. We 

don't want other women 

to feel like we did." 

— Catherine Foley 

Catherine Foley of Lynn, left, and Lindsay 

Northrop of Marblehead host a weekly 

support group at the Lynch/van Otterloo 

YMCA as part of the Corner Stone program. 

PHOTO: SPENSER HASAK 

here. If a person has been in treatment 

all day, the last thing they want to do is 

go out at night for a screening, especially 

if it means a trip into Boston. We can do 

the screening here, and the patient can be 

taken care of while other family members 

can take advantage of our offerings." 

MacKillop said Corner Stone 

provides: 

○ A complimentary Y membership 

to cancer survivors diagnosed within the 

past five years and their families for one 

year (with extended options for those 

still receiving treatment). 

○ Access to all member benefits and 

specialized programs to help those with 

cancer and recovering from cancer. 

○ A complimentary week of summer 

camp for all children in the family 

enrolled in the program. 

○ A schedule of special drop-in 

babysitting for parents who are currently 

in treatment. 

○ A non-clinical environment where 

patients and family can feel comfortable 

and supported. 

MacKillop said Dana Farber, 

Lahey Health, Steward Health, Care 

Dimensions hospice and Spaulding 

Rehab are onboard. Mass General Cancer 

Center and the Reid Sacco Adolescent 

and Young Adult Program for Cancer and 

Hereditary Blood Diseases have expressed 

interest in participating. 

“A cancer diagnosis is devastating, 

and the goal of Corner Stone is to build 

a community support structure and 

provide essential daily support for cancer 

Alan Kraning of Marblehead takes advantage of the Corner Stone program at the Lynch/van Otterloo YMCA. 

PHOTO: SPENSER HASAK


patients, survivors and their families,” 

said Chris Lovasco, CEO of the YMCA 

of the North Shore. “For more than 

100 years, the Y has been a community 

resource that has experience offering a 

wide variety of crucial health, wellness 

and education programming. We’re 

excited to launch this new program that 

will benefit so many adults, children and 

families in our local communities.” 

Alan Kraning, a Marblehead resident, 

is excited by the possibilities Corner 

Stone offers. The retired software 

engineer had been an enthusiastic 

participant in Livestrong, the Y's 12- 

week small group program designed for 

adult cancer survivors. Kraning, a former 

smoker, had a cancerous growth in the 

back of his mouth removed in 2003. 

Nine years later, cancer was found under 

his tongue, necessitating surgery that 

included the removal of several teeth. 

"That's when I got serious, and started 

coming to the Y, first at the old place 

in downtown Marblehead, and working 

with a personal trainer. Livestrong hit me 

at the right time in my life. It integrates 

head, heart and body." 

Kraning said there's a stigma attached 

to cancer. "Some people think they can 

catch it, so they stay away from you. The 

isolation is tough, on the patient and on 

the family. When I was first diagnosed, 

I thought I had been given a death 

sentence. I was scared out of my mind. 

Livestrong shows you you're not alone. 

You're working out with your peers and 

you support each other." 

Kraning still exercises almost daily. 

The fact that Corner Stone is a yearlong 

program is fantastic, he said. 

"Corner Stone takes a person's recovery 

well into the future. A person can take 

their time to adjust to exercise and 

schedules." Corner Stone will give him 

the opportunity to "give back and go 

forward, to share my story with other 

people who are going through what I 

went through." 

For more information on the Lynch/van 

Otterloo YMCA's Corner Stone program, 

go to www.northshoreymca.org or call 

781-631-9622. For more information on 

the Young Women's Breast Cancer Support 

Group (the next meeting is Dec. 3), contact 

youngwomensnsbcgroup@gmail.com. 

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"Every family 

is touched 

by cancer. 

Corner Stone 

will provide a 

safety net." 

—Gerald MacKillop 

Lynch/van Otterloo YMCA Executive Director 

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STYLE 

& 

Layer 

up 

stay on 

trend 

BY BELLA diGRAZIA 

PHOTOS BY 

SPENSER HASAK 

Keep it cozy, keep it 

funky, and keep it fun. 

Whether you are into 

simple layers or stylish 

animal prints, these 

Swampscott boutiques 

have you covered. 

