Middlesex Canal Association: 2020-2029 Archived Items

Winter Meeting: 1:00pm, Saturday, February 14, 2026
“The MC in Lowell: Towpath to Bike Trail”
Presenters: Doug Chandler and J Breen
Location: Lowell Public Library

Fall Walk, 1:30pm, Sunday, Oct 13, 2024
Billerica north to Chelmsford. Meet at the Billerica Falls, 71 Faulkner St, Billerica 01862. Leader: Robert Winters

22nd Fall Bike Tour, 9:00am, Saturday, Oct 5, 2024
Meet at the Middlesex Canal plaque right of the entrance to Sullivan Sq T Sta, 1 Cambridge St, Charlestown 02129. Leaders, Dick Bauer and Bill Kuttner.

Fall Meeting, 1:00pm, Sunday, Oct 27, 2024
Speaker: Neil Devins – “The Panama Canal: History and a Recent Visit”

Annual Meeting, 1:00pm, Sunday, April 28, 2024
Meet in the Reardon Room of the museum, 71 Faulkner St, Billerica 01862

Spring Walk, 1:30pm, Sunday, March 17, 2024
Winchester south to Medford – Middlesex Canal, Winchester/Medford. 3-mi. level history walk will follow the route of the Middlesex Canal through parts of Medford and Winchester. Sites along the way include the aqueduct and mooring basin, those segments of the canal bed and berm visible off the parkway, and the stone wall of the Governor Brooks estate, in Medford. Meet 1:30pm at Sandy (Shannon) Beach lot at Upper Mystic Lake on Mystic Valley Pkwy., 1.3 mi. N of Rte. 60. Joint w/BWMG and Middlesex Canal Association. Info: www.middlesexcanal.org. Leader: Robert Winters [Meetup Group Listing: https://www.meetup.com/boston-walking/events/299573528/]

Hike Beautiful Billerica, 9:45am, Saturday, March 11, 2023
Marlies Henderson, two hour walk south to the smallpox cemetery. Sign-up required at Billerica Recreation Department, $7.00 wait list, https://www.facebook.com/groups/HikeBeautifulBillerica

Sat, Mar 12, 2022 – Hike Beautiful Billerica

9:45am. Marlies Henderson, two hour walk south to smallpox cemetery. Sign up required at Billerica Recreation Dept, $7 wait list, https://www.facebook.com/groups/HikeBeautifulBillerica/

Sun, Feb 20, 2022 – Winter Meeting of the Middlesex Canal Association

1:00pm. Horses and Oxen. No Mules. Adrienne Card, who raises horses and cattle, talks about tow animals. For ZOOM meeting instructions, see www.middlesexcanal.org

Sun, Oct 24, 2021 – Fall Meeting of the Middlesex Canal Association. Sunday, 1:00pm, Oct 24, 2021. The featured speaker will be Dick Hawes, "George E. Mansfield and the Billerica & Bedford Railroad". Instructions for the Zoom meeting will be posted prior to the meeting at www.middlesexcanal.org.

Note: Daylight Saving Time ends Nov 7, 2021.

The Bicycle Tour South, if it takes place, will be dependent on the eventual schedule of the Lowell Line weekend trains. Details will be posted at www.middlesexcanal.org.

Sunday, October 17, 2021 – Fall Walk (Winchester - Medford). Meet 1:30pm at Sandy Beach parking lot (a.k.a. Shannon Beach), 4 Mystic Valley Parkway, Winchester 01890. This is a round trip walk of 4 miles on pavement. Leaders: Robert Winters, Jim Winkler

Sunday, October 3, 2021 – Middlesex Canal - Ribbon Cutting at the new museum (2 Old Elm St., N. Billerica)
Between 9:45am and 11am, State Representative Lombardo and State Senator Friedman will cut the ribbon of an historical interpretive sign on the recently completed, SuAsCo River Stewardship Council sponsored, Observation Deck off the former Talbot Woolen Cloth Warehouse. The building is being rehabilitated for adaptive reuse as the Middlesex Canal Museum & Visitor Center. The North Billerica location has historical significance in many respects, tracing human civilization going back 11,000 years!

