February 2014 Genealogy and Local History Events Calendar

Local Genealogy Club Meetings

Amesbury, MA – A new genealogy club has started, every last Monday of the month.  No registration, come to as many meetings as you would like.  For info contact Margie Walker, Local History Librarian, Amesbury Public Library, Amesbury, MA  978-388-8148 or mwalker@mvlc.org

Barrington, NH Genealogy Club, meets the first Wednesday of the month at 6pm at the Barrington Public Library, 105 Ramsdell Lane, Barrington, NH http://barringtongenealogy.weebly.com/  or email Wendy at genealogyclub@gmail.com

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

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 7pm to 8:15pm in the downstairs meeting room.  Contact: Alan Howard at 603-432-6140 for more information.

Hudson Genealogy Club, at the Rogers Memorial Library, 194 Derry Road, Hudson, NH http://www.rodgerslibrary.org/  every 2^nd Friday of the Month, at 1:30 PM contact 603-886-6030 for more information.  (on summer hiatus until September)

Littleton Genealogy Club, at the Couper Room in the Littleton, Massachusetts Reuben Hoar Public Library, third Monday of the month. For more information see the website at http://www.littletonma.org/content/19459/19471/26579/26595/default.aspx

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

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

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

North Hampton, NH Genealogy Club, at the North Hampton Public Library, 237A Atlantic Avenue, North Hampton NH 603-964-6326   http://nhplib.org/?p=1386

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 )

Southborough, MA Genealogy Club, at the Southborough Library, 25 Main Street, Southborough, MA  508-485-5031 or info@southboroughtlib.org   Third Thursday of the Month.  See the website www.southboroughlib.org for a schedule

South Shore Genealogical Society, at the John Curtis Free Library, Rt. 139, Hanover, Mass at 1:30pm ever second Saturday of the month from September to June.

Shrewsbury, Massachusetts Genealogy Club, meets third Monday of the month at the Shrewsbury Public Library, contact George C. Brown at 508-841-8531 or gbrown@cwmars.org

Wednesday Night Jewish Genealogy, Every 3^rd Wednesday at NEHGS, 99 – 101 Newbury Street, Boston, Mass. http://www.americanancestors.org/Event.aspx?id=29156

Monthly Irish Study Genealogy Group, usually every 4^th Saturday of the month at NEHGS, 99 – 101 Newbury Street, Boston, Massachusetts between 9:30 and noon in the Education Center (2^nd floor).  Contact Mary Ellen Grogan for more information megrogan@ix.netcom.com and to confirm the meeting time and date.

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February 1, Saturday, 1pm Plymouth County Genealogists, Inc. Meeting. At the East Bridgewater Public Library, Lower level meeting room, East Bridgewater, Massachusetts.  Frederick Channell will discuss his book “The Immortal Patriot”- the story of his fifth great grandfather.  http://www.plymouthcountygenealogists.org/

February 1, Saturday, 10:30 – 11:30am Mobile Genealogy, Part II, Imaging on the Go, at the New England Historic Genealogical Society, 99 – 101 Newbury Street, Boston, Massachusetts.  Genealogist Alice Kane presents how to use digital cameras and the Flip-Pal scanner for recording documents.  Free and open to the public. To reserve your space email education@nehgs.or or call 617-266-1226.

February 1, Saturday, 9:30 to 11am, Duxbury Senior Center Genealogy Club, genealogist Michael Brophy will present a discussion on how to access and use electronic databases, at the Duxbury Senior Center, 10 Mayflower St., Duxbury, Massachusetts.

February 4, Tuesday, 7pm Beginning Again: Tackling a New Research Area, at the Chelmsford, Massachusetts Public Libary,  by the Chelmsford Genealogy Club with presenter Christine Sharbrough, librarian and certified genealogist. 

February 4, Tuesday, 7:30pm, Winning the War, Shaping the Peace: Industry, Civil War, and the Birth of Consumerism, at the Exeter Historical Society, 47 Front Street, Exeter, New Hampshire.  Contact Laura Martin Gowing 603-778-2335 for more information.  Free to the public. 

February 5, 12, and 19, at 6 – 8pm, Getting Started in Genealogy, at the New England Historic Genealogical Society, 99 – 101 Newbury Street, Boston, Massachusetts.  Genealogist Rhonda McClure will share her knowledge in this three part course.  Sessions held on three consecutive Wednesdays.   $30 for all three sessions.  Click here for registration information http://www.americanancestors.org/Event.aspx?id=29746&utm_source=twgnewsletter&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=664

February 6, Thursday, 12:15pm, Sarah Prince: A Life in Meditations and Letters, at the Old South Meeting House, 310 Washington Street, Boston, Massachusetts, part of the Midday at the Meeting House talks,  free to members, $1 - $6 for others, presented by historian and Wheelock College professor Laurie Crumpacker. 

February 8, Saturday, 1:30pm, The Underground Railroad in New England, at the Derry Public Library, Derry, New Hampshire, presented by Eleanor Strang in honor of Black History month. Contact Sherry Bailey at 603-432-6140 for more information.  Free to the public.

February 10, Monday,  6:30pm, Local History Series: The Day that Made Robert Frost, at the Derry Public Library, Derry, New Hampshire, presented by the Derry Town Historian Rick Holmes. Contact Sherry Bailey at 603-432-6140 for more information.  Free to the public.

