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Category: Commentary

Abigail Adams to John Adams: “All Men Would be Tyrants if They Could.”

January 18, 2022January 29, 2026 Gordon HarrisLeave a comment

March 31, 1776, Abigail Adams to John Adams: "In the new code of laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make, I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors."

Posted in Commentary, PeopleTagged 1776, Abigail Adams, John Adams, women

My Father’s Letter, Feb. 10, 1948

January 17, 2022January 29, 2026 Gordon Harris8 Comments
David Harris letter

In honor of Martin Luther King Day, this is a letter to the Atlanta Journal from my father David Aubren Harris, a Mississippi native, in support of President Truman's civil rights initiatives. He received a vicious racist letter in response.

Posted in Commentary, PeopleTagged Atlanta Journal, Civil Rights, Harry Truman

“Preserve and Protect”

March 3, 2021January 29, 2026 Gordon Harris1 Comment

Alice Keenan: "Naturally when we moved to Ipswich my antiquarian cup ranneth over. This lovely old town, its long history, ancient houses and interesting people became almost an obsession"

Posted in Commentary, People, PreservationTagged Alice Keenan, Preservation

The ABCs of Town Meeting

October 4, 2020January 29, 2026 Gordon HarrisLeave a comment

by Tom Murphy

Posted in CommentaryTagged Ipswich Town Meeting, Tom Murphy, Town Meeting

How Will Sea Level Rise Affect Ipswich?

November 18, 2017January 29, 2026 Gordon Harris2 Comments
Projected sea level rise in Ipswich MA

Sea levels rose about 8 inches globally and about 1 foot on the Eastern Seaboard in the past century. What will happen to Ipswich ifย  catastrophic predictions for the 21st Century are realized?

Posted in Commentary, StormsTagged Environment

The Karma of Modern Problems

October 5, 2017January 29, 2026 Gavin KeenanLeave a comment

by Gavin Keenan. This article was first posted in 2017, and is timely as ever.

Posted in Commentary

Keeping My Bearings in Changing Times

July 14, 2017January 29, 2026 Gavin KeenanLeave a comment
Meeting House Green Ipswich aerial view

What is an unreconstructed Townie to do when pummeled by these endless and unwanted shifts in the familiar that masquerade as progress?

Posted in Commentary

Primary Colors

February 13, 2016January 29, 2026 Gavin Keenan1 Comment

by Gavin Keenan Don't you just love the American political process? Especially in the times through which we now pass, so fraught with fear and uncertainty. If you were to take it all too seriously, you would certainly be justified in believing that we live in the time of the great circling - around the… Continue reading Primary Colors →

Posted in CommentaryTagged Gavin Keenan

Something Wicked Your Way Comes

October 29, 2015March 15, 2024 Gavin KeenanLeave a comment

Never one to seek the company of others, he preferred the isolation of working midnights patrolling the lonely landscape of failed farms and shuttered mills below the Quebec border. But Peter knew he was in trouble.

Posted in CommentaryTagged Gavin Keenan

A Simple Badge and Gun Does Not a Copper Make

October 14, 2015January 29, 2026 Gavin KeenanLeave a comment

Recently I had the pleasure of meeting some retired Ipswich Police Department friends at a late summer cookout. It was a magical evening of story-telling. I was grateful we had all made it to the other side relatively unscathed, and I realized once again how fortunate I was to have been broken in by such a group of experienced and savvy cops.

Posted in CommentaryTagged Gavin Keenan

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Ipswich MA historic photos by William Varrel
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Early Inhabitants of Ipswich, Massachusetts by Abraham Hammatt
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Ipswich Massachusetts Revisited by William Varrel
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ยฉ Gordon Harris 2026

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