George Jones Sr. George Jones Sr. left his Otis home in Cold Spring to attend church in the village center around 9:00 a.m. on September 7, 1862. As he started down the road, his son George asked if he could go. When his father told him, "Next time," - a decision he would later regret - young George returned home to where his mother, Emily, and his younger sister, Sarah, were.  Emily planned on making a berry cake for supper, so with a bucket in hand, she and her two children went into the woods about a half-mile from their home to pick wild berries.     Meanwhile, Thomas Callender and his son James ran out of food and decided to go on a sheep-stealing excursion. They planned to meet in some woods, which they did. There, they partook in drinking a quart of whiskey.  The Callenders were well-known in the region. Not only did they have a bad reputation and run-ins with the law, but they were the frequent topic of town gossip due to Thomas being African-American an...

 The Log Cabin Grove at Southwick Ponds was very popular as a day resort. The original structure was expanded before it burned down. It was rebuilt with sixteen rooms, 13 of which were guest rooms. It also had a ballroom and a dining room.  Guests could look forward to clambakes, dancing, live music, a "beautiful lawn, and grove … swings, steamboats, rowboats, fishing tackle, etc." (Roundtrip bus fare from Springfield to Southwick Ponds costs .50¢.) The Log Cabin Grove 1823: John Milton Hatheway is born in Suffield, Connecticut, on March 12.  1846: The Mexican-American War starts on April 25. 1847: During the Battle of Chapultepec (September 12-13), Lieutenant Hatheway picks up a dead sergeant's musket and fires several shots, effectively killing a Mexican sharpshooter who had picked off several men and was taking aim at him from up in a tree. (Author's Note: This is one of several heroic deeds done by Hatheway.) 1848: The Mexican-American War ends with the signing of...