February 12, Wednesday, 6:30pm Mary Todd Lincoln: An Unconventional Woman, at the Kimball Public Library, 5 Academy Avenue, Atkinson, New Hampshire.  Watch Sally Mummey interpret Mary Lincoln during the Civil War years.  Contact the library 603-326-5234 for more information.  Free to the public.

February 13, Thursday, 12:15pm, Abigail Adams: Life, Love and Letters,  at the Old South Meeting House, 310 Washington Street, Boston, Massachusetts, part of the Midday at the Meeting House talks, free to members $1 - $6 for others, presented by living history interpretoer Patricia Bridgman using Abigail's correspondence with her husband, John Adams. 

February 18, Tuesday, 7:00pm Civilians of Gettysbury, 1863, at the Merrimack Public Library, 470 Daniel Webster Hwy, Merrimack, New Hampshire.  Contact Anita Creager at 603-424-5084 for more information.  Free to the public.

February 20, Thursday, 12:15pm, Petticoats at the Revolution,  at the Old South Meeting House, 310 Washington Street, Boston, Massachusetts, part of the Midday at the Meeting House talks, free to members, $1 - $6 for others, presented by Joan Gatturna who portrays Rachel Revere. 

February 22, Saturday, 10am, Land Records with Richard Howe, Middlesex Register of Deeds and Blogger, Merrimack Valley chapter of the Massachusetts Society of Genealogists meeting at the Nevins Library, 305 Broadway, Methuen, Mass. Free and open to the public.    http://massachusettssocietyofgenealogists.org/merrimackvalleynews.php 

February 26, Wednesday, 6pm Boston’s Changing Neighborhoods at the Boston Public Library, Commonwealth Salon, presented by Evan Thornberry, the cartographic reference librarian for the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library and by Jonathan Wyss.  Free to the public.

February 27, Thursday, 12:15pm, "Lett No Country Grants to be Laid Upon our Lands"  at the Old South Meeting House, 310 Washington Street, Boston, Massachusetts, part of the Midday at the Meeting House talks, free to members, $1 - $6 for others, an illustrated lecture by anthropologist and UMass Boston professor Amy Den Ouden who explores what we can learn about indigenous women's daily lives from 18th century land petitions.  

March 1, Saturday, 9 am to 3pm, Museum Clean Up Day at Plimoth Plantation, join the staff raking, painting, set up exhibits and much more.  Complimentary lunch and a free pass to Plimoth Plantation as a thank you for this popular tradition.  Registration now open online www.plimoth.org

In the future-

April 1, Thursday, Researcher Forum, at the National Archives facility in Waltham, Massachusetts, 380 Trapelo Road, Free to the public. Researching original records has changed in recent years, no longer are you winding the microfilm, and the resources and strategies have expanded.  Learn about the new and exciting initiatives for researchers, and use this open forum opportunity to tell the National Archives how researching can be made better for you.

April 5, Saturday, Maine Genealogical Society Spring Workshop, at the Elks Club, 397 Civic Center Drive, Augusta, Maine, Featuring Maureen Taylor, the Photo Detective, co-hosted by the Maine Historical Society.

May 31, Saturday,  9am to 4pm. Southern Maine Genealogy Conference, to be held at Keeley’s Banquet Center, 178 Warren Avenue, Portland, Maine, the keynote speaker will be Joe Anderson.


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The URL for this post is
http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/february-2014-genealogy-and-local.html

Copyright 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Muriel (Herrick) Karolides (1913 - 2014)

Muriel Herrick and John Karolides

and their children

Obituary, Salem News 30 January 2014

Danvers, MA — Muriel (Herrick) Karolides, Pastor Emeritus of The First Spiritualist Church of Salem, passed peacefully to the spirit side of life on January 24, 2014.

Born in Salem on September 27, 1913, she was the daughter of the late Moses S. and Maybelle (Hitchings) Herrick.

She was the wife of the late John Karolides. She was a homemaker and briefly worked at Leader Baby Shoe and Hotwatt.

Mrs. Karolides dedicated 70 years serving her church as Secretary, Vice President and President. A Certified Medium and Licentiate Minister, she was Assistant Pastor and then Pastor until her retirement in 2004. She served as Secretary of the Massachusetts State Association of Spiritualists for 20 years. In 2005, she was elected Pastor Emeritus and honored with a Life Time Achievement Award by the National Spiritualist Association of Churches.

She was a member of the International Order of Eastern Star, Tontoquan Chapter, and formerly the Mt. Burnett Chapter 119.

Pastimes included composing inspirational songs and poetry and caring for many feline friends.

She leaves two daughters, Elizabeth (Sue) Gehling and Priscilla M. Herrick of Danvers, and her daughter-in-law, Nancy Karolides of Florida.

In addition to her children, she leaves 16 grandchildren, William Karolides, Debbie Karolides, Tracey McNichol, Robert Karolides, Candy McGann, Dawn Karolides, Jay Karolides, Tyra Karolides, Robyn Picillo, Matthew Karolides, Mark Karolides, Heidi Gehling Adams, Timothy Gehling, Shawn Gehling, Elisabeth Lemp Cheney and Rebecca Lemp Matthias; 25 great-grandchildren and 10 great-great-grandchildren. Along with her many nieces and nephews, she also loving remembers foster nephew, David LeClair and his wife, Debbie, of Danvers; niece, Barbara Mahoney of Beverly, and former son-in-law, Herman Lemp.

She was predeceased by sons, Joseph, James and William; her brothers, Charles and Frank; and her sisters, Hilda Patterson and Eleanor Trask.

