A Page from North Quabbin History: Preserving the historic textiles

By Carla CharterOver the summer, Athol Historical Society President Michael Adams began working on the organizing and preservation of the society's textiles.While attending college at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, Adams said he...

North Quabbin Recovery Center completes collage showing those battling addiction

By GREG VINE

ATHOL – Going past 416 Main St. in Athol, there is a collage of faces adorning a storefront window – faces you might even recognize.The people in those pictures range from blue collar workers to white collar professionals, from the homeless to the...

Former employee sues career center, Greenfield, Northampton

By DOMENIC POLI

WORCESTER — The MassHire Franklin Hampshire Career Center’s executive director is being sued by a former co-worker, alleging she has lost out on consulting contracts because of damaging information spread by her ex-colleague.Maura Geary is the first...

State health care spending spike comes with call for ‘bold action’

By CHRIS LISINSKI

Health care spending in Massachusetts continued to grow faster than household incomes, according to new research, fueling concerns about access to care, even before accounting for the recent upheaval inflicted by Steward Health Care’s bankruptcy.The...

MCAS scores moving target across Franklin County, North Quabbin districts

By CHRIS LARABEE, MADISON SCHOFIELD, ANTHONY CAMMALLERI, ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN and DOMENIC POLI

The MCAS scores for 2024 have been released, showing that approximately 30.1% of Franklin County and North Quabbin students met or exceeded expectations, 48.5% partially met expectations and 21.5% did not meet expectations in the math and English...

Athol business owner launches new nonproit in Fitchburg

By ADA DENENFELD KELLY

FITCHBURG — When Elaine Ivanowski first opened her clothing shop, Mommy & Me, in Athol, she aimed to sell maternity and baby clothes at an affordable price.Over time, however, Ivanowski has decided to shift her focus and has started Moms in Recovery,...

State launches map for best foliage viewing spots

By ADA DENENFELD KELLY

As peak fall foliage season approaches, experts predict a season as brilliant as ever.“The fall in New England is notoriously beautiful, and we have no reason to doubt that we’re going to have another beautiful fall foliage display this October,” said...

PHOTO: Light up the night

State reports 100% negative results for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in dairy herds

By MARA MELLITS

Earlier this year, a nationwide outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in cows caused panic for dairy farmers everywhere. Now, Massachusetts has become the only state to test all of its dairy herds, from 95 farms, and achieve 100% negative...

Gun law opponents say volunteers got 90K signatures to repeal

By CHRIS LISNISKI

BOSTON — Gun owners outraged by a sweeping new firearms law are ready to move to the next phase of their repeal campaign, and a leader of the effort suggested Bay Staters should expect “lots of legal action” in the next few weeks. Lobbing criticism at...

Athol DPW takes receipt of new electric vehicles

By GREG VINE

ATHOL – The town has taken receipt of its first electric vehicles (EVs).One of the vehicles is assigned to the Public Works Department’s water division, the other to the sewer division. DPW Assistant Director Paul Raskevitz said the purchase of the...

Petersham road repaved at Quabbin Reservoir

PETERSHAM – A road leading to Fishing Area 3 at the Quabbin Reservoir underwent an extensive renovation over the spring.The project involved repaving approximately 1.75 miles from outside Gate 43 to just before the bridge, according to information...

UMass prof, team will zero in on PFAS and bone loss in grant-funded $5M study

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Better understanding of how certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, often simply called PFAS and known as “forever chemicals,” negatively affect public health and cause assorted maladies, is leading to state and federal laws and...

Question 5: Do tipped workers need a raise? Controversial measure heads to voters

By ALEXA LEWIS

Voters will decide on Election Day whether to raise the minimum wage for tipped workers in Massachusetts, a controversial ballot initiative known as Question 5 that could change the landscape for the restaurant and bar industry and other jobs where...

Sportsman’s Corner: Gun law opinions

By Mike RocheThere are many famous quotes about opinions. Everyone has them. The question is about value as compared to facts and it seems to me like too few people form opinions based on facts. But that is my opinion.After returning from my odyssey...

Mount Wachusett sees double-digit increase through MassEducate, MassReconnect

By GREG VINE

GARDNER – Since the launch of the MassEducate and MassReconnect programs, Mount Wachusett Community College has seen a double digit increase in enrollment, reflecting a trend seen statewide.MassEducate expands on MassReconnect, which was announced...

AGs file suit against TikTok: Massachusetts among states alleging that social media company harms children

By HALELUYA HADEROand BARBARA ORTUTAY

More than a dozen states including Massachusetts and the District of Columbia filed lawsuits against TikTok on Tuesday, saying that the popular short-form video app is designed to be addictive to kids and harms their mental health.The lawsuits stem...

A Page From North Quabbin History: Royalston historic candlelit tour

By Carla CharterThe Royalston Historical Society’s annual candlelit history tour will be held at the historical society building on Oct. 18. The tour will coincide with the final night of the Women’s Lives in Royalston exhibit.“We have put so much...

Orange home rendered uninhabitable following electrical fire

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

ORANGE — An electrical fire that started in the basement of a 23 Burrill Ave. home on Tuesday afternoon left the two-story building “uninhabitable,” according to Fire Chief James Young.Homeowner Naomi Carlyle said she was cooking in her kitchen at...