Arthur Taylor (1917)
Arthur Taylor was a West Boylston resident one hundred years ago who escaped death while out of town in December 1917. He was unlucky enough to be in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on December 6, 1917, when one of the worst maritime disasters in history occurred: a ship carrying explosives and sailing to Halifax Harbor…
Read MoreFrederick W. Cheever (late 1800’s)
Frederick W. Cheever was a West Boylston resident in the late 1800s/early 1900s who came from a line of military men. He was descended from Revolutionary War Generals Hosmer and Norcross and his father served in the Civil War. Now, Frederick’s turn to serve came in 1898 with the outbreak of the Spanish-American War. The…
Read MoreW. J. Burns (1897)
W.J. Burns became West Boylston’s first uniformed policeman in May 1897. Before him, there was a local sheriff, but we aren’t positive what local law enforcement looked like in industrial West Boylston. Burns came into the force in response to increased “tramps” in town—homeless people who came to and stayed in West Boylston because of…
Read MoreJames F. Higgins (1900’s)
James F. Higgins was an undertaker and amateur photographer who lived in West Boylston around the turn of the 20th century. He ran his embalming business in the Sawyer General Store located on the old town common. He took a lot of photographs during his time in West Boylston. He eventually moved to Athol after…
Read MoreLydia Maria Child (1802-1880)
The town of West Boylston owes a great debt to Lydia Maria Child (1802-1880). Though she did not live in West Boylston for long, her husband David Lee Child (1794-1874) was born in town. Lydia donated his entire book collection to found the first West Boylston public library upon his death. Lydia was born in…
Read MoreThe Sesquicentennial Celebration
In 1958, West Boylston celebrated its Sesquicentennial (150th) Anniversary! Here are some photos from the festivities. In the fall of 1957, West Boylston Junior and Senior High School students entered their new high school. For the two previous years, they had attended Wachusett Regional High School during the construction of their brand new school in…
Read MoreLove Your Library!
Your Library is a treasure trove of shared resources. There is so much to be found here, including new books for adults to satisfy any interest and for any age, large print selections, the latest popular DVDs and TV series to entertain you on a long winter’s night, children’s books to cherish and encourage a…
Read MoreGet news about new purchases in your inbox!
Do you like to be on top of the newest items? Stay up-to-date with best-sellers, books featured on the air or award winning titles with BookSizzle, a new service offered by Beaman Library. Click on the lists below to see what’s new. There is a link to the CWMARS catalog from the list so you…
Read MoreWest Boylston before the Reservoir
Here are some more cool pictures of West Boylston before the reservoir. First, a man drives a horse-drawn cart up a dirt road. The description attached to the photo is “Driving Up From the Valley.” The valley housed many of West Boylston’s businesses, mills, and houses; now, of course, it is the Wachusett Reservoir. Though…
Read MoreJohn Temple (1762-1841)
John Temple was a prominent farmer and charismatic public figure who served as Chairman of the West Boylston Board of Selectmen for six successive years and aided the town in other areas with his energetic public presence. In 1793, he married Persis (Beaman) Bigelow, daughter of Maj. Ezra Beaman; she was the widow of Dr.…
Read More