2 Old Elm Observation Deck Ribbon Cutting Ceremony (video)

Spring (Annual) Meeting: 1:00pm, Sunday, May 16, 2021 (date was changed from May 2)
Topic: J. Breen will present a talk/video on the Middlesex Canal between I-495 and the Merrimack, Lowell's part of the 27¼ miles. [Note: Virtual “doors open” at 12:45pm for meeting.]

Inside Old Elm - January 2020	Inside Old Elm - January 2020
Betty Bigwood and MCA President J Breen

Winter Meeting: The winter meeting of the Middlesex Canal Association was held on February 9, 2020 at 1:00pm at the Middlesex Canal Museum and Visitors’ Center at 71 Faulkner Street in North Billerica, MA 01862. Alison Field-Juma presented the first-ever River Report Card for the Sudbury, Assabet and Concord Rivers. She is the Executive Director of OARS, the watershed organization for SuAsCO (www.oars3rivers.org) which monitors water quality and works to improve the health of the three-river system. The Middlesex Canal lies near the border of the Upper Concord River which received a B and the Lower Concord River which received a C+. Come find out why, and enjoy a lively dialogue about what matters to our communities and what we can do about it! See the Report Card at ecoreportcard.org.

Spring Walk – Sunday, March 22, 2020, 1:30pm, Billerica South to Small Pox Cemetery
[Cancelled due to the ongoing pandemic]
As stated above, you'll have to navigate this on your own. The walk should be about 2-3 hours over generally level wooded terrain and streets. The route follows the canal for a round trip of under three miles south of the Concord River. Sites to be visited include: two guard locks; an anchor stone; the causeway at opposite ends of the floating towpath across the summit pond; the 1825 iron bolt pond-level reference; the “deep cut”; a small pox cemetery; and the photovoltaic facility on High Street. Start at the Middlesex Canal Visitor Center/Museum at the Billerica Falls of the Concord River, 71 Faulkner Street, North Billerica, MA 01862, 3 blocks west of the North Billerica train station. The Visitor Center opens at noon.

Note: In light of the coronavirus crisis, we had to evaluate our options regarding the Spring Walk. We could have either (a) gone ahead with the walk as scheduled (using appropriate caution); (b) postponed it for another month or so when we'll have a better handle on things; (c) canceled it; or (d) provided a how-to guide with maps for people to explore on their own. These are trying times for all of us. Even if the declaration hadn't come, the fact that we would likely draw people from various communities - even if adequate social distance was maintained - seems contrary to the wisdom of doing all that we can to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. - Robert Winters

With the Governor's emergency declaration that groups of 25 or more are prohibited, we will have to postpone the Middlesex Canal Spring Walk. That said, if you want to explore this section on your own or with a small group (maintaining appropriate social distance) we encourage you to do so in much the same way we would have done as an organized group. The features we would have highlighted (as well as road crossings, etc.) go something like this:

(1) From the museum, you might want to first head over to the parking area (across the canal remnant) next to the site of our new museum now under construction. There at the point where the canal segment opens up onto the Concord River is the anchor stone of the floating towpath that was used to convey boats across the Concord River. This is also the site of the original groundbreaking of the canal in thelate 18th century. The only visible remnant of an original lock is on the opposite side of the street.

(2) From there, backtrack toward the museum and into the active parking lot across from the museum. If you scramble down the embankment (you will likely need MCA President J. Breen as a guide) you can find the iron bolt that was used to mark the river level two centuries ago.

(3) Continuing out of the parking lot, head south around the bend to Rogers Street to a point where the canal once crossed (there should be a marker). From there you can follow on the left (north/east) side of the canal southward.

(4) You will soon cross the railroad tracks (not the active line!!) after which you can continue along the right (west/south) side of the canal to a point where it meets High Street. (You'll see the Iron Mountain building across the canal.) At High Street there's an historical marker of the canal.

(5) Crossing High Street, continue south/east along the canal. This is where the going may get a bit tougher. You'll still be walking to the right of the canal, but there will be points where the canal is only barely distinguishable from the adjacent wetland area. Carful not to take any turns here and keep the water to your left. You will reach a point where you'll be next to a capped, fenced-off landfill containing hazardous materials. You may also encounter some abandoned rails. This is around the point where the original route of the canal was diverted after its abandonment, so as you continue further you'll actually be following the channel that was created after the canal was abandoned.

