Thursday, May 30, 2013

June 2013 Genealogy and Local History Event Calendar

Local Club Meetings

Hudson Genealogy Club, at the Rogers Memorial Library, 194 Derry Road, Hudson, NH http://www.rodgerslibrary.org/  every 2nd Friday of the Month, at 1:30 PM contact Gayle St. Cyr 603-886-6030 for more information.

Genealogy Roundtable, at the Derry Public Library, 64 East Broadway, Derry, NH  http://www.derry.lib.nh.us/  every first Tuesday of the Month, at 1 – 2:30 PM.  Contact: 603-432-6140 for more information.

Greater Lowell Genealogy Clubhttp://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~maglgc/ meets at the Pollard Memorial Library, Lowell, MA 10AM to 1PM once a month. 

Newton, NH Genealogy Club- Gale Library, Newton, NH, 603-382-4691, 3PM on the third Wednesday of the month. 

Meredith, NH Genealogy Club http://www.meredithlibrary.org/genealogy.html

Chelmsford Genealogy Club, at the Chelmsford, MA Public Library, first Tuesday night of the month at 7PM in the McCarthy Meeting Room, contact Judy Sylvia
http://www.chelmsfordlibrary.org/programs/programs/genealogy_club.html 978-256-5521

Rye Genealogy Club, at the Rye Public Library, first Tuesday of the month at 2PM.  http://ryepubliclibrary.org/

RISE Genealogy Group at the Nashua Public Library, Hunt Room, on the first Friday of the month at 1pm http://www.nashualibrary.org/  (Rivier College Institute for Senior Education, see http://www.rivier.edu/rise/default.aspx?id=1619 )

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June 1st, Saturday, 10am, Lowell Cemetery Tour with the Chelmsford Genealogy Club and Richard Howe

June 1st, Saturday, Piscataqua Waterfront Festival, 8am – 11pm, at the Moffatt-Ladd House and Garden, 154 Market Street, Portsmouth, NH.  Free family event with music, maritime artisan demonstrations, free museum tours, children’s activities, boats, booths, and a sale of heirloom plants.  Call 603 430-7668 for more information.

June 5, Wednesday, 7pm, Dissent among the Puritans at the Merrimack Public Library, 470 Daniel Webster Highway, Merrimack, NH.  A living history presentation features Ann Vassall in the year 1637, wife of William Vassall of Essex, England, one of the founders of Massachusetts.  Contact the library at 603-424-5021 for more information.  Free to the public.

Thursday, June 6, 13, 20, and 27 at 1:00 Richard Doyle’s Introduction to Genealogy.  At the Amesbury Public Library, 149 Main St., Amesbury, Mass. Learn basic steps to get started on your genealogy.  He will also show you how to use Ancestry.com and Heritage Quest to further your search.  When you register for June 6th you are registered for all of the classes.  Registration required .  978-388-8148 ext. 610 or register online at www.amesburylibrary.org 

Thursday, June 6, noon – 1pm Lunch & Learn: The History of Jewish People in Plymouth, Free for members, $8 for non-members at Plimoth Plantation.  Hear Plimoth Plantation’s curator Dr. Karin Goldstein discuss the “hidden history” of Jewish People in early Plymouth.  Bring a lunch or buy one at the Patuxet CafĂ©.  Discussion starts promptly at noon in the Accomack Building.  Register online at http://www.plimoth.org/learn/programs-adults/lunch-and-learn

June 8 and 9, Saturday and Sunday, French and Indian War Encampment at the Fort at No. 4, Charlestown, New Hampshire www.fortat4.org  Re-enactors and living historians personify British and French troops, rangers, militia, camp followers, Native Americans and sutlers to recreate the sights and sounds of the French and Indian War.  Tactical battle re-enactments, open hearth and campfire cooking, blacksmithing, textile productions, and frontier trades. 

June 8, Saturday, 10:30am Who won the War of 1812?  New Hampshire’s Forgotten Patriot Pirates,  at the Millyard Museum, 200 Bedford Street, Manchester, NH, J. Dennis Robinson offers an upbeat, irreverent slideshow on New Hampshire’s reluctant role in Mr. Madison’s War with special emphasis on the bold privateers from Portsmouth.  Contact Veronica Mueller at 603-764-9072 for more information.

June 8, Saturday, 10am, Faces and Families: Folk Art Portraits at Cogswell’s Grant, 60 Spring Street, Essex, MA  $5 Historic New England members, $15 nonmembers, An in-depth look at the folk art portrait collection at Cogswell’s Grant, and an exploration of the many families and artists represented in the house.  Call 978-768-3632 for information and required registration.

June 9, Sunday, 1:30pm, Walking Tour of the Franco American West Side of Manchester, NH, meet in front of St. Marie's Church, Notre Dame Avenue, Manchester, NH, led by local historian and author Robert B. Perreault, this popular tour focuses on the history and contributions of the French immigrants from Quebec and their descendants.  Learn about the development of St. Marie's parish, Notre Dame Hospital (now Catholic Medical Center), La Caisse Populaire St. Marie (St. Mary's bank), and much more.  Preregistration required via the Manchester History Network Meetup website by calling (603) 622-7531 or by email at history@manchesterhistoric.org $5 MHA members, $10 non-members.

