Hampshire Counties Research Articles

Pioneer Valley Jazz Shares, Connecticut River Valley, Western Massachusetts, United States

Pioneer Valley Jazz Shares, Connecticut River Valley, Western Massachusetts, United States

"I've been to more of my friends' funerals than I've been to my friends' weddings": Witnessing and responding to overdose in rural Northern New England.

Overdose is a leading cause of death among people who use drugs (PWUDs), but policies to reduce fatal overdose have had mixed results. Summaries of naloxone access and Good Samaritan Laws (GSLs) in prior studies provide limited information about local context. Witnessing overdoses may also be an important consideration in providing services to PWUDs, as it contributes to post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, which complicate substance use disorder treatment. We aim to estimate the prevalence and correlates of witnessing and responding to an overdose, while exploring overdose context among rural PWUD. The Drug Injection Surveillance and Care Enhancement for Rural Northern New England (DISCERNNE) mixed-methods study characterized substance use and risk behaviors in 11 rural Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire counties between 2018 and 2019. PWUD completed surveys (n = 589) and in-depth interviews (n = 22). Among the survey participants, 84% had ever witnessed an overdose, which was associated with probable PTSD symptoms. Overall, 51% had ever called 911 for an overdose, though some experienced criminal legal system consequences despite GSL. Although naloxone access varied, 43% had ever used naloxone to reverse an overdose. PWUD in Northern New England commonly witnessed an overdose, which they experienced as traumatic. Participants were willing to respond to overdoses, but faced barriers to effective overdose response, including limited naloxone access and criminal legal system consequences. Equipping PWUDs with effective overdose response tools (education and naloxone) and enacting policies that further protect PWUDs from criminal legal system consequences could reduce overdose mortality.

Compassion, stigma, and professionalism among emergency personnel responding to the opioid crisis: An exploratory study in New Hampshire, USA.

ObjectiveDrug overdoses are the leading cause of death in the United States for those under 50 years of age, and New Hampshire has been disproportionately affected, resulting in increased encounters with the emergency response system. The ensuing impact on emergency personnel has received little attention. The present study aimed to explore the experiences and perspectives of emergency personnel responding to the opioid crisis in NH, with a focus on their views toward people who use opioids.MethodsThirty‐six emergency personnel (emergency department clinicians, n = 18; emergency medical service providers, n = 6; firefighters, n = 6; and police officers, n = 6) in 6 New Hampshire counties were interviewed about their experiences responding to overdoses and their perspectives on individuals who use opioids. Directed content analysis was used to identify themes in the transcribed, semistructured interviews. The results were reviewed for consensus.ResultsSeveral categories of themes were identified among emergency personnel's accounts of their overdose response experiences and perspectives, including varied degrees of compassion and stigma toward people who use opioids; associations between compassion or stigma and policy‐ and practice‐related themes, such as prehospital emergency care and the role of emergency departments (EDs); and primarily among personnel expressing compassion, a sense of professional responsibility that outweighed personal biases.ConclusionsDespite the magnitude of the ongoing opioid crisis, some emergency personnel in New Hampshire have sustained or increased their compassion for people who use opioids. Others’ perspectives remain or have become increasingly stigmatizing. The associations of compassion and stigma with various policy‐ and practice‐related themes warrant further investigation.

Passive Surveillance of Ixodes scapularis (Say), Their Biting Activity, and Associated Pathogens in Massachusetts.

