A Sailing Ship in Maine for Weathervane Wednesday

 Today's weathervane was spotted in Boothbay Harbor, Maine

This intricate weathervane is above a cupola over the town offices at 7 Corey Lane in Boothbay, Maine.  We photographed it on our way to the Maine Botanical Gardens last summer.  This is a three dimensional weathervane of a three masted ship, with rigging. There are lots of little details, like the waves on the ocean and the folded sails on the jibboom. It was easy to spot this little weathervane as we passed by, and easy to pull into the parking lot to take a closer look.

Boothbay, Maine was a busy port for shipbuilding and fishing in its early history, and it later developed into a resort area for tourists.  It is a popular spot for yachts and sailboats, and fishermen still hunt for lobsters from it's harbor.  This ship weathervane is a very appropriate choice for the town hall.  

To cite/link to this blog post:  Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "A Sailing Ship in Maine for Weathervane Wednesday", Nutfield Genealogy, posted December 3, 2025, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2025/12/a-sailing-ship-in-maine-for-weathervane.html: accessed [access date]). 

Happy Birthday, Vincent!

 Happy Birthday to Vincent!  

This is one of my favorite photos of Vincent and his Mom, Maria Josefa Garcia de Rojo.  She married in Madrid, Spain, removed to New York City a few weeks later (Vincent's Dad worked at the United Nations), and ten months later gave birth to Vincent.  I can't imagine being a newlywed young woman, a new immigrant to a strange country, and a new Mom all in the same year, can you? 

Maria Josefa died about two years ago, and we miss her very much.  

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To cite/link to this blog post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Happy Birthday, Vincent!", Nutfield Genealogy, posted November 16, 2025, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2025/11/happy-birthday-vincent.html: accessed [access date]). 

Peaks Island and the Umbrella Cover Museum

 Yes, you heard correctly. There is an Umbrella Cover Museum on Peak's Island.  The only one in the world!  Keep reading to learn more. 

The ferry to Peaks Island from Portland, Maine

Last summer we took a trip to Peaks Island in Casco Bay, Maine, population 2,000 year round residents.  The ferry ride is about 3 miles from Portland, taking only about 20 minutes. This is a small island with two museums, the Fifth Maine Regiment Museum (Civil War), and the Umbrella Cover Museum.  There is a large fort, Battery Steele (World War II), to explore near the beach.  

The tiny Umbella Cover Museum

The Umbrella Cover Museum on 62 Island Road is a seasonal fun stop on Peaks Island, open seasonally.  It was founded by Nancy Hoffman in 1996. There are over 2,000 umbrella covers from over 71 countries on display.  You know, what is an umbrella cover?  They are those "sheaths" or "pockets" that you remove when you buy an umbrella and then immediately lose it because you can never get it back on?  Well Nancy has kept all these unique items and created a display.  She even wrote a book on umbrella covers (available at the gift shop) and won a Guinness Book of World Records achievement in 2012 when she had only 730 umbrella covers.  

Don't miss this when you are on Peaks Island.  It is a less than five minute walk from the ferry landing. 

Cairn beach had hundreds of cairns

Vincent exploring one of the "art carts"

The best way to see Peaks Island is to rent an electric golf cart or a bicycle. There are at least two businesses renting golf carts near the ferry landing, and one is right in the driveway of the Umbrella Cover Museum.  When we rented our cart we were given a map showing all the beaches, art galleries, museums, and unique sites.  Along the way we passed many art carts and plant sales.  We saw the fort twice on our two rounds around Peaks Island. There is not much to see and do, but the scenery and views of Casco Bay were fantastic.  A few hours is all you need on this little island. 

Getting on the ferry to return to the mainland

For the truly curious:

Peaks Island website:  https://peaksisland.info/   

Peaks Island at Wikipedia:   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaks_Island   

The Umbrella Cover Museum website:   https://www.umbrellacovermuseum.org/   or email info@UmbrellaCoverMuseum.org 

Umbrella Cover Museum at Wikipedia:   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umbrella_Cover_Museum  

Uncovered and Exposed: A Guide to the World's Only Umbrella Cover Museum, by Nancy 3. Hoffman, published in 2010.  

