By Stewart Lytle, Sr. Reporter REGIONAL -- Olivia Riley caught the acting bug at Amesbury Middle School, when she performed in The Little Mermaid, the school musical. She sings in its choir and plays the trumpet in the school band. This summer she got an extraordinary...
Stewart Lytle
Stewart Lytle is the lead reporter for The Town Common newspaper. Before joining The Town Common, he was a national correspondent for Scripps-Howard Newspapers in Washington, D.C., covering the Pentagon and Congress. He has also written for newspapers in Dallas, TX, and Birmingham, AL.
As a national reporter for the Scripps Howard newspaper chain, Stewart wrote the inside story on military life of soldiers and sailors and their families. He landed on aircraft carriers, experienced oxygen deprivation for high-altitude flight training and crawled through the mud with Marine snipers.
One of his proudest achievements outside of journalism was assisting USAA Chairman Robert McDermott in securing federal legislation that mandated air bags in vehicles.
Stewart is also a novelist and has written non-fiction books. He is currently working on a non-fiction book and screenplay about an incident that occurred in Boston.
His first novel, Iron City Conspiracy, explores power in a city. It features a black newspaper editor solving the bombing of a historic black church in a tough Alabama town.
Following in the footsteps of his idol, Ernest Hemingway, Stewart has completed a new novel about a love affair in the midst of the Spanish Civil War. The book, Montserrat, is based on a true story and has been made into a screenplay that will become an international feature film.
A graduate of Phillips Academy and Princeton University, Stewart lives with his wife, Mary, in Newburyport.
Frank Bertolino Wins Prestigious Award
REGIONAL – Veteran Realtor Frank Bertolino has been awarded the prestigious ICON award by his company, eXp Realty, for his exceptional success in selling North Shore real estate. Bertolino, whose Salisbury-based firm, The North Shore Realty, has 37 agents, including...
Changing Tides Café In New Hands
NEWBURYPORT – The popular Pleasant Street coffee shop Changing Tides has changed owners and is transitioning to be more than a coffee shop. Anne and George Potts, who spent their careers in corporate finance, strategic planning and marketing, purchased the shop and...
Missing Dock Found in Plain Sight: Two Docks were Ordered to Replace Two Docks, But…
GEORGETOWN – The search for a missing $11,166.50 dock the town bought for the American Legion Park on Pentucket Pond is over. We found it. Well, actually, The Town Common took a tape measure to the pond to measure the old dock (out of the water, on land) and the new...
Troubled Charter School Hires Interim Director
REGIONAL – The River Valley Charter School (RVCS) trustees last week handed the reins of the school to education administration veteran Joey Gustafson to be the interim executive director in hopes she can calm the troubled waters the kindergarten to eighth grade,...
Flags on Plum Island Are OK Despite the Media Flap
NEWBURY − Flags are NOT banned on Plum Island. The controversy in advance of the 250th Anniversary of Independence Day erupted on this small island last week when the town sent a notice to three residents reminding them of their responsibilities under an agreement to...
Town Administrator: No Idea Where The Dock Is – Public Help Sought to Find Missing Swim Platform
GEORGETOWN – The search is on for a missing $11,166.50 dock the town bought for the American Legion Park on Pentucket Pond. A smaller dock, which cost $3,679.70 and was assembled by the Boy Scouts, is floating in mud and water, but not attached to the shore. The two...
Veteran Georgetown ConCom Chair Not Reappointed
GEORGETOWN – After serving on the town’s Conservation Commission (ConCom) for more than a decade, the SelectBoard declined last week to reappoint the veteran chair Rachel Therrien to the commission. It was the second consecutive ConCom chair that has been removed by...
Rowley Call Firefighters Shown the Door
ROWLEY – The Rowley SelectBoard last month eliminated its volunteer fire department and laid off its volunteer firefighters, effective June 30, leaving to new fire chief Daniel Veinot to decide if 16 full-time firefighters are adequate. [However, at press time, the...
Why Were Plum Island Beaches Closed Last Weekend?
REGIONAL – A group of swimmers from central Massachusetts had planned to swim in the Atlantic Ocean last weekend when they were told on arrival in Plum Island that they would get sick if they ingested any of the water, heavily polluted with sewage. “Is there any...
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Recent News
- North Shore Musical Theater Opens Doors for Future Stars Jul 17, 2026
- Hand Tub Muster in West Newbury Jul 15, 2026
- Frank Bertolino Wins Prestigious Award Jul 15, 2026
- LOCAL HAPPENINGS Jul 15, 2026