A passive surveillance of tick-borne pathogens was conducted over a 7-year period (2006–2012), in which a total of 3551 ticks were submitted to the University of Massachusetts for PCR testing. The vast majority of these ticks were Ixodes scapularis from Massachusetts (N = 2088) and hence were the focus of further analysis. Two TaqMan duplex qPCR assays were developed to test I. scapularis ticks for the presence of three human pathogens: Borrelia burgdorferi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and Babesia microti. I. scapularis submissions were concentrated from Cape Cod, the eastern half of the state outside of the Boston metropolitan area, parts of Franklin and Hampshire counties along the Quabbin Reservoir watershed, and southwestern Berkshire county. Differences in seasonal activity pattern were observed for different developmental stages of I. scapularis. The largest proportion of tick bite victims were age 9 years and under. Nymphal ticks were found more often on lower extremities of their hosts, while more adult ticks were found on the head. Overall infection rate of B. burgdorferi, A. phagocytophilum, and B. microti in human-biting ticks was 29.6%, 4.6%, and 1.8%, respectively. B. burgdorferi-infected ticks were widely distributed, but A. phagocytophilum- and B. microti-infected I. scapularis were found mainly in the eastern half of the state. We found that 1.8%, 1.0%, and 0.4% of ticks were coinfected by B. burgdorferi and A. phagocytophilum, B. burgdorferi and B. microti, and A. phagocytophilum and B. microti, respectively, and 0.3% of ticks had triple coinfection.

Availability and Price of Fruits and Vegetables at Food Retailers in Western Massachusetts Counties

Evidence has linked supermarkets, large grocery stores and warehouse clubs to better nutrition including fruit and vegetable intake in people living nearby while showing the opposite for convenience stores and small grocery stores. In western Massachusetts including Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire Counties, there are twice as many convenience stores and dollar stores as supermarkets and grocery stores. It is important to understand whether stores that carry a limited line of food products such as convenience stores and dollar stores can serve as an alternative source of fruits and vegetables in areas where supermarkets, grocery stores, and supercenters, which carry a full line of food products, are hard to access. The current study aims to understand whether there are any disparities in fruit and vegetable access and price across store types and to identify the role of limited‐line food retailers in providing fruits and vegetables. A list of all food retailers in the four counties was downloaded from the Reference USA database 2015. Four trained researchers visited a sample of randomly selected stores stratified for city and store type (n=80) in October 2015. Inter‐rater reliability was analyzed for quality control. Stores were grouped into full‐line retailers and limited‐line retailers based on store type. Chi‐square tests/Fisher's Exact Tests and t‐tests/Mann‐Whitney U Tests were used to compare the availability and prices between groups, respectively. Store audits were completed in 57 of the stores (15 stores were either closed or not able to be located; six stores refused to give permission; two stores were misclassified as food retailers). Stores were assessed on the availability and lowest price of a list of fruits and vegetables most commonly consumed by the US population including fresh, frozen, and canned fruits and vegetables; 100% unsweetened fruit juice; and canned and dried beans and legumes. Only 29% of the food retailers visited were full‐line food retailers while the rest had a limited product line. Full‐line food retailers were more likely to carry any fresh fruit (p=0.01), any fresh vegetables (p<0.0001) and any frozen vegetables (p<0.0001), but not orange or apple juice, applesauce, canned tomatoes, canned corn or canned beans compared to limited‐line food retailers. Overall, full‐line food retailers also had significantly higher numbers of fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, canned fruits, canned vegetables, and frozen vegetables than limited‐line food retailers (p<0.0001 for all items). When products available at five and more stores in both store type groups were examined, full‐line food retailers had lower prices for two out of three fresh fruits, one in five fresh vegetables, orange and apple juice, 75% of canned or frozen products and beans than limited‐line retailers. The limited‐line food retailers in western Massachusetts could potentially serve as sources of 100% unsweetened fruit juices, canned fruits and vegetables, and canned beans for people living nearby to meet the dietary recommendations for fruits and vegetables, although maybe at a higher cost. In addition, efforts and resources could also be allocated to bringing more fresh produce to the limited‐line food retailers.Support or Funding InformationSupported in part by USDA NIFA Regional Project NE1439

Epizootiology of an epizootic hemorrhagic disease outbreak in West Virginia.

