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January 30 MILLIONS MORE MEET VAL I am on family business in Central Fla.-- you should be so lucky!--and the local newspaper includes a Parade-like section -- and Sunday's had two full color pages with pix on Portsmouth Black History and Valeria Cunningham. in an article, with the notation to go to SeacoastNH.com for further info. I'll send the copy to you. Peggy Fish of Madbury GrannyFish@aol.com EDITOR'S REPLY: Thanks! We got a call from TN or KY or somewhere telling us this American Profile feature on Valerie was going to appear in 2.3 million households last weekend in advance of Black History month. We've see the web site, but that doesn't link here. We look forward to seeing the paper article that links the world to us, while we work on more black history info for next month. http://www.americanprofile.com/issues/20010128/20010128_478.asp http://www.seacoastnh.com/blackhistory/ January 29 LOOK FOR MORE JENNY THIS YEAR Enjoyed reading your Oct 1997 issue of "This Just in Archives" regarding the Jenny Lind figurehead. I am researching the Jenny Lind as my great-great grandparents sailed on a 600 ton ship the Jenny Lind from Boston on December 13th, 1852 to Madras and Calcutta, India. I have their diary of the 140 day voyage. They were on their way to Ceylon to serve as medical missionairies. The captain of the ship was a Mr Robinson. The ship was described as having 26 sails. I understand there were several ships built around 1850 named after the Swedish opera star Jenny Lind. Frank Joy frjoy@papadocs.com EDITOR'S REPLY: We're not aware of ships made outside the Piscataqua region and our focus is on The Nightingale clipper that may have sported a figurehead of the famous Swedish singer Jenny Lind. We'll be covering that story further in 2001 when a complete book on the recently discovered wooden figurehead is published by Peter Randall. We have a pre-press copy of the info and will keep you informed. (Check SeacoastStore for its release too.) Meanwhile, you should think of having that diary published, either by a subsidy press or via On Demand Printing (ODP) so others can see it. http://www.seacoastnh.com/tjioct97.html#jenny January 27 THE GHOST OF TOBIAS LEAR SEEN IN VIRGINIA? I just read J. Dennis Robinson's article on Tobias Lear ("The Many Loves of Mr. Lear"). His other topics look fascinating--wish I had time to read them all immediately. I read this article because I used to work at River Farm. Although I worked in the Carriage House and usually left by 5 or so, those who worked in the main house and stayed late invariably had visits from Tobias - from reflections in the mirror, to the usual strange noises, to all of the cupboard doors being mysteriously opened. I had read somewhere that he commited suicide at a new residence in Georgetown, so decided that my coworkers imaginations had run away with them. If Dennis is right that he killed himself at River Farm, however... Kathleen F kfisher@Hanley-Wood.com DENNIS ROBINSON RESPONDS: We're not heard tales of a Tobias ghost in his home town, but he was pretty much at peace here, not facing the pressures of Washington (the town and the man). I don't remember ever implying that poor Tobias shot himself at River Farm, but that he did so in his garden in Virginia, meaning his house in Alexandria. The River Farm home was a gift from George and Martha when Tobey married the FIRST Fanny who died soonafter. By his death, he was living with the SECOND Fanny Lear at the OTHER Virginia home. Sure does get confusing, especially since River Farm is now famous for its "gardens" as home of the American Horticultural Society. Anywhere, here is the death notice from the Washington City Gazette on Lear's death in 1816 taken from Ray Brighton's biography:
Yesterday morning, after breakfast, Col. Tobias Lear, accountant of the War Dept., retired into his garden, and shot himself with a pistol; his son, Mr. Benjamin Lincoln Lear, discovered by the report his unfortunate father, who immediately expired. Insanity, it is conjectured, occasioned his melancholy act. "
