By Jack Nicas, Globe Correspondent

In the 1950s, a historic bell sat upside-down in a Lowell yard sprouting flowers, and no one could remember why it was there or where it came from. But when the land went up for sale in 2004, local historians decided to take on the bell and its history.

The restored bell.

Today, the 150-year-old artifact debuted as the centerpiece of a new city memorial, and historians revealed the first chapter of its story.

“It is actually the first fire alarm in Lowell history,” said Jack Herlihy, lead researcher on the bell project. “But we don’t really know when it was retired as a fire device and how it ended up in this gentleman’s lawn.”

Herlihy traced the bell's origin to a steel foundry in England. Surviving company records showed a memo from then-Lowell Mayor James Cook, thanking the company for recasting the bell in 1859 as a replacement for an earlier bell from the company that had cracked.

City records show the bell hung in the Old Market House, which housed Lowell's first police and fire station. The steel bell (not the typical bronze) was struck from the outside and made a powerful, penetrating sound, according to an 1860 pamphlet from the maker.

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US Navy file photo

Looking for a port -- the USS John F. Kennedy in 2004

By Globe Staff

Wanted: A new home for a piece of surplus government property. But you'd better have a lot of space and a lot of resources if you want this behemoth.

The Navy says it's offering the former USS John F. Kennedy aircraft carrier, which is 1,052 feet long and weighs in at 82,000 tons, for free to any state, municipality, or non-profit that wants to use it as a museum or memorial.

The organizations must submit an application by Jan. 22 and must prove they are able to take care of the carrier, said Lieutenant Lara Bollinger, a Navy spokeswoman.

The John F. Kennedy, with 38 years of service, was the last conventionally powered aircraft carrier built by the Navy, the Navy said.

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By Globe Staff

An East Boston man allegedly charged a Winthrop church for masonry work his company didn't perform and then stole more money using checks taken from the rectory.

Michael Bocchino, 50, allegedly stole more than $30,000 from the Holy Rosary Church, the Suffolk district attorney's office said. He faces two counts of larceny over $250, one count of larceny under $250, and two counts of uttering a false check.

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By Globe Staff

A few flakes of snow may fall in the western part of the state on shoppers looking to bag a big bargain on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, a weather forecaster says.

But otherwise, the next few days are expected to be generally cloudy and mild in Massachusetts, with a turn for the better at the end of the holiday weekend, said Charlie Foley, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

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By Martin Finucane, Globe Staff

A Boston EMS worker who was charged in a double shooting in Abington in September was found dead at his home last night after apparently committing suicide, Boston police said.

Rhys Williams

Rhys Williams, 41, of Dorchester was found hanging on the back porch of his Percival Street home, said Officer Joe Zanoli, a police spokesman.

Zanoli said police would wait for autopsy results to make a final determination, but "at this point, it appears to be suicide. … There's all indications that that's what it is."

Williams was found shortly before midnight.

"This is a difficult time for all of us at Boston EMS as we are deeply saddened by this tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Williams family," Boston EMS said in a statement.

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By Globe Staff

The wrong flu shot was given to 47 people in Needham, including 18 members of the fire department, according to a press release issued today by the town.

The 47 people were inadvertently given a seasonal flu shot instead of the vaccine for the H1N1 virus, commonly known as the swine flu. There is no health risk for people who received more than one dose of the seasonal flu vaccine, according to the release.

The health department learned of the mistake on Friday, Nov. 19, and began dispensing the H1N1 vaccine to those individuals on the following Monday, according to the release.

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The Oprah Winfrey Show

Vickie Kennedy told Winfrey she was not interested in the Senate.

By Martin Finucane, Globe Staff

Victoria Reggie Kennedy, widow of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy, says she is not interested in running for the Senate -- ever.

In an episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show slated to air tomorrow, Winfrey tells Kennedy, "There's been talk that you might" run for Senate.

"No. No. Not for me," Kennedy says, according to a transcript provided by the show.

"Not for you," says Oprah.