ARRANGEMENTS: A Memorial Service will be held at the First Spiritualist Church of Salem, 34 Warren St., Salem, MA, on Saturday, February 1, 2014, at 11 a.m. All are invited.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The First Spiritualist Church, 34 Warren St., Salem, MA 01970 or to PALS Animal Life Savers, c/o Kristina Wheeler, PALS Treasurer, 10 Turner Street, Salem, MA 01970.

This obituary is from the Salem News website 

http://www.salemnews.com/obituaries/x1768010005/Muriel-H-Karolides-100

Muriel Herrick was almost 101 years old when she passed away.  She was my grandmother's first cousin, and is the last known person in her generation.  My grandmother Gertrude (Hitchings) Allen died in 2001, at the age of 95. The Hitchings side of the family had some members who lived until their 80s and 90s even in the 1600s, which is quite an achievement! Our immigrant ancestor Daniel Hitchings was born about 1632 in England and died 14 April 1731 in Lynn, Massachusetts.  He deposed on 11 April 1722 that he was 90 years old. 

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The URL for this post is

http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/muriel-herrick-karolides-1913-2014.html

Copyright (c) 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

I'm Going to Jamboree! So You'll be able to Read All About it Here in June!

The Southern California Genealogical Society holds an annual conference known as "Jamboree".  I attended the Jamboree in 2011, and it is still my favorite of all the genealogy conferences I have attended.  The 2014 Jamboree will be held in Burbank, California June 6 - 8, 2014 at the Airport Marriott hotel.

I'll be there, will you?

If not, you can tune in here to my blog in June to read all about it.  Check the list of honorary bloggers attending at this link:  http://www.scgsgenealogy.com/Jamboree/2014/GettingTheMost.htm

If you are a genealogy blogger, and if you display this badge on your blog, you just might win a fantastic prize (free registration!).  For more information, click here:
http://genealogyjamboree.blogspot.com/2014/01/jamboree-tell-everyone-youre-attending.html 

To register for Jamboree, click here http://genealogyjamboree.com/

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The URL for this post is
http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/im-going-to-jamboree-so-youll-be-able.html 

Copyright (c) 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Weathervane Wednesday ~ Above a Diner

Every Wednesday for more than two years Vincent and I have been posting photographs of weather vanes 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 weather vanes. If you know an interesting weather vane, please send me an email or leave a comment below.

Today's weather vane was found just over the border in Vermont. Have fun guessing where you may have seen this weather vane.

Do you know the location of weather vane #135? Scroll down to see the answer....

"TIME TO EAT"

Today's weather vane was seen over the Quechee Diner in Quechee Gorge, Vermont.  We stopped to eat lunch here, and only noticed the weather vane as we were walking toward it. It is a large, gilded, three dimensional eagle.  There is an actual dining car here, attached to a large building with additional seating and a gift shop.  Of course, we ate in the booth in the old, antique dining car!  Breakfast (my favorite) is served all day.  The Diner is located in a shopping area with five great weather vanes!

The Quechee Diner website  http://www.quecheediner.com/


Click here to see the entire collection of Weathervane Wednesday posts!

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The URL for this post is
http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/weathervane-wednesday-above-diner.html

Copyright 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Tombstone Tuesday ~ Two Sisters 1695 and 1696, Portsmouth, New Hampshire

This tombstone was photographed at the Point of Graves Burial Ground, Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

HERE LYETH                                  HERE LYETH

YE BODY OF                                 YE BODY OF

SARAH REDFORD                       ELIZABETH FROST

DIED MAY YE 16                          DIED MAY YE 21

1695                                             1696

IN YE 29 YEAR                           IN YE 14 YEAR

OF HER AGE                                  OF HER AGE

In the book Historic Burial Grounds of the New Hampshire Seacoast by Glenn A. Knoblock, "William Mumford, a Quaker of Boston, carved this double gravestone.  The women were sisters, the daughters of Major Charles Frost.  Sarah married William Redford, a distinguished man who served as provincial secretary.  Major Frost was equally distinguished.  He served as a sergeantmajor for all of Maine from 1682 to 1688, and as a judge of the Common Pleas Court.  He died on July 4, 1697, as a result of an "Indian" ambush on his way home from meeting."

Major Charles Frost was born 30 July 1631 in Tiverton, Devonshire, England and died on 4 July 1697 in Berwick, Maine (just across the river from the Point of Graves).  He married Mary Bowles, daughter of Joseph Bolles and Mary Howell.  Mary's great grandparents are Henry Perkins and Elizabeth Sawbridge, my 11th great grandparents. 

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The URL for this post is

http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/10/tombstone-tuesday-two-sisters-1695-and.html 

Copyright (c) 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

A visit to the Concord Museum

The Concord Museum

200 Lexington Road

Concord, Massachusetts

www.concordmuseum.org

978-369-9763

A clock made in Concord by Daniel Munroe, case by his brother William Munroe

See my blog post last week for the special exhibit on William Munroe furniture

http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/a-special-exhibit-until-march-23rd-on.html

There is special exhibit on Daniel Chester French until March 23, 2014

He sculpted the Concord Minuteman, and the Lincoln Memorial Statue.

This is one of the two lanterns hung in the Old North Church in Boston

to signal "One if land, Two if by Sea" for Paul Revere

The Concord Museum is across the street from Ralph Waldo Emerson's House

In the 1930s his study was moved to the museum, since the house suffered several fires.

The museum if full of lots of Revolutionary War artifacts, as well as 

interesting exhibits from all time periods in Concord history.

