News
The Groton station house at the intersection of the Nashua River Rail Trail and the foot of Station Avenue in Groton Center, photographed around the time the town established its municipal electric service.
by Russ Harris
When Groton Stepped Out of the Dark: 1910 Report on the Town’s First Electric Lights
Standfirst
In 1909, Groton took a daring step into the modern age, voting to build its own municipal electric system at a time when most small towns still relied on oil lamps. Within months, its...
Town Manager Mark Haddad, Tom Delaney and Brian Callahan
After 40 years of service, the town names its DPW building for Tom Delaney
Standfirst
For 40 years, Tom Delaney has been the steady hand behind Groton’s roads, bridges, and buried infrastructure — the man you never saw at dawn plowing snow but always counted on to have done it. Hired as a young...
Homeowner threatens to call police on commission chair during certificate of compliance hearing
A routine certificate of compliance hearing turned tense Tuesday evening when a homeowner threatened to call police on the Conservation Commission chair after learning that erosion controls should have...
Standfirst
As climate change brings heavier rain and rising water, Groton’s Gratuity Road subdivision has become a test case for how outdated flood maps collide with new hydrological realities. What began as a simple water-line permit has turned into a months-long inquiry into where water really...
by Barbara Scofidio
A recent episode of “60 Minutes” focusing on Chinese cybersecurity attacks profiled a breach that occurred at the Littleton Electric Light & Water Department (LELWD) and has raised concerns among residents about whether Groton’s systems could also be at risk.
The...
Finance Committee says process already exists; voters decline by 70 percent margin.
by Connie Sartini
The last article on the Fall Town Meeting warrant, Article 23, was a Citizen’s Petition asking Town Meeting voters to create an ad hoc advisory committee to make recommendations to the town on the...
Part 1 of the series ‘Rebuilding the Republic,’ One House at a Time
For most of American history, owning a home didn’t mean signing a mortgage. It meant picking up a hammer. From barns and cabins to kit houses and post-war cottages, Americans built much of their own shelter. Neighbors lent hands,...
Summary
Until 1800—nearly 150 years after Groton’s founding—the town had no post office and no regular way to receive mail. Letters from Boston might arrive weeks or months late, often advertised in newspapers as “unclaimed.”
That changed on September 29, 1800, when the Groton Post Office was...
Editor's Note: A summary of Town Meeting vote results appears below, followed by comprehensive coverage of individual articles.
TOWN MEETING VOTE
SUMMARY
Articles 1-11 (Consent Agenda): Routine appropriations and transfers - PASSED 99-8
Article 12 - Fitch's Bridge Headwall Repair: $60,000 from...
Writer Stephen King, whose works have thrilled millions and shaped popular culture for more than 50 years, will join acclaimed author and UMass Lowell English Professor Andre Dubus III for a free, virtual program open to the public later this month.
The inaugural Andre Dubus III UMass Lowell Alumni...