On trend: animal 

prints, modesty dressing, 

logo t-shirts, anything 

fluffy. 

get the look 

Red-and-gold, handmade, glass 

pendant necklace. $70 

Contemporary, hand-woven 

brass and petal freshwater pearl 

earrings. $180 

Red-and-gray "Amour" boyfriend 

T-shirt. $44 

All available at Kat's Boutique, 

212 Humphrey St. 

Black "Abby" skinny jeans. $85 

Long, faux leopard fur coat. 

$235 

Both available at Infinity 

Boutique, 427 Paradise Rd.


get the 

look 

Black boat-neck ribbed sweater with pearl-embellished 

sleeves. $115 

Tan ponte pants with black suede double-striped sides. $144 

Speckled black, white faux fur clutch with gold chain. $55 

Off-white, long-sleeve turtleneck. $38 

Black, long puffer down padded vest with silver zipper. $145 

All available at Infinity Boutique, 427 Paradise Rd. 

Faux pearl, gold hoop earrings. $50 

Available at Kat's Boutique, 212 Humphrey St.


HOUSE MONEY 

PHOTOS COURTESY OF GARY PEARL


Take a look at 

1 Cliff Road 

SALE PRICE: $2,597,000 

SALE DATE: April 10, 2018 

LIST PRICE: $2,999,000 

TIME ON MARKET: 

181 days (February, 2018) 

LISTING BROKER: 

Mitch Levine, Sagan Harborside 

Sotheby’s International Realty 

SELLING BROKER: 

Mitch Levine, Sagan Harborside 

Sotheby’s International Realty 

LATEST ASSESSED 

VALUE: $1,525,400 

PREVIOUS SALE PRICE: 

$670,000 (2015) 

PROPERTY TAXES: $24,406 

YEAR BUILT: 2016 

LOT SIZE: 0.5 acres 

LIVING AREA: 4,602 square feet 

ROOMS: 10 

BEDROOMS: 4 

BATHROOMS: 4 1/2 -bath 

SPECIAL FEATURES: 

Nothing has been spared in 

this 10-room, 4.5 bath stunning 

waterfront contemporary. 

The first level features a foyer 

leading to formal living and 

dining rooms. There's a custom 

kitchen, grey flannel library, and 

first floor master suite. French 

doors open to the bi-level patio 

and professionally landscaped 

grounds. The upper level has 

three bedrooms including a 

luxurious second master suite. 

The lower level boasts a gym, 

walls of closets, an office or guest 

room, and a two-car garage. 

Source: MLS Property Information Network.

Gas Explosion 

BY BILL BROTHERTON 

Mary Flannery, the found 

of Raw Art Works, and 

her husband Chris Whitlock 

sit on a couch with 

their dog, Boo, in their 

new art studio, GAS. 

PHOTO: 

SPENSER HASAK 

Like many artists, Mary Flannery is a bit of a kook. 

There's an outrageous neon-yellow chiffon dress, with paint tubes 

sewn into its folds, sitting in the window of Great Art Studio (GAS), 

the workspace she and husband Chris Whitlock recently opened in 

downtown Lynn. It's kind of like that outlandish outfit Cyndi Lauper 

flounced about in for that "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" video. 

Flannery's actually worn this thing. In public. In front of donors 

WINTER 2018-19 | 15


and the glitterati who packed a BASH 

party at RAW Art Works, the arts 

organization she founded 25 years ago 

that has had a profound influence on 

hundreds of underserved city kids. 

Flannery, a former Swampscott 

resident who now lives in Nahant 

with Whitlock and their two children, 

has left the still-flourishing RAW in 

capable hands to devote her time and 

energy to GAS, which is next door to 

RAW's Central Square headquarters. 

The art studio is imbued with her 

personality and that of Whitlock. 

Truth be told, he’s no shrinking violet 

either, even though he recently retired 

from staid Fidelity Investments where 

he was director of the Creative User 

Experience department, an offbeat title 

to be sure. 

At GAS, rustic and modern collide 

in a space that features large, black-andwhite, 

Keith Haring-like figures lurking 

throughout and paintings both large and 

small. Their deaf, 13-year-old bordoodle 

(border collie/poodle mix), named Boo, 

keeps them company, napping on a 

couch. 

"This is the result of 30 years of 

dreaming," said Flannery. "Chris is one 

happy, happy man. Making stuff is his 

passion. He's like MacGyver. He can 

build anything, and he had so much 

fun getting this ready for our opening 

party." Whitlock calls himself the chief 

inspiration officer. 

The couple has been married 30 

years and their children, Grace and Jake 

Whitlock, are both creative, like mom 

and dad. 