June 9, Sunday, noon, Vintage Base Ball Double Header, at the Spencer-Peirce Little Farm, 5 Little’s Lane, Newbury, Mass.  Free to Historic New England member, $5 nonmembers, Watch four teams play baseball using 1860s rules.  Snacks and baseball cards available for purchase.  Bring blankets and lawn chairs, no reserved seating.  Weather permitting, call 978-432-2634 for more information.

June 10, Monday, 7pm, Mary Todd Lincoln: An Unconventional Woman, at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church Hall, 335 Smyth Road, Manchester, NH.  Sally Mummey re-creates the role of Mary Lincoln and shares stories of her life and love, triumphs and challenges.  Potluck at 6pm with Program to follow at 7pm.  Free to the public.  Contact Elise Hood at 603-668-3472 for more information.

June 11, Tuesday, A Visit with Queen Victoria, at the Salem Historical Museum, 310 Main Street, Salem, NH.  Sally Mummey recreates the role of Queen Victoria in proper 19th century clothing with Royal Orders.  Free to the public.  Contact Beverly Glynn at 603-893-8882 for more information.

June 13, Thursday, 6pm, Skirts, Stays and Skeleton Suits: Clothing Children in New England, $5 Historic New England members, $10 nonmembers, Learn about the surprising ways we clothed our children from the eighteenth to the early twentieth centuries at this illustrated lecture by Associate Curator Laura Johnson using images of many interesting and rare items from Historic New England’s collection of children’s clothing and portraits.  Registration required, please call 617-994-5959 for more information.

June 16, Sunday, 11am – 3pm, Father’s Day Vintage Baseball Triple Header, at the Spencer-Peirce Little Farm, 5 Little’s Lane, Newbury, Mass.  Free to Historic New England member, $5 nonmembers, Watch four teams play baseball using 1860s rules.  Snacks and baseball cards available for purchase.  Bring blankets and lawn chairs, no reserved seating.  Weather permitting, call 978-432-2634 for more information.
 
June 19, Wednesday, 7pm A Walk Back in Time: The Secrets of Cellar Holes, at the Wadleigh Memorial Library, 49 Nashua Street, Milford, NH Adair Mulligan explores the rich story in stone walls, old foundations, and abandoned homesites. Free to the public.  Contact Susan Amann at 603-673-2408 for more information.

June 22, Saturday, 5:30pm, The Way They Were, Hamilton House, 40 Vaughan’s Lane, South Berwick, Maine, $8 Historic New England members, $15 nonmembers, Go behind the scenese to learn about the daily routines of domestic servants, groundskeepers, and others who worked at Hamilton House.  See the fourth floor attic space where servants lived.  Registration required, call 207-384-2454.

June 23, Sunday, 10:30pm, Hooked on Rugs, at the Beauport, Sleeper- McCann House, 75 Eastern Point Boulevard, Gloucester, Mass. $25 Historic New England Members, $40 non-members.  A special tour with renowned author and hooked rug expert Jessie Turbayne as she discusses the hooked rug collection at Beauport.  Refreshments.  Registration required, call 978-283-0800.

June 25, Tuesday, 7:30pm, Joseph Ellis, at the Music Hall, 28 Chestnut St., Portsmouth, NH, Tickets and information call 603-436-2400 or visit www.themusichall.org The Pulitzer Prize winning author of Founding Brothers and American historian Joseph Ellis returns to the Music Hall with his new book Revolutionary Summer.

June 30, Sunday, 10am, Anatomy of a Meetinghouse, Rocky Hill Meeting House, Old Portsmouth Road, Amesbury, Mass, $10 Historic New England members, $20 nonmembers, a hands-on, indepth look at the Rocky Hill Meeting house. From the beams in the attic to the granite ledge beneath, get a closer look at how the meetinghouse was built, finished and used.  Registration required, call 978-462-2634.

Coming Up:     
 
July 20, Saturday, Massachusetts Genealogical Council Annual Seminar at Holy Cross College, Hogan Center, Worcester, Massachusetts featuring Judy G. Russell, CG, CGL “The Legal Genealogist” 8:30am to 4:30pm. 

July 20, Saturday, 5:30 – 8:30pm,  Baking in the William Brewster House, Plimoth Plantation Museum, Plymouth, MA,  Make dough for cheate bread- a 17th century wholegrain loaf and bake it in a wood fired oven.  The workshop includes recipes, instruction and starter to continue making bread at home.  Limited to 8 participants.  Pre-registration required, $75 non-members, $60 members.  To register, call 508-746-1622 ext. 8359 or email programservices@plimoth.org

July 22, Monday,6pm , Digging into Derry: Genealogy Research, Derry Public Library, Derry, NH  contact Sherry Bailey 603-432-6140 or sherry@derrypl.org for more information.  Presented by former Derry reference librarian Christine Sharbrough and current reference librarian Eric Stern.  Registration requested. 
July 6 and 7, Saturday and Sunday, Native Heritage Weekend at the Fort at No. 4, Charlestown, New Hampshire, www.fortat4.org   See the website for directions and a schedule of events.

July 31, Wednesday, 6:30pm, Digging into Derry: Forest Hill Cemetery, at the Derry Public Library, Derry, NH, contact Sherry Bailey at 432-6140 or sherry@derrypl.org for more information.  Presented by TJ Culane of the Friends of the Forest Hill Cemetery. 

