Introduction to New England

New England

New England is an area of the USA which encompasses six states. Those states are New Hampshire, Maine, Rhode Island, Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut. To the west of the area is New York state and to the North is Canada with the Atlantic Ocean bordering its eastern side. The largest city in the region is Boston and this is also the capital of Massachusetts. The area has diverse geography with the south eastern area having a coastal plain and the western and northern areas have hills and peaks. There are also many rivers which are used to power the area.

The earliest inhabitants were various native American tribes but in colonial times the pilgrims arrived and established a colony in Massachusetts. In 1616 the region was called New England by the English explorer John Smith and by 1630 the major town and port of Boston was established. There were various skirmishes with the local tribes although there were peaceful times as well. There were also battles between New England and New France and it was not until 1763 when the French were completely defeated and no longer laid claim to any of the area. (more…)

New England Patriots

Football

The New England patriots are an American Football team and they are based in the Greater Boston region. They play as part of the National Football League (NFL) and their home games are at the Gillette Stadium at Foxborough. They were established in 1959 and were part of the American Football League from 1960-1969 and are now part of the National Football League and the American Football Conference, both of which they joined in 1970. They originated as the Boston Patriots but when they relocated to Foxborough in 1971, they changed to their current name to fit in with their new location.

They are probably best known for their rivalry with the New York jets which is thought to be one of the most bitter in the NFL. They have been in the same division since both teams formed in 1960 and have played against each other at least twice a year since then. The rivalry was even more exacerbated 1996 when the head coach of the Patriots at the time; Bill Parcells left to coach the Jets  and was replaced by a former coach of the Jets; Pete Carroll. Carroll was fired four years later and Parcells assistant, Bill Belichick became head coach of the Patriots. The six years later Eric Mangini who was an assistant to Belichick became the Jets head coach. With coaches moving between teams at times, it had led the teams to feel even more of the rivalry between them. The team have had 14 coaches in all with Bill Belichick having the longest term as head coach. (more…)

Casinos in New England

Casinos

New England is not really well known for its gambling. If you think of gambling in the USA you would immediately think of the casinos in Vegas or in Atlantic City but the casinos in New England are growing. There has been an increase in revenue in the casinos in the area over the last year, for example. There are also a number of new major casinos that have recently opened or that are due to open. This means that it is expected that the area will be able to be the largest casino market in the USA behind Nevada, overtaking Pennsylvania which is currently in second position.

There are now several large casinos in the area which are of the size and style that you would expect in Vegas. The Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods in Connecticut been around for over twenty years and have spas, many dining options, shopping and smoke free gaming. Foxwoods is the largest resort casino in the country and has golf, bowling, pools, a museum as well as arcades. They are open all of the time and host entertainment acts and boxing fights. In Massachusetts there has just been a new MGM Resort opening in Springfield which is similar to its Vegas counterpart. In Maine you will find the Oxford Casino which, although large, has no poker rooms or entertainment. There are live options and many games though at the Hollywood Bangor Hotel, casino and Raceway which also hosts live horse racing. In Rhode Island there are the Twin River Casino and Newport Grand Casino which although are smaller than what Connecticut has, still offer slots and Twin River also has table games. These are less frequented and therefore less busy making parking and accessing games much easier. (more…)