January 27 LEARS IN PENNSYLVANIA? Hello, according to the "History of Bucks county" the Lears of Virginia were connected to the Lears of Tinicum township Bucks county. Are you aware of any connections. thank you. Tianasj@cs.com EDITOR'S REPLY: We're not genealogists, but it seems unlikely if not downright impossible that there is any connection between the families. Tobias Lear (the Fifth) was the only son of an old Portsmouth NH family that was descended directly from a Lear line that continues today in the West of England. The Lears lived only a few years in Virginia off and on. They had one son who had no children. How that would land them in PA is pretty hard to fathom. Tobias Lear's first two wives died and Fanny @nd) did not remarry. Sounds like it may be a family legend, but not likely a family fact -- that's our guess. Attached is a link to a PA site with a similar claim but it notes that Tobias had a brother Joseph (he didn't) and that the family line came from Germany (it didn't). The error may be in the fact that there were four previous Tobias Lears older than our native son who became secretary to George Washington. Maybe there is a connection further back, but it is likely way back. Attached is a link to the Bucks County reference above and to our LEAR section. http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/6508/EARLY.HTM http://www.seacoastnh.com/tobiaslear/ January 25 FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE I am a master of sailing nave models. Help I find in INTERNET address of greater muses (exhibitions), where be much sailing nave models. Thank you!!! Kolesnikov G. denirus@orc.ru JOHN STANDISH OF MAINEHARBORS.COM RESPONDS: Lars Bruzelius at Upsala in Sweden maintains an extensive site covering maritime history. His Naval and Maritime Museums page has well organized links to maritime organizations and museums around the world. http://pc-78-120.udac.se:8001/WWW/Nautica/Museums/mm.html http://www.maineharbors.com January 24 SHE BOUGHT THE BOOK I loved the interview with Sue Melanson, I've ordered her book, (Linda E. Savage, Ph.D is the author of Reclaiming Goddess Sexuality. Her web site is www.goddesstherapy.com Linda lindasavagephd@goddesstherapy.com http://www.seacoastnh.com/wentbysea/1969.html January 24 CUTT! THAT'S A WRAP, URSULA I enjoyed reading the story of Colonial Governor's wife Ursula Cutt. It would seem that this story might make an interesting movie. It could begin with her meeting and marrying Mr. Cutt. I would think that even in the 1600s that a President's/Governor's wife would have a bit of glamour in her life. Then she would face the challenge of widowhood, and managing the farm. The horrific conclusion, (properly done) could lead to a memorable conclusion. (for a similar sort of thing, I think of the 1980's movie Lady Jane, with the chilling scene of the ex-Queen, blindfolded, laying her neck on the block, awaiting the headsman's stroke.) Has Mrs. Cutt's story ever been made into a movie? John Hall jhalljhalljhall@hotmail.com EDITOR'S REPLY: We can pretty much assure you that no story of SeacoastNH in the 1600s has ever been attempted. We really have no clue as to how the people talked or looked like, what the region looked like or any real details at all from this era. It would be a monumental history research project to figure this out. Imagine Portsmouth looking much like Salem in the movie version of the Crucible. It's a dramatic story all right. There are scores of them in this area, but filmmakers tend to shy away from anything related to history, especially much before the Civil War. This is 200 years before that! Good luck with the screenplay. http://www.seacoastnh.com/arts/please011301.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/brewster/5.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/dead/scalping.html January 24 The EDITOR IS BACK IN THE BUILDING Little counter says we have 286 emails to review. We'll get right on it after readjusting from our trip. First we'll cut through the SPAM (GET VIAGRA ONLINE! ARE YOU IN DEBT? LEGAL CABLE DESCRAMBLED AVAILABLE!) and respond to as many notes in person as time allows, then post a few. Don't worry, you'll hear ALL about our first visit to the American Southwest in a future 2-part feature called "A Yankee in the Desert". Now, everybody, back to work. Your Humble Editor January 18 YES, VIRGINIA, THEY DO TAKE VACATIONS For the first time in history, the editor of SeacaostNH.com will attempt to cross the Mason-Dixon line. We have long heard that there is life on the other side, but so far, no evidence beyond email. We've packed enough long underwear and protein bars to make the trip, and will report back what we discover on the other side. It is a world, we hear, without lobsters, maple syrup, colonial architecture and Smuttynose Beer. If that is true, we should be back by early next week. Wish us luck, The Editor & Friend January 17 MORE ON GILES Dear Bob and SeacaostNH.com: Thank you for your response regarding Matthew Giles on the Isle of Shoals (see letter below). My conjecture is that he arrived on an English fishing boat in the 1618-1628 period, perhaps from Wales, since there are several Giles families there. I suspect he decided to winter over to dry, salt and pack fish for return to England. That he prospered in this effort seems clear, since he was the biggest taxpayer by 1643. When the Cocheco Plantation was established on the Oytster River, the plat of the plantation shows a cottage marked Matthew Giles, and I have always suspected this took