On the afternoon of November 14, 1911, a grim discovery was made in the Longyard section of Southwick, Massachusetts. A farmer found a man’s body lying on sloping ground near an old cart road, about a quarter mile from Fletcher’s Mill. The man was positioned with his head pointed downhill, his face and one hand covered in blood. Scratches marked his arms, ankles, and shins. At his feet lay a coat bearing the label of Haynes & Co. of Springfield. He wore an outing shirt, Shirley President suspenders, and size six shoes. Fletcher's Gristmill in Southwick was renowned nationwide for its high-quality “Old Mill Brand." An Envelope, Bottles, and Other Finds Scattered belongings surrounded the scene, and the grass was trampled. About thirty feet away, searchers found a pouch of tobacco and a pipe. Forty feet away lay a couple of matches and an empty bottle. Several hundred feet farther, in a plowed field, investigators discovered a black derby hat—made by Chamberlin & Shaughn...

Chilling Find On the warm afternoon of August 14, 1942, two boys from Otis Street in Westfield set out with rifles in hand. Sixteen-year-old Alexander Grabowski and his friend, fifteen-year-old Frederick Witek, were hunting crows in the fields and woods of neighboring Southwick, Massachusetts. Instead of birds, they stumbled upon a far more chilling discovery: a badly decomposed body lying in a swamp about one hundred feet east of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad tracks. Startled, the boys made their way back toward Westfield. When they came upon a passing police cruiser, they waved it down and reported what they had seen. The patrolmen accompanied them to the site, confirmed the grim discovery, and quickly notified the Massachusetts State Police and the medical examiner. The remains were ordered removed to the undertaking rooms of the Lambson Furniture Company in Westfield, but the hearse became mired in the swamp. Darkness fell before it could be freed, so the body was...

A spring morning in Granville, Massachusetts, turned into heartbreak for the Duris family on May 11, 1954. Two-year-old William A. Duris was playing in the front yard of the family’s home on Beech Hill Road alongside his sisters, three-year-old Deborah and four-year-old Andrea. Beech Hill - Granville, Massachusetts The children’s play was interrupted when the girls suddenly rushed inside to tell their mother, Barbara Duris , that William had fallen into a hole in the backyard. Barbara ran outside, calling out for help to her own mother, who lived nearby. In a frantic rush, she jumped into the water-filled hole and pulled her son out. Though he had only been submerged a short time, William’s small body had already turned blue. The hole, about four to six feet deep, was one of several maintained by the town for fire protection in areas without hydrants. Like others, it had no fence or railing to keep children away. Barbara raced her son to Noble Hospital in Westfield, Massachusetts, as...

On the evening of Thursday, January 17, 1980, tragedy struck along Southwick Road in Westfield, Massachusetts. At 7:53 p.m., thirty-four-year-old Louiseann (Danahey) Olson was driving southbound with her three children—Christine, age eleven; Richard Jr. (“Ricky”), age nine; and David, age seven. The family was on their way home when Louise prepared to turn right onto Forest Glen Drive. At that moment, their car was struck with tremendous force. The other driver, twenty-four-year-old Edward A. Davis of Southwick, Massachusetts, had been speeding down the breakdown lane, overtaking several cars on the right. His reckless maneuver placed him directly in the path of the Olson family’s turning vehicle. The impact was catastrophic. The Olson car was hurled some two hundred feet, scattering debris along the roadside. Both cars were destroyed. The violence of the crash decapitated young Ricky, and injured his mother, who was rushed to Noble Hospital with chest and facial injuries. Christine an...

 *This story was originally titled "Uncle Frank's Last Stumble" On the evening of Saturday, March 24, 1923, a passerby on Riverdale Road in West Springfield came upon a grim sight. An elderly man lay face down in a snowdrift near the tracks of the Holyoke - Springfield trolley line, his face badly cut and bruised and his chest crushed. He wore a brown slouch hat, a short black overcoat, and a brown suit with the initials F. B. on his shirt collar. He had graying hair and sported a gray mustache. His watch had stopped at 7:15. Despite the gathering crowd, he died before medical aid could arrive. Curiosity seekers quickly clogged Riverdale Road, lining it with automobiles and pressing close for a look. One bystander later told police he had encountered the man around 7:00 p.m., stumbling and struggling to walk. Believing him intoxicated, the passerby helped him a short distance, moving him away from the trolley line and leaving him against a tree before going to phone the p...

*This story first appeared on the Time Machine as "Dangerous Work" In the autumn of 1927, fifteen-year-old Emma Kiendzior of Westfield, Massachusetts, was beginning a new chapter in her young life. She lived with her parents at 34 Otis Street and was well-known in town, especially during the summers, when she worked at Tekoa Country Club. When the club’s season ended, Emma accepted work in neighboring Southwick as a maid for local Selectman Albert Johnson and his wife. She had been in their household less than a week when tragedy struck. Emma Kiendzior   On the evening of Monday, October 24, Emma was telling a story to the Johnsons’ fourteen-year-old son, Wallace Claybourne Johnson, as she washed dishes in the family kitchen. Wallace, who had been out hunting the previous Saturday and was preparing for another trip, had laid his tools on the kitchen floor to clean and adjust his rifle. Believing it to be unloaded, he picked it up, and as he sighted the weapon, it suddenly dis...

In the summer of 1946, Southwick, Massachusetts, became an unlikely gathering place for circus dreamers and craftsmen. The Western Massachusetts and Northern Connecticut Circus Fans Association, along with the Circus Model Builders and Owners Association, held their annual meeting at Litch’s Corner (today's 215 Feeding Hills Road). Their host, Elmer D. Litch, was not only a member of a local Chamber of Commerce but had once served as president of the Model Builders Association. His property provided the perfect stage for what was to follow. (Litch owned a moving and trucking business in Springfield, Massachusetts. His company had done work for visiting circuses.)    Inspired by the success of the meeting, the two organizations resolved to stage a three-day public exhibition the following year. And so, in 1947, the quiet town of Southwick came alive with the sights, sounds, and flavors of the circus. Beneath billowing fireproof canvas tents, visitors found themselves in a minia...