The GAS team says they do not aspire 

to be mediocre. "We have spent years 

being surrounded by incredibly curious 

folks. GAS will be a place where creative 

collisions are a regular occurence. We 

love to be creative and love to hang with 

people who feel the same, Flannery said." 

The studio will feature collaborative 

exhibits of 

works by the 

couple and 

other artists; 

salon-type 

galleries, where 

on any given 

day or night 

participants 

might critique 

art/advertising, 

enjoy music, 

or make art 

collectively; 

THIS IS THE RESULT 

OF 30 YEARS OF 

dreaming. 

— MARY FLANNERY 

launch marketable ideas; and provide 

studio hours where artists can do their 

work. 

"We really believe in the idea 

of gatherings, and hope to host 

events that further the arts district 

mission," said Flannery. "Galleries 

are disappearing, not only locally but 

throughout the world. Wouldn't it be 

cool if Lynn is a destination for artists 

and art lovers?" 

"With RAW I had a molecule of 

an idea that kids were drawn to being 

creative, and starving for some place to 

belong,” she added. “With help from the 

incredible RAW team, that molecule is

now a universe.” 

And the North Shore will likely 

benefit from some fresh GAS in its 

creative tank. It's only a matter of time 

before Flannery and Whitlock come up 

with another unconventional molecule 

of idea that will capture everyone's 

fancy. 

WINTER 2018-19 | 17


The 

& 

of Charles Henry Bond 

LIFE 

DEATH 

BY STEVE KRAUSE 

This is a multi-faceted 

story spread across two 

towns on opposite sides 

of Lynn. 

The first is Saugus, 

where Charles Henry 

Bond grew up and lived. The second is 

Swampscott, where he died a mysterious 

death while living in his summer house he 

called Peacehaven, located on what is now 

Puritan Road (it has been torn down). 

You name it and Bond probably had 

something to do with it. Bond, who died 

in 1908, was in equal parts a tobacconist, 

an impresario, real estate mogul and 

philanthropist. 

Even in death, he's been a hot topic 

of conversation as there are theories that 

his ghost inhabits Saugus Town Hall 

(naturally there's a story that goes with 

that). 

Bond, born in 1846, lived in the 

Cliftondale section of Saugus. Initially, 

he made his fortune as president of Waitt 

& Bond Inc., a cigar manufacturing 

company. 

The company was founded in in 1870 

in Cliftondale, and run out of a small 

shop there. However, the business grew 

rapidly, and it was ultimately relocated 

to a large factory in Boston. Waitt & 

Bond eventually became the largest cigar 

manufacturer in New England, and one 

of the largest in the United States. 

In 1885, the company — by then 

having established its headquarters on 

Blackstone Street in Boston — produced 

its signature cigar, also known as 

"Blackstone." 

With the money he accumulated from 

the cigar business, Bond got involved in 

real estate, and became one of the most 

active dealers and largest holders of real 

estate in Boston at the time. 

He became especially involved in real 

estate during the final year of his life. 

Among the properties Bond owned were 

the Oceanside Hotel in Gloucester's 

Magnolia village, the Hotel Netherlands 

on Boylston Street in Boston, and 

Brandon Hall in Brookline. 

Parallel to his real estate dealings 

was Bond's growing interest in the arts. 

He was always drawn to music, even as 

a child, and with his wealth, he founded 

the Cliftondale Public Library and was 

the library association president and a 

member of Saugus' first water board. 

He was a benefactor to Saugus' camp 

of the Sons of Union Veterans of the 

Civil War, and the camp was eventually 

named for him. 

Bond also provided funding for the 

training of several vocalists, including 

Geraldine Farrar, a noted American 

opera soprano. 

He was a member of the Boston Art 

Club and served on its entertainment 

committee. Bond was also a trustee of the 

New England Conservatory of Music. 

Bond offered an award known as 

the Bond Speaking Prize to the most 

proficient students at Saugus High 

School, Wesleyan University, and New 

Orleans University. He also aided 

students at St. Lawrence University. 

During the last year of his life, Bond 

got an opportunity to combine his real 

estate passion with that of the arts, as 

he began work on a theater on Tremont 

Street in Boston that was to be known as 

the Lyric Theater. However, the project 

never really got off the ground because of 

the Panic of 1907, from which Bond took 

a huge financial hit. 

He was removed from the project as 

a result, and it remained unfinished until 

a year after he died, when the Shubert 

Organization took over, completed it, 

and renamed it the Shubert Theatre. 

Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew" 

was the first play performed there.


The theater still operates in 

conjunction with the Shubert 

Organization and the Boch Family and 

is now known as the Shubert Theater at 

the Boch Center. 

His financial losses from the 1907 

panic hit him hard. A month before 

his death, on July 3, 1908, all of his 

properties were placed in the hands of 

trustees. He was found dead in a bathtub 

at his Peacehaven summer home in 

Swampscott. 

Medical examiner Joseph Pinkham 

ruled the death an accidental drowning, 

but reportedly, he left a note in his 

bathroom that read, "I have been killed 

Above, the bedroom, left, and garden at Charles Henry Bond's Peacehaven summer home in Swampscott, 

where he died in 1908. 

PHOTOS COURTESY JANICE JAROSZ 

by my friends and enemies. It is more 

than I can bear. I can stand it no longer. 

My heart is broken. I leave everything to 

my wife." 

Now for the postscript. Some people 

think his spirit haunts Saugus Town Hall 

— and that the faint whiff of cigar smoke 

can be smelled in the building. This has 

a little to do with his mysterious death. 

Former selectwoman Janice Jarosz said in 

2008 — 100 years after his death — that 

Bond felt the town had turned against 

him, especially when town officials first 

said the Cliftondale Elementary School 

would be named after him, and then 

changed their minds. 

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Our 

honor 

Roll of 

service 


People of a certain age most 

certainly remember Walter 

Brennan, the character actor 

perhaps most known as Amos 

McCoy in the television show 

"The Real McCoys." 

Brennan, who grew up in 

Swampscott, was a prolific character 

actor who won three Academy Awards 

for his supporting roles in motion 

pictures. His best role, for which he 

won one of those Oscars, came in "The 

781-631-1299 

59 Atlantic Ave, Marblehead

Westerner," where he portrayed the 

villainous Judge Roy Bean. 

Brennan, who walked with a hitch 

and spoke with the high-pitched twang 

of a mountaineer, acted right up until 

his death in 1974. In fact, his final movie 

appeared almost a year later, in 1975. 

But there's something about Brennan 

that most people — especially these days 

— might not know. Walter Brennan was 

a World War I veteran who fought in 

several prominent battles during his 2½ 

years in France. In fact, if you read the 

battlefield biographies contained in the 

book "Swampscott Honor Roll, World 

War 1917-1918," you'll see that he served 

in the northeastern sector of France 

around the same time as John Blocksidge, 

who was killed Sept. 2, 1918, and after 

whom Blocksidge Field is named. 

The book, which resides at the 

Swampscott Police Station (chief 

Ronald Madigan professes a profound 

appreciation of the town's history), and 

which has to be protected by a plastic 

envelope to protect it from further 

erosion, provides a list of all soldiers 

from Swampscott who served in what 

was then called "the war to end all wars." 

In all, 500 soldiers with Swampscott 

connections served overseas during the war. 

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"It was a short war (1917-18) in 

terms of American involvement, but it 

was different than it is today. You were 

fighting for a year at a time, and going 

from battle to battle. Some of those guys 

were severely battle-tested. And in those 

days, you didn't know about things like 

(post-traumatic stress disorder)," said 

Madigan. 

In fact, PTSD was referred to simply 

as "shell shock" during World War I and 

its aftermath. 

Blocksidge is one of 12 with 

connections to the town who gave their 

lives. Five, Blocksidge included, were 

killed on the battlefield (in Blocksidge's 

case, the Battle of Juvigny); one died of 

wounds while still in France, one died in 

France, but not of any wounds; and five 

died in the United States of lingering 

injuries. 

"You can see," Madigan said, "that a 

lot of people died from disease, infection 

or influenza." 

"From 1918 through about the spring 

of 1919, Swampscott was mourning 

the loss of its young men as the result 

of World War I. War is really a callous 

process. There's a lot of brutal and 

efficient killing. These were all lives that 

were cut short," Town Administrator 

Sean Fitzgerald 

Offensive — where 

said. 

he was when the 

Combatants 

armistice was 

in World War 

signed on Nov. 11, 

I also had to 

1918. 

contend with the 

There are similar 

introduction of 

biographies of all 

chemical warfare. 

of Swampscott's 

"In fact," 

veterans from the 

Madigan said, 

war. The book was 

"I've heard, but 

commissioned by 

I'm not sure it's 

the Swampscott 

true, that Walter 

Town Meeting on 

Brennan's voice 

April 2, 1919, with 

— you know, that 

a committee of 

high-pitched 

Henry S. Baldwin, 

voice? — was 

chairman; Willard 

because it was 

C. Chase, James W. 

damaged by gas." 

