05/12/2025
Wondering about what's going on in Railroad Square this morning? Our awesome Highway Dept is installing sign posts for the Pepperell Mural -- and here is what you need to know about that.
Mural Celebrating the Nashua River Launches Friday, May 23 in Pepperell
Members of the Pepperell Cultural Council (PCC) envisioned and led a project to create a mural on the Nashua River Rail Trail that celebrates the region's natural beauty and honors the rich cultural history of Pepperell’s Railroad Square area. The mural will be unveiled on Friday afternoon, May 23. Throughout Memorial Day Weekend, docents and artists will be on-site to guide visitors through the mural display. This event is featured in Freedom’s Way Natural Heritage Hidden Treasures Festival of Nature, Culture, and History.
The mural includes seven large panels conceived by Nan Quintin, designed by Mark Fountain, and painted by a consortium of local artists. It portrays the story of life along the Nashua River from indigenous times into the period of colonial agriculture and through the various industrial phases that benefited the town but also led to serious pollution. The story goes on to convey the clean-up of one of the most polluted rivers in the United States and its ongoing environmental oversight, all initiated and inspired by the heroic efforts of local activist and environmentalist, Marion Stoddart. The result is the current pristine condition and Federal designation as a ‘Wild & Scenic River’ that so many can now appreciate and enjoy.
Mark Fountain, arguably the premiere visual chronicler of Pepperell history, researched and created the historically accurate design of each panel. And then a team of talented local artists, including Nita Casey, Annette Cate, Susan Edwards, Heather Stoddart Barros, and Paula Mingolelli painted the panels under Nan Quintin’s direction.
The project is funded by a generous grant from the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts, an award from the Hazel Brooks Fund, a portion of two annual allotments to the Pepperell Cultural Council from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and a recent grant from the Nissitissit, Squannacook, and Nashua Rivers Wild & Scenic Stewardship Council through the National Park Service under CFDA: 15.962 – National Wild and Scenic Rivers.
In addition to the primary responsibility of reviewing applicants who propose programs to benefit the cultural environment of Pepperell, the PCC, one of 329 local cultural councils supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, initiated this project to celebrate our shared humanity via a combination of artistic expression, a view of our common history, and an appreciation of the natural beauty of our little corner of the world.
