Lee native writes mystery game

By Kate AbbottPrint Story | Email Story
LEE — Every year Lee hosts a murder investigation. This year’s murder was committed during the Civil War. Local historian Paul Monachina has written the 2003 Murder Mystery Game around which the Lee Lodging Association will base their annual autumn mystery weekend. Guests at Lee’s inns and bed and breakfasts will have the chance to solve the “Housatonic House Mystery” on the first two weekends in November, according to Barbara Mahoney, owner of the Parsonage B&B. Monachina has created eight characters or roles in his plot. Guests will gather in groups of eight — people at different inns may play together — and become Civil War residents of Lee for the weekend, as they unravel the mystery. “My sister Janis gave me the idea,” Monachina said. “It’s taken a long time to work out. I made it as historically correct as possible. I did research in Lee, Lenox and Pittsfield.” Monachina has set the story in buildings that have stood since the Civil War, such as the Morgan House, then called the Porter House, where the players will gather for dinner. The corpse is due to appear at the Housatonic House, a real inn that once stood on the site of Memorial Hall, he said. In the 1850s, the three-story inn stood beside the Congregational church, facing the park. The Housatonic House burned down in 1867 during a snowstorm that left drifts so high the fire department had to shovel their way to the hotel. The Greenock Hotel on Franklin Street burned soon afterward. “Imagine how the town would have changed if those hotels were still here,” Monachina said. Monachina’s story also mentions other places that date back to 1850, including Williams College and the Springfield Armory and the Lee marble quarry, which was doing a booming trade then and providing marble for monuments across the nation. “There was a Little Italy down by the quarry, where the Italian immigrants lived. They came to work the stone. It was a hard job, and very dangerous,” Monachina said. The game works much like Host-a-Murder™, he explained. Guests receive their characters beforehand and are encouraged to show up in appropriate dress. They assemble to discover the murderer of Mae B. Schewil, a promiscuous actress whose husband has gone off to war. Each guest receives information about themselves that they try to conceal, and information about other guests that they scramble to reveal. Two of the characters live in Lee and one in Otis, and all have Berkshire connections, Monachina said. They have specific occupations, such as Sarah Chasm, reporter for the “Valley Gleaner,” and they all have humorous names. Warren Pease, named for Pease Drug Store — now McClelland’s — and Constable I. C. Nutting, chief of the Lee police force for 20 years, both have historic Lee last names. Nutting is in charge of the investigation, he said. “It’s such a small town, everyone knew everyone then. Everyone had to come into town by a certain way, either by train or by stage,” he said. Monachina‘s family has done a dry run to test it, and has endorsed it. Monachina said they all enjoyed it, and his mother carried off the part of Ruth Less, abolitionist and campaigner for women’s rights, particularly brilliantly. “Everyone thought they were the murderer,” he said. Janis Monachina, who is also the owner of Crabtree Cottage Bed and Breakfast, has already booked a party of six for the first weekend. This year, Crabtree Cottage, the Applegate Inn, Appleton House B&B, Ashley Inn, Baird House, the John Bottomley House, Devonfield, the Federal House Inn, Historic Merrell Inn, the Jonathan Foote 1778 House and The Parsonage On The Green, all in Lee, and Conroy’s B&B in Stockbridge will join in the game. The Lee Lodging Association has hidden specific clues in all the inns, and any guest who finds one may enter the drawing for a free pass to next year’s mystery. The association will also offer a low price for local residents, with a coupon from the Berkshire Visitors Bureau. Guests must make their reservations by Oct. 24. Information: www.leelodgingassociation.org ; 243-4364.
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Dalton Announces New Supplier for Energy Program

DALTON, Mass. – The Town of Dalton has signed a thirty-four month contract with a new supplier, First Point Power.
 
Beginning with the January 2026 meter reads, the Dalton Community Choice Power Supply Program will have a new rate of $0.13042 per kWh. The Program will also continue to offer an optional 100 percent green product, which is derived from National Wind Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), at a rate of $0.13142 per kWh.
 
For Dalton residents and businesses who are enrolled in the Town's Program, the current rate of $0.13849 per kWh will expire with the January 2026 meter reads and the new rate of $0.13042 per kWh will take effect. This represents a decrease of $5 per month on the supply side of the bill given average usage of 600 kWh. Additionally, this new rate is 3 percent lower than Eversource's Residential Basic Service rate of $0.13493 per kWh. Residents can expect to see an
average savings of $3 per month for the month of January 2026. Eversource's Basic Service rates
will change on Feb. 1, 2026.
 
Dalton launched its electricity program in January 2015 in an effort to develop an energy program that would be stable and affordable. From inception through June 2025, the Program has saved residents and small businesses over $1.7 million in electricity costs as compared to Eversource Basic Service.
 
It is important to note that no action is required by current participants. This change will be seen on the February 2026 bills. All accounts currently enrolled in the Program will remain with their current product offering and see the new rate and First Point Power printed under the "Supplier Services" section of their monthly bill.
 
The Dalton Community Choice Power Supply Program has no fees or charges. However, anyone switching from a contract with a third-party supplier may be subject to penalties or early termination fees charged by that supplier. Ratepayers should verify terms before switching.
 
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