Hearn & Company Furniture Store and Undertaking While fishing in Middle Pond at Congamond Lake on the morning of July 5, 1916, Mrs. William Daniels and her daughter Pearl discovered a man's body floating around ten o'clock; an empty rowboat sat on a bank nearby. Mrs. Daniels notified authorities who brought the body to shore. A medical examiner arrived on the scene to view the body, which had no visual bruises. The man had $13 on him. His watch stopped at 11:47, which indicated that he drowned late in the evening. The body turned out to be Matthew Malone, brother of Deputy Sheriff Timothy J. Malone of Southwick. Matthew was last seen around 5:30 p.m. on the Fourth in Southwick; witnesses said he was at Cannon's Hotel with a companion or two that night, possibly three. At first glance, it appeared that accidental drowning was the cause of death. Therefore, an autopsy would be unnecessary. But several unanswered questions lingered. Authorities wondered how the boat got o...

Domenick Gavioli was born in Italy. He arrived in America and settled in Southwick, Massachusetts. He built Domenick's Spaghetti House on Point Grove Road in 1930. On June 28, 1930, around 6:30 p.m., some young men stole a slot machine from Domenick's Spaghetti House. The next day, around 4:00 p.m., they stole a slot machine from the Blue Star Filling Station on College Highway in Southwick. Massachusetts State Police believed the thieves responsible for the Southwick slot machine heists were part of a quartet responsible for automobile thefts, break-ins in the surrounding area, and possibly a list of misdemeanors. Police in Springfield wanted them in connection to a gas station holdup that had gone wrong, with the attendant shot through his right wrist and right shoulder.  A lone patrolman in Westfield, acting off a vague description of the wanted men he learned during roll call, arrested two of the four men after he spotted them walking down Main Street. Later, while at Eva...

The Southwick Fireman's Association sponsored a carnival in July 1948, starting a tradition that would become cherished and celebrated for decades. (Like most towns, neighboring Suffield, Connecticut, also had a long-standing tradition of a firemen's carnival, theirs dating back to the 1930s.) Central to the Southwick Fireman's Carnival was its parade. Added in 1950, it was more than a display of fire equipment; it was a vibrant showcase of community pride. Fire departments, marching bands, businesses, and organizations across New England participated, making it a regional celebration. Guest judges awarded trophies and prizes to winners in various categories, including Best Appearing Equipment, Most Distance Traveled, Best Appearing Unit in Jackets, and Best Musical Unit. Over the years, parade organizers added new categories and eliminated others. Some years, they had as many as twelve. Hundreds of Southwick residents and those from surrounding towns lined the parade route...

The directors of the Southwick Sandlot League held a meeting on July 3, 1961, at which they voted to purchase 13 acres of land off Powder Mill Road, known as the Gardner property, for $13,000 and officially incorporate the organization as Southwick Recreation Center, Inc. (At the time, the land had three baseball diamonds.) The new entity's officers and directors were J. Carl Maloney, William Stacy, Paul Hovey, William Sharpe, Charles Grimaldi, and Edward Connolly. They proposed a membership drive to raise enough money to cover the land purchase price and construct a small building to house sporting equipment and provide refreshments. Adult memberships would be one dollar each, and children's memberships fifty cents. A typical recreation program the directors were starting was estimated to cost $35,000 annually. The directors did not want the burden to fall on taxpayers, so they planned three annual fundraisers: Tag Day, held each May, a membership drive in August, and a card p...

  The poems featured here were part of a collection written by Southwick school students (circa 1970). They appear here as they did in print - unedited. Teachers by Kris Sanders Teachers, teachers. I hate teachers.  Just because they talk like preachers.   Some are boring and put you to sleep. Some make lectures that make you weep.  Some have  hair of  brown, black, and gold. Some are young,  middled-age   and  old. Some are skinny, thin, and fat.  And some are in between that. Teachers, teachers, I hate teachers,  Just because they're unmerciful creatures, And their faces have ugly features.  After  all  they make good preachers.    The Eagle by Charles Hamberg   I saw you, an eagle, flying in the air. You're a rare one with golden hair. You fly at night around my star, So I'll always know where you are. You are the eagle,  the one who's great . For even a condor can you  intimidate. You sure...