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To cite/link to this blog post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Peaks Island and the Umbrella Cover Museum", Nutfield Genealogy, posted November 5, 2025, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2025/11/peaks-island-and-umbrella-cover-museum.html: accessed [access date]). 

This story will give you the Willeys - literally!

 

To the memory of the Family

which was at once destroyed by

a slide from the white Mountains

on the night of 28 August 1826.

SAMUEL WILLEY, AE 38

POLLY L. WILLEY, 35

ELIZA A. WILLEY, 12

JEREMIAH WILLEY, 11

MARTHA G. WILLEY, 10

ELBRIDGE G. WILLEY, 7

SALLY WILLEY, 3

Happy Halloween!  In New England we use a lot of words to describe the sensation of getting the shivers - goosebumps, goosepimples, chicken skin, jitters, getting the creeps, and "getting the willies".  Some people say that this word "the willies" dates back to a disaster that happened in the White Mountains of New Hampshire in 1826 when an entire family died during a landslide.  The Willey Family story is sad, but scary enough to have lived on in ghost stories, books (including Nathaniel Hawthorne), and history books.  I previously blogged about the Willey family disaster and their genealogy HERE in 2010.  Seven members of the Willey family, two parents and five children, and two hired hands all died in this landslide. Only the bodies of the parents, two of the three children, and the two hired men were found. The bodies were buried near the homesite originally, and then reburied elsewhere. 

Recently we drove through Crawford Notch, the site of the famous 1826 landslide, and we looked at the monument to the family.  I knew that this was the place where the family house stood, not the burial place for the bodies of the Willey family.  But where were they buried? Somewhere else in Crawford Notch? Nearby in Bartlett or somewhere that is now part of the Crawford Notch State Park or the White Mountain National Forest land? Miles away with family members in southern New Hampshire (the family originated in the Piscataqua Region) or even out of state? Where? 

I made a quick search of the Find A Grave website, and Google with some interesting results. I searched for Samuel Willey born 1788 and died 1826.  Find A Grave said he was buried in the Willey Slide Cemetery located in Intervale, Carroll County, New Hampshire.  There are many places in New Hampshire called "Intervale", which literally means between mountains or between towns.  There is a place called Intervale nearby between the towns of Bartlett and Conway, New Hampshire. On Find A Grave there are no GPS coordinates or directions, which is very odd.  There is no description of the cemetery, and no map.  Very odd indeed.  There is even a misleading entry "Willey Family Cemetery" off Moose Mountain Road in Brookfield, New Hampshire with no photos, no information, nothing. I think it was created as a red herring. 

Since we were in the area, I was determined to find this elusive cemetery.  Google showed me that I was not alone. Many other people have documented this search online. I found one of the hired hands buried nearby in Bartlett.  His name was David Allen, and he is buried at the Garland Ridge Cemetery a short distance from Crawford Notch.  There is a link below to his gravestone. That was easy. But where is the Willey family burial ground, and where is the other hired hand buried? 

Using Google Maps satellite view has helped me in the past to find small, unmarked family cemeteries in New England.  Since we live in a heavily wooded region, satellite views often show small square or irregular openings in the forest canopy that are not visible from the road.  My next ploy was to stop in to the Conway or North Conway Public Library to ask about local cemeteries. 

As we were driving up towards Crawford Notch, through the Kancamaugus Notch and Bear Notch, I read the accounts online of other people searching for the Willey Family.  The story told by Robert Gillis of his teenaged nephew, Colin, searching for the burial ground, was inspirational. I loved reading about young people who become enthralled with local history or genealogy.  Colin used the local library to find the small Willey family burial ground. Then he mysteriously did not give the location.  But, if Colin could find it, I was sure I could find it, too.