(6) At some point along the relatively clear path you may find a plank of wood off to the left of the path that connects over the narrow channel to the site of the smallpox cemetery. The track to the cemetery is just after the overhead RR phone line crossing the sandy railbed of the walk. The track intersects the railbed where the railbed is overgrown, there being no need to clear the railbed after the intersection. That's probably where you will want to turn around and retrace your steps back to the museum.

Map (2 pages)     Smallpox cemetery (Google Map)

Note: Much of this description is from memory with the help of Google Maps and our own MCA maps. If I missed a detail and you have better information, please let me know. - Robert Winters

Note: The State emergency order of March 23, 2020 closes all non-essential facilities until (at least) May 4th, including our museum.

Bike Tour South – Sunday, April 19, 2020, 10:44am
[Cancelled due to the ongoing pandemic]
On Sunday April 19, 2020, the Middlesex Canal Association will lead a bicycle tour of the Middlesex Canal. Incorporated in 1793 with John Hancock as the first proprietor, the canal connected the Merrimack River at Lowell with the Charles River at Boston by a ditch 3½ feet deep, 30 feet wide and 27 miles long. It was the greatest work of its kind in the United States until the Erie Canal. The canal operated for 50 years, then the one-horse power canal boat quickly lost to the new competitor, the 30 horse-power steam locomotive.

The tour will start at the train station in Lowell after the 10:44am, when the 10:00am train arrives from Boston. This year an early group will take the 8:00am train from North Station to allow more time in Lowell and breakfast at the Owl Diner, United States Historic Landmark, www.owldiner.com. Train fare is $10.00. The tour visits Lowell canals, River Walk, Francis Gate, the canal plaque at Hadley Field, then south on the route of the Middlesex Canal. Riders will stop at the mini-mall, 95 Boston Road (Rte. 3A), Billerica, MA for lunch around 1:00 P.M. followed by a quick visit to the Middlesex Canal Visitor Center/Museum, 71 Faulkner Street, North Billerica, MA 01862 and then back to Boston.

A long day, but the sunset is late. Cyclists wanting a shorter tour can plan their own start and stop points using the Lowell line schedule available at www.mbta.com. Anderson/Woburn station off 128/I-95 and I-93 is popular. Another possible start/stop point is North Billerica because the Visitor Center is two blocks from the station and is open noon-4:00pm.

The route is pretty flat – the summit pond was 27 feet above the Merrimack – and we will average 5 miles per hour, so the ride will be an easy one for most cyclists. The ride will be led by Bill Kuttner, bkuttner@ctps.org, 617-241-9383, and Dick Bauer, dick.bauer@alum.mit.edu. 857-540-6293. Helmets are required. Steady rain cancels. The map for the bike tour south is in two parts, tinyurl.com/lowellsouth and tinyurl.com/wedgemere.

Spring (Annual) Meeting, 1:00pm, Sunday, May 3, 2020
Due to the Pandemic caused by the COVID-19 Virus this meeting will be held virtually.
Note: “The History, Development, Operation, and Economic Impact of Early Canals in England” by Bill Gerber will have to wait until another day. After the annual meeting, the Building Committee will talk about the new Visitor Center/Museum. Bill will not be doing a talk on English Canals. Photos, documents, etc. for the meeting are downloadable here.

Special Event – “Walk with Thoreau Along the Middlesex Canal”
10:00am, Saturday, June 20, 2020
Leader: Marlies Henderson

Special Event – “Middlesex Village Walk”
10:00am - 11:30am, Saturday, June 27, 2020
Leader: Dick Howe

Virtual Topping Off of the New Museum at 2 Old Elm Street

18th Annual Bike Tour North: On Saturday, October 3, 2020, riders are to meet at 9:00am at the Middlesex Canal plaque, Sullivan Square MBTA Station (1 Cambridge Street, Charlestown, MA 02019). As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic the ride has been abbreviated this year. Please visit the MCA website, www.middlesexcanal.org, for details.

