Slightly Odd Fitchburg

Greetings, chaps! It is once again I, Wallace E. Tillinghast! The Great Worcester Airship Hoax of 1909 – Part 2 Last time, ( you can read part 1 here ) we were talking about the explosion of airship sightings around the world, with a whole lot of them happening in the United States. There were some in Arkansas, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and many other places, with some of the reports being as simple as seeing a light high up in the sky and others being about as detailed as they can get. So, we have the world going crazy for flying machines and Wallace Tillinghast was the only person claiming responsibility. When the newspapers finally started looking for legitimate answers that didn’t involve Martians, guess who they contacted. "We'll see you again in the 50s, bro." Reporters showed up at Wallace’s door, only to be turned away by his wife. She just told them all that “[Wallace] knows his business. He will talk when the proper time comes.” She also may or

Excerpt from the Boston Herald – December 13, 1909 “WORCESTER, Dec. 12–Wallace E. Tillinghast of this city, vice-president of a manufacturing company here, made public a story today [that] he invented, built, and tested an aeroplane capable of carrying three passengers with a weight limit of 600 pounds, a distance of about 300 miles with a stop to replenish the supply of petrol, at a rate of 120 miles an hour. He refuses to say where his flying machine is as he wants to enter into Boston contests next year as a sure winner…” The Great Worcester Airship Hoax of 1909 The late 19 th and early 20 th centuries were a great time for UFO sightings. Not only was there nothing to do except stare up into the sky until TV was invented, but this was also when this newfangled thing called “aviation” was on everyone’s mind. The Wright brothers, two bicycle men out of Illinois, made their first sustained flight on December 17, 1903.   A few years before that, in 1895, a German guy by the na

Today we turn our attention to the far off land of Tolland, Massachusetts. Situated on the edge of Connecticut, it was, and still is, largely a farming community. With a total land mass of almost 33 square miles, its population sat at an astoundingly small 471 at the 2020 census. It’s the smallest town, by population, in Hampden County and still manages to govern itself with an open town meeting. It actually started its life as a part of Granville back in 1750. But by 1810, Tolland had enough of G-Ville and its big city ways and incorporated itself as the 169 household having, land working community that it is today. That’s why it’s so surprising that this sleepy town is also home to a scary ghost! Seriously, this is downtown Tolland, MA. The Fancy Ghost of Elijah Berry or Scooby Doo IRL Okay, so it’s not really that scary. It all began back on August 29th, 1884 when a well-off gentleman farmer by the name of Elijah H. Berry unexpectedly passed away. He was having a good time fishing

  “Let the storm increase! I will see home tonight in spite of the last tempest, or I may never see home!" Those were the last words ever spoken in anger by Peter Rugg. A man short of temper, but long on rage, his white wig flopped about on his head, matching time with his furious gesticulation. With the pleas to wait out the storm by his friend silenced, this soon to be unfortunate soul climbed into his one horse carriage and drove off into the night with his young daughter, Jenny, seated next to him. The two were fated to never reach their Boston home alive. The Never-ending Ride of Peter Rugg With so many of us preparing to travel for the holidays, it only seems right to spend a little time on the story of Peter Rugg. This was a man foolhardy enough to challenge nature itself and refuse the kind offer of safe haven at a time when just driving down the street had a 50/50 chance of survival. His anger and stubbornness are still known, these many years later, and his fin