"Not for me," says Kennedy.

Pressing a little further, Winfrey asks, "Never ever?"

"No. No," says Kennedy. "We had Senator Kennedy in our household and, no, not for me."

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(David L. Ryan/Globe Staff/file 2002)

Thomas H. Lee in his Boston office in 2002.

By Jonathan Saltzman, Globe Staff

A federal judge said today he expects to sentence a woman to five years probation and defer a lengthy prison term, giving her one last chance after she admitted threatening to kill a well-known local financier as part of a Fatal Attraction-like obsession spanning more than 15 years.

Laura Goldman (Globe file photo 1995)

The saga of Laura Goldman, 51, and her fixation with financier Thomas H. Lee began with a brief romantic affair in 1993. A decade ago Goldman was convicted twice in federal court in New York of harassment and extortion aimed at Lee, falsely accusing the former Lincoln resident of rape after he rebuffed her romantic advances, according to court records and discussions today in court.

The most recent allegations against Goldman stemmed from a indictment handed up in November 2002. She was accused of leaving a message threatening to kill Lee, his son, and other relatives if he did not pay for her mental health treatment, referring to the money "war reparations" for their brief relationship, according to court records. Goldman had fled to Israel in 2000 to avoid other charges related to harassment and was extradited to Boston to face the charges in April.

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By Matt Viser, Globe Staff

Governor Deval Patrick has secured a coveted invitation to a much-anticipated event in Washington today, President Obama's first state dinner.

Obama is hosting Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Patrick is planning to leave this afternoon for the dinner, according to his daily schedule.

Obama and Patrick are close friends. Obama backed Patrick strongly at a fund-raiser last month in Boston.

After attending the dinner tonight with his wife, Diane, Patrick plans to fly to Atlanta where he traditionally spends Thanksgiving with his wife's family.

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Woman stockbroker is accused of targeting Boston man for extortion

(Evan Richman/Globe Staff/1995)

Laura Goldman near her Rittenhouse Square apartment in Philadelphia in July 1995.

By Nathan Cobb, Globe Staff

Sunday,July 9, 1995

Thomas Lee has roughly $400 million to his name, a high-rise office to kill for, and control of more than a dozen companies. But when a Philadelphia woman was placed in handcuffs outside her home on Thursday, the cigar-chomping Boston financial kingpin had a problem that even money hasn't been able to fix.

The arrest of Laura Goldman, a 37-year-old stockbroker, ended a 14-month period during which she is alleged to have harassed and extorted money from Lee. But Lee's decision to go to federal authorities about Goldman has also led to revelations, contained in court documents, that he spent a night with her in February 1993, and later paid her a six-figure sum.

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(Globe file photo/2003)

Jeff Melanson of Shrewsbury cast on a line from South Cape Beach in Mashpee.

By Globe Staff

Governor Deval Patrick signed a law today that would require a $10 annual permit in 2011 for fishing in any saltwater, whether anglers are on a dock, boat, or surf casting from the shore.

(Eugena Ossi/Governor Patrick's office)

The law will create a saltwater fishing registry to comply with a federal law passed in 2006 that will require all saltwater anglers register in 2010. The federal law would have charged $15 to $25 for permits in 2011 in states that did not have a saltwater permit system, according to a press release issued by Patrick's office.

The $10 permit, which would be good for a calendar year, still needs approval from the Office of Administration and Finance. The revenue collected from the sale of the permits would pay for administrative costs, data collection, programs to improve public access for recreational fishing, better fisheries management.

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WAKEFIELD -- Republican Charlie Baker made it official on Monday and tapped state Senator Richard Tisei to be his running mate in next year's race for governor.

(Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff)

Ted Gartland, a dayside photo editor at the Globe, has been taking pictures in Greater Boston since 1971. Each weekday, he highlights an outtake that did not appear in the morning paper. To view the work of more Globe photographers, click here. To watch Gartland's weekly segment on NECN, click here.