Concord Museum  http://www.concordmuseum.org/ 
53 Cambridge Turnpike, Concord, Massachusetts 01742

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The URL for this post is
http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/a-visit-to-concord-museum.html 

Copyright (c) 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Surname Saturday ~ ALLEN of Braintree, Massachusetts

Mount Wollaston, now Quincy, Massachusetts
as it appeared in 1840

Although some earlier works stated that Samuel Allen was a son of George Allen,  there is no proof of this.  In The Great Migration, Volume 1, page 34 the author, Robert Charles Anderson, rejects the notion, too, in his sketch for George Allen.  The sketch for Samuel Allen is on pages 39 to 40.

 

A man named Samuel Allen was admitted as a freeman in the Massachusetts Bay Colony on 6 May 1635, stating that he had been a member of a church in Massachusetts.  There is no church record that exists.  In Braintree, then called Mount Wollaston, a lot was granted to Samuel Allen on 24 February 1639/40.  This is the first know record of my Samuel Allen, my 10^th great grandfather.  He was also a town clerk, selectman, surveyor of highways, and constable.   His will was dated 16 September 1669 in Braintree:

The last will and testament of Samuel Allen of Braintree, in the county of Suffolk in New England, being very weake in body, yet of perfect memory and understanding. What debts I owe, be paid with as much speed as may be convenient. I give unto my sonn Samuel Allen 20 pounds, to bee paid him or his out of my Estate. 10 pounds within one year after my decease and 10 pounds within three years after the first payment bee made. Unto my sonn, Janes Allen, 5 pounds to bee paid him or his within three years after my decease. Unto my sonn- in- law; Josiah Standish, 10 pounds to bee paid him or his, 5 pounds within one year after my decease & the other within two years after the first payment bee made. Unto my sonn-in-law, Nathaniel Greenwood 5 pounds, to bee paid him or his within three years after my decease. Unto my daughter Abigail 30 pounds, to bee paid unto her when she shall bee at the age of 21 years. The rest of my estate as house & land & what else remains, I leave between my beloved wife and my sonn Joseph Allen, that is to say that my wife shall have half the bennifit of house & land & whatever estate may be left after discharge of the legacies during her life, & the other half to my sonn Joseph. Provided they joyne in what is necessary for the support of such as are left in the family. My will is that my wife shall have liberty to give unto any of our children the whole value of 20 pounds where she shall see need. I make my wife and my sonn Joseph, my Executrix and Executor of this my will

Witness the hand of

Samuel Allen

Witnesses, Francis Elliott, John French, Thomas Holbrook.

Know all men, by these present's that I Margaret Allen the Late wife of Samuel Allen now deceased: & Joseph Allen my Sonne both Of the Towne of Brantry in the Goverment of the Massachussets in New England. for & in consideraton of Twenty pounds. given & appointed to her Paide. by the abovesaide Samuel Allen deceased. to his sonne Samuell Allen of Bridgwater in the Goverment of New Plimouth. Wee the abovesaide Margaret Allen & Joseph Allen doe hereb'y acknowledge to here bargained, sold & assigned. ' by this will * * over to the abovesaide Samuell Allen of Bridgewater twelve Acres of Land. Lying & being within the Towneship of Brantry. butting Upon the River called Monatt** beginning at the Upper corner of their Lot next the River neere the Saw Mill & on the North side of the River. & running downe the river soe far as the Cartway at the Bridge to a crooked Ash tree & running in Length the same bredth as its by the River til it makes Up the full Sume of twelve Acres of Land; which Land with Wood. Timber Stones & all other pvilages conteined within the limit's before Specified, I the saide Margaret Allen & Joseph Allen abovesaid doe by these presents. fully, freely, absolutely, aLienate, bargaine, Enfeoffe comirrie & for ever maKe over Unto the aforesaide Samuell Allen of Bridgewater all our claime, title & interest that doth. did or any waise may appeare formerly to belong to Us or any of o'r heires Executo'rs, or adm'rs Unto the aforesaide Samuell Allen of Bridgewater his heires, Executo'rs or adm'rs & assignes; Together with all benefits pvilages & imunities thereUnto belonging To have, hold, occupy & enjoy as his & theire proper Land. peaceably to Enjoy for ever: without any claime. title & adm'rs. or amy Other person or person's whatsoever for or to any part or perSon Of any of the land before Specified as from Us apperteining & Hereun'to have Set o'r hand & Seale. Margaret Allen her Marke & a Seale

Joseph Allen & a Seale

the late being interlined in ye 2d line before Sealing

Signed Sealed & Delivered in the presence of us Daniell

Preston, Samuell Greenwood, Nathaniel Greenewood

This instrument was acKnowledged by Margaret Allen & Joseph Allen as theire Act & deede. Novemb'r 16th 1672 before Edward Ting Assist.

Recorded & Compared Nov'r 21st 1672 p: Isaac Addington Cler.

My ALLEN genealogy:

Generation 1:  Samuel Allen, born about 1598 In England and died 5 August 1669 in Braintree (now Quincy), Massachusetts; married first about 1630 in England to Ann Whitmore (four children), married second to Margaret French, the widow of Edward Lamb (three children).

Generation 2:  James Allen, born about 1636 in Braintree (now Quincy) and died 25 July 1714 in Tisbury, Massachusetts on the island of Martha’s Vineyard; married about 1662 in Duxbury, Massachusetts to Elizabeth Partridge, daughter of George Partridge and Sarah Tracy.  She was born 14 February 1643 in Duxbury, and died 8 August 1722 in Chilmark, Massachusetts on the island of Martha’s Vineyard. Twelve children.