An outbreak of epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus, serotype 2 (EHDV-2) was responsible for localized white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) mortality in Hardy and Hampshire counties, West Virginia (USA), in the summer and fall of 1993. Using available historical data on regional herd immunity, data opportunistically collected during the epizootic, and postepizootic sampling of hunter-harvested deer, we grossly estimate certain epidemiologic parameters and compare findings to a hypothesis about hemorrhagic disease outbreaks in the Appalachian Mountains. During the epizootic, 57.9 km(2) were actively searched and 228 dead deer were found. Epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus, serotype 2 was isolated from seven of nine deer sampled in Hardy and Hampshire counties. Preepizootic exposure of deer to EHD viruses was unknown, but available data suggest that it was negligible. The geographic distribution of the outbreak was defined by plotting the locations of dead deer found during the outbreak, as well as the locations of deer harvested by hunters after the outbreak that had antibodies to EHDV-2 on a map sectioned into 16.65 km(2) rectangular sections. Sections that included one or more dead deer or hunter-harvested deer with antibodies to EHDV-2 were included in the defined outbreak area. Postoutbreak sampling revealed monospecific EHDV-2 antibodies in 12% of deer harvested by hunters within the defined outbreak area. Based on the available data and accepting certain assumptions, gross calculations suggest that this outbreak appears to have been isolated and probably killed a high percentage of the deer that were infected. This is consistent with the hypothesis that sporadic hemorrhagic disease outbreaks in the Appalachian Mountains are usually localized and severe.

An Evaluation of the New Hampshire Child Support Guidelines

Summary An initiative was introduced in the 1996 New Hampshire Legislature that would grant a reduction in child support payments based on the number of overnight stays with children. This paper presents a case study discussing the process in which data on the court's usage of child support guidelines were obtained from divorce records and attorneys in two New Hampshire counties and used by a legislative committee to assess the merits of incorporating this bill into the guidelines. Findings in this child support policy research revealed nothing compelling for amending the guidelines. Final action taken by this legislative committee, therefore, was the recommendation that there be no further legislation on this initiative.

On some larger turbellarian worms (Platyhelminthes) living in temporary fresh waters of Southern New England

During a survey of temporary fresh waters in Hampshire and Franklin Counties, Massachusetts, in 1988, 1989, and 1990, 10 species of larger turbellarian flatworms were collected. Two species of Lecithoepitheliata, Prorhynchus stagnalis and Geocentrophora applanata, are recorded for the first time from southern New England. The triclad species Hymanella retenouva and Phagocata velata are widespread in the region. Bothrioplana semperi, a proseriate poorly known in North America, was recorded and examination of its anatomy revealed no differences from populations found elsewhere. The less well known neorhabdocoel families Dalyellidae and Typhloplanidae are represented by one and four species, respectively. Expanded descriptions of three species of Typhloplanidae, Bothromesostoma macroprostatum, Mesostoma columbianum, and M. curvipenis, all unknown since their original descriptions, are provided.

Use of the Spodosol Field Kit in Three New Hampshire Counties

Use of the Spodosol Field Kit in Three New Hampshire Counties

Accumulation and persistence of picloram (Tordon 10K) in surface water and bottom sediments in West Virginia

Ponds and streams in Braxton, Kanawha, Mason, Jackson, and Hampshire Counties, West Virginia, were sampled to determine the accumulation, persistence, and movement of picloram residues in surface waters and bottom sediments. The highest residue levels of 437 gmg/L in water and 657 gmg/kg dry weight basis (243 gmg/kg wet weight basis) in bottom sediments were detected within one to three weeks after application of picloram (Tordon 10K) pellets at the rate of 44.8 product kg/ha. Residue levels in water and sediments decreased with distance from application sites and time since application.

Population Growth and Settlement Pattern in Franklin and Hampshire Counties, Massachusetts, 1650-1850

Locational Analysis has been a fundamental part of research in plant ecology and cultural geography for many years (for reviews see Greig-Smith 1964; Haggett 1966; Harvey 1967; King 1969; Morrill 1970). Recently there has been a growing interest in applying locational analysis in anthropological studies (for example, Plog 1968; Zubrow 1970; Wood 1971; Johnson 1972; Marcus 1973; Whallon 1973a, 1973b; Waddell 1972). The spatial organization of settlements and smaller units of human activity is relevant to an understanding of population structure. The distribution of human activity areas is presumably the result of complex interrelationships between social, biological, and ecological variables, and therefore should provide significant information regarding the effects of these variables in given situations. This paper will compare the historic pattern of community growth in Hampshire and Franklin Counties, Massachusetts, with that predicted by Hudson's (1969) model of rural settlement location.The topography of the study area (Fig. 1) is dominated by the presence of the Connecticut River Valley and its tributaries. This region was first settled by Europeans in the 1650s and was primarily agricultural until recent times. The area has been characterized by rapid population growth over much of its history, and the population has tended to be distributed in the form of towns and small villages. The time period considered in the present study will be 1650-1850 which represents the time of maximum dispersal of settlements, prior to the advent of the automobile and most railroad traffic.