Sunday Walk during Fall Foliage
The MCA will sponsor a canal walk on October 18, 2020 at 1:30pm. Participants are to meet at the kiosk, 35 Towpath Drive, Wilmington. We'll walk through the 14-acre tract gifted to the MCA by Stanley Webber and his daughter, Julia Ann Fielding, and finally Patches Pond. The Wilmington Train Station is 1/2 mile from 35 Towpath Drive. The walk is easy - it's a towpath, of less than two miles, round trip. The fall colors should be glorious. An article on the canal cross section is at https://tinyurl.com/xsection8.
Please visit the MCA website, www.middlesexcanal.org, for details.

The walkers are standing at the Maple Meadow Aqueduct, the beginning of 14 acres with 0.8 miles of canal, a gift in 1983 of Stanley Webber and his daughter Julia Ann Fielding to the Middlesex Canal Association. On Sunday, October 18, the Association will lead a walk in the Maple Meadow gift. Meet at the kiosk, 35 Towpath Drive, Wilmington 01887, at 1:30pm. The Wilmington Train Station is 1/2 mile from 35 Towpath Drive. The walk is easy - it's a towpath, of less than two miles, round trip. The fall colors should be glorious. An article on the canal cross section is at https://tinyurl.com/xsection8.

FREDERICK L. LAWSON, 1935 - 2020

LAWSON, Frederick L. Jr. April 15, 1935 - December 19, 2020 Age 85 of Billerica from complications of a stroke. “Freddie” spent his early life in Brighton, MA.

He attended Boston Latin until his senior year when his family moved to Billerica. He graduated from Howe High School in 1954. He then joined the Air Force where he was a jet engine mechanic. After a medical discharge, he returned to Billerica, where he eventually was reacquainted with Catherine Ann Masters and they married in 1961. They stayed happily married for over 50 years until Cathy's passing in 2012.

He lived a full and creative life. He was active with the First Parish Church of Billerica, helping with the committees that helped rebuilding it after a fire in 1967. He was one of the founders of the Middlesex Canal Association. In 1971, he was introduced to Colonial Fife and Drum music and spent many years playing the Bass Drum in several corps including The Bilge Rat Volunteers, Lexington Minute Men, Sudbury Minute Men, The Middlesex County Volunteers, and many others. Through the music he delved into other aspects of re-enacting the Revolutionary War, eventually founding the Royal Irish Artillery.

He accomplished all of this while taking over his father's business, Arlington Lawn Mower. He was a small engine mechanic and helped service lawn mowers and snow throwers in the greater Boston area until 1994. He even appeared on The Victory Garden.

Always enthusiastic about history and crafting, he was an avid weaver. He got tired of being tied to a loom and eventually went into basketry. For many years he was an active member of the Lexington Arts and Crafts Society with their basketry guild. He also had Wicker'd Good Baskets and went to many local craft fairs vending his wares. His baskets can be found all over the world. He loved sharing his knowledge with everyone and demonstrated his crafts at historic sites all around New England including The Paul Revere House, Strawberry Banke, Gore Place, The Wayside Inn, and so many more.

He is survived by his daughter, Zo? Lawson of Billerica, his loving companion Audrey Jones Childs of Watertown, and so many other friends and family. When it is safe to do so, there will be a celebration of life - what a life to celebrate.

No flowers, please. Do good in his name, teach someone something, tell a story, laugh, share a hug (when safe to do so). Please go to the Burns Funeral Home, website to leave a message. www.burnsfuneralhomes.com

To Plant Memorial Trees in memory, please visit our Sympathy Store.

Published in Boston Globe from Dec 24 to Dec 27, 2020.

Fred Lawson's "Start of the Middlesex Canal Association, Oct 1961" talk is available at the Internet Archive:
Fred Lawson – Founders Day: Middlesex Canal Association (recorded Feb 11, 2018 by Roger Hagopian)

Winter Meeting, 1:00pm, Sunday, February 14 , 2021
Topic: video of Tom Dahill’s 2016 Valentine Day lecture “Summit Pond: Middlesex Canal Circa 1822” For ZOOM meeting instructions see www.middlesexcanal.org
Video of Professor Dahill's talk (Feb 14, 2016) in the Internet Archive: https://tinyurl.com/160214professor

Fall Meeting:
The Fall Meeting of the Middlesex Canal Association took place on Sunday, October 25, 2020 at 1:00pm virtually via Zoom.