As we were driving I also watched a 15 minute video by "Rick and Bill" on Youtube of their search for the Willey Cemetery.  You can find the link below.  Rick and Bill make videos of local history in New Hampshire, and although they also did not give the location of the cemetery either, their video gave me clues in the background as to where it was located. If you are familiar with the Intervale area, you will know what I mean. 

Both Vincent and I searched the Intervale area using the satellite views.  We knew that the Willey burial ground was nearby and easily found it.  You can find it, too.  I'm going to follow the local tradition and not tell you where to find it.  Some things can't be too easy! 

I'm writing this story near Halloween.  I've seen what Halloween mania has done to historic places like Salem, Massachusetts, and to some local burial grounds.  This is why the local people have not published the map, coordinates, or address for the Willey Family cemetery.  If you are truly interested in the history, then like me, Bill, Rick, and Colin, you can do the legwork and find it for yourself.  This is a burial ground which deserves respect.  It is not a tourist attraction for Halloween.  

Visit with respect.  Bring flowers, and leave nothing but footprints. 

Colin, Bill, Rick, and the entire Willey family would agree.  Let me know if you find the Willeys! 

The Willey Family plot

A close up of the tombstone

This stone is marked with a DAR flagholder,

and is reinforced with a metal support

The entrance to the cemetery is on private property.

Ask permission before you enter the cemetery

For the Truly Curious:

A 2010 blog post about the Willey Family:   
https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2010/10/happy-halloween-story-of-willey-family.html     

Wikipedia:   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willey_House_(New_Hampshire)   

Link to Samuel Willey's memorial at Find A Grave:   https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/231693821/samuel-willey  

Link to David Allen's memorial at Find A Grave:   https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/116456101/david-allen  

Robert Gillis, "An historical quest fulfilled: Finding the Willey Family of Crawford Notch", posted 17 September 2015,  https://www.robertxgillis.com/?p=5761  accessed 18 October 2025. 

Bill Thompson and Rick Davidson, "Visiting the Site of the Famous Willey Landslide and the Willey Cemetery", Youtube, 17 April 2024,   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPlKlczGsBs accessed 18 October 2025. 

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To cite/link to this blog post:  Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "This story will give you the Willeys - literally!", Nutfield Genealogy, posted 28 October 2025, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2025/10/this-story-will-give-you-willeys.html: accessed [access date]). 

A weathervane in Santander, Spain

 

This weathervane of a galleon ship is atop a stone column in the middle of a roundabout in Santander, Spain.  It is located on the beach in the El Sardinero neighborhood, near our hotel a few weeks ago.  Santander is a coastal city on the Catabrian Sea in northern Spain.

It took us several trips around the roundabout to get these photos!  Sorry, but they aren't very good.   It was a very interesting place to install a weathervane.   Santander has always had a very busy port, and perhaps galleons set off from this city for the New World?  We saw a ferry to the United Kingdom, and many fishing boats in the port. To U.S. citizens, this city is perhaps most famous for Banco Santander, which was founded here and now has many branches in the United States. 

For the truly curious:

Click here to see almost 550 other Weathervane Wednesday posts!

https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/search/label/Weathervane%20Wednesday  

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To cite/link to this blog post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "A weathervane in Santander, Spain", Nutfield Genealogy, posted 22 October 2026, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2025/10/a-weathervane-in-santander-spain.html: accessed [access date]). 

Dari Joy, Bellows Falls, Vermont

This is another post in my series of stories about 20th Century Americana, which I use as story starters and for helping with oral histories.  Most of these subjects bring back great memories to the people who lived through the 20th century, maybe even YOU!

The Dari-Joy is a small ice cream restaurant at 140 Rockingham Road in Bellows Falls, Vermont, across the street from the Connecticut River.  This is another installment of the 20th Century Americana series at this blog, where I feature unique places and things across New England that were established or made in the 20th century. Maybe you, your parents, your grandparents, or even your great-grandparents remember visiting a place like this for snacks and ice cream. 