Santry and Fred A. 

Brennan was 

Trafton. 

overseas from 

Its veracity was 

Sept. 9, 1917 to 

addressed in a note 

April 10, 1919. 

at the beginning 

He served in the 

of the book: "From 

field artillery of 

the beginning, the 

Walter Brennan was best known as Amos McCoy. 

the American 

PHOTO COURTESY OF ABC TELEVISION committee has 

Expeditionary 

realized that the 

Forces, in the 101st Regiment, Battery value of a book of this nature depends 

C. The battles in which he fought were upon its accuracy. To secure this, the facts 

The Aisne-Marne Offensive, St. Mihiel relating to each person were obtained, so 

Offensive and the Meuse-Argonne far as possible, from the discharge papers." 

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If that wasn't possible, the committee 

interviewed survivors and obtained 

records from the War and Navy 

departments or through the adjutantgeneral's 

office in the Commonwealth of 

Massachusetts. 

Fitzgerald and Madigan are kindred 

spirits of a sort in that they both have an 

abiding reverence for the sacrifices made 

by soldiers in wartime. 

"I've always been interested in 

it," said Madigan. "And I think it's 

important for people to learn about the 

sacrifices people in the town — and 

everywhere — have made." 

In Fitzgerald's case, both sides of his 

family are filled with veterans, and his 

brother, Gerald Jr., served in the Army 

during the Desert Storm campaign. 

Their father was in the military during 

the Vietnam era, as were four of his 

uncles (two on each side of his family). 

And several great-uncles served in 

World War II. 

"This book," said Fitzgerald, "reflects 

the sacrifices made, and the experience 

these soldiers went through. They were 

awful, but I'm sure that all of them 

performed heroically." 

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Redevelopment 

on track 

BY GAYLA CAWLEY 

There's a push to bring new life to the 

historic Swampscott train depot, which 

has sat vacant for decades. 

The depot at the Swampscott 

commuter rail is one of the properties 

the Massachusetts Bay Transportation 

Authority (MBTA) has put out to bid. 

Town officials are working with the 

MBTA to find a tenant whose potential 

use of the building aligns with the town's 

vision for the neighborhood. 

The town of Swampscott used to 

lease the building from the MBTA, but 

the lease has been up for several years. 

In early 2018, the town was exploring 

leasing the property again and subletting 

the building, but those plans never 

materialized. 

The old station building at the train 

station, which was built in 1868, is listed 

on the National Registry of Historic Places 

and last functioned as a train depot. 

Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald 

said the reuse of the depot as a


The train station in Swampscott. 

PHOTO: OWEN O'ROURKE 

restaurant, coffee shop or bistro would 

be ideal, and consistent with the town's 

Master Plan. It would provide a servicebased 

use for the hundreds of people 

who use the commuter rail each day and 

would increase the economic potential of 

the neighborhood. 

"The building is a little dated, so 

it would need a significant amount of 

capital investment to really be brought 

back to functional redevelopment," 

Fitzgerald said. "We're looking to see 

those investments made and we want to 

make sure we have a business that will 

maintain the historic integrity of the 

property and really be successful." 

The train station neighborhood is 

one of the town's three strategic areas 

for commercial growth, along with the 

downtown, or Humphrey Street, and 

Vinnin Square. According to the Master 

Plan, the train station area, which 

already has successful restaurants, holds 

considerable potential for additional 

retail and dining sector growth. 

Town officials are in the process 

of planning for smart growth zoning 

in the train station neighborhood, 

which, by state law, allows communities 

to develop an overlay district that 

encourages growth around transportation 

communities. A $25,000 study approved 

by Town Meeting is enabling the town 

to plan for mixed use and residential 

development. 

Swampscott's Railroad Depot 

is representative of the stick style 

architecture popular in the late 19th 

century. The building is a remnant of 

the Eastern Railroad, the first line to 

pass through the town and important 

to its rise in prominence as a summer 

resort, according to the Massachusetts 

Historical Commission. 

The depot was added to the National 

Register of Historic Places in 1998 and, as 

of 2014, the building and its surroundings 

have also been designated as the 

Swampscott Railroad Depot Local Historic 

District, according to the Master Plan. 