Spring Walk: 1:30pm, Sunday March 21, 2021
Meet at Woburn Cinemas, 25 Middlesex Canal Park Drive, Woburn, MA

Meet at the corner of the parking lot marked with X in the above image.
The canal is at the right of the image and the walk will head south from there.
Later, participants will shuttle to the north side of Route 128
(Baldwin Mansion/Sichuan Garden) for the northbound part of the walk.

Photos from Spring Walk in Woburn (Mar 21, 2021) - click on photo for larger image (photos by Britton Boughner)

You are invited to a Zoom webinar.

When: Mar 25, 2021, 6:00pm

Topic: CPC [Community Preservation Committee, Town of Billerica]

Agenda
1. Open the Meeting
2. Public Comment
3. Public Hearing on Community Preservation Applications
4. CPC Vote to Recommend Projects on Warrant Article 16 to the 2021 Spring Town Meeting
5. CPC Vote on Bonding Amount for [Peggy Hannon Rizza] Project — 2021 Spring Town Meeting Warrant Article
6. Adjournment

June 19, 2021 – Walk on Thoreau Towpath, part of SuAsCo Riverfest. Meet at the gazebo by the Billerica Falls, 10 AM. Easy walk north to the MC plaque, 121 Riverneck Road, Chelmsford. Knee high boots if the beavers have flooded the towpath or turn around. A round trip of three hours. Leader - Marlies Henderson
Please note registration required for Riverfest walk. Eventbrite signup.

Saturday, October 2, 2021 – 19th Annual Bike Tour North. Meet at 9:00am on Sat, Oct 2, 2021 at the Middlesex Canal plaque right of the entrance to Sullivan Sq T Sta. (1 Cambridge St, Charlestown 02129). [Last fall eighteen cyclists met 9:00am at Sullivan Square T station with unusual route as trains for return trip were not running on weekends. This year's ride may also be dependent on the eventual schedule of the Lowell Line weekend trains. Details will be posted at www.middlesexcanal.org. Leader(s) to be announced.]

March 9, 2022 - Wednesday Acre Forum talk by Brian Mitchell, PhD Author of The Paddy Camps, the Irish of Lowell 1821-1861 Sponsored by St Patrick Parish Irish Cultural Committee 7:00pm At Mt Pleasant Golf Club 141 Staples St. Lowell MA Info & reservations: lowellirish.weebly.com March 20, 2022 - Sunday Middlesex Canal Spring Walk, Billerica to Chelmsford 1:30pm Middlesex Canal Museum 71 Faulkner St. Billerica, MA Info: www.middlesexcanal.org	April 3, 2022 - Sunday Lowell Bicentennial This Enchanted Land: Middlesex Village the tragic novel by Wayne Peters, and 'Lowell Economics: the Middlesex Canal' 1:00pm Middlesex Canal Museum 71 Faulkner St. Billerica, MA Info: www.middlesexcanal.org April 7, 2022 - Thursday Almost a Riot: Irish labor and working conditions on the canals and railroads Talk by Kate Viens, Ph.D. 7:00pm Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation 154 Moody St. Waltham, MA Info & reservations: www.charlesrivermuseum.org	April 10, 2022 - Sunday Lowell Talks: The Irish Canal Builders Discussants: Dave McKean, Robert Forrant, Kate Viens, and J. Jermiah Breen Moderator: Frank Clark, LNHP 1:00pm Lowell National Historical Park 246 Market Street, Lowell, MA April 24, 2022 - Sunday Middlesex Canal Bike Tour South 11:15am Meet at the Lowell train station 101 Thorndike St Lowell, MA Info: middlesexcanal.org
Sponsored by: Flyer

Sunday, April 3, 2022 – Lowell Bicentennial

1:00pm. This Enchanted Land: Middlesex Village A presentation by Peri Benjamin "Canal Builders", talk by J. Breen In the Reardon Room, 71 Faulkner St, Billerica 01862

Sunday, April 24, 2022 – Bike Tour South

11:15am. Meet at the Lowell train station. Dick Bauer and Bill Kuttner.

Sunday, May 15, 2022 – Spring Meeting

1:00pm. Hopefully at the Museum.

Sat-Sun, June 18-19, 2022, Father's day weekend – Riverfest

Walk north on Sat, 10:00am.

Tuesday, June 21, 2022, is 1st day of Summer 2022