Every town and city in Massachusetts must have an official town seal. Images on many town seals are under scrutiny. Andover's town seal is among those being evaluated.
Great post, Elaine! Thanks for sharing this important information. I especially like that you posted the image of the Abenaki people for reference. Thank you.
Very interesting article. I'm glad the local tribe has had recognition and is involved. For my part, official town seals should function as intended: 1. validate official documents, 2. Identify town vehicles, etc. The town's history is so deep and complex that any image would be incomplete. The 1855 seal is the ideal, but using updated fonts and colorization.
Well said, Don, it's good to hear from you. The Town is collecting feedback on their website. I encourage you to fill in the survey, even though you're not an Andover resident now. You have a long history with the town. https://andoverma.gov/991/Town-Seal-Review-Committee
A rich and colorful topic. I look forward to more on the subject. But in the meantime, I'm inclined to favor the Pouliot's suggestion of removing the figure. Perhaps it can be replaced by a QR code linking to a land acknowledgement.
Thanks, Ron, you and the Pouliots make a very good point. There are so many things about Andover to celebrate, and so many better ways to share the deep and rich history of the Pennacook-Abenaki people.
Thanks for an informative blog post on the town seal. The seal should reflect the history of this region and this region's indigenous residents. I will look for that forum on Andover TV.
Thanks, Doug, it's a challenging balance to achieve. At the end of the forum, Denise Pouliot remarked that the best way to honor her people is to take care of the land and resources we steward "for the next seven generation.
Great post, Elaine! Thanks for sharing this important information. I especially like that you posted the image of the Abenaki people for reference. Thank you.
Thank you, Karen!
Very interesting article. I'm glad the local tribe has had recognition and is involved. For my part, official town seals should function as intended: 1. validate official documents, 2. Identify town vehicles, etc. The town's history is so deep and complex that any image would be incomplete. The 1855 seal is the ideal, but using updated fonts and colorization.
Well said, Don, it's good to hear from you. The Town is collecting feedback on their website. I encourage you to fill in the survey, even though you're not an Andover resident now. You have a long history with the town. https://andoverma.gov/991/Town-Seal-Review-Committee
Absolutely superb, Elaine!
Thank you, Tom!
Terrific job, Elaine
I had no idea that we had all of these different versions of our town seal.
I look forward to future articles featuring our seal and it’s on-going development
Mike Morris Sr
Thank you, Mike, it's good to hear from you. This has been a fascinating research journey. I'm looking forward to sharing it with our readers.
A rich and colorful topic. I look forward to more on the subject. But in the meantime, I'm inclined to favor the Pouliot's suggestion of removing the figure. Perhaps it can be replaced by a QR code linking to a land acknowledgement.
Thanks, Ron, you and the Pouliots make a very good point. There are so many things about Andover to celebrate, and so many better ways to share the deep and rich history of the Pennacook-Abenaki people.
Thanks for an informative blog post on the town seal. The seal should reflect the history of this region and this region's indigenous residents. I will look for that forum on Andover TV.
Thanks, Doug, it's a challenging balance to achieve. At the end of the forum, Denise Pouliot remarked that the best way to honor her people is to take care of the land and resources we steward "for the next seven generation.