August 4 – 9, 2013, The 33rd IAJGS International Conference on Jewish Genealogy, Boston Park Plaza Hotel

August 5, Monday, 6:30pm Digging into Derry: The Portrait of Elizabeth McGregor, contact Sherry Bailey at 432-6140 or sherry@derrypl.org for more information, Karen Blandford-Anderson of the Derry Museum of History will discuss the portrait of Elizabeth McGregor, daughter of Molly and General Reid, and the great-great-great granddaughter of Staff Faithful. Hear about the family and hw the portrait was returned to Derry.

August 24 and 25, Saturday and Sunday, Revolutionary War Weekend at the Fort at No. 4, Charlestown, New Hampshire, www.fortat4.org  The Fortified village will be open for tours, sutlers will sell trade goods, and there will be a muster and battle re-enactment.  See the website for the schedule of events.

September 28, Saturday, American Canadian Genealogical Society’s 40th Anniversary Celebration.  Speakers will be Dick Eastman, Lucie LeBlanc Consentino, Joe Manning. Stay tuned for details.  www.acgs.org

October 19, 2013, Family History Day, LDS church, Concord, New Hampshire

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Weathervane Wednesday ~ Another Running Horse


Every Wednesday for two years I've been posting photographs of weathervanes located in or near the Nutfield area (the former name for the land where Londonderry, Derry and Windham, New Hampshire are now located). Most are historically interesting or just whimsical and fun weathervanes. Today's weathervane can be seen in Windham, New Hampshire. Have fun guessing where you may have seen this weather vane.

Do you know the location of weather vane #97? Scroll down to see the answer....

Just as I was photographing this, the wind
turned it, so I ran to the back of the building
to get this additional photo




Today's weather vane is brand new.  It is a shiny copper two-dimensional horse located above a brand new building at 125 Indian Rock Road (Rt, 111), Windham, New Hampshire, just off Exit 3 of Rt. 93.  I took the wide shot photograph from across the street at the gas station, and then went over to the building itself to get a close up. The wind was not cooperating, but eventually I got a nice shot.  This is a very small weather vane for such a large building, but at least this cupola has a one!  Lots of new buildings are going up in our area with cupolas just begging for weather vanes...  (hint, hint!)


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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Tombstone Tuesday ~ Stephen Morse and Abigail Ingalls

This tombstone was photographed at the Village Cemetery of Chester, New Hampshire.


STEPHEN MORSE
died Mar 6, 1807 AE 83

ABIGAIL INGALLS
died May 18, 1806 AE 79

ABIGAIL MORSE
died Sept. 1830 AE 78

ADAH MORSE
died Nov. 11, 1816 AE 70

Stephen Morse, son of Captain Abel Morse and Grace Parker, was born 16 Feb 1723 in Newbury, Massachusetts, and died on 6 March 1807 in Chester, New Hampshire; he married Abigail Ingalls, daughter of Samuel Ingalls and Mary Watts.  She was born in 1725 and died on 18 May 1806 in Chester, New Hampshire. They had ten children:

1. Samuel b. 1750 m. Sarah Webster
2. Abigail b. 1752 d. unmarried Sept. 1830 (above)
3. Gilbert b. 1754 m. Elizabeth Bell
4. Jonathan b. 2 March 1757 m. Abiah Worth
5. Theodore b. 1759
6. Ebenezer b. 1761
7. Stephen b. 1761
8. Ada b. 1766, d. unmarried 11 November 1816 (above)
9. Isaac b. 26 May 1769 m. Nancy Worthen
10. Peter Morse b. 1774 m. Sarah Brown

I am related to Stephen Morse and his wife, Abigail Ingalls.  Anthony Morse (1606 - 1686) of Salisbury, Massachusetts is my 9th great grandfather and my common ancestor with Stephen Morse.  Edmund Ingalls (1586 - 1648) of Lynn, Massachusetts is my 9th great grandfather, and my common ancestor with Abigail Ingalls.  I descend from THREE of Edmund Ingalls's nine children! (Elizabeth (1619 - 1676), Robert (1621 - 1698), Samuel (1632 - 1717) ).  Edmund Ingalls is also the ancestor of the famous children's book author, Laura Ingalls Wilder.

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Monday, May 27, 2013

Honor Roll Project, Memorial Day 2013

East Derry, New Hampshire


Memorial Day 2013 ~ New Contributions to the Honor Roll Project

Thank you to the following bloggers who contributed posts for the Honor Roll Project.  These volunteers have photographed their local war memorials and honor rolls, and transcribed the names engraved on them.  These transcriptions make the names available to search engines online, and thus family members and descendants will be able to find out more about their ancestors’ service to the country.  Click here to read all the Honor Roll Project contributions:
http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/p/honor-roll-project.html
 
We had 10 contributors this year!

Cincinnati Federal Courthouse, World War I, Cincinnati, Ohio
By Pam Seavey Schaffner

Derry, New Hampshire Civil War Memorial

Franklin Township, Michigan, by Carol A. Bowen Stevens

Fryeburg, Maine by Diane L. Jones, Fryeburg Historical Society (needs transcribing)

Greenhills, Ohio by Robert Burnett

New London, New Hampshire,  June Butka

Here are a whole bunch of entries from the Central Texas Veteran’s Cemetery, by Cheryl Cayemberg

Arlington, Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Massachusetts by Liz Loveland
http://adventuresingenealogy.wordpress.com/2013/05/27/in-honor-of-memorial-day-some-war-memorials-and-associated-sites-eastern-massachusetts/

Southborough, Massachusetts by Midge Frazel
http://granite-in-my-blood.blogspot.com/2013/05/honor-roll-in-southborough-ma.html

Manchester, Vermont War Memorial by Elroy Davis
http://greenmountaingenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/05/monument-monday-war-memorial-manchester.html

Amherst, New Hampshire World War I Honor Roll by June Butka
http://damegussie.wordpress.com/2013/05/27/honor-roll-world-war-i-amherst-new-hampshire/

Amherst, New Hampshire, Civil War, by June Butka
http://damegussie.wordpress.com/2013/06/03/military-honor-roll-monday/

Wallingford, Connecticut World War II, by John Tew
http://filiopietismprism.blogspot.com/2013/05/for-heathers-honor-roll-project.html
(this one needs transcribing, any volunteers?)
 