By Globe Staff

A former chief of staff for Senator John F. Kerry has been named chief executive officer of the JFK Library Foundation.

David McKean was selected by the foundation's board of directors, according to a press release issued this morning. McKean, 53, served as chief of staff for Kerry from 1999 to 2008 and "was a key player in laying the groundwork for Senator Kerry's presidential run in 2004," according to the release.

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By Globe Staff

(Globe file photo)

Boston is kicking off the holiday shopping season with free parking on Black Friday, Nov. 27, and every Saturday until the end of the year to encourage shoppers to spend time downtown, city officials say.

A two-hour limit still applies to metered parking spaces, but drivers will not have to shell out quarters for their time.

Limiting parking to two hours will allow more shoppers to take advantage of free parking, said Mayor Thomas M. Menino.

Parking will be free for unlimited time on Sundays, as usual. The entire press release from the city follows below.

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By Matt Viser, Globe Staff

In a televised forum that was by turns casual and bitter, the two leading Democrats vying for US Senate were both heavily critical of the Catholic Church during a discussion of their own personal faith.

US Representative Michael Capuano and Attorney General Martha Coakley both said Providence Bishop Thomas Tobin’s overreacted in his written request that US Representative Patrick Kennedy not take communion because of the Rhode Island Democrat’s stance on abortion.

“And they wonder why people stop going to church,” Capuano said during an hourlong discussion moderated by Emily Rooney that will air tonight on WGBH-TV. “As far as I’m concerned, they haven’t written me. Maybe they’ve just written me off, I don’t know.”

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By Jack Nicas, Globe Correspondent

The 12-year-old Littleton girl posted an Internet plea two months ago for help in running away from home, authorities said, and a 32-year-old Virginia man responded.

O'Brien

On Friday morning, the girl packed her bag full of extra clothes and money. Meanwhile, Daniel
O’Brien, 32, of Richmond, was en route to Massachusetts on a Greyhound bus, holding two return tickets.

But police intercepted O’Brien as he stepped off a train in Littleton after traveling for two days to meet the girl as she got out of middle school. He was arraigned today on charges of attempted kidnapping and child endangerment, police said.

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By Michael Levenson, Globe Staff

WAKEFIELD -- Republican gubernatorial candidate Charlie Baker today announced that Richard R. Tisei, a veteran lawmaker who currently serves as the Republican leader of the Massachusetts Senate, will be his running mate in next year's election.

State Senator Richard R. Tisei

Republican Charles D. Baker has chosen state Senate minority leader Richard R. Tisei to be his running mate in next year’s race for governor.

The choice drew immediate comparisons to William Weld's selection of another veteran legislator, Paul Cellucci, to be his running mate in the 1990 and 1994 governor's races. Tisei, 47, who was first elected to the House at the age of 22, has served in the Senate since 1990. He is a realtor by trade.

"He's got 20 years of a fabulous record of a guy who fights for the taxpayers, fights for citizens, knows what’s on regular people’s minds, represents a district that looks a lot like the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and I’m very excited to have him on board,” Baker said with Tisei by his side outside the Americal Civic Center in Tisei's hometown of Wakefield.

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By Shelley Murphy, Globe Staff

DEDHAM -- A 79-year-old driver pleaded guilty today to striking and killing a Weymouth police officer at a work site last summer and held his head in his hands and wept as the victim's family described the heartbreak caused by the crash.

The widow, Kathleen Davey, spoke this afternoon in Norfolk Superior Court about going to her dead husband's grave and kissing the cold ground.

"It's a struggle just to get through every day," Kathleen Davey said as her 14-year-old son stood next to her and cried. "I feel like I'm on the edge, ready to break, at any moment."

The driver, Ronald E. Gale, sat with his hands shaking as he cried. Judge Janet L. Sanders sentenced Gale to one year house arrest, 15 years probation, and 100 hours of community service. Sanders also ordered Gale never to drive again. The Weymouth resident faced a maximum of 2 1/2 years in the House of Correction.

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