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NOTE TO LOYAL LETTER READERS: Somewhere between the end of 2009 and today your humble editor blanked out. Letters have been coming in so rapidly that, although I answered hundreds of them via email, I never got around to posting the monthly list. Here are a few from the alst couple of months, and with luck, I'll catch up soon. Yours sincerely, -- The Ed

JOHN SMITH NOT YOUR GRANDADDY
I just read your article on Captain John Smith. I realize you wrote that a while ago, but I am wondering if in your research you discovered if he was ever married and did he have any descendants? If so, can you point me in the right direction??? Been looking for the answers myself but haven't had any luck!
Thanks!
Krys Boehme

EDITOR’S REPLY: Smith never married and had no known descendants. Anyone who thinks he is descended from Smith -- isn't. There were, however, many Captain John Smiths in history who you can find online and who had children, but not the historical John Smith of Jamestown. He was childless and his line ended with him.

THANKS FROM THE PICKERINGS
I am the granddaughter of Ernest Pickering who is the son of Byron. I have been researching the Pickering family and have dated them back to the John Pickering who came to the US from England. I really enjoyed reading your article online about John and his family. Thank you so much!
Take care,
Marjorie Pitzer

LIGHT HOUSEKEEPING
Hello my family lived on Bear Island while my father tended to the light while he was in the Coast Guard in 1968-1969. From what I know we were the last family to live there for the Coast Guard.
Frederick Coyle

HISTORIC HOUSING SCREWUP?
I am looking for information about Wentworth Acres. For years I have heard the tale of how the wood buildings that used to be there were supposed to go to Virginia and the brick used in Virginia was to go to Portsmouth, but things got switched. I would like to find out if indeed this is a true story.
Martin Burns of Portsmouth

EDITOR’S REPLY: It’s a great old myth about Seacrest Village, but just a myth. We’ve not tracked the source of the story, but it isn’t true. The government houseing project was actually at Atlantic Heights where the rumor started even earlier, but records from the construction still exists and show that what was ordered is what arrived. A few of the houses were designed to built in wood, the others brick.

ROCKINGHAM HOUSE PHOTO
That is such a great picture of the Woodbury Langdon House that you published in the Herald a couple of weeks ago. It reminded me of the documentation on the building date that I sent Jim Garvin a couple of years ago. I thought you would be interested in it as well.  

Long before we moved to Portsmouth a friend in Charleston, South Carolina, sent Jane and me excerpts of a diary a Charlestonian kept on a trip to the North in 1793. She thought we would be interested in his comments about Bulfinch buildings in Boston. I pulled it out again a couple of years ago in preparation for I tour of the Otis House I was giving to a group from Charleston and realized the guy also wrote a page on his visit to Portsmouth. He visited John Langdon and then says "I went to see a House building by Mr. Woodbury Langdon. . . It will be one of the most elegant in America." Jim never could quite resolve where Woodbury Langdon got such up to date neo classical ideas as early as 1785. Eight years makes a difference.
Richard C. Nylan der

WANTS WINDJAMMER FILM
I am very interested in the old windjammers crossing the oceans, on which I also sail for many years. Over that I collect old documentary films of these magnificent ships. For years I look for the film "Windjammer - The Voyage of the Christian Radich" (1958). Surfing in Internet I discovered the film title on your homepage. Is this film to buy on VHS or DVD (PAL)? If, which costs a single copy?
Kind regards
Dietrich Peter Kleine in Germany
Member of Sail Training Association Germany, Bremerhaven; Member of Tall-Ship Friends Deutschland e.V., Hamburg; Member of Cape Horn Veterans Club of STS Kruzenshtern, Kaliningrad, Russia; Collaborating Member of the Brotherhood of Captains of Cape Horn of Chile, Valparaíso; Member of the German Navy Federation DMB, Laboe (Kiel);

EDITOR’S REPLY: Sorry to say the same as to dozens of others requests, but as far as we know Louis de Rochemont’s WINDJAMMER film has never been made available to the public. You can find the book, which is full of details, on eBay almost always for about $10. It’s worth biuying.