Thanks to everyone who contributed!
This will be repeated again on Veteran’s Day, 2013

Honor Roll Project Page http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/p/honor-roll-project.html
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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Goshen, NH's Military Honor Roll

The Military Honor Roll for the Town of Goshen, Sullivan County, New Hampshire


HONOR ROLL
WAR OF THE REVOLUTION

Abel Blood                    Capt. Samuel Gunnison         Thomas Rogers
Stephen Bartlett               Lieut. William Lang               James Libby
Edward Dame                 Sam'l Gunnison                  Samuel Sischo
Hatevil Dame                  Daniel Grindle                Stephen Scranton
Benjamin Rand               Geo. Walker Lear          Daniel Sherburne
Capt. William C. Meserve Privateer                                              .

WAR OF 1812
Nathaniel Marston     John Gunnison Esq.     John Lewis
Daniel L. Stearns          Vinal Gunnison         John Sholes

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE WEST
*Capt. John W. Gunnison - Top'l Eng'rs USA

CIVIL WAR
*Liet. John S. Baker                   *John M. Stevens            Parker T. Dow
*Lieut. Woodbury Maxfield        Horace Gunnison             Hiram A. Credo
Oren E. Farr                          Aaron Wyman                 *Perley A. Smith
*Alvah A. Smith                  Edward Hall                    Henry Jones
Elias W. Pike                       Henry Whitaker             *Carlton Sholes
Charles Bingham                *Arnold Mummery              William Emery
*Henry Baker                       Charles H. Hall              *George F. Blood
Barzillai Cofran                 Cyrus Thompson                William Hardy
*John M. Scott                   Amos B. Thompson              George B. Lear
John E. Messer                    Erastus B. True               Henry S. George
*Arthur E. Parker                   William B. Dow               Nathan P. Gilmore
*Thomas J. Rogers               Manly Peasley                              Ira Hurd
*Daniel W. Thompson

SPANISH AMERICAN WAR
Fred W. Baker          *Russell Clement               Oley J. Lear
Fred A. Darrah

WORLD WAR
*Harold F. Cove         Neal C. Teague            Russell Whitney
Harold L. Hewson         James R. Cuillow          Ralph K. Whitney
George E. Cuillow      Leon T. Malouin          Leon J. Fortune

TOWN OF GOSHEN
1923


Photo given by permission of the administrator of the Facebook group "Images of New Hampshire History" at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Images-of-New-Hampshire-History/281503221933793

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Saturday, May 25, 2013

A Wedding Today


Usually you see a “Surname Saturday” posting here, but I’m busy today at my daughter's wedding -  there is a new branch being added to the family tree… Photos soon!

The Happy Couple, celebrating their engagement in 2012
Columbus Park, in Boston's North End

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Photo by Tracy Elizabeth Smith

Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Friday, May 24, 2013

The Derry Civil War Memorial

The Derry Civil War Memorial is located in front of the First Parish Church in East Derry.  The other war memorials to Derry soldiers are all located at MacGregor Park, next to the public library on Broadway.

According to T.J. Cullinane of the "Friends of the Forest Hill Cemetery" group, there are about another 100 missing names that should be on the Civil War monument.  He is working on identifying all the Civil War tombstones in the Forest Hill Cemetery, which is located right behind the First Parish Church.



 Killed in Action
George Emerson
Jacbo B. Hall
William Nowell
George E. Upton

Died in Service
David H. Adams
James Adams
Jacob S. Bartell
Nathaniel E. Brickett
John S. Bean
Thomas S. Dustin
William H. Day
George E. Floyd
Dwight E. Hale
Henry Hayes
William Marshall
Joseph W. Nowell
John H. Parker
Joseph C. Sawyer
William H. Stevens
James Stevens
Edgar H. Shepard
Frank A. Taylor
Willis I. Taylor
George L. Warner



Honorably Discharged
Joseph Arnold
Horace F. Abbott
Charles B. Adams
George H. Adams
Morrison Alexander
Frank G. Adams
Charles Aldrich
Charles R. Adams
George H. Butterfield
George F. Boyd
Nathaniel H. Brown
Alba A. Bachelder
John Bowley
George R. Barker
John Christy
Edward L. Currier
William W. Cook
Rodney Campbell
George W. Carr
David S. Clark
Warren E. Clark
J. Charles Currier
James H. Crombie
Harlan P. Clark
Henry E. Cunnningham
William B. Cogswell
Isaiah A. Dustin
John T. G. Dinsmore, Jr.
Henry G. Dillenback
Theodore Dinsmore
Alvin A. Davis
George M. Davis
Albert A. Davis
Frederic Davis
Albert D. W. Emerson
James Evans
George O. Everett
James H. Eaton
Nathan F. Flanders
Henry Forger
George E. Fitch


