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Halloween, or more accurately, All Hallows Eve (the evening before All Hallows (Saints) Day) has deep roots in Western European history. Our traditions of today likely evolved over the centuries, including from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. Samhain marked the transition from the lighter half of the year to the darker half, which starts around October 31. This was a significant seasonal turning point for agricultural communities. The harvest was over, food was stored for the...

By Jeffrey D. Crocker Lauchlan Crocker election poster (Courtesy of Sue Crocker of Marstons Mills) Perhaps our most notable Crocker from the town of Barnstable is Lauchlan MacLean Crocker, Senior. Lauchlan, or “Lauchie” as he was often called, is remembered as the three-hundred-pound Sheriff of Barnstable County for fourteen years (1932-1947). He served as Sheriff during the end of Prohibition, the Great Depression, and through World War II. He was also Sheriff during Barnstable’s...

Barnstable was first settled by English immigrants in 1637. By 1640, more than 30 families lived along what is now Route 6A (Old King’s Highway), from the intersection of what is now Iyannough Road (Route 132) to the West and Cummaquid to the East. The first grant of lands in Mattakeeset (now Barnstable) was to Mr. Richard Collicut (1604-1686). He was born in Barnstaple, England and came to Massachusetts in 1631/32. It is believed that Mr. Collicut never came to Barnstable, but he left his...