Paul Revere family artifacts found in attic sold for $20K

boston » Artifacts once owned by Paul Revere’s family have been sold at auction for $20,000.

The items were found in the attic of a home in Canton, Massachusetts, believed to have been owned by the family of the legendary Revolutionary War figure, The Boston Globe reports.

They include tools such wrought iron calipers, letters and other personal items. There’s also an account book belonging to Paul Revere’s descendants and a sign painted black bearing the name of Paul Revere’s son, Joseph W. Revere.

John Mcinnis Auctioneers sold the items as a single lot in an auction that concluded Saturday. The auction house estimated the lot to sell for between $1,000 and $2,000.

The items’ historical connection helped drive up their value, John Mcinnis said, but he thought they would not sell for more than $8,000. The buyer who won the auction bid online and the auction house doesn’t know their identity, he added.

Mcinnis said the sign is likely related to the casing company the Revere family owned in Canton, a Boston suburb, and it’s very interesting and clean.

Revere was famed for his midnight ride on April 18, 1775, in which he warned the American colonial militia that the British Army was approaching ahead of the battles of Lexington and Concord. The ride was immortalized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s 1861 poem, “Paul Revere’s

Ride.”

Revere was born and lived mostly in Boston. He purchased a home in Canton in 1801 and later opened the Revere Copper Company on the land, and his descendants built other operations there.

State tells Methuen to return $650K of virus relief funds

METHUEN » State officials have told the city of Methuen that it has to return about $650,000 in federal funds spent on hazard pay for some employees and relief for restaurants.

The Eagle-tribune reports that the state Executive Office for Administration and Finance told Methuen Mayor Neil Perry that the hazard pay stipends, totaling $500,000, amount to impermissible bonuses for workers who did not face a physical hardship related to their employment. The restaurant money was given to owners to reimburse licensing fees, which was also not deemed an eligible expense.

Prior to the money being distributed, Perry said the city’s financial officer sought guidance and told him the hazard pay was an allowable expense. He said the state should’ve been more forthcoming about the conditions for spending the money and he has appealed the state’s decision. The city received $4 million in federal pandemic relief funds.

Public records obtained by The Eagle-tribune from the state show that hazard pay was issued to 346 city employees, including personnel in human resources, accounting, public works and the police and fire departments.

The mayor said the stipends went to employees working in person at City Hall or on site at their workplace in prorated amounts of up to $1,500, depending on the amount of time they worked during the pandemic.

Perry said Methuen has struggled as a border community when neighboring New Hampshire was more open during the pandemic.

The state determined the documentation provided for police and fire department staff did not sufficiently show that the work performed was related to the pandemic.