Honorably Discharged
Lewis Foster
Nelson Foster
Jeremiah Garvin
Fred D. Gregg
Daniel G. George
Emmonds Hill
Benjamin W. Holmes
Warren P. Horne
John L. Holston
Charles Hatch
George I. Herrick
William A. Hill
William M. Howe
William K. Hayes
Samuel Harvey
George A. Hill
Philip Jones
Simeon F. Kendall
Louis Londean
FRank A. Lincoln
John H. Lowe
John S. Loverin
Charles F. Mahaffet
George W. McKenney
Stephen Mills
William Major
Decatur McCartey
William A. McMurphy
Tennet Major
George E. Merrill
Nathan Morse
James E. Morrill
George Major
Robert W. McMurphy
Henry McMurphy
John R. Moulton
Henry M. Moulton
Herman Nichols
Perkins Nichols
Clarence E. Nesmith
Charles A. Nowell
Louis Nesmith
Daniel Owens
Francis Owens
Loami G. Pillsbury


Honorably Discharged
Benjamin F. Pettengill
Wiliam H. Palmer
Luke Poor
John Parker
Benjamin F. Rowe
Charles B. Radcliffe
Charles S. Reynolds
Nehemiah L. Richardson
George W. Randall
Matthew Senter
Benjamin H. Smith
Charles P. Stevens
Edwin R. Stevens
George W. Smith
Enoch Stevens
David C. Stevens
George F. Stevens
Henry A. G. Storer
Daniel Shattuck
Luther C. Stevens
Marcellus C. Shattuck
Robert H. Smith
Thomas H. Simmington
George S. True
Henry Taylor
George B. Tuttle
Horace Tilton
Allan C. Taylor
William H. Thompson
Job F. Thomas
William H. Thomas
Thomas Tyrie
Norris C. Wiggin
John J. White
Timothy H. Wiggin
Charles Wiggin
Charles F. Wheeler
Caleb F. Whidden
John E. Webster
William H. Wilson
Augustus A. Woodward
Kimball Wilson
George Thom


The last name on the list, George Thom, appears to have been added later.  According to FindAGrave.com this is General George Thom, son of James Thom of Londonderry and Harriet Coffin of Gloucester, Massachusetts.  He graduated from West Point, class of 1839.  "He was the Chief of Topographical Engineers for General Halleck and created the Official Thom map for the Battle of Shiloh.  General Thom held comminssions in all the military grades up to include that of Colonel of Engineers U.S. Army with the Bevet Rank of Brigadier General.  He served his country for 44 consecutive years.  He donated a stained glass window to the First Parish Church in East Derry, NH..." [this monument stands in front of the same church].  General Thom is buried at Forest Hill Cemetery, behind the church.
 
Friends of Forest Hill Cemetery website   http://forest-hill-1721.webs.com/

A Derry News story about the Civil War monument and Civil War graves:
http://content.yudu.com/Library/A22b6h/NutfieldNewsJanuary1/resources/8.htm

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Old Prom Photos

It is prom season now in New England.  I was at the bridal shop with my daughter for her wedding dress fitting, and high school girls were there picking up their prom gowns.  At the dress shop in Massachusetts where I bought my dress, I was the only adult there, and the rest were young girls shopping for and being fitted for prom dresses.  This all made me think of my own prom, and old photos stored in boxes...

This what I found to post today ....



My mother's scrapbook
Hamilton, Massachusetts 1952
(I love that the Jr. Prom ticket cost $1.20!)


Senior Prom and Graduation memorabilia
Hamilton High School, 1953




1980 MIT Prom
Hubby and Yours Truly


My sister was voted Prom Queen
1981 Wachusett Regional High School Prom
Holden, Massachusetts



My daughter's senior prom
2005 Londonderry High School 
"Phantom of the Opera" theme
She designed the dress and a neighbor sewed it.

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Weathervane Wednesday ~ A Whale

Every Wednesday for almost two years I've been posting photographs of weathervanes located in or near the Nutfield area (the former name for the land where Londonderry, Derry and Windham, New Hampshire are now located). Most are historically interesting or just whimsical and fun weathervanes. Today's weathervane was found on Long Island. Have fun guessing where you may have seen this weather vane.

Do you know the location of weather vane #96? Scroll down to see the answer....

click to enlarge


Today's weather vane was spotted in Cold Spring Harbor, on Long Island, New York, at the Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum.  It is a primitive two dimensional whale figure, painted black.  There seems to be some evidence of gilding on the nose of the whale. The museum is next door to the historic home of Captain James Wright, built in 1894.   This part of Main Street is known as "Captain's Row" because most of the beautiful historic homes were built for sea captains.  Cold Spring Harbor had a long history of shipping and whaling.