"It's iconic and it reflects a time long 

ago when Swampscott was an important 

resort community where people would 

travel up from Boston, walk up to the 

beach and enjoy the waterfront for the 

day," Fitzgerald said. "It's exciting to 

think that some of those opportunities 

are starting to be reevaluated and we're 

looking at opportunities to revitalize a 

symbol of Swampscott." 

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What do you get when you combine 

America’s greatest landscape architect 

and one of the country’s most renowned 

innovators? 

Swampscott Town Hall. 

That's the net result, but let's back up 

a bit. Town Hall was once the home of 

professor Elihu Thomson and his family. 

Thomson was a scientist and an inventor 

who is one of the founders of the General 

Electric Company of Lynn. Frederick Law 

Olmsted designed the subdivision upon 

which all of this is set — the monument 

park, Town Hall, and the row of classic 

homes that includes that of Gov. Charlie 

Baker. 

Olmsted also designed such national 

landmarks as Central Park in New York and 

the Emerald Necklace in Boston, which 

encompasses much of the greenery in the 

Hub. 

According to the Swampscott Historical 

Commission, Thomson’s Georgian revivalstyle 

house was designed by architect 

James Templeton Kelley, and its interior 

and furnishings were chosen mostly by 

Thomson, his wife, Mary Louise, and their 

sons, Malcolm, Donald, Stuart and Ronald. 

Thomson, besides his role in establishing 

the GE, was also president of the 

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

A little history is in order. In 1889, 

Thomas Edison had dealings with many 

electricity-related companies including 

Edison Lamp Company in East 

Newark, N.J.; Edison Machine Works in 

Schenectady, N.Y.; Bergmann & Co., which 

manufactured dynamos and large electric 

motors; and Edison Electric Light Co., 

which was the patent-holding company and 

the financial arm backed by J.P. Morgan 

and the Vanderbilt family for the inventor's 

lighting experiments. 

That year, Drexel, Morgan and Co., a 

company founded by Morgan and Anthony 

J. Drexel, financed Edison's research 

and helped merge those firms under one 

corporation — Edison General Electric Co., 

which was incorporated in New York on 

April 24, 1889. 

Nine years earlier, Gerald Waldo Hart 

formed American Electric Co. in New 

Britain, Conn., which merged a few years 

later with Thomson-Houston Electric Co., 

led by Charles Coffin. 

In 1887, Hart left to become 

superintendent of the Edison Electric 

Company of Kansas City. 

The GE was formed through the 1892 

merger of Edison General Electric Company 

of Schenectady and Thomson-Houston 

Electric Company of Lynn, with the support 

of Drexel, Morgan & Co. Both plants still 

operate under the GE banner to this day. 

The company was incorporated in New 

York, with the Schenectady plant used as


headquarters for many years thereafter. The 

company is now headquartered in Boston. 

When it was constructed in 1889, the 

Thomson home had, attached to the main 

grounds by a bridge, a carriage house with 

a laboratory where the professor conducted 

his research on X-ray tubes; electric ship 

propulsion; refrigeration and arc lighting; 

hydraulic drive for automobiles, turbines, 

high-powered lenses; and electrical 

measurements for instruments of a myriad 

of applications. 

The bridge and carriage house were 

off-limits, according to the historical 

commission. The bridge is gone now, and 

the carriage house is part of the main house. 

"You might have thought you were 

entering a first-class workshop replete with 

machine tools, jigs, dies, electrical laboratory, 

photographers; dark room and cabinets 

filed with prisms, lenses, microscope parts; 

and shelves filled with chemicals of every 

description," Thomson’s son, Ronald, said. 

Thomson lived in the house until his 

death in 1937 at the age of 83. Three years 

later, the town commissioned a study about 

the need for a new Town Hall to replace 

the old one on Burrill Street. It took three 

additional years to complete, and at the 

1944 Town Meeting it was presented at 

the same time the Thomson family sold the 

house to the town for $37,000. 

The town chose the firm of J. William 

Beal and Sons to convert the house into a 

workable town hall. The red slate roof and 

interior embellishments of mahogany, oak 

and cherry woods were left intact, and most 

of the home was left as it was built. The 

bridge that had once connected the main 

structure to the carriage house was removed 

and replaced by a one-story annex. 

The selectmen's meeting room to the left 

of the front door was once a parlor, and it 

contains the original woodwork, cabinetry 

and fireplace. 