Generation 3:  John Allen born 1682 in West Tisbury, and died 17 October 1767 in Chilmark; married on 1 March 1716 in Chilmark to Margaret Homes, daughter of William Homes and Katherine Craighead.  She was born 28 February 1696 in Straban, Tyrone, Ireland and died 26 April 1778 in Chilmark.  Thirteen children.

Generation 4:  Rebecca Allen, born 25 February 1717 in Chilmark, died 29 May 1790 in Pleasant River, Maine;  married in 1732 in Chilmark to Wilmot Wass, son of John Wass and Ann Wilmot.  He was born 9 February 1712 in Boston, and died before 18 July 1793 in Windsor, Connecticut.  Twelve children.

Generation 5:  Sarah Wass m. Samuel Osborn

Generation 6: Sarah Osborn m. Charles Skinner

Generation 7:  Ann Skinner m. Thomas Ratchford Lyons

Generation 8: Isabella Lyons m. Reverend Ingraham Ebenezer Bill

Generation 9:  Caleb Rand Bill m. Ann Margaret Bollman

Generation 10:  Isabella Lyons Bill m. Albert Munroe Wilkinson

Generation 11:  Donald Munroe Wilkinson m. Bertha Louise Roberts (my grandparents)

The image above is from Wikimedia Commons, "The New English Canaan of Thomas Morton", by Charles Francis Adams, Jr., Boston, 1883 "This view of Mount Wollaston is taken from Rev. William P. Lunt's Two Discourses on the Occasion of the Two Hundredth Anniversary of the First Congregational Church, Quincy", page 37.

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The URL for this post is

http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/surname-saturday-allen-of-braintree.html 

Copyright © 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

A Burns Night poem by “The Rustic Bard” of Windham, New Hampshire

Over the weekend, on January 25^th, is the night usually set aside to celebrate the Scots poet Robert Burns at dinners known as “Burns Night”. The whiskey and the poetry recitations flow at these occasions.  Haggis is served, and pipes are played, and there are multitudes of wordy toasts.  Here in New Hampshire the poems of Burns are sometimes mixed with the poems of Robert Dinsmore, Nutfield’s own Scots Irish poet.

Robert Dinsmore (1757 – 1836) was born in Windham, New Hampshire, the son of Scots Irish immigrants.  He was a simple farmer, and also known as “The Rustic Bard.”  His poetry reflected not only the landscape of New Hampshire, it also was written in the Scots dialect similar to Robert Burns. 

The following poem was written when Dinsmore crushed a sparrow’s nest while plowing his field.  Read it aloud and see if it doesn’t remind you of Burns, too.  John Greenleaf Whittier wrote a book Old Portraits and Modern Sketches, and included this poem as one that most reminded him of the Scots poet Robert Burns.

The Sparrow

Poor innocent and hapless Sparrow
Why should my mould-board gie thee sorrow!
This day thou'll chirp and mourn the morrow
Wi' anxious breast;
The plough has turned the mould'ring furrow
Deep o'er thy nest!

"Just I' the middle o' the hill
Thy nest was placed wi' curious skill;
There I espied thy little bill
Beneath the shade.
In that sweet bower, secure frae ill,
Thine eggs were laid.

"Five corns o' maize had there been drappit,
An' through the stalks thy head was pappit,
The drawing nowt could na be stappit
I quickly foun';
Syne frae thy cozie nest thou happit,
Wild fluttering roun'.

"The sklentin stane beguiled the sheer,
In vain I tried the plough to steer;
A wee bit stumpie I' the rear
Cam' 'tween my legs,
An' to the jee-side gart me veer
An' crush thine eggs.

"Alas! alas! my bonnie birdie!
Thy faithful mate flits round to guard thee.
Connubial love!--a pattern worthy
The pious priest!
What savage heart could be sae hardy
As wound thy breast?

"Ah me! it was nae fau't o' mine;
It gars me greet to see thee pine.
It may be serves His great design
Who governs all;
Omniscience tents wi' eyes divine
The Sparrow's fall!

"How much like thine are human dools,
Their sweet wee bairns laid I' the mools?
The Sovereign Power who nature rules
Hath said so be it
But poor blip' mortals are sic fools
They canna see it.

"Nae doubt that He who first did mate us
Has fixed our lot as sure as fate is,
An' when He wounds He disna hate us,
But anely this,
He'll gar the ills which here await us
Yield lastin' bliss.

For the Truly curious:

Another blog post about Robert Dinsmoor:

https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2011/01/amanuensis-monday-robert-dinsmore.html   

Poems of Robert Dinsmoor, by Leonard Allison Morrison,1898, available at the Internet Archive at this link: https://archive.org/details/poemsofrobertdin00dins  

Old Portraits and Modern Sketches, by John Greenleaf Whittier,   Click at this link to read his chapter on Robert Dinsmore: http://www.readbookonline.net/read/8397/20772/  

The Song Sparrow Nest photo is from Wikimedia, Tony Alter, from Newport News, VA, USA, 2010,  licensed under Creative Commons.

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To Cite/Link to this post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "A Burns Night poem by “The Rustic Bard” of Windham, New Hampshire", Nutfield Genealogy, posted January 24, 2014, ( http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/a-burns-night-poem-by-rustic-bard-of.html: accessed [access date]). 

