Rufford Harrison has always been most comfortable around the sport of table tennis.He first picked up a racket while attending high school in England, and has worn several hats - player, official, organizational president - during his decades in the game. The sport led him to China for the fabled Pingpong Diplomacy movement in 1971, and for all his contributions he was ultimately inducted…

The Concord YMCA held a block party last week, shutting down Warren Street for a night of food, fun and carnival games. Of course, the Insider was there!

We visited the Concord Co-operative Market’s fair.

Mrs. Pam Beane's first-grade class at Beaver Meadow Elementary School was a beehive of activity when I arrived for a visit. The students were examining pots that contained wild blue lupine plants they had grown from seeds. Already several inches tall, the flowers are destined to be planted in the pine barren area near the Concord Airport to benefit the struggling population of Karner blue butterflies, whose caterpillars…

May 15, 1727: A Congregational church, Concord's first, is ready for occupancy. It is a 40-by-25-foot log structure at North Main and Chapel streets. The logs are thick enough to be bullet-proof, and the church, though windowless, has portholes through which to shoot Indians.May 15, 1908: Unable to keep up with the Concord City Auditorium for live shows, manager Ben White of White's Opera House begins showing continuous motion pictures and illustrated songs every day but Sunday. Admission is a dime for adults, a nickel for children. This venture will prove an immense success.May 15, 1983:…

For more informationabout the Concord Public Library, please visit concordpubliclibrary.net.American Pickers: Guide to PickingLibby Callaway, Mike Wolfe, Frank Fritz and Danielle Colby2011, 209 pagesNonfictionAuthor Libby Callaway teams up with Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz, the stars of the "American Pickers" show on the History Channel. They have written a book about the show and how to go "picking"…