Thar She Blows

From 1837 until the Petroleum Age began
The Village of Cold Spring Harbor L.I.
owned, manned, equipped & aided a fleet of
Whaling Vessels.  The most noted were-

379 ton ship TUSCARONA 6 voyages 1837 - 1851
167 ton bark BARCLAY  7 voyages 1839 - 1847
273 ton Bark MONMOUTH 7 voyages 1841 - 1862
370 ton ship N. R. TALMADGE 4 voyages 1843 - 1855
437 ton ship RICHMOND 2 voyages 1843 - 1848
281 ton bark ALICE ? voyages 1844 - 1858
523 ton ship HUNTSVILLE  5 voyages 1844 - 1858
478 ton ship SPLENDID  5 voyages 1844 - 1860
579 ton ship SHEFFIELD  3 voyages 1845 - 1859

Each voyage lasted from 3 - 4 years & 38 voyages
returned in all.  Sperm oil  3,354 bbls.
Whale oil 79,2?6 bbls.  Whale bone 757,805 lbs
In memory of these ships, their daring Captains
Hardy Sailors & for???? Owners
This testimonial is erected
A.D. 1932


Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum website http://www.cshwhalingmuseum.org/

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Tombstone Tuesday ~ Jerusha Foster Bangs, 1801 in Brewster, Massachusetts

This tombstone was photographed at the Old Burial Ground in Brewster, Massachusetts (Cape Cod)


Here lies the Body of
Mrs. Jerusha Bangs
late wife of Solomon
Bangs who Departed
this life December 
24, 1801 in
ye 77th year of her 
age. 

Jerusha Foster was born 9 December 1727 in Harwich, Massachusetts, and died on 14 December 1801.  She was the daughter of Chillingsworth Foster and Susannah Gray Sears. Jerusha married Solomon Bangs on 2 April 1769 in Harwich.  He was born in 1729 and died on 19 January 1797, a Revolutionary War Patriot.

Jerusha's tombstone is surprisingly modern in design.  Most of the tombstones in this cemetery are traditional New England designs with winged cherub's heads.  Her husband, Solomon Bangs, is my 2nd cousin 7 generations removed.

This tombstone can be found at Find A Grave at this link:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=45656947 

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Monday, May 20, 2013

The Honor Roll Project



War Memorials on the Londonderry, NH town common


Please join me in the Honor Roll Project.  Volunteers are taking photos of war memorials and honor rolls, posting them on their blogs and websites, and transcribing the names of all the people listed.  These transcriptions make the names available for search engines, and the names will be available for people searching for family, ancestors and friends. 

I started this project in 2010 with the photos of the Londonderry Civil War monument, and then followed with the other war monuments on the town common, Derry’s MacGregor Park and other local honor rolls.  Other bloggers and photographers were invited to participate.  The email and comments I have read are truly inspiring, and it makes it well worth the effort to transcribe names when you read how family members found their fathers and grandfathers online, or how families searching their family trees find ancestors who served in the Civil War or World War I. 

"I never knew my ancestor was in the Civil War until I Googled his name and found it on your blog! Thanks so much for your project - Charles Chase" 13 Dec 2011

" Thank you! Aina Bernier- daughter of Ernest Albert Bernier, Jr." 27 Jan 2011

If you would like to participate this year, I will be posting a compilation post of all the participating bloggers on Memorial Day, and I will also make those posts permanently available on the page link “HonorRoll Project” above at the top of my blog home page (scroll up to the top ofthis page to see the link).  Every May I publicize the project for Memorial Day, and again every November for Veteran’s / Armistice Day.   Eventually I would like to see project evolve into its own website.

To participate, leave me a comment below or an email at vrojomit@gmail.com   All you need to do is photograph a local honor roll or war monument, and transcribe the names.  If you have a blog, post the story, photos and transcriptions and send me the permanent link for the Honor Roll Project.  If you don’t have a blog, I can post the photo and names for you and add it to the Honor Roll Project, giving you full credit for the photography and transcription.

This is a simple way of saying “Thank You” to all the veterans in our communities. 

The Honor Roll Project Page (see the page link at the top of this blog)


War Memorials at MacGregor Park in Derry, New Hampshire


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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Saturday, May 18, 2013

Surname Saturday ~ Edenden of Cranbrook, England and Massachusetts



EDENDEN

There is an account of the Edenden family in an old issue of the New England Historic Genealogical Society Register, that starts with the lineage in about the year 1500 in Cranbrook, Kent, England.  William Iddenden, the son of Stephen, married a woman named Joane, and had eight children.  Several of these children died of the plague in 1597.

In the next generation, William’s son, James died of the plague in 1597, too, but left a detailed will naming most of the family members.  His brother, George, my ancestor, married first to a cousin, Sara Iddenden, and their three daughters also died of the plague in 1597.  It is unknown how Sara died, but she was probably a plague victim, too.  He remarried and had nine more children, one of which is my 9th great grandfather, Edmond Edenden.

Edmond Edenden was baptized in Cranbrook in 1599.  He came to Massachusetts around 1637, when he was a proprietor at Scituate.  He became a Freeman in 1641.  In 1642 he was a representative to the General Court.  At some point he removed to Boston.  He had two children by his first wife, Elizabeth Wller, and six children by his second wife, Elizabeth Wightman/Whiteman/Whitman.  It is not known when or where Edmond Edenden died in Massachusetts.

My 8th great grandmother is Edmond’s daughter, Sarah, who married Thomas Rand in 1656 in Charlestown, Massachusetts.  This Edenden line daughters out very quickly in Massachusetts, but seems to have had an interesting history in Cranbrook, England.  Except for the plague!

Much of this information was taken from the article “Genealogical Research in England”,  NEHGS Register, January 1913, Volume 67, page 43 and from the book History of Scituate, Massachusetts by Samuel Deane, 1831.  

My Edenden lineage:

Generation 1: Stephen Iddenden, born about 1500 in Cranbrook, Kent England, died before 1578
Generation 2: William Iddenden, born about 1530, died between 24 December 1578 and 23 January 1681/82 in Cranbrook; married to Joane.  Seven children.