place after the "acification"of the local Indian tribes . I have not been able to find any record of his marriage, although the first Mark Giles is frequently mentioned as his son. But what is so aggravating to me is that I haven't been able to confirm any of this speculation. I keep on feeling that I'll stumble on some definitive source of information on the early maritime history of New Hampshire. Through a different link, I'm related to David Thomson, credited with building the first English settlement in New Hampshire in 1623, but the Giles side continues to frustrate me due to lack of a good "fisherman's eye view" of what was happening along that coast at the time. Anything you can unearth would be like manna from heaven. Fred Hallett EDITOR'S REPLY: We too are eagerly awaiting publication of a manuscript on life on the Shoals in the 1600s by Faith Harrington who did a great deal of archeological research in that area years ago. Her theories and data will not solve genealogical questions, but will go a long way toward helping us all understand what life was like in a harsh island outpost. Imagine life on the Shoals then as similar to life on a Moon camp in the future. We'll let readers know via this site when the book is eventually published. http://www.seacoastnh.com/arts/please091000.html January 16 MATTHEW GILES ON THE ISLES OF SHOALS My mother was a Giles, and we can trace her lineage through Capt. Paul Giles (B. 1743) in Dover, N.H. through three generations of Mark Giles to the first Mark's father, Matthew Giles (probably born in England about 1610) who was the largest taxpayer on the Isle of Shoals in 1643 where he owned a fishing plant. He signed the petition for township status March 3, 1653, and we believe was an early resident at Cocheco Plantation in 1665. He died in 1668. His son, Mark, died in Dover, NH on 11 Aug 1704. Do you know when Matthew might have arrived at Isle of Shoals? When did the fishing industry get started there? Why would he have moved off-island? Any historical details would be welcomed. Thanks Fred Hallett hallett@severnapark.com OLD SHOALER BOB TUTTLE REPLIES: Dear Fred: SeacoastNH.com forwarded your inquiry and I've attached you all (under separate cover) the information I could find. Note that in the specific reference to him in the Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire it states that he "Died childless 21 January 1666-7".
I have no idea when Matthew Giles came to the Shoals. The best estimate of when fishing started there is sometime in the early 1620s. There is a comment in the narrative of Christopher Levett, who visited the Shoals in 1623, from which one can infer that there was fishing going on at that time. As to why he moved off the island, all I can say is that buying property on the mainland and leaving was not an uncommon thing. As time went on, and people acquired some money, there was an impetus to leave - it
must have been a tough life on the rocky shoals.
January 15 DANIEL'S DESK We believe we have the desk used by Daniel Webster when he was serving in Washington as a Senator. We have no idea how to sell this item to a town or organization wishing to preserve his memory and his contributions to the country. Do you have any ideas ? The Kilburns of Davis, CA LKBear@pacbell.net EDITOR'S REPLY: We don't know the antiques biz, but this sounds like a wonderful item. You might contact the Daniel Webster homestead in West Franklin, NH or the NH Historical Society in Concord, NH in search of a Webster expert. He lived in Portsmouth only 10 years and was long gone by end of the War of 1812. There is also a web site for the Antiques Roadshow to consider. We suggest also looking on eBay for similar items, then contacting the sellers or key buyers of the items via email (their addresses are posted on the auction site). One of them may be welling to handle the item for you for an online sale. Authenticity is a huge issue, it is important first, to have your provenance in order so that you can document the evidence that this item is real. Most such items turn out to be family legends with no evidence to back them up. Take some high quality photos from a number of angles and begin to circulate those to potentially helpful people, including historic sites that you think might want to bid on the item.
As always, it is our policy to urge people with important heirlooms to have the items evaluated, then to donate them deserving institutions in exchange for the tax benefit. Most nonprofits do not have the funds to purchase the key items they need, but provide the opportunity for the public to view these historic treasures that might otherwise end up in a collector's home. We've been able to broker the gift of a few items to Portsmouth area nonprofits and would be happy to help again. Good luck and keep us posted.