The Massachusetts Convention of Towns, 1768

N 1934 John C. Miller published standard account of Massachusetts Convention of I768, extraordinary meeting of town delegates called at Boston's request. Miller argued that though its promoters failed in their immediate aim of raising resistance to landing of British troops, this was nonetheless an important milestone in history of Boston's gradual domination of New England. For even though Massachusetts towns rejected the path of open resistance, they did respond to Boston's invitation to extralegal convention, participating in a de facto assembly of House of Representatives called by town of Boston, not governor. In absence of any minutes or firsthand descriptions of convention, Miller was forced to rely on its brief public record, supplemented by sketchy secondhand accounts of royal officials and Reverend Andrew Eliot. Miller did not know precisely what went on in convention, or who participated; therefore his conclusions, however plausible, have remained tentative.' Since I934, however, more information has come to light. In early I950's Robert J. Taylor discovered a list of delegates prepared by a participant, Robert Treat Paine, then of Taunton. As a result Taylor was able to sketch character of provincial response in more detail. But since he was primarily interested in behavior of Hampshire and Berkshire counties, Taylor did not attempt a thorough reassessment of Miller's interpretation in light of Paine's list. He did, however, dispute Miller's view of radicals' expectations, concluding that convention's performance could not have surprised Samuel Adams.2

Oil and Gas Developments in Northeastern States in 1966

The area covered by this report includes the New England states and the states of New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, West Virginia, and Ohio. There was no drilling activity in the New England states during 1966. The only drilling along the Atlantic Coastal Plain was in North Carolina, where 11 exploratory wells, all dry holes, were drilled, with a combined total footage of 15,397 ft. In New York state there were 3 Medina gas discoveries, all in Yates County. Major exploratory emphasis was on Silurian and pre-Silurian prospects south of Lake Ontario and in the Finger Lakes region. Exploration in Pennsylvania resulted in 3 new deep gas discoveries and 1 shallow oil discovery. Drilling was for gas production from the Oriskany Sandstone in the west-central and southern counties, and from Lower Silurian and older formations in Crawford and Erie Counties. Developments continued in the old shallow-sandstone oil area of Warren and Venango Counties, with waterflooding in the Bradford district, McKean County. The deepest well in the eastern United States, an unsuccessful deeper pool test in the Leidy gas-storage field (Potter County), reached a depth of 18,834 ft. in the Cambrian. Five active areas in West Virginia are of particular interest: Big Injun Sand (Middle Mississippian) developments in Roane County accounted for a large increase in oil well completions; several large gas wells in the Newburg Sand (Upper Silurian) were completed in southwestern Kanawha County; Barbour and Upshur Counties were the site of active drilling for gas in the Riley-Benson Sands (Upper Devonian); 8 successful gas wells were completed in southern Monongalia County in the Onondaga-Oriskany interval (Lower Devonian); in Hampshire and Hardy Counties, in the Ridge and Valley section of the Appalachians, Oriskany drilling was active, and the largest recorded gas well in the state (90,000 Mcf. open flow) was completed. Drilling activity in Ohio was directed toward the Cambrian (Copper Ridge Dolomite, Trempealeau) in central Ohio, the Silurian Clinton sandstones and the Lower Mississippian Berea Sandstone in southwestern Ohio. A new depth record of 11,442 ft. was established in Noble County. Table

