Weymouth High School Senior Awarded 2019 Chester B. Kevitt Award

On June 12th Mayor Robert Hedlund and the Weymouth Historical Commission awarded the Chester B. Kevitt Award to Vincent Cuoco, of Kingman Road. Vincent is a recent graduate of the Weymouth High School class of 2019, and researched the history of the town’s five Medal of Honor recipients who include: William Seach, Frederick C. Murphy, Thomas W. Hamilton, Elden H. Johnson, and Ralph Talbot. This was part of Vincent’s senior capstone project and aligns with the spirit of the Chester B. Kevitt award in which a person or group who has made a significant effort to preserve, protect, or educate on Weymouth’s history is recognized by the award.  

 

As part of Vincent’s project, he proposed that the town be known as the “City of Heroes” because the Town is home to the Medal of Honor recipients as well as other significant Weymouth residents, including Abigail Adams and Maria Weston Chapman. Vincent made this presentation to the Town Council at a spring meeting, providing for a broader public platform to educate the residents of the Town on the importance of the five Medal of Honor recipients and Weymouth’s historical significance as a whole. 

 

“I want to express my congratulations to Vincent and thank him for bringing to light the historical significance of these five medal of honor recipients,” said Mayor Hedlund. “As we approach the 400th, we will see more of these pieces of history come together as we celebrate this Town, its founding, and all that has happened here over four centuries”. 

 

Annually, the Historical Commission accepts nominations town wide for the Chester B. Kevitt award. The Commission was impressed with the in-depth research completed by Vincent, his presentation to the Town Council, and the fact that he developed the idea to use the “City of Heroes” phrase to describe Weymouth. The Commission is hopeful that this recognition encourages other students to learn about the Town’s rich history as it approaches its 400th anniversary.

 

The Mayor presented a plaque to Vincent in his office in a brief ceremony with the Historical Commission, Town Staff, and his parents and other family members in attendance.

 

 

The Chester B. Kevitt award is given out annually to a member of the community who has made an outstanding contribution to the preservation, promotion, and development of the historical assets of the Town of Weymouth. Chester "Chet" Kevitt served for many years as Chair of the Weymouth Historical Commission and as president of the Weymouth Historical Society. To honor his memory and encourage similar commitment, the Commission created an annual award to recognize one or more persons. This award has been granted for over 20 years. Past award winners include:

 

 

The Weymouth Historical Commission acts for the preservation, promotion, and development of the historical assets of the Town of Weymouth and is composed of seven members of the community appointed by the Mayor. The Commission’s responsibilities include: researching places of historic and archeological value in the community; making recommendations that places be certified as historical or archeological landmarks; working with state archeologists in conducting research or other surveys deemed necessary for certification; and maintaining a list of all known historically significant buildings in the community, as defined by the Town Demolition Delay Ordinance. The Historical Commission is composed of seven members of the community appointed by the Mayor. To learn more, visit: https://www.weymouth.ma.us/historical-commission.