Generation 3: George Iddenden, baptized 18 July 1564 in Cranbrook, Kent, England and was buried on 24 April 1632 in Tenterden, Kent, England; married to his cousin, Sara Iddenden, daughter of John Iddenden and Christian Glover.  She was baptized on 27 January 1571/72 in Cranbrook and died about 1597.  The name of George’s second wife is unknown.  He had three children with Sarah, and nine with his second wife.

Generation 4: Edmund Edenden, baptized 21 October 1599 in Cranbrook, died in Massachusetts; married first on 12 July 1625 in Cranbrook to Elizabeth Weller.  She was baptized at Cranbrook on 24 December 1500 and buried at Tenterden on 2 August 1631.  He married second on 1 February 1631/2 at Maidstone to Elizabeth Wightman. Eight children, two with his first wife, and six with his second wife.

Generation 5: Sarah Edenden, born about 1636 in England and died 26 June 1699 in Charlestown, Massachusetts; married on 25 March 1757 in Charlestown to Thomas Rand, son of Robert Rand and Alice Sharpe.  He was born in April 1627 and died 4 August 1683 in Charlestown.  Twelve Children.

Generation 6: John Rand m. Mehitable Call
Generation 7: Caleb Rand m. Katherine Kettell
Generation 8: Caleb Rand m. Mary Mayhew
Generation 9: Mary Rand m. Asahel Bill
Generation 10: Reverend Ingraham Ebenezer Bill m. Isabella Lyons
Generation 11: Caleb Rand Bill m. Ann Margaret Bollman
Generation 12: Isabella Lyons Bill m. Albert Munroe Wilkinson
Generation 13: Donald Munroe Wilkinson m. Bertha Louise Roberts (my grandparents)

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo


Friday, May 17, 2013

A Royal Doll ~ "Lost" and then Found




At the Wenham Museum there is a large doll collection that held a secret, but not really a secret.  For years and years readers of Queen Lili’uokalani’s autobiography Hawaii’s Story have read about how during her trip to Boston in 1898 to visit her husband’s family, she dressed a doll for a children’s charity.  The Boston newspapers carried this story, too.   I've often wondered what happened to the doll, and so did the curator of Washington Place, the Queen’s family home in Honolulu.  Last year I learned that an author had found the doll in plain sight, at the Wenham Doll Museum.

This was extremely interesting to me, since I had been to the Wenham Museum many time, both as a child and then again with my own daughter. My mother (she grew up next door in Hamilton, Massachusetts) had been many times, too, and two of her brothers live within walking distance of the museum in Wenham.  We were all wondering if the doll the Queen had dressed in Hawaiian costume had survived, and yet we all had overlooked seeing it in the museum. How did this happen?

The Wenham Museum
Wenham, Massachusetts

I went to the museum over this past winter to see the doll for myself.  I had corresponded with the author, Mindi Reid, many times since our trip to Hawaii last September.  She had sworn me to secrecy until her story was published in Mana Magazine.  Well, the article with her story was just released in the May/June 2013 issue.  You can read it online through the Mana Magazine app for iPad or other tablet readers, or purchase the issue through the website below (unless you are lucky enough to be in Hawaii to pick up the issue at your local news stand).

You can see why the doll would not be recognizable today as a Hawaiian.  Her once colorful dress and hair have faded, and the silk flower lei has wilted.  Queen Lili’uokalani had been given a German porcelain doll to dress, so she looks very Caucasian. There is no wonder we never stopped to read the label on this little doll, even though she stands on a shelf next to dolls dressed by the crowned heads of Europe and Japan.

The Hawaiian doll is to the far right, other dolls on this shelf were donated by
The Tsar Nicolas II, Queen Victoria, The Emperor of Japan, and Queen Elizabeth of Romania
Come in and see the dolls
of Boston town,
Dollies from all the
world around,
Who go about from
Place to Place,
All with a cheerful
face,
To help little
children dear,
That they may be happy
and glad all the year.
And when you've seen
them o'er and o'er
You'll want to see
them one time more.

Elizabeth Richards Horton was a Boston socialite, and she asked Queen Lili’uokalani to contribute a doll to her exhibition to benefit The New England Home for Crippled Children (now Children’s Hospital in Boston).   She had a doll named “Miss Columbia” who traveled with other dolls for charitable exhibits. Her family owned the Claflin Richards house in Wenham. The house was purchased by the Wenham improvement society in 1921 as a museum.  Elizabeth’s collection grew when people heard of her charity, and even crowned heads from all over the globe contributed dolls. After many years of being in storage, she tried to sell her doll collection, but found it had suffered damage in poor storage conditions. Instead of selling the dolls, she offered it in 1922 for display at the Wenham museum. About 600 of the dolls had survived enough to go on permanent display as the International Doll Collection.


A poster for the International Doll Collection

"Miss Columbia" and some of her international doll companions

You can read all about how the Queen sewed this doll’s costume herself in her autobiography or in Mindi Reid’s article in Mana.  You can also read all about the International Doll Collection at the Wenham Museum website.  I’m still flabbergasted that the doll has survived all these years, and the little dress sewn by the Queen is still in good condition. The flowered fabric has faded, and so has her hair and the bright ribbon around her waist. Most of all, I’m still surprised that I saw the doll so many times, and did not recognize that she was the Queen’s doll.  The title of Mindi Reid’s article is “Lost in Plain Sight”. 



