“Big ball” refers to tenpin bowling, the more widely known version of the game, with wide pins and heavy balls with three holes. This month, I set out to explore the origins of candlepin ...

But while many of our customs have become commonplace outside of the region, one rainy-day pastime has remained a uniquely New England oddity: candlepin bowling. (Or, as many locals like to refer ...

However, if you’re going bowling in the region (or maybe parts of Canada), there’s a good chance you might be heading out to play candlepin bowling instead. Candlepin bowling is native to ...

Bowling balls are rolling. Funkytown is playing on the stereo. It's a typical Saturday afternoon in November at "D'Amanda's," a candlepin bowling alley and arcade in Ellsworth, Maine. The ...

Shelburne Falls Bowling Alley is a beloved neighborhood gem, housed by two small rooms giving a look into a sport your New England raised grandparents are most likely more familiar with. It has become ...

WORCESTER – The Museum of Worcester is celebrating 150 years, and one of their featured exhibits showcases the city's storied history of candlepin bowling. Candlepin bowling was first played in ...

Nic and Caitlin Pszenny have owned Cape Ann Lanes in Gloucester since 2016 — but their history with the 63-year old candlepin bowling alley goes back much further than that. "I've bowled there ...

HARVARD – When Jim Shook bought the Harvard Lanes in January, the longtime candlepin bowling business at 204 Ayer Road faced an uncertain future. So did candlepin bowling. Now, Harvard Lanes is ...

In fact, within 10 years, demand for the uniquely New England version of bowling known as candlepin—the game uses smaller balls without finger holes and thinner pins that are not cleared between ...

A picture by local photographer George Cocaine of a candlepin bowling alley in the mid-1900s hangs in the Worcester Historical Museum's exhibit. New England has a lot of unique, quirky customs: ...