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Historic Destination (35)

Weymouth - Southville (Danvers) & Hassett

Weymouth Falls
Digby County, Off Provincial Highway 101


Settled in 1784 this community has two prominent churches, St. Matthew's Anglican Church (org. 1912;est. 1914) and Mount Beulah Baptist Church (est. 1853), 854 Weymouth Falls Road. Weymouth Falls ia also the birthplace of the 'Boston Terror', boxer Sam Langford (1881-1956). At age 15 he made his boxing debut in his adopted home of Boston. Only 18 months later he defeated the world Lightweight Champion, Joe Gans. In 1906 Langford took on the Negro Heavyweight Champion, Jack Johnson. Although the victory for this battle went to Johnson, Johnson earned a respect for Langford that was shown by his never giving Langford a rematch.

At 5'6" and having an arm span over 6 ft that ended with a fist that packed a pulverizing punch, Langford was a formidable opponent. He died in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1956, a year after his election into the Ring Magazine's Boxing Hall of Fame. He was the first non-champion ever to be so honoured. In 1972, Weymouth Falls erected a plaque to his memory in its community centre. And in 1996, the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada recognized his contribution to Canadian history by rating Langford as one of the top ten boxers of the 20th century.

 

Notable Spot

St. Theresa's Roman Catholic Church
Route 340 to Southville Rd., to 737 Rivesdale Road

Along this route find St. Theresa's Roman Catholic Church (1935), begun as a mission of St. Joseph's of Weymouth. Interior of the church houses a statue of Black Saint, St. Martin Porres. Martin de Porres was born at Lima, Peru in 1579. His mother was a coloured freed-woman from Panama and his father was a Spanish colonialist. The feast day for St. Martin is Novembre 3. Road Mass is held on Saturday at 7:00 pm and Thursday at 9:00 am.

 

Museums, Archives, Memorial Sites

Weymouth Historical Society
Weymouth
St. Thomas, a former Anglican church, now houses a museum and cultural centre.

Open: July - September
Tel.: 1.902.837.5185

 

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