A Special Exhibit until March 23rd on William Munroe, Concord, Massachusetts Furniture Maker

An eight-day clock made by Daniel Munroe and Company

with a case marked "WM", William Munroe's mark

Early Lexington, Massachusetts was known as Cambridge Farms, and also as Scotland because one of the early settlers was William Munroe.  He was a Scots prisoner of war, sold into servitude on the docks of Charlestown in 1651.  By 1657 he was free, and had removed to what is now Lexington.  His grandsons fought in the Battle of Lexington in 1775, and several were killed.   Two of my 5th great uncles, Robert Munroe (1712 - 1775) and Jonas Parker (1722 - 1775) (he was married to my 5th great grandfather's little sister, Lucy Munroe) were some of the Munroe kin killed on the 19th of April 1775. 

Jedediah Munroe (1721 - 1775), who was killed in the Battle, was a first cousin to my Munroe great uncles who died in the same battle.   His grandsons went into the clock making business together in Concord, Massachusetts. One of the three brothers, William Munroe (1778 – 1861) was a cabinetmaker, and he built the cases for the clockworks.  William was also a fine furniture maker.  During the War of 1812 his furniture business dropped off, but he learned that people were paying a premium for pencils.  Most pencils at that time were made in England, but during the war there was a shortage of them.  So William went into the pencil making business which made him a rich man.  He made the first wooden graphite lead pencils in the United States.

A display of account books and documents from William Munroe

Although he was famous for his pencil business, among collectors he is well known for his fine furniture. Any Munroe furniture that comes up at auction commands very high prices, and is highly sought after by antique dealers. His brief time as a cabinetmaker produced many wonderful pieces of furniture.   Recently many of his side boards, chests and clock cases were gathered for an exhibit at the Concord Museum in Concord, Massachusetts.   You can see this exhibit through 23 March 2014.  They have some of his famous pencils on exhibit, too!

This is a miniature piece of furniture completed by William Munroe

toward the end of his apprenticeship as a demonstration 

of his ability as a cabinetmaker.  

At the Concord Free Public Library until January 31, 2014 is a special exhibit on the William Munroe family, too.  Before going, check the website http://www.concordlibrary.org/ or call them at 978-381-3300 to check the hours of the exhibit.  At this exhibit we saw lots of family photos and documents, a family tree, Munroe artifacts donated to the book and art collections at the Concord Free Public Library and more Munroe pencils on exhibit!

The Munroe Genealogy:

Generation 1 :  William Munroe, born about 1625 near Inverness, Scotland; died 27 January 1718 in Lexington, Massachusetts; married in 1672 to Mary Ball as his second wife (three wives), daughter of John Ball and Elizabeth Pierce.  She was born 1651 and died August 1692 in Lexington.  William Munroe and his first wife,  Martha George, are my 7^th great grandparents.

Generation 2 : Daniel Munroe, born 12 August 1673 in Lexington, died 1 February 1733 in Lexington; married about 1716 to Dority Mooers, daughter of Jonathan Mooers and Constance Langthorne.  She was born 6 November 1688 in Newbury, Massachusetts, and she was the sister of my 6th great grandmother, Sarah Mooers, the wife of George Munroe (actually three Mooers sisters married three Munroe brothers!). 

Generation  3: Jedediah Munroe, born 20 May 1721 in Lexington,  died 19 April 1775 at the Battle of Lexington; married September 1744 in Lexington to Abigail Loring, daughter of Joseph Loring and Lydia Fiske.  She was born before 7 January 1722 in Lexington, died 30 November 1711 in Lexington.

Generation 4 : Daniel Munroe, born 23 September 1744 in Lexington, died 23 July 1827 in Roxbury, Massachusetts; married on 15 September 1774 in Roxbury to Abigail Parker.  She was born 30 January 1753 in Roxbury and died 1 May 1744 in Barnstable, Massachusetts.

Generation  5:  William Munroe, born 15 December 1778 in Roxbury, Massachusetts; died 6 March 1861; married to Martha (Patty) Stone, daughter of Captain John Stone and Martha Greenough. Nine children, including William Munroe (1806 – 1877) founder of the Concord Free Public Library.

For the truly curious:

Sketch of William Munroe, Pencil Maker, at Wikipedia  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Munroe_(pencil_maker)

There is a special exhibit on the Munroe Family of Lexington and Concord at the Concord Free Public Library until January 31, 2014.  http://www.concordlibrary.org/Munroes_Exhibit_%20PR.pdf

The Concord Museum exhibit on William Munroe’s furniture runs through March 23, 2014, and you can learn more about this special exhibition at this link:  http://www.concordmuseum.org/best-workman-in-the-shop.php

The Four Centuries of Massachusetts Funtinture Exhibition and Events website page on William Munroe, Cabinetmaker of Concord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=N2W0ZmQznwM

YouTube video of the collection “Four Centuries of Massachusetts Furniture” a collaboration between 11 museums and institutions   (William Munroe is mentioned in this video)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=N2W0ZmQznwM

The William Munroe family papers are at the Concord Free Public Library, Concord, Massachusetts, Vault A45, Munroe, Unit 6- 2 containers (1.5 linear feet), the Munroe family photograph collection is Vault A45, Munroe Unit 5

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The URL for this post is

http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/a-special-exhibit-until-march-23rd-on.html 

Copyright © 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Weathervane Wednesday ~ Three For One!

Every Wednesday for more than two years Vincent and I have been posting photographs of weather vanes 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 weather vanes. If you know an interesting weather vane, please send me an email or leave a comment below.

