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,...
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.
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...
Georgetown Selectman Sues for Defamation
GEORGETOWN – SelectBoard member Mike Donahue is suing at least two and possibly three town residents for calling him a “homophobe,” which he believes cost him the 2023 election to serve on the school board. Donahue ran third in the three-candidate race for a seat on...
Philippa Dunn Exhibits Her Art at Illume – Newburyport
NEWBURYPORT – From the classroom at the Immaculate Conception School to the art gallery at Illume Bookstore on Market Square, Philippa Dunn brings her natural realistic paintings for all to enjoy. The latest featured artist at Jen Perry’s Illume, Dunn is inspired by...
Local Austin Prep Students Win Harvard Medical Competition
REGIONAL – Someday in the near future, heart patients with a genetic hole in their heart that needs to be repaired, may have their heart surgery done by a robot – thanks to the creativity, tenacity and hard work of four female students at Austin Preparatory School....
REAL ESTATE: For Sale: Carriage Industry Founder’s Home
AMESBURY – If you have dreamed of owning a home overlooking the Merrimack River, built by the man who nurtured the American carriage and car industries, Erica Puorro with Lamacchia Realty can fulfill that dream with the nine-bedroom mansion at 372 Main St. Built by...
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Recent News
- Troubled Charter School Hires Interim Director Jul 08, 2026
- LOCAL HAPPENINGS CALENDAR! Jul 08, 2026
- Rowley All-Scout Paper Drive Saturday July 9:00am to 12 noon Jul 08, 2026
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream July 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19! Jul 08, 2026