January 14 PLUGGING GIFTS FROM MAINE First I have to let you know how very much I enjoy your SeacoastNH.com and newsletters ...Now I have a new site for you (or maybe you already know about it??) This site is from Maine and features ONLY made in Maine products .. (see link below) You might want to check them out Beth fblpl@webtv.net http://www.GiftsFromME.com/ January 12 HISTORY OF CHOWDA? Hi, I am a 5th grade student researching the history/origin of new england clam chowder. I have not had much luck with my research and was wondering if you had any information on this topic? Ken Noll EDITOR'S REPLY: Tough topic -- writing about the history of something that has been passed down from family to family. Sounds like a lifetime project. We only know OUR clam chowder, but combing the web we did fund the one history link below. Hope it helps: http://www.dominionpost.com/a/food/2000/10/11/c/ http://www.seacoastnh.com/arts/please011898.html January 11 AN OLD PORTSMOUTH MAYOR Would like info on John Tilton. Bert Tilton berttilton@webtv.net EDITOR'S REPLY: We asked Nicole and Suzanne at the Portsmouth Library who found precious little about John F. Tilton who appears to have been mayor for one year in 1898. Other than combing through local newspapers on microfilm and looking at the city directories or delving into old city records, this Tilton appears not to have made much of a splash. He did not appear even in local biographical publications. From the history of Rockingham Country we learn that he was preceded by Mayor John W. Emery (1897) and followed by Mayor Calvin Page (1899). January 11 ON THEIR WAY FROM OLD ENGLAND Hello! This is from St.Bees, a coastal village in Cumbria in Northern England, U.K. Glad to see your site. Hope to visit NH in Feb or March. I found you from a list of sites sent to me by the NH Tourist Office. Neville Denson in the UK Peneden@aol.com January 10 FROM TODAY'S NEWSLETTER FANS However I got to be on your list, I am delighted. I have just skimmed this issue and am looking forward to going back for more. Wes Tator westator1@mediaone.net WOW! PatRMaison@aol.com I have been enjoying your newsletter soo much that I decided I had better let you know. I have no idea how many e-mails you get, telling you what a pleasure your articles are, but I wish to be one of those senders. I have been here in the New Smyrna Beach/Edgewater area since 1989, when I retired from "New England Telephone "company in Andover, Ma. It really was the best of times. Before Ma Bell got so sophisticated. I gave birth to four boys at the Exeter "cottage hospital ". I loved Exeter and spent many days in the Portsmouth area. Newburyport is also a fascinating city to remember and read about. I forward your letters now, to a few of my friends up north and from up north.....Thank you for your newsletters and your hard work and memories. Dottie Ward of Edgewater, Fl. dotdon4@juno.com You guys are doing a great job with this! Keep it up! Don Chesnel, NH State Elks Association dches@concentric.net Loved the before and after pictures in Yesterday and Today! Great articles with the pictures. I'll have to tell my customers about this. You both did a great job. Suzy at Bernards Barber Shop in Portsmouth IBOVNU@mediaone.net January 09 SUPERSIZED LOBSTER-TO-GO Will be in Portsmouth this coming Thursday...Can you advise where I can purchase large (2-3 lb) live lobsters ? Dan Noel daniel-noel@webtv.net EDITOR'S REPLY: Just about anywhere. It's a town law that every store has to carry large lobsters - even the Gap. Just kidding folks. You can search on LOBSTER on SeacoastSearch.com, the best local listing on the web. For big-uns, we recommend our advertiser OvernightLobster.com that has a local outlet. http://www.overnightlobster.com/ January 08 WHERE WAS THAT OLD DAMM GARRISON? Hello. I recently built a home on Old Garrison Road in Dover, and am very curious about the location of the Damm Garrsion along that road. I went to the Woodman Institute to see the house, and spoke to someone there but they were unsure about where it actually sat. I just reviewed your great website with information about the home that was fantastic. In the 1916 speech by John Scales, he also mentions a mansion nearby. Do you have any information regarding the location of these two homes? Or how I may find out more? I appreciate your help! I recently relocated to Dover from Portsmouth. I have a passion for history and devoured all I could about Portsmouth. Now I am on to Dover! Kim Sidmore krv@nh.ultranet.com EDITOR'S REPLY: We too would like to know exactly where the old garrison, now in on Central Ave, once sat. More and more we're trying to facilitate answers, rather than do the legwork since our mail is extensive and our resources not. We can turn you over to the Dover experts -- Cathy Beauoin, Bob Whitehouse, Thom Hindle, Jack Story, Strafford County Genealogical, Northam Colonists, Piscataqua Pioneers and the like. We're sure they have the answer you seek. When you find out, let us know. A popular photos of the garrison on its original spot in Dover doesn't offer enough info to locate the site, but we're sure this turn of the century info is easily available in town. Hoping to heard from you! http://www.seacoastnh.com/woodman/garrison/index.html January 06 SAW PORTSMOUTH HISTORY WALL Great article in Foster's (As I Please Vol 4, #25, December 30, 2000) on "Market Square is 400 Year Old Wonder". Deserving of an award. Went down to 1st night just to see the time line display. Donald E. Hersey, Portsmouth, NH herse2828@aol.com EDITOR'S REPLY: Glad we could entice you our of the house on that frigid night. And now all those who missed the mural can sit comfortably indoors and see a bit of it with our new Disposable Camera Tour. http://www.seacoastnh.com/dct/timeline.