The Dari-Joy restaurant was established in 1953 by the DeMuzio family.  For decades we had driven by this little ice cream stand on our way to the Vermont Country Store in Rockingham, Vermont.  Recently we finally decided to stop by and have lunch.  We each had a fine plate of fish and chips, and were tempted by the ice cream menu.  The interior of the restaurant was decorated with photos from the last 50 years of the restaurant, which started as a walk up window and now has expanded to indoor dining.  It was so cute that I decided to include Dari-Joy in my 20th Century Americana series.

There is a statue of "Big Boy" on the roof, and lots of colorful booths and juke boxes inside. Dining here is like stepping back into the 1950s.  They serve burgers, fried seafood, sandwiches, hot dogs, and of course ice cream both hard and soft serve. Wednesdays are prime rib specials.  It's cash only, with and ATM in the dining room. 

The Dari-Joy is open seasonally April to October.  I hope you can visit soon!  

1953 newsclipping about Dari-Joy opening

For the truly curious: 

Dari-Joy at Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/Darijoyrestaurant  

The Rutland Herald, "50 Years of (Dari) Joy", 17 October 2018   https://www.rutlandherald.com/news/50-years-of-dari-joy/article_76f9a927-738a-5c5f-891f-e40d463fc5b5.html   

Click here to see more 20th Century Americana at the Nutfield Genealogy blog:   https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/search/label/20th%20Century%20Americana  

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To cite/link to this blog post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Dari Joy, Bellows Falls, Vermont", Nutfield Genealogy, posted September 16, 2025, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2025/09/dari-joy-bellows-falls-vermont.html:  accessed [access date]). 

A Gilded Sailing Ship, Veere, The Netherlands, for Weathervane Wednesday

 This ship weathervane was photographed in Veere, The Netherlands. 

This past spring we enjoyed a river cruise to see the tulips and windmills in my ancestral country of The Netherlands.  One day our river boat moored at the small village (population 1,500) of Veere, which means "ferry" in Dutch.  It is located in the province of Zeeland, on the body of water known as the Veerse Meer. We could see this building with a spire from a long distance, but the beautiful weathervane was indistiguishable until we were very close. 

This weathervane is on the bell tower above the town hall, built between 1474 and 1517.  The golden weathervane has a ship with five flags and a banner, and it dates from 1598, but was restored in 1933.  This is a terrific weathervane with lots of details to admire. 

For the truly curious:

The Veere website:    https://www.zeeland.com/en/visit/islands/walcheren/towns-and-villages/veere 

Click here to see over 550 more Weathervane Wednesday blog posts: 

https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/search/label/Weathervane%20Wednesday    

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To cite/link to this blog post:  Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "A Gilded Sailing Ship, Veere, The Netherlands, for Weathervane Wednesday", Nutfield Genealogy, posted September 10, 2025, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2025/09/a-gilded-sailing-ship-veere-netherlands.html: accessed [access date]). 

B for Bruges, Belgium for Weathervane Wednesday

 This weathervane was photographed during a canal boat ride in Bruges, Belgium.

The weathevane can barely be seen above this

very, very tall steeple! 

This gilded banner has a letter B cut out in the center.  It was installed very high above a building in Bruges, barely visible from street level.  Thank goodness for zoom lenses on cameras!  If you look very carefully on the photo you can see two other gilded banners and two golden crowns on the other turrets of this building. 

For the truly curious:

Click here to see over 550 other Weathervane Wednesday posts from this blog:

https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/search/label/Weathervane%20Wednesday   

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To cite/link to this blog post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "B for Bruges, Belgium for Weathervane Wednesday", Nutfield Genealogy, posted September 3, 2025, (  https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2025/09/b-for-bruges-belgium-for-weathervane.html: accessed [access date]).