The Raymond Byrne Experience

Swift action by a young Framingham woman prevented the death of a boy in February 1929.

As the sun was setting on Saturday,February 16th, 5 year old Raymond Byrne left his home on Charles Street and joined his friend Joseph Stafaniak of Cedar Street on a stroll through their neighborhood.By 5:15 pm they had haphazardly wended their way to Cedar Swamp.

Normally the boys would have avoided the swamp area but because it was covered with ice, they discussed walking across it, forgetting or not knowing that the icy surface might not support their weight.

Eventually, Joseph decided to remain by the shore but Raymond was not as cautious. Apparently he had become fascinated with the formation of ice at the center of the swamp. So he started to walk toward the center.

As he approached it, the ice suddenly cracked, plunging him into the chilled water.

Unlike the average lake, river or pond, the swamp not only harbored water but also contained muck and mud that acted like quicksand.

As he watched his playmate thrush about and begin to sink below the surface, Joseph began yelling for help. His cries soon attracted the attention of residents of nearby Mellen Street.

Teresa Eptari was among those who responded to the shouts. But while others discussed the situation or walked hurriedly toward the swamp ,Eptari ran the 300 feet between her and the swamp, making her the first adult to arrive at the side of the swamp.

By the time she spotted Raymond, it was almost too late. Only his head and parts of his hands were visible. The rest of his body had been sucked under the water by the muck.

It immediately became clear to Teresa that there was not time to initiate any attempts to rescue the boy using a pole or ropes. First, none were available just then and it would have taken too much time to acquire such items.

Teresa also realized that if the ice couldn’t support a five year old, it would certainly never support her.

Meantime Joseph had run to his home on Cedar Street seeking help. Framingham Patrolman John J. Connors just happened to be in the vicinity when the boy arrived on the street, shouting almost incoherently for some to rescue his playmate.

Connors tried to to get some information from Joseph but by then the boy was crying, frightened and out of breath.Finally, taking a chance that someone was indeed in desperate need of help, Connors ran with Joseph toward the swamp event though he still did not know precisely who was in danger or why.

When Connors arrived at the swamp, he saw Teresa Eptari carrying Raymond toward the shore. While others had watched helplessly, she had waded in and had somehow avoided being pulled down by the muck below the swamp’s surface. Using all her strength she had been able to yank Raymond from the swamp and was carrying him to shore.

Teresa was immediately greeted onshore by anxious neighbors who shouted their congratulations to her and took charge of the boy, eventually delivering him to a home on Mellen Street where he could be cared for temporarily.

The near-fatal walk that Raymond had taken that day was used throughout Framingham by parents as an object lesson for all their children to avoid the suffering Raymond Byrne experienced that cold February.