Time Capsule: Feb. 1952

February, 1952: Come one, come all! Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire beckons you to visit the quintessential New England village, complete with the prominent town common and twelve surrounding homes all on the National Register for Historic Places.

HEAR the bell ringing in the almost 200-year-old Town Hall! TOUCH the snow-swept letters that form the names of the town’s Civil War veterans on the soldier’s monument! SMELL the waters of the Ashuelot River! TASTE the swirling snow as it comes down on a cold, windy February night!

Yes, Fitzwilliam – a winter paradise, indeed! We imagine it looks like a lovely, dreamy old-fashioned Christmas card scene.  And sixty years ago this month Johnny Dixon and Professor Childermass were there.

HEAR the grinding, metallic scrapes of a broken-down Pontiac being towed away. TASTE a hot toddy or brandy to improve your disposition! SMELL the warmth of the parlor fire and the dusty, musty scent of leafing through old books! TOUCH the tiny skull in the miniature dollhouse clock and...

Wait – no, on second thought, don’t touch that.

Yes, it’s been sixty years ago since the events of The Spell of The Sorcerer’s Skull, the third book in the Johnny Dixon series. Get ready for a wild ride across New England with Johnny, Fergie, Professor Childermass, and Father Higgins. And, above all, beware of great reckonings in little rooms.




(And quit touching that skull!)