Around Town

OP-ED: A Proposal Templeton Pkwy. Property With Historic Church

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A Google Earth image of the former Belmont Baptist Church, proposed by the author to turn into art studios and gallery space. By Joseph LevenduskyWatertown Resident

A Modest Proposal for 126-134 Templeton Parkway

One of my neighbors, who grew up on Templeton Parkway, has told me stories of a decrepit old mansion that stood on a large plot of land that extended from Belmont Street up to Woodleigh and over to the corner of Templeton and Belmont. There resided an old lady living out her final years. Out of curiosity, my neighbor and his friends would try to sneak into the mansion and would be chased away by the lady’s household help. That lady was Rosamond Coolidge of the fabled Coolidge family who played an important role in the history of Watertown.

Around Town

Our History: “The Old Folks’ Rest” and Other Watertown Cemeteries

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Historic marker on the Mt. Auburn Street fence of the Arlington Street Cemetery (Photo courtesy of Joyce Kelly)

This article is part of a series on local history provided by the Historical Society of Watertown. The introduction to this article was written by Joyce Kelly, Board member of the Historical Society of Watertown. The articles were written by Historical Society President Rev. Edward Rand in 1902 and published in the local newspaper at that time. This was published in our January 2011 newsletter, “The Town Crier.”

Introduction

The following articles were written in 1902 by Rev. Edward A. Rand.

Entertainment

See This Week’s Small Saves Cartoon

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James DeMarco grew up in Watertown and became a goaltender at age 5. It’s his life’s passion to stand between the pipes and keep the puck out of the net. Combining this with the love of cartooning Small Saves emerged in 1991 and took on a life of his own. “To play goal – then come home and draw Small Saves — is my ideal definition of a good day.”

Around Town

Watertown Community Foundation Awards $729K in Grants to Help Residents Meet Basic Needs

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The following announcement was provided by the Watertown Community Foundation:

The Watertown Community Foundation (WCF) has awarded $729,229 to three local non-profits serving low-income populations in Watertown to meet ongoing basic needs in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Thanks to funding from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development (EOHED) Community Foundations Grant Program for COVID-19 Relief and the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) Community Block Grant Program, these grants are providing Watertown families rental assistance, paying for utilities, transportation, and technology needs, and supporting food assistance. WCF has partnered with EOHED and DHCD since 2020 to direct $1.6 million in state funds to local non-profits supporting families most effected by the pandemic and who continue to struggle as a result. Of this, WCF has distributed $505,381 for rental assistance and $916,952 for food assistance. “Because of the urgency of putting these funds to work as quickly as possible during the COVID- 19 crisis, Massachusetts chose to partner with the state’s 14 community foundations which knew where need was most urgent and distribute these funds immediately to organizations responding on the front lines. Without the Watertown Community Foundation, Watertown wouldn’t have received these vital funds to support our most vulnerable populations,” said Lauren Coughlin Unsworth, co-president of the Watertown Community Foundation.

Around Town

Gore Place Hosting Spring Into Summer Party with Dinner, Dancing & Barn Tours

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The following information was provided by Gore Place:

Join us for our Spring into Summer Party on Wednesday, June 14

Come to Gore Place for an evening of cocktails, dinner, dancing and a sneak preview of our new barns with our Leicester Longwool Sheep and their lambs. You won’t want to miss it! Tickets are available at the button below. (Photo courtesy of Gore Place)

Sponsorships area also available. Get tickets and find out about sponsorships by clicking here. https://www.watertownmanews.com/2023/02/03/gore-places-new-home-for-sheep-being-built-with-historic-method/

Around Town

Final Designs for Mt. Auburn St., Examples of the Planned New Amenities to be Revealed at Meeting

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Mt. Auburn Street. (Photo courtesy of mountauburnstreet.com)

The following information was provided by the City of Watertown:

The Mount Auburn Street Complete Streets Project Team is pleased to announce that the final roadway design plans have been submitted to MassDOT. These designs include construction-related details such as traffic signal layouts, utility upgrades/modifications, and site grading to ensure the roadway and sidewalk improvements match existing conditions at the limits of work. The project remains on schedule to go out to bid later this year, allowing construction to begin in early 2024.

Around Town

Public Invited to 55th Lt. Paul Sullivan Scholarship Dinner

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Lt. Paul Sullivan was killed in Vietnam in 1968, and a scholarship in his name has been given out for 55 years. The following information was provided by the Lt. Paul Sullivan Scholarship Committee:

The Lieutenant Paul J. Sullivan Scholarship Committee is pleased to announce the 55th annual Lt. Paul J. Sullivan Scholarship Dinner. The Scholarship Award of $5,500 will be awarded to a deserving high school senior to perpetuate Paul’s memory. There will also be awards for the other finalists. This year’s dinner will be held at the Sons of Italy, 520 Pleasant St., Watertown on Saturday, June 24th.

Entertainment

Armenian Museum’s New Exhibition Explores Issues of Dislocation & Cultural Identity

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“Beirut Memory Project #56” (Digital Collage, 2018- 2021), Ara Oshagan features an individual looking out from among the bookshelves of a library that opens entirely onto a war-ravaged boulevard in Beirut. The following announcement was provided by the Armenian Museum of America

Using a variety of mediums from photography to film to collage, Ara Oshagan weaves geographies and spaces that consider the impact of borders on our personal collective history and the disruption of dislocation. Ara is a photographer and installation artist based in Los Angeles who has exhibited worldwide. Curated by Ryann Casey. The Armenian Museum of America (AMofA) recently announced the opening of its next contemporary art exhibition, “Ara Oshagan: Disrupted, Borders.” The show follows the AMofA’s blockbuster exhibit, “On the Edge: Los Angeles Art 1970s-1990s from the Joan and Jack Quinn Family Collection,” which received rave reviews and was viewed by thousands of visitors. “Disrupted, Borders” at AMofA is an expanded version of what was previously exhibited at Stockton University Art Gallery in New Jersey, and the show is being curated by Ryann Casey.