Charlie Kropp lived a modest life in Bristol, Connecticut. Even in his early 80s, it was common for folks to see him driving around town in his red convertible. Charlie was said to be full of life, well-spoken, and well-dressed, a refined gentleman in every sense of the definition. Charlie routinely purchased lottery tickets for the Connecticut State Lottery at Frank's Stationery, a small variety store in the historic Forestville section of Bristol. However, nine days before marrying 68-year-old Rose Paquette in February 1975, Charlie purchased a $25 season ticket for the Massachusetts Lottery's Big Money Game at the Southwick Pharmacy in Southwick, Massachusetts. The season ticket automatically entered Charlie into multiple drawings over an extended period. It also gave him a once-a-week chance at the million-dollar top prize. Frank's Stationery The Big Money Game, an offshoot of The Game, was introduced in March of that year with a top prize of $500,000. Players selected ...

Anthony Krupa of Windsor, Connecticut, dove off a wooden raft into South Pond at Congamond Lake on Thursday, July 4, 1974. Swimming underwater, he resurfaced about 20 feet in front of an oncoming boat operated by Carl Layman of Wallingford, Connecticut. Layman, the lone occupant in the boat, immediately acted but not quick enough. The watercraft's 70-horsepower outboard motor was at half-throttle when the propellor ripped into the right side of Anthony's body - exposing his organs and cutting his arm off at the shoulder. Anthony was bleeding profusely. His younger brother and Layman brought him to shore on the Suffield, Connecticut, side of South Pond. A Suffield ambulance took Anthony to Noble Hospital in Westfield, Massachusetts, where he underwent extensive surgery. Sadly, his injuries were too severe. He died while on the operating table roughly five hours after the accident.  Although it shares a shoreline with Connecticut, Congamond Lake was primarily under the jurisdicti...

Henry N. Cowdery was a constant hunter, so it was common to see him walking around the Hilltowns of Western Massachusetts and northern Connecticut carrying his shotgun. In 1883, he shot and killed a massive four-foot, 22-pound wildcat in Hartland, Connecticut, where he lived before moving to Granville, Massachusetts, in April 1894. After Henry's wife Hattie died in their Granville home on April 23, 1917, he briefly moved to Springfield before returning to Granville a short time later to start work on the new road the state was building. George Oysler, who lived on Maple Street (modern-day Main Road) in Granville, saw Henry on November 8, 1917. And as usual, Henry was carrying his shotgun. The men conversed a bit, and Henry went on his way. Like Henry, George Oysler was well known because he was the village blacksmith in Granville. He mainly did shoeing for horses. When cars replaced horses and wagons, George started welding and doing other ironwork.   George Oysler's House Geor...