Today's weather vane was just over the border in Vermont.  It is actually three weather vanes on one building. Have fun guessing where you may have seen these weather vanes.

Do you know the location of weather vane #134? Scroll down to see the answer....

Today's weather vanes were seen on top of the Quechee Gorge Village Marketplace antique shop. They are gilded, and quite large, so they were very visible from Route 4.  The deer weather vane is especially large, but it tilted at a precarious angle.  We stopped here after seeing the famous Gorge (less than half a mile down the street) and went into the antique store where I found a large selection of used books on New England history.  There were five weather vanes in this one shopping area!  A great stop for weather vane fans.

Quechee Gorge Village Marketplace website http://www.quecheegorge.com/index.php

Click here to see the entire collection of Weathervane Wednesday posts!

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The URL for this post is
http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/weathervane-wednesday-three-for-one.html
Copyright 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

2014 New Hampshire Mayflower Society Memorial Scholarships

The deadline for applications will be February 15, 2014

The 2014 New Hampshire Mayflower Society Memorial Scholarships are available to any college student (undergraduate or graduate student) or high school senior.  You don't need to be a member of the Mayflower Society, or a descendant of a Mayflower passenger to apply, but members and close relatives of members will receive preference (defined as members, junior members, siblings, children, grandchildren and great grandchildren).  Applicants with no affiliation to the New Hampshire Mayflower Society are invited to apply.  This is one of the few Mayflower scholarships in the USA awarded to non-members.  Applicants MUST be able to attend the award ceremony, in person, in New Hampshire.  It is expected that at least two to four scholarships of $500 to $1000 will be awarded in May 2014.

Applications and instructions are available at the website www.nhmayflower.org  and applications and all required paperwork is due strictly by February 15, 2014.  Or you may email Heather Rojo at scholarship@nhmayflower.org for more information and further instructions.  The New Hampshire Mayflower Society can also be found on Facebook.

The requirement to attend the spring meeting may be waived at the discretion of the New Hampshire Mayflower Governor due to such issues as illness or death in the family.  Should the recipient receive a waiver from the Governor due to a hardship, a letter from the recipient to the Society must be submitted to be read at the meeting, as well as a photograph of the recipient for display.  In such cases, parents or relatives may attend the award ceremony to accept the award on the recipient's behalf.

The General Society of Mayflower Descendants also gives an annual $5,000 scholarship to a junior member.  Please send your inquiries to scholarships@themayflowersociety.org

The New Hampshire Mayflower Society website http://www.nhmayflower.org/ 

Click here for the webpage with application and instructions

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The URL for this post is
http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/2014-new-hampshire-mayflower-society.html 

Copyright (c) 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Tombstone Tuesday ~ William Button, 1693, Portsmouth, New Hampshire

This tombstone was photographed at the Point of Graves Burial Ground, Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

HERE LYETH BURIED YE BODY

OF WILLIAM BUTTON OF

JERSEY AGED 37 YEARS

DIED YE 19 DAY OF OTOBER

1693

BURIED BY CLEMENT 

LEMPRIERE EN THO. BUTTON

From the book Historic Burial Grounds of the New Hampshire Seacoast by Glenn A. Knoblock, "William Button, 1693, Point of Graves, Portsmouth.  This elaborate stone was carved by a man known only as "J. N.", and has been restored in recent years.  Button was an English merchant with a large business on the Piscataqua River.  He met his death by drowing, probably after falling overboard from his ship Lyon.  The inscription includes the names of the two men who buried him, Clement Lempriere, a sea captain of the Island of Jersey, and Thomas Button, William's brother.  At his death, Button left an estate valued at 1490 pounds, a very large sum in those days.  The details on this stone are striking.  Note the funeral urn in the center topped with a small-winged skull, flanked by cherubs.  The intricately carved side borders depict pomegranates and gourds amidst an abundance of leaves.  Button's gravestone leaves no doubt to his wealth and standing in the community."

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Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Tombstone Tuesday ~ William Button, 1693, Portsmouth, New Hampshire", Nutfield Genealogy, posted January 31, 2014, ( http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/10/tombstone-tuesday-william-button-1693.html: accessed [access date]).  

Martin Luther King in Boston

Boston University's Marsh Chapel
and the sculpture "Free at Last" dedicated to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr. came to Boston in 1951 to attend Boston University graduate school, earning a Ph. D. in theology in 1955.   Howard Thurman’s sermon’s at the Marsh Chapel, including his accounts of visiting Gandi taught King about nonviolent protest.  Dr. Thurman was the first black dean of a predominantly white American university.   Today the BU library houses King’s personal papers.

My Dad was at Boston University at the same time as Dr. King.  He matriculated in 1952 and graduated in 1957.  Dad took many classes in theology, but he was a Government major.  I don’t know if he ever crossed paths with Dr. King, or if he would have even known him in those years before he was famous.  But Dad always liked to mention the fact that they went to the same school at the same time.

Dr. King loved Boston after choosing to study here because of the diversity in the community.  It was in Boston that he met his wife, Coretta Scott, who was a student at the New England Conservatory.  He returned to Boston in 1965 to address a joint session of the Massachusetts legislature, and on the following day he led a freedom march from the South End to the Boston Common where he spoke to 22,000 people in the rain.

Although we tend to think of Dr. King fighting for justice in the South, he returned to Boston and the North many times to address injustices all over the United States.  On 11 September 1964, while donating his papers to BU, he said:

“This struggle, while we are based in the South, is a national struggle and it requires concern of people all over the nation… Injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere.  The problem is very serious in the North.  Racial injustice does exist in the North in a very serious way.”