I also found a genealogical connection between my mother, who was a cousin to Queen Lili’uokalani’s husband, John Owen Dominis, and to Elizabeth Horton Richards, the Wenham woman who started the International Doll collection.  Mom's 3rd great grandmother, Catherine (Jones) Younger, was the sister of Mary (Jone) Dominis, who removed to Hawaii with her sea captain husband, and her son, John Owen Dominis married Lili'uokalani.

Genealogy:

Generation 1: Michael Dunnell, born about 1640, probably France, died about 1717 in Topsfield, Massachusetts, married to Mary Unknown.  Michael Dunnell/Dwinnell is my 9th great grandfather.

Generation 2: Thomas Dunnell, born 20 November 1672 in Topsfield, died 8 October 1747 in Topsfield, married on 23 May 1701 in Lynn, Massachusetts to Dinah Brimsdell

Generation 3: Thomas Dwinnell, born 1711 in Topsfield, died 25 June 1775, married in 1738 to Hannah Towne, daughter of Joseph Towne and Abigail Curtis. Joseph Towne is the brother of Edmund Towne, my 9th great grandfather.

Generation 4:  Jacob Dwinnell, born 20 November 1744; married on 11 February 1768 in Boxford, Massachusetts to Mehitable Towne, daughter of Elisha Towne and Sarah Rhodes.  

Generation5: Elijah Dwinnell b. 14 July 1773 in Boxford, Massachusetts; married Rebecca Russell, daughter of James Russell and Rebecca Unknown

Generation 6: Mary Ann Dwinnell married on 28 July 1827 to Jabez Richards, born 27 March 1805, died 18 March 1840. 

Generation 7:  Elizabeth Willett Richards, born 6 October 1837 in Wenham, Massachusetts, died 22 August 1928 in Wenham; married in 1858 to Thayer Horton.

                                           Michael Dunnell and Mary Unknown
                                           I                                                  I
Thomas Dunnell and Dinah Brimdell                         John Dwinnell and Mary Read
                                           I                                                  I
Thomas Dwinnell and Hannah Towne                       Keziah Dwinnell and Nicholas Cree
                                           I                                                  I
Jacob Dwinnell and Mehitable Towne                       Richard Cree and Ruth Johnson
                                           I                                                  I
Elijah Dwinnell and Rebecca Russell                         Stephen Cree and Hannah Smith
                                           I                                                  I
Mary Ann Dwinnell and Jabez Richards                    Sarah Cree and James Phillips
                                           I                                                  I
Elizabeth Willett Richards m. Thayer Horton            Hannah Phillips and Thomas Russell Lewis
                                                                                              I
                                                                         Hannah Eliza Lewis and Abijah Franklin Hitchings
                                                                                              I
                                                               Arthur Treadwell Hitchings and Florence Etta Hoogerzeil
                                                                                              I
                                                                 Gertrude Matilda Hitchings and Stanley Elmer Allen
                                                                                     (my grandparents)



Hawaii’s Story by Hawaii’s Queen, by Liliuokalani, Mutual Publishing, 1991 (originally published in Boston by Lee & Shepard Publishing, 1897), page 216 – 7.

"Mrs. William Lee of Brookline gave an interesting talk last evening to a goodly gathering of women, and a slight sprinkling of men, at the doll show opened in Hotel Thorndike, for two days, yesterday, for the benefit of the New England Home for Crippled Children.

This doll show, which for variety and size exceeds any previous one in Boston, is notable for one thing, - in having among the exhibits three genuine royal dolls, that is to say, three dolls contributed by royalty.  Two of them, miniature representations of Eskimo babies, made by the Eskimos themselves, and dressed in full Arctic costume of sealskin, were sent here by Queen Victoria from her own private collection, which is said to be the largest in the world.

The third one was given by ex-Queen Liliuokalani of Hawaii who dressed it and decorated it herself in the mother hubbard-like gown characteristic of Hawaiian women, and the head wreath and neck garland of flowers to which they are so partial on gala occasions.  The ex-queen named the doll Kaiulani, for her niece and heir.”  [Mrs. William Lee [ born Sara White (1849 - 1925)] is the 2nd wife of my 1st cousin 4 generations removed.  William Lee was first cousin to John O. Dominis, husband of Queen Liliuokalani.  John O. Dominis's mother, Mary Lambert Jones (1803 -1889) was the sister of my 3rd great grandmother Catherine Plummer (Jones) Younger (about 1799 - 1828).]  

For more information:

UPDATE!  This magazine is out of business) Mana Magazine http://www.mymanamagazine.com/

UPDATE!  This app is no longer available! Download the Mana Magazine app here

The Wenham Museum website www.wenhammusuem.org  and the Miss Columbia Doll exhibit webpage is https://www.wenhammuseum.org/collections/dolls/miss-columbia/  

“Lost in Plain Sight”, by Mindi Reid, Mana Magazine, Honolulu, Hawaii: Pacific Basin Publishing, page 22.

“Tiny Ambassadors with a Mission” from the Antiques Almanac website (the top photo is of the doll donated by Queen Lili’uokalani):  http://www.theantiquesalmanac.com/dollcollection.htm

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To cite/link to this blog post:  Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "A Royal Doll ~ "Lost" and then Found", Nutfield Genealogy, posted May 17, 2018, (  https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-royal-doll-lost-and-then-found.html: accessed [access date]).