Around New England

Confederate Flag Removed From 50-Year-Old Student Mural in Hartford

John Cronin

A mother who is also director of the mentoring program at a support group for homosexual and transgender youth noticed on Tuesday that a Confederate battle flag appeared as part of a mural at an elementary school in Hartford, Connecticut where her son goes. The ceramic mural was created in 1967 by seventh and eighth graders who traced the history of the American flag along with bits of Connecticut history; the mother complained, and early next morning it was gone, as a custodian popped off the tile that included the flag.

Gina Raimondo: Rhode Island’s Little Engine That Can
Commentary

Gina Raimondo: Rhode Island’s Little Engine That Can

James P. Freeman

For over two hundred years water has flowed underneath a bridge in the Blackstone Valley corridor of the smallest state in the union that, over one hundred years ago, powered the largest and most modern textile mill of its day, which helped launch the Industrial Revolution. The Slatersville Stone Arch Bridge, the oldest masonry bridge in Rhode Island, was built in 1855 to replace the original wooden structure;  it's now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. For decades neglected and structurally deficient beginning this young century, it's undergoing a complete rehabilitation for $13.5 million. The bridge is symbolic of the state's roaring-rapid rise and fall. And now its revival.

Much of that effort is being spearheaded by Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo.

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