Richard Provenzano; historian taught in Saugus 41 years

RICHARD PROVENZANO

In his classroom, at home, or on the road, Richard G. Provenzano liked to keep history close at hand. He wrote often about his hometown of Saugus and was such a student of World War II that he traveled with a set of Winston Churchill's memoirs.

"He had one in the trunk of his car," said his son Charlie of Beverly. "Just in case he was somewhere and he needed it, he wanted it at his fingertips."

Said Mr. Provenzano's son Stephen of Peabody, "He probably had 16 sets around, and if someone was interested in Churchill, he would give them a set."

Mr. Provenzano, who taught history and civics at Belmonte Middle School in Saugus for 41 years, died Sunday in Salem Hospital of complications of a stroke. He was 71 and lived in Peabody.

Few were as knowledgeable about the history of Saugus and nearby communities as Mr. Provenzano, who guided tours at Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site and lent his knowledge to those who visited Salem Maritime National Historic Site.

In columns and books published through the Saugus Historical Society, he made events from 250 years ago feel as fresh as yesterday's news, even if he had to search through yellowed, ancient pages for details about a particular tale.

"In 1756, a strange contest was held near the Anchor Tavern in what is now called East Saugus," he wrote in an essay, posted on www.saugusadvocate.net, about a battle of wits between two young gentlemen. "The only place where I have found the story in any detail is the rare 1829 edition of Lewis' 'History of Lynn.' "

More than four decades of pupils benefited from his diligence and attention to detail, among them Peter A. Rossetti Jr., a member of the town's School Committee and Board of Selectmen.

"He was my eighth-grade history teacher, either history or social studies, or perhaps both," Rossetti said.

"When I was a student of his back in the early '60s, his was one of the classes you looked forward to, because he was able to make history come alive," Rossetti said.

Linda Gaieski, vice principal at Belmonte Middle School, worked with Mr. Provenzano for 30 years and called him a consummate teacher.

"In fact, he went beyond being a teacher," she said by phone. "The children who had him were lucky enough to experience having a true historian as their teacher. The man was absolutely in love with history. . . . Richard could entertain you with stories from the beginning of class to the end. His breadth and knowledge of history is not easily met by any other person."

Mr. Provenzano spent the first few months of his life in Everett before his family moved to Saugus, where he grew up and graduated from Saugus High School in 1955.

Even as an adolescent, he wanted to expand his horizons.

"In his early teens, he told his mother he wanted to go and see Europe," Stephen said. "My grandparents said, 'If you really want to go to Europe, you should get a paper route and work very hard and take yourself there.' They probably said it halfhearted, but that's exactly what he did. He saved up the money and eventually went to Europe."

Mr. Provenzano married Carol Aiken 45 years ago, and he graduated from Salem State College with a bachelor's and a master's degree in education. He spent his career at Belmonte Middle School, Stephen said, much of it teaching history, social studies, and civics in the same room year after year.

While he valued education, Mr. Provenzano was more interested in ensuring that everyone, from his sons to his students, find and follow their passions.

"One of the big things about my dad, as far as he raised his children - and I'm looking at a picture of him right now - is that he didn't really care if his kids were rich or what kind of car they were driving," Stephen said. "The thing my dad wanted to be sure of whenever he saw us was that we were happy with what we were doing. He figured if we were happy, the people around us would see that, and they would be happy, too."

Said Charlie: "He was always encouraging people to do what they wanted to do. I have a feeling that if I didn't go to college, my dad would have been OK with it."

When it came to history, though, Mr. Provenzano eagerly inspired others to share his love, whether by giving away books from his vast personal library or handing a copy of the movie "Gone With the Wind," his favorite, to those who visited his home.

His favorite quotation was from Churchill, who wrote: "If you cannot read all your books, at any rate handle, or as it were, fondle them - peer into them, let them fall open where they will, read from the first sentence that arrests the eye, set them back on the shelves with your own hands, arrange them on your own plan so that you at least know where they are. Let them be your friends; let them at any rate be your acquaintances."

Mr. Provenzano was well acquainted with music, too, and his personal collection was a museum of recording technology: 78 r.p.m. records, 33 1/3 r.p.m. albums, 45s, eight-track and cassette tapes, and CDs.

"One of the things I bought him for this Christmas was a turntable that would let him transfer his 78s to MP3s," his son Charlie said. "I had the box in the living room, and I kept crying when I walked by it. My wife finally had to hide it somewhere."

In addition to his wife, Carol, and his sons Stephen and Charlie, Mr. Provenzano leaves another son, Michael of Peabody; a brother, Anthony of Clearwater, Fla.; and a grandson.

A funeral Mass will be said at 10 a.m. today in St. Ann Church in Peabody. Burial will be in Cedar Grove Cemetery in Peabody.