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By BERA DUNAU

Asparagus, one of the culinary treats of spring, has a long history in the Pioneer Valley. And some more of that history just might be growing in one couple’s yard.Charlotte Briggs and her wife have a spear of asparagus growing in their yard that was...

By SHELBY ASHLINE

GILL — When Montague resident Amy Bowse first read about a contest to craft a design for an F.M. Kuzmeskus bus that would honor Big Brothers Big Sisters of Franklin County, she wasn’t sure she should enter.Bowse, a self-employed graphic designer, was...

By LUIS FELDMAN

WHATELY — Bella Vendetta, who worked for the Club Castaway strip club and planned to move forward with a line-up of LGBTQ performers, claims she left after three weeks following a dispute with ownership over those plans. “My original thoughts were...

By THOMAS JOHNSTON

DEERFIELD — Northfield Mount Hermon wrestling coach Zachary Bates knows all about the tradition and pride of his team’s program.One of the top prep teams in New England year after year, Bates, who grew up in Leyden and attended Pioneer Valley Regional...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A charge against an Amherst woman who allegedly threatened a newspaper journalist in summer 2018 has been dismissed after more than a year of court cases, jail time and mental health evaluations.The misdemeanor charge of threatening to...

By DOMENIC POLI

BERNARDSTON — A Holyoke man has not been found since fleeing after the vehicle he was riding in was pulled over just north of Exit 28 on Interstate 91 northbound in Bernardston at around 1:30 a.m. Wednesday.Lakeam A. Bennett, 27, provided false...

By DAVID McLELLAN

Editor’s Note: This story is part of a week-long series about the state of farming in Franklin County.People thought she was crazy.At 92 years old, Carol Hillman, owner of New Salem Preserves & Orchards, 67 South Main St., has started a new business...

By DOMENIC POLI

Editor’s Note: This story is part of a week-long series about the state of farming in Franklin County.Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. But, other times, that smoke you’re holding is wrapped in a tobacco leaf grown along the Connecticut River — in...

By DOMENIC POLI

GREENFIELD — An Ashfield man and former teacher was sentenced Wednesday morning to three years’ probation after changing his plea on charges related the 2017 inappropriate touching of his friends’ daughters.Douglas J. Forbes, 53, pleaded guilty in...

By ANITA FRITZ

The first step to creating a mishoon, or dugout canoe, is to find the right tree.That’s exactly what organizers of the 6th annual Pocumtuck Homelands Festival have done, and the weekend celebration will highlight a traditional mishoon of the...

By DOMENIC POLI

LEVERETT — Michael J. Kittredge II, whose homemade candle as a cash-strapped teenager evolved into an industry giant, has died. He was 67.Kittredge, founder of the Yankee Candle Co., died Wednesday evening at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston...

By ANDY CASTILLO

Gianni Calabrese of South Deerfield was 21 years old the first time he stepped foot on American soil. Nearly two decades later and now an American citizen, Calabrese, who owns Gianni Fig's Ristorante in the village center, has a story similar to that...

By ANITA FRITZ

SOUTH DEERFIELD — On March 10 at 7 a.m., Barbara Messinger got the phone call no mother should ever have to receive.“The minute it rang, I knew it wasn’t good,” Messinger said. “The doctor on the other end said I should get to Boston immediately — my...

By GRACE BIRD

After multiple years of requests by Gill and Erving, the state is finally edging toward installing barriers on the French King Bridge.The bridge connects the towns of Gill and Erving and is a well-known site for suicides.Gill Police Chief Christopher...

By ANITA FRITZ

GREENFIELD — Hope & Olive restaurant’s owners have been named Entrepreneur(s) of the Year.The Franklin County Community Development Corporation received nominations this year for the three owners of the 12-year-old restaurant, which took root in the...

By JOSHUA SOLOMON

GREENFIELD — Questions of proper communication among School Committee members have flared back up following the filing of an Open Meeting Law complaint by a member of the education task force for Franklin County Continuing the Political Revolution...

By MAX MARCUS

NORTHFIELD — Redemption Christian Academy, a prep school at 154 South Mountain Road, is closing at the end of the school year. The school’s campus in Troy, N.Y. will remain open.Students at the Northfield campus will finish out the year. Graduation is...

By DOMENIC POLI

SOUTH DEERFIELD – The Channing Bete Company expects to cease operations June 30, the South Deerfield publisher announced Tuesday.The first position eliminations will come June 24, and most employees will be released between June 24 and July 3,...

By JASON BUTYNSKI

GREENFIELD — At one point during the fourth quarter of Monday night’s WMass Division 3 Boys’ Basketball first round game, Murdock High School junior guard LJ Hicks took the first shot of a one-and-one. As the shot went into the air, players from both...

By GRACE BIRD

SHELBURNE FALLS — A craft brewery has opened in Shelburne Falls, the latest addition to the half-dozen or so clustered around Franklin County.Zack Livingston, a Worthington native and University of Mass. graduate, opened Floodwater Brewing Co. at 40...