SEACOAST IST FOR KINDERS
I’m looking to take 24 Kindergarten aged students on field trips, once a week, over the summer. Any great ideas? We will be coming from Salem, NH.
Thanks, Maria Camerlengo
Preschool Director

EDITOR'S REPLY:  We're sending along a list of key venues that are perfect for your audience from Strawbery Banke and the Children's Museum of Portsmouth to the Secoast Science Center and Music Hall. 　

SEEKING SURRENDERED U-BOATS
Since many years I am engaged in the research on the technique and fates of German U-Boats. Especially I am interested in the boats of type IXC and IXD2. It was in 1945 when German U-Boats of the mentioned types had beeen directed to Portsmouth NH after having surrendered. The boats had been inspected and technical reports had been written. On the website of Jerry Mason ( uboatarchive.net) I found the report "2G-9c" con cerning the type IXC. But there must also exist a report on the type IXD2 (U-873): "2G-9d2".Is this report hold in Your archive or do You know where can I find it today? Hoping that an answer will be possible for You
I remain with best regards
Wolfgang Lauenstein in Germany

EDITOR’S REPLY: Thanks for your letter. Everything we know about U-boats is included in the article we have posted online. We have no archive and no additional information. I suggest contacting Jim Dolph who is curator of the rarely seen navy museum at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Good luck with your search for more information. We will post your letter in the hopes that one of our readers may have more information.

THE DAY MAX FELL
Hello Dennis—I wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed your article. I came to UNH at about this time. I missed Maynard and Daggett, but knew Don Murray, Ted Weesner, Mike DePorte and many others. Memories of Don and his stories are with me to this day. Thanks again for the Maynard article.
Bob Mennel

I do always enjoy your columns but this one today took the cake. Thanks for sharing and a fine piece of writing. Joyce went to ORHS before I came there to teach but I heard some stories about her from colleagues; a most precocious young woman! But Max..because of what you wrote, I will not soon forget him
Alex H

HANCOCK INSURANCE HISTORY BOOKS 
Regarding this site and the Historical Booklets - we just got a donation of 41 of them and I wanted to let you know that there is one about Clara Barton and one about American Indians (your text wrote "no women or ethnic heroes" that you knew of). Nice site,
Ray Bonis
Special Collections and Archives
James Branch Cabell Library
VCU Libraries

MOVING TO TOWN
Hello! My husband and I are contemplating a move to NH before the year is out--hopefully well before the year is out! We are looking at the seacoast area, an area with which we are less familiar than other parts of New Hampshire. Can you recommend a resource for us that compiles information on the seacoast towns north, west and south of the Portsmouth area? We will start making trips to area to explore on our own to begin gathering information, but thought I'd reach out to you for your thoughts/recommendations. The Portsmouth Chamber of Commerce mailed us a brochure, but it seemed more to do with planning a vacation, which is not our purpose.
Thank you!
(Name withheld by request)

EDITOR'S REPLY: Hope you got the supply of links sent separately. It contiunes to be confusing that there are 14 separate chambers of commerce in this nearby "seacoast" region. That must seem crazy to anyone coming from a larger region, but hey, NH and Maine is all about independent towns. We're too fiesty to have our chambers get together and form one hugely informative resouces. Instead, each town gives out a little bit of info about its own tiny region. Hope the stuff we sent helps. The local chamber used to publish a very informative color annual called Coastline that would have provided just what you were looking for, but sadly, it died in the current financial crunch.

JENNY LIND’S PORTRAIT
Dear Dennis, I did locate the original portrait of Jenny Lind from the book "Jenny Lind and the Clipper Nightingale Figurehead" by Karl-Eric Svardskog. The original painting is by Eduard Magnus in 1846. The National Portrait Gallery in London has what they call a "replica". Just thought you might want to know since you were so kind to reply to my email.
Beth Isaacson
National Portrait Gallery
Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

BOTTLE CAP PRESIDENTS
Happened to stumble upon an article you wrote in 2000 about Presidential visits to the seacoast. You began the peice with mention of "Presidents on Milk Bottle Caps". Just thought I would let you know that I still have my complete set (35) glued to the wall chart. JFK was the last piece.
PS: I once got a 50 cent tip from JFK for filling up his limo with gas. This was before he became President. Have a nice day
Richard D. Bienvenue in Mass