Across the way is the collector's office, 

where town records are stored, and the 

layout is unchanged from the Thomson 

family's heyday in the house. Other sitting 

areas now house more offices. If you want to 

see pictures of the house as it once was, you 

can find them in the corridor that replaced 

the bridge to the carriage house. 

The stairway to the second floor is as 

originally designed. At the top was an organ 

that Thomson played, especially on Sundays, 

and a grid on the ceiling represents the 

place where the pipes were located. Most 

of the rooms on the second floor were 

bedrooms, with the master suite now service 

as the Board of Health office. The door 

adjacent to the corridor that now leads to 

the carriage house once led to the bridge. 

On the third floor were servants’ 

quarters, but it's also where Thomson — an 

astronomy buff — had a massive window 

that overlooked the front lawn, where he 

built his observatory (It is now part of a 

museum in Philadelphia.) 

Also outside the house, Thomson built 

a miniature railroad, big enough for two 

passengers, that circled the grounds. 

Thomson, a Philadelphia native, never 

went to college. But he was awarded many 

honorary doctorates and 17 medals in his 

lifetime, including the Chevalier et Officier 

de la Legion d'honneur, the Edison Medal, 

Kelvin Medal, Franklin Medal, Faraday 

Medal and the Grashof Medal. 

He was granted more than 700 patents 

by the U.S. Patent Office, and was the thirdgreatest 

patent holder U.S. history. 

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History lives 

Here 

BY THOR JOURGENSEN 

With its hilly, winding streets 

and stately homes, the Frederick 

Law Olmsted Historic District is a 

picturesque and carefully-preserved link 

to Swampscott's past. 

Bordered by Burrill Street, Paradise 

Road and the hilltop neighborhoods 

overlooking the ocean, the district has 

more than 400 homes, including one on 

Monument Avenue where Gov. Charlie 

Baker and his family live. 

With Walker Road meandering up 

and down hills and around curves and 

Monument Avenue flowing down to the 

beach, the district has the feel of a park 

partially converted into a residential 

subdivision, which is exactly the feeling 

19th century landscaping genius 

Olmsted wanted to convey. 

By the mid 1880s, the brains behind 

New York City's Central Park and 

Boston's Emerald Necklace park system 

had moved on from designing parks to 

subdivisions. The trustees of entrepreneur 

Enoch Reddington Mudge's 130-acre 

estate commissioned Olmsted's firm 

to plan a subdivision with streets and 

roughly 140 house lots laid out in the 

Olmsted's signature, innovative park 

style. 

Richard Smith, a Swampscott 

architect who has lived in a Thomas 

Road house in the district for 18 years, 

said Olmsted's designers drew on the 

18th century landscaping ideas crafted 

by English architect Joseph Paxton to 

create the subdivision. Translated into 

Olmsted's designs, that concept called 

for respecting natural beauty. 

"He was very cognizant of the 

land," said Justina Oliver, chair of the 

Historical Commission. 

In the 130 years since its creation, 

the district has seen the original house 

lots subdivided into smaller lots and 

it has survived proposed incursions, 

including an unsuccessful plan to build 

an apartment tower in the 1960s on what 

is now Linscott Park. 

"Very few of the homes have been lost 

or replaced," Smith said. 

The district received largelysymbolic 

National Historic Register 

status in 2002, but Town Meeting 

in 2014 adopted the historic district 

bylaw to provide protections for the 

Olmsted district and three other 

historic districts. 

The bylaw requires property owners, 

with some exemptions, to notify the 

Historic District Commission of 

proposed work modifying a structure 

located within a district. 

Smith and Oliver said the 

restrictions have largely resulted in 

cooperative efforts by homeowners and 

commissioners to ensure renovations 

and alterations are in keeping with 

commission design guidelines. 

"We've walked owners through the 

process and suggested alternatives," 

said Smith, who credited a Monument 

Avenue homeowner with redesigning 

an addition to incorporate district 

guidelines, and added that the slope 

below Outlook Road by Andrew Road 

was re-landscaped with help from the 

Open Space Commission. 

"That was an area that was really 

overgrown and where Olmsted was 

relatively unspecific on its use. He 

basically said, 'Rhododendrons,'" 

Smith said.

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Top, Richard Smith, a Swampscott architect 

and vice chair of the historic district 

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Olmsted Historic District. 

Richard Smith, a Swampscott architect and 

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