Community Corner
Forty Eighth Week, Thursday's "Medfield Historical Minute"
A little something to read and learn to give you a little break during this time of boredom during isolation due to the Coronavirus Crisis.
A Medfield Historical Minute...
This "Medfield Historical Minute" is brought to you by town historian Richard DeSorgher.
A little something to read and learn to give you a little break during this time of boredom during isolation due to the Coronavirus Crisis. A different "Medfield Historical Minute" will appear each day during the Crisis.
"In 1661 the town enacted two by-laws. One required “every man to have a ladder, whereby the top of his chimney may be conveniently reached,” under penalty of 5 shillings. This was due to the frequent fires caused by sparks from the chimney landing on the thatched roofs. The second said “no person in this town can make or have, any canoe, in any pond, brook or river, except allowed by the selectmen,” under penalty of 10 shillings fine. Many people in the area had drowned by means of canoes, as most did not know how to swim and as a precaution Medfield adopted this by-law. "