Salisbury Historical Markers Unveiled

MassDOT today joined state and local officials in Salisbury to unveil five Historical Markers, reclaiming an important connection to the proud history of the Commonwealth.

In 1930, the legislature authorized the Massachusetts Bay Colony Tercentenary Commission to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the founding of the colony with historical markers.  Nearly 300 markers were erected statewide, all with an inscription telling the stories of the early settlements in each community.

Five signs were erected in the Town of Salisbury.  MassDOT restored one, the Old Meeting House sign, and replaced four others with replicas of the original 1930 signs.

The Commission 82 years ago promised that "travellers who shall pass by the many storied ways through the lands of the Puritan occupations in the ancient days of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, may now read on tablets set by roadsides or in city streets the tales which the ocean shores, the hills, the fields, the churches, the garrison houses and the old hearthstones, have to tell of the heroism, of the romance and of the tragedies, and of the unfaltering faith, of the ancestors of our Commonwealth."

The legislation called for the highway department to maintain the signs.  Congratulations to MassDOT workers for doing just that, keeping alive the tales of our ancestors.

Comments

[Doug]

This is fantastic!!! I have been working for the last 5-6 years on tracking them all down and photographing them. I got up to 102. You can check out my photos here -
http://douging.smugmug.com/History/Massachusetts-Tercentenary-1/193712_NVc9BL
Is there anything that I can do to help in any way? I would love to help if there was something I could do.
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Forwarded to Highway Divisions, thanks Doug.

[Tracy Novick]

Is there a master list anywhere of all signs?
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Tracy, there is a state publication from the Commission in 1930 entitled "Historical Markers" that lists all of the signs, organized alphabetically by Town. It may be available at select public libraries.

Also available here:

http://archive.org/details/historicalmarker00mass