Oil and Gas Developments in Northeastern States in 1965

The area covered by this report includes the New England States and the States of New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. There was no drilling activity along the Atlantic Coastal Plain north of North Carolina, but some offshore seismic surveying was done. The one exploratory well drilled in Maryland discovered a gas pool in the Oriskany. An important but unsuccessful wildcat was drilled in Virginia to a depth of 14,176 ft. An unsuccessful wildcat was drilled in Vermont (Champlain basin) to a depth of 5,120 ft. In New York State there were 4 new gas discoveries (2 in Oriskany, 2 in Medina). Major exploratory emphasis was on pre-Silurian unconformities in the counties just south of Lake Ontario. Exploration in Pennsylvania resulted in 5 new gas discoveries. Drilling was for sandstone gas production from the Oriskany in the west-central and southern counties, and for production from the Lower Silurian and older formations in Crawford and Erie Counties. Many wells also were drilled in old shallow-sandstone oil areas of Warren and Venango Counties. One new shallow oil field and one new deep-sandstone gas field were discovered in West Virginia. Important drilling was done in the north-central counties for oil and gas in the Big Injun Sand (Middle Mississippian) and for gas in the Riley-Benson Sands (Upper Devonian). Drilling for Oriskany Sandstone (Lower Devonian) gas continued in Hampshire, Hardy, Jackson, Putnam, and Monongalia Counties. The deepest well drilled in the state (unsuccessful wildcat) was a 13,000-ft. test in Grant County. Drilling activity in central Ohio again was directed toward the Cambrian (Copper Ridge Dolomite, Trempealeau). Scattered exploratory drilling took place in the northern, northeastern, and south-central parts of the state. Production from the Silurian Albion Sandstone (Clinton) increased during the year whereas that from the Mississippian Berea Sandstone remained about the same as in 1964. Table End_Page 1139------------------------------

Yankee Rebels of Inland Massachusetts

HE REVOLUTIONARY WAR in Massachusetts was not fought from the State House in Boston but from the meetinghouses in the various towns. Historical writers have devoted much attention to the commercial and political leaders of Boston and the seaboard, but little has ever been said about the farmers and shopkeepers who guided affairs in Worcester, Hampshire and Berkshire counties, the western hilly half of Massachusetts. That these rural Whigs were of considerable importance is attested by the political organization of province and state. Many powers which in most governments today are delegated to the central authority were then exercised by the towns. Until the formation of the state constitution in I780, the towns were in fact the several sovereigns of Massachusetts, and their relation to the General Court approximated the relation of the state to the Continental Congress.1 Since responsibility for the war effort in central and western Massachusetts rested so heavily on local officials and committee members, the background and qualifications of these men assume considerable importance. Among the ties that bound them together, kinship frequently loomed large. As with the Tories, it was often decisive in determining which side of the political fence an individual would choose. Worcester offered a good illustration of family groupings. There the Whiggish Allens, Bigelows, and Lincolns were interlocked by marriages, but very few links existed between them and the leading Tories of the neighbor-

Hampshire and Hardy Counties. J. L. Tilton , W. F. Prouty , R. C. Tucker , P. H. Price

<i>Hampshire and Hardy Counties</i>. J. L. Tilton , W. F. Prouty , R. C. Tucker , P. H. Price

Report of Observations of Injurious Insects and Common Farm Pests during the year 1896, with Methods of Prevenition and Remedy

Miss ORMEROD'S reports are so well known among economic entomologists, that it is almost unnecessary to state that the latest of her valuable volumes (the twentieth) furnishes interesting and serviceable information upon the insect pests prominent in 1896. One of the worst insect attacks of the season was that of various kinds of caterpillars to leafage of forest and fruit trees. In various localities in Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire, and other counties, in May last, hundreds of trees were stripped of their leaves by caterpillars of the Oak-leaf Roller Moth, the Mottled Umber Moth, and of the Winter Moth. Miss Ormerod describes the life-histories of these pests, and the measures used to prevent the attacks. A very important account is given of the occurrence of “Onion-sickness,” arising from the presence in the bulbs, of the Stem Eelworm, known in this country as causing “Tulip-rot” in Oat-plants, and “Stem-sickness” in Clover.