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/arts/please123000.html January 06 HOUSE BOAT TO VISIT … A REAL HOUSE BOAT! There is going to be an incredible fund raiser benefiting cancer awareness. It is a house tour (the house will be built on barge) and will visit seven cities beginning with Portsmouth May 31 - June 3, 2001. Please check out our web site. It would be wonderful if you could put this event on your calendar and link to us. Terry Kushigian, NCAF Coordinator soozie@gte.net http://www.janshouseofhope.com January 04 SEEKS DESKTOP MASSASOIT I am very interested in obtaining a replica of the Massasoit statue you show on your web site. Can you help me? Robin P of Microsoft jimandrobinpettett@msn.com EDITOR'S REPLY: That really is an awesome statue. Too bad it took 300 years for we Yanks to appreciate the sachem of the Wompanoags. We've also got a postcard and a book circa 1920, the time the statue was raised in Plymouth, MA. We checked eBay and there was an old bronze foot-high model of the statue for $125. Baring that price, we suggest you give a call to the Plymouth Wax Museum next door that has a huge gift shop. We find it hard to imagine there are not copies of the statues in all sizes and materials for sale there. http://www.seacoastnh.com/dct/massasoit.html January 03 MARCH OF TIME 2001 I was wondering if anyone knows if the March of Time newsreels are available? Thanks Rinda Hill Holdenhill@aol.com EDITOR'S REPLY: Our local hero Louis de Rochemont produced the TIME series in the theaters monthly from 1935-1951 and shaped the nation with this highly influential look at American and world news. A group called Embassy Home Entertainment out of Los Angeles put a lot of the March of Time reels onto video years back and did a nice job of transferring them to tape. We haven't been able to find hide nor hair of that company since, but the package included at least five boxed sets of 4-6 two-hour videos costing hundreds of dollars. We've managed to pick up three sets so far off eBay at roughly $5 per tape. A couple of dealers appear to be selling them, but only via the auction site. We're still missing the "War Years" set that includes Academy Award winning documentary "Fighting Lady" and "Ramparts We Watch" and "We Are the Marines". We bought a really cheap awful copy of "Fighting Lady" from, of all places, an ad in Parade Magazine put out by Publisher's Choice. It isn't worth the $5 we paid for it. There is also one book on the topic: March of Time by Raymong Fielding, Oxford, 1978 - available on used book web sites. http://www.seacoastnh.com/louis/filmography.html January 02 STALEMATE ELECTION IN GHANA TOO I was in Accra, Ghana on their presidential election day, Dec. 7, and watched with great interest for three days while the votes were being counted. The announcement of a "statistical tie" came as we sat in the airport on Dec. 10 waiting to depart for home. Oh no, we thought, this can't be happening here too! However, Ghana had a run-off election which quickly and efficiently settled the matter. Their VP conceded defeat.
This is the kind of news that does not grab headlines in our country. By the way, most of the people I was around seemed pleased with the prospect of a change of party leadership, saying that 19 years of the same party in control is enough and hoped that the parliament (like our
congress) would be balanced!
January 01 SPACIOUS ROOMS CHEAP, OCEAN VIEW, FREE AC I am planning on visiting the Portsmouth, NH area soon, and I am wondering if Wentworth by the Sea is still an operating hotel, and if it has a web site? Can you help me? Thank you for any assistance you can provide. John K, Brunswick, ME johnk182@gwi.net EDITOR'S REPLY: Pretty breezy at the old Wentworth this time of year. Check the pictures below from this summer and imagine a foot of snow and a ten degree wind chill to boot. Then scroll down to the letter below from more info and links. http://www.seacoastnh.com/wentbysea/summer2000.html January 01 USE GOOGLE, FIND WENTWORTH I worked as a cook at the Wentworth Hotel some thirty years ago, and am wondering if it still exists as a hotel? I looked for a internet site, but couldn't locate one. Thanks for your help, and Happy New Year. Dave Peck of Berkeley, CA d.a.peck@worldnet.att.net EDITOR'S REPLY: Don't know what search engine you're using, but we find ourselves easily when looking for Wentworth Hotel or Wentworth by the Sea (even misspelled we turned up). Try using GOOGLE which favors SeacoastNH.com sites. Our ongoing feature section on WBS is right up to date - and today we just added a new section on the hotel in the early Frank Jones era. Also, we've added a little clickable timeline that allows you to visit each era of hotel ownership quickly using the blur bar at the top of the page. Bookmark this section for future reference since the hotel is about to undergo its fifth or sixth reincarnation in 2001. You can also read the new book about your era written by Sue Chapman Melanson with a selection available on our web site and keep up on the latest news. http://www.seacoastnh.com/wentbysea http://www.seacoastnh.com/wentbysea/frankjones.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/wentbysea/lostkey.html |
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