Framingham Legends & Lore

American Legends

by James L. Parr, Kevin A. Swope

Just hours after the "shot heard 'round the world" marked the start of the American Revolution, the news from Lexington set alarm bells ringing in Framingham. Minutemen from the town rushed along the road to Concord to help cut off the retreat of British troops. In Salem, where dozens of women were accused of witchcraft, Framingham's founder, Thomas Danforth, helped to end the hysteria and afterward provided sanctuary in Framingham for the families of the wrongfully accused. Staring down the barrels of British guns in Boston, Framingham native Crispus Attucks was one of the first to die for American independence. Though rarely in the foreground of history, Framingham pops up again and again as a backdrop to our nation's great historic episodes. With tales of pirate gold, hypnotized evangelists, blundering spies and bravery in battle, this captivating collection of historical episodes sets Framingham squarely in the spotlight.

Genres: History

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Local history is cool

[Britt · Rating 3 out of 5]

This gives a nice history to the Framingham area from its early days. Some of it is redundant with information you'll know from more popular nearby towns. For example, I know the Salem Witch Trials and the Revolutionary War. Yea, maybe I didn't know Crispus Attucks (you can't forget that name) was from Framingham, but I know his deal. Therefore, some of the info wasn't so new to me. Also, not being familiar with the region and the areas they discuss made some of it less interesting (I've never been to Framingham). Oh, I also thought the title a bit misleading as I was hoping I guess for more creepy or odd tales, but this focuses on historical stories--some incredibly well known facts so I'm not sure that counts as legend or lore. Despite these issues, I thought it was well-written enough and that the author took his time with the book.