The night of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968, there was violent unrest in the city.  But the following night, although many US cities had continuing violence and riots, the rock star James Brown kept the peace in Boston.  He had been scheduled to appear in the Boston Garden, but agreed with Mayor Kevin White to have his concert broadcast live on WGBH TV.  It was hoped that this would keep Bostonians in front of their TVs at home instead of protesting on the streets- and it worked.

Today, there are lasting signs of Dr. King’s legacy in Boston - Martin Luther King Boulevard in Roxbury, The MLK Towers housing project, the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast, scholarships, schools, sculptures and community programs all bear his name and continue his memory.

Click at this link to read a fragment of Martin Luther King’s essay on his application to the Boston University Graduate School

 http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/documentsentry/doc_500000_013/

The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Archive at the Boston University Gotlieb Archival Research Center http://www.bu.edu/dbin/mlkjr/

The 44^th Annual Boston MLK Memorial Breakfast http://www.mlkbreakfastboston.org/2014/

Boston’s MLK Day of Service and Learning  “Make it a day on, not a day off!”

http://www.cmsboston.org/Martin-Luther-King-Day-2014.html

http://www.bostoncares.org/mlk_day

“The Night James Brown Saved Boston”  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1MXrl_9AlY  and also http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsHZakDPDvo, etc.

James Brown Live at Boston Garden 1968 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ-8P-mMyFg (at about 1:29:30 you can see where James Brown and the police clash, and he calms the crowd)

Video of citizens gathering at a peaceful rally in Boston following Martin Luther King, Jr.’s 1968 assassination http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/bln12.soc.civil.mlkresponse/reaction-to-the-assassination-of-martin-luther-king-jr-1968/

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To cite/link to this blog post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Martin Luther King in Boston", Nutfield Genealogy, posted January 20, 2014, (  http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/01/martin-luther-king-in-boston.html: accessed [access date]). 

Surname Saturday ~ HAWES of Duxbury and Yarmouth, Massachusetts

HAWES

Edmond Hawes was baptized in Solihull, Warwickshire, England on 15 October 1613, the son of Edmond Hawes.   He was apprenticed to a “cutler” (knifemaker) named Edward Warnet, and his records can be found in the London Company of Cutlers according to the Great Migration sketch of his life.  Edmond Hawes was a passenger on the James, which left Southampton, England about 5 April 1625.  His first residence in Massachusetts was the town of Duxbury.

He was made a freeman in Duxbury on 3 March 1644/5, and then removed to the town of Yarmouth by 1643.   He held many offices, which can be found in the Plymouth County Records, such as deputy, auditor, constable, selectman, and various committees.   The Plymouth County Records also record many land transactions in Duxbury and Yarmouth, and his will dated 5 May 1692 and proved on 20 July 1683. 

The name of his wife is unknown, and he had only one child, John, born about 1636, who married Desire Gorham, the granddaughter of John Howland the Mayflower passenger.  All of Edmond Hawes descendants are eligible for membership in the General Society of Mayflower Descendants.

John Hawes died in 1701, after having his leg amputated .   As a young man he had been brought before a jury on 5 March 1600/1 for accidentally causing an injury in a friend he had been wrestling.  He was found “not guilty” and released.   He grew up to also be a cutler, and served as a representative to the General Court.

The best sources for information on Edmond Hawes are The Great Migration, by Richard Charles Anderson, Volume II, pages 247 - 250.  Another good source of information is the book Edmond Hawes of Yarmouth, Massachusetts, by James William Hawes, 1914.  The Howland books published by the Mayflower Society’s Five Generation Project would also have the descendants of John Hawes and Desire Gorham. 

My HAWES genealogy:

Generation 1:  Edmond Hawes, son of Edmond Hawes, baptized 15 October 1613 in Solihull, Warwickshire, England; died 9 June 1693 in Yarmouth, Massachusetts; married with one known, surviving child.

Generation 2: John Hawes, born about 1636 in Duxbury, Massachusetts, died 11 November 1701 in Yarmouth; married on 7 October 1661 in Barnstable, Massachusetts to Desire Gorham, daughter of John Gorham and Desire Howland.  She was born 2 April 1644 in Plymouth, Massachusetts, and died 30 June 1700 in Yarmouth.  Eleven children.

Generation 3: Elizabeth Hawes, born 5 October 1662 in Yarmouth, died between 25 December 1732 and 13 February 1734 in Edgartown on the island of Martha’s Vineyard;  married on 22 January 1684 in Bristol, Rhode Island to Thomas Daggett, son of Thomas Daggett and Hannah Mayhew.   He was born about 1658 and died 28 August 1726 in Edgartown.  Ten children.

Generation 4: Elizabeth Daggett m. John Butler

Generation 5:  Keziah Butler and Reverend Samuel Osborn

Generation 6: Samuel Osborn m. Sarah Wass

Generation 7:  Sarah Osborn m. Charles Skinner

Generation 8: Ann Skinner m.  Thomas Ratchford Lyons

Generation 9: Isabella Lyons m. Reverend Ingraham Ebenezer Bill

Generation 10:  Caleb Rand Bill m. Ann Margaret Bollman

Generation 11: Isabella Lyons Bill m. Albert Munroe Wilkinson

Generation 12: Donald Munroe Wilkinson m. Bertha Louise Roberts (my grandparents)

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The URL for this post is

http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/12/surname-saturday-hawes-of-duxbury-and.html 

Copyright ©2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo