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| READ OUR MAIL October 1999 Mailbag SeacoastNH.com |
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October 30 WE HAVE NOT YET BEGUN TO FRIGHT We just couldn't resist one last link to our ultimate spooky photo, the exhumed Mr. Jones. Also, thanks to the Portsmouth Public Library for and children's library Pam Keene for digging up the first 14 stories that allowed us to create "The Grave Site" on SeacoastNH. Initial research came from a graveyard tour created by Pam and her daughter. Sleep well. Your Humble Editors http://www.seacoastnh.com/jpj/corpse.html October 29 WHAT'S SO HOT ABOUT STRAWBERY BANKE? How and why was Strawbery Banke so important? What was it like? culture? society? landscape? Who founded it and named it? How important was the Pisquataqua River and the access to the ocean? Lisa muttly@cyberportal.net EDITOR'S REPLY: One at a time, please! We have employed the services of Thomas Bailey Aldrich to fill in the details for you about the early Portsmouth colony from his 1895 book "Old Town By the Sea." Remember, there is no visible connection (besides general location) between the modern Strawbery Banke Museum and the small original colony on the shores of the Piscataqua. (That river, by the way, is the only way to get to the ocean from here.) You must travel to Plymouth Plantation in Massachusetts to get a rough idea how this early group of about 50 settlers lived. Ours, however, were not religious refugees, but more like employees of a large corporation that was investing in the idea of a New World Colony where their indentured workers would harvest fish, trade furs, whale, farm, find valuable herbs and keep an eye open for precious metals. http://www.seacoastnh.com/aldrich/oldtown5.html http://www.strawberybanke.org/ October 27 TALKIN' ABOUT THEM WEATHER REPORTS Thank you for your daily weather reports. I would find them even more useful if (1)they included predictions of frost - mild, severe, possible, likely etc. for the night of the report and for the following day, and (2) if they discriminated between the weather at the actual seashore and the weather in say Exeter to Dover. But I appreciate the good job you are doing. Cecil Schneer cjs1@nh.ultranet.com WEATHERMAN KEN MITCHELL RESPONDS: Thanks for the support and suggestions, Cecil. In regards to your comments, I do pass along all National Weather Service frost advisories and warnings in my text. Forecasting frost severity is a bit of a specialty, and so I defer to the experts at NWS. However, I will certainly add more mentions of frost in my forecasts. I've just been assuming that if temps fall to near freezing, most folks will expect some, but those kinds of assumptions can be bad -- and I really do thank you for pointing out the flaw in that thinking. Also, I do discriminate between coastal and interior weather, especially in the summer with sea breezes and coastal fogs. But I have NOT been doing this for AM low temps, which can vary almost 10 degrees at the west end of the forecast area. Hopefully you've noted that recent changes I've made to correct that, thanks to your input. As always, I love to hear that folks are actually using this service. Hope you find it accurate and I welcome all suggestions to make it more interesting for a wide and varied audience. http://www.seacoastnh.com/weather/index.html October 26 RELATED TO SMUTTYNOSE VICTIMS Hello! I'm a Norwegian boy, 20 years of age, who is related to two of the women involved in the Smuttynose Murders. Maren, who survived, and Karen, who was killed, were sisters of my great-great-great-grandfather. It's exciting that there will be made a movie based on this. I read parts of Shreves book last year and I'm looking forward to see the movie. Sunday I traced the place where Maren, Karen and the rest of their family lived. They were not fishermen living by the fjord as Shreve imagines, but lived in a small house twenty kilometers off the coast. However, it's a novel, and you can't expect all information about the real persons to be correct. Have a nice day! Kristian Hunskaar khunskaa@ifi.uio.no EDITOR'S REPLY: Yes, the movie will change the way the world sees this infamous incident forever. We await it, half excited, half concerned that fact will be forever overshadowed by fiction. But it's sure a great way to meet people from Norway. Thanks for your research. Remember, our new SHOALER BB is a great place to talk with others about the famous Isles of Shoals event (click below) http://www.seacoastnh.com/smuttynose/index.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/smuttynose/graves.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/shoaler October 25 WHERE IN THE WORLD IS STRATHAM? I am considering moving to the stratham area because of the montessori school located there. where can I get information online about stratham and the surrounding area re: cost of living, housing, etc? Donna dtroisi@erols.com WEBMASTER TIM RESPONDS: Hi Donna, I'm sure you'll love stratham once you get here. There is no separate chamber of commerce to send you to but you might get nearly all the info you need from a Stratham Realtor. I would suggest Kathy Walsh Real Estate as she has been in business for many years here (I bought from her and had a good experience) You may be able to get some info yourself from her website at: http://www.KathyWalsh.com The community profiles page describes some tax info and median housing prices for Stratham and immediate area. Their phone # is: 603-772-6212. It may also worth a call to the Exeter Chamber of Commerce at 772-9965. Their website is currently under construction at: http://www.exeterarea.org/ but eventually should offer alot of exeter/stratham local info. thanks...tim dubuque, webmaster SeacoastNH.com http://www.KathyWalsh.com http://www.exeterarea.org/ October 25 WANTED: STUDENT E-PALS FOR PORTSMOUTH, ENGLAND I am Head of English at St. Edmund`s Catholic School, a state school in the centre of Portsmouth, Hampshire, England and wondered if your pupils would be interested in corresponding by email or snail mail? We are 1000 strong in number and take in pupils from Catholic backgrounds, although other traditions are represented in the school. We are a happy and fairly successful school. Our pupils range from 11 - 18 and come from a wide range of socio-economic backgrounds. Many families are associated with the sea and as you will no doubt know, Portsmouth is a fairly close and thriving community on the south coast of England, about 80 miles from London. I am sure that our young people would be delighted to hear from you and it would be delightful to begin to have closer links- if you felt that you could. Veronica Jackson veronica@vjwin.freeserve.co.uk EDITOR'S REPLY: Let's get some of these kids communicating online! We'd love to participate. We'll also send your letter to the Mayor and school officials. We're already official "sister cities" and we met your Lord Mayor last year when he was visiting. The link between these two towns should be explored. http://www.portsmouthharbour.co.uk/ http://www.thenews.co.uk/ October 23 COVERING MORE BRIDGES? Out of all the Historical Material that has been put together for the publics information, I have yet to hear anything about the original bridges that wrere once in our area. Seems to me that there must be some kind of information around somewhere that would bring forth some great pictures. I find it hard to believe that I am the only person that would be interested in this part of history and time. The New Hampshire Highway and Transportation put out a book a few years ago, of which I do have, to be followed by a book of the Covered Bridges that aren't around anymore. It would be great if a local photographer could but something together on the Covered Bridges of New Hampshire. Carole@worldpath.net EDITOR'S REPLY: Many already have. There are numerous books and a John Bardwell video and others on the state's covered bridges. We've actually shied away from the topic for two reasons: (1) everyone else does it; and (2) our focus remains on the Seacoast. We've got a lot of pictures of old bridges in this region which linked NH and Maine and Portsmouth with Great Island and Dover with Portsmouth, etc, and have not seen an image yet of a covered bridge in this region. We did put up a picture online years back of the only existing covered bridge nearby which is in Dover (see below) and we've "covered" news on the Memorial and Sara Long Bridges too. (see links). But as to the whole state of NH…. First we have about 150 local articles to finish. In the interim, here is a panoramic shot of Winchester-Ashuelot covered bridge from our Peter Randall web site. It appears in his amazing new book on NH, a sate much later than our tiny turf. http://www.seacoastnh.com/arts/bridge.html http://www.perpublisher.com/nhpan/9.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/arts/please081698.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/tji/bridge.html October 22 INSTANT DIRECTIONS, TAKE A NUMBER My son attends school at Bridgton Academy in Maine. His friend is giving him a ride to Portsmouth NH tomorrow, I will be picking him up. I live in Townsend MA. Is there a Dunkin Donuts or McDonalds right off of the highway? If there is can you please tell me the exit number. This way I can find him! Thank you so much, DC dumey@ctron.com EDITOR'S REPLY: We suggest making the Howard Johnson's/Bickford's your exchange point. It is right on the Portsmouth Traffic Circle and hard to miss from either direction. We have all too many traditional donut and burger joints and that could get confusing, and most are a short ways off the circle. As you go around the circle, you'll see a liquor store, The Meadowbrook, HoJos and Holiday Inn. Then you will see the same again and again. At some point, cross your fingers and get off the carousel. October 21 RYE WEDDING DATA I am trying to find information about wedding ceremony / reception sites in Rye, NH. Can you help? amy areid@apextelecom.com EDITOR'S REPLY: We'll send you by separate e-mail a list of about 20 banquet and function locations we have so-far accumulated in Rye and nearby in our own database. Attached also is the list of area chambers and the site for the New England Bridal Mall. As we create our local search engine, we find that we now have over 600 area web sites links. This info will become available to the whole planet early in 2000 on a separate web site for the Seacoast region. It is the result of 2 years of planning, and we know it will become the #1 resource for data on the "ecoast" the moment it arrives. Meanwhile, here's a good local link: http://www.nebridalmall.com/ October 19 WHO WON BEST CHILI? Who won the Prescott Park Art Festival's Chili Cook-Off? I tried to go to their web site, www.artfest.org, but I could not connect. Hopefully somebody there can help me up. Thanks in advance. Brian Dumey dumey@ctron.com EDITOR'S REPLY: The PPAF web site is temporarily down, so we called and got the data the old fashioned way - human contact. People's Best Chili award went to Tequila Jack's, the new kid on the block, with second place going to Molly Malone's. Marguerita's won both People's and Judges Best Booth for Chili. The Judge's award for Best Chili (judges, we reckon, must not be people) went to Shorty's Mexican Restaurant with Molly Malone's again in second place. http://www.seacoastnh.com/events October 18 BRACKETT'S LANE MASSACRE I am a descendant of the Brackett family of Greenland. Recently I was told about a massacre that took place in Rye. Could you please give me more information regarding this incident? Thank you very much. Wayne Chase EDITOR'S REPLY: The source for that story is Langdon Parson's History of the Town of Rye (1905). We called Pam at the Rye Library and she faxed us over the info within 10 minutes. At the top of page XIV under "Indian Depredations" we find the story. According to Parsons, the incident occurred in 1691 at Sandy Point, the early name for the Rye area in NH. Parson's account holds no consideration for the Native Americans during King Phillps War whose territory had been invaded by European colonists. He uses only the common term "savages" and says the war party arriving by canoe did not attack the fort at Rye, but took a number of settlers captive and burned a few houses in the Brackett Lane area. Anthony Brackett, who lived on Saltwater Brook, was killed. Two Brackett children were reportedly carried off . Legend has it that a boy had "his "brains bashed out against a large rock" near Wallis Sands. A girl, was kidnapped to Canada, grew up, and returned to Rye as an adult to reclaim a small portion of her family land. NH historian Jeremy Belknap of Dover estimates that 21 people were killed or captured. Parsons notes that similar attacks are chronicled in Dow's history (Hampton) and in Adam's Annals (Portsmouth) with the attack of the Plains Indians (see Read Our Mail Archive: September 17, 1999). Brewster mentions the event in his Rambles About Portsmouth along with the equally famous Breakfast Hill attack. The Rye library web site is currently undergoing renovation, but the phone number is (603) 964-8401 and the email address is ryepl@nh.ultranet.com. http://www.seacoastnh.com/history/colonial/massacre.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/history/colonial/massacre.html October 18 PRICING OLD POSTCARDS I have 72 postcards from Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island, etc. Most are not used and are in Mint Condition. There is also several other types, such as holidays and photographs with various ratings. Dates are from 1903 to 1950's. These were my grandmother's personal collection and my interest is value. I am interested in placing a few on your auction or selling out right as soon as possible. Trish G of Apopka, Florida mgoodell@datamaxcorp.com EDITOR'S REPLY: We're not in the postcard biz, and our interest is largely historical; these popular cards often reveal local images that would otherwise have been lost. Sometimes, in order to obtain images for the web site, we gladly post the name of the person who has donated scans to our site. And, in a pinch, we've purchased a few from auction sites like ebay.com. We just checked under "Paper" and there are currently 42, 965 cards for sale there. We usually pay about $2 for a card, but have seem them go as high as $15. Sold in lots, NH cards as you are discussing often sell for about $10-$50. To see our latest postal postings, click below: http://www.seacoastnh.com/postcards/yard1/index.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/earlyimages/henderson/index.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/postcards/maine1/index.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/ussconstitution/2cards.html October 16 READER SENDS TERROR-FUL HALLOWEEN POEM You're wonderful !! Thank you so much for your effort in getting this story (See "Ballad of Jack Ringbolt") to print. Maybe someday you will have a special area (in addition to the history section) for tales of hauntings and special stories/tales from Portsmouth, my favorite place. I love history, Portsmouth and eerie tales, especially if there is some background/ truth to them. They had to have come from somewhere. Let's hope miracles still happen and we can have a mysterious section. In appreciation for your efforts and my obsession with your posted stories, I wrote you a Halloween Poem, tolet you truly know how much I appreciate your website.
"Portsmouth Eve" October 15 FLY PAN AM FROM PEASE I am looking for information or web site for the new flights from Portsmouth by Pan Am. Any info. would be appreciated. Chuck W attitash@gis.net EDITOR'S REPLY: For those whoo cannot abide the ride to Logan, PanAm just started a single local flight from Portsmouth to Orlando and back daily. Their web site is "under construction" but working --- see below. We called and were told by a nice customer relations rep named Audrey that you can call them at 1-800-flyPanAm, which is also, amazingly, the address of their web site and email -- flypanam@FlyPanAm.com. Okay, I think we memorized that one already. http://www.flypanam.com/ October 14 OLD IRONSIDES TURNED INTO TABLE!! I want to send you a picture (click to see reader submission) of the Old Ironsides table that we talked about.. (Read our Mail Archives, Sept 23, 1999). Also I received this letter from USS Constitution Museum Curator:
Thank you for your inquiry concerning the Berkey and Gay "Old Ironsides" table that you have in your possession. The tables were made some time between 1929 and 1931 by Berkey & Gay, a furniture manufacturing company in Grand Rapids, Michigan. According to research provided by the Public Museum of Grand Rapids, 100 tables were made, and they were replicas of a colonial table which stylistically predates USS Constitution (launched 1797, 14 years after the close of the American Revolution). The carved eagle on the drawer front is made from wood removed from Constitution during the 1927-31 restoration. The money obtained from the sale of the wood to Berkey & Gay went towards the restoration expenses. We do not know if any proceeds from the sale of the finished tables also went towards the restoration. The Museum has an example of the table in its collections and we have, over the years had a couple of people contact us who also own one of the tables. I hope this information is of help to you. Enjoy your table and your piece of USS Constitution!! Sincerely, M.M. Desy Curator USS Constitution Museum Massman49@aol.com
EDITOR'S REPLY: Art imitates lie, and now we all know more about
Ironsides and furniture! Glad we could help lead you to the right
sources. Now you have all the data you need to enjoy this unique
Ironsides table, or to offer it for sale on one of those popular auction
sites. We just happen to have an empty space right here in our
SeacoastNH.com office if your affection for this web site knows no
bounds. All the best. October 14 EXCLUSIVE PHOTO OF ANOTHER STONE FISH I took pictures of the stone fish I found, then took them to a photo service. But, alas, those pictures were just too blurry to send. So I just stuffed the stone into my scanner, then zipped it to you. (Click to see John's scanned fish.) I hope you received the image. If not, just shoot me. I'm working on more photos with another camera. Once complete, I'm going to throw that annoying fish back into the river!!! John Donnelly rexrex@csrlink.net EDITOR'S REPLY: A little background for the poor uninitiated reader: We started this whole thing by publishing a 100 year old picture of a rarely seen stone prehistoric artifact from Seabrook, NH that looks like a whale. Two years back a reader told us of a mysterious rock shaped like a fish. "Ya, sure!" we said and asked for photos -- and got them in spades. That was Mystery Stone Fish #1. Despite many reader letters (see Mail Archive search engine) we still don't know what it is, who made it or when. Now our web page has spawned a second. We're in the dark as always. Click below to see the "original" stone fish and below that for our Prehistory section. http://www.seacoastnh.com/tji/stonefish.html http://www.seacoastnh.com/history/prehistoric October 14 WOODMAN MOURNS RAOUL COUTURE I wanted to let you know that my grandfather, Raoul F. Couture, co-curator of the Woodman Institute in Dover, NH, died September 26th, 1999 after a struggle with cancer. His wife (and my grandmother), Llyr, also curator, will continue to work at the Woodman Institute. Without the dedication of my grandparents, Llyr and Raoul Couture, the Woodman Institute may not have ever been brought up to its current standards of historic glory. Over ten years ago, when my grandparents became involved with the Institute, the main building was becoming run down, fatigued and drab and the environment was less than warm and inviting to the public. My grandparents changed all of that through their loyalty, hard work and dedication to the upkeep, renovation and promotion of the museum, helping to transform it into a welcoming, inspiring key to New Hampshire's (and our Nation's) past. Not only is my grandfather, Raoul, missed deeply by his family, no doubt he will also be missed by the Woodman community of visitors (including the countless school field trips of children that received guided tours from my grandparents), supporters and contributors. Laurie A. Couture Zowie@ttlc.net http://www.seacoastnh.com/woodman October 12 THAT OL' DUSTY JPJ QUESTION AGAIN I am an undergrad student at East Carolina University and am conducting research on John Paul Jones. I have found your sites very helpful. Can you suggest where I may find information relating to his descendants or heirs? From the information I have there is no mention of a wife or children. Can you help me? Also, did he have any siblings? Margaret Z in Greenville, NC MLZ@prodigy.net EDITOR'S REPLY: We're picking this oft-answered one from the JPJ-descendant mailbag only because Margaret is not claiming to be a JPJ descendant - and because we've just come up with a few related items in our endless research. First, JPJ was the last of nine children in the Paul family of Scotland. His niece, Janette Taylor, ended up in the Congressional Record when she attempted to recover prize money owed to her uncle by the US Government. We've got a copy of that 1836 document and will be running it someday online. You can guess what happened.
Also, we just got a dusty autographed copy of "John Paul Jones and his Ancestry" by William R. Jones (1927). This book extends the unfounded legend that JPJ was "saved" somehow by one Willie Jones in North Carolina, and adopted his last name in gratitude. That fantasy has evolved to the belief that Willie was JPJ's long lost brother, when his brother William Paul was actually a Virginia farmer who died at about the time Paul Jones arrived in the USA. JPJ biographer Morrison exploded that myth in a 1959 magazine article, but apparently no one reads "William and Mary Quarterly" anymore. Morrison notes in his biography of JPJ that the Willie Jones myth is "almost an article of faith in North Carolina." So Margaret and everyone else in North Carolina can quit looking for descendants. Sorry, odds are overwhelming that there ain't none. Don't worry, it doesn't look like the ladies of Portsmouth sewed his flag from their petticoats either. Legends - you just can't trust 'em!
October 11 DARTMOUTH GIVES THUMBS UP I am a US history major at Dartmouth college, participating in an exchange program from Univ. of CA San Deigo- and I think your website is excellent. I found the history of the Constitution to be fascinating, and I am quite happy to find an interesting website full of relevant American history. Good Job! Wesley Robinson hachimachi@yahoo.com http://www.seacoastnh.com/ussconstitution October 09 JPJ ON OFFICERS & GENTLEMEN Searching for JPJ letter to Continental Congerss about 1776 on the definition of An Officer and a Gentleman? Do you have it , and I just can not find it? axel axel.m.larsen1@jsc.nasa.gov EDITOR'S REPLY: We fall endlessly back to JPJ biographer Samuel Elliot Morrison (as, it appears do people who plagiarize books - see below). Morrison quotes from a January 21, 1776 letter. Remember that Jones wrote many letters, offering his ideas for an American Navy and history has tended to rewrite an fuse those letters to form what many believe today was a clearly articulated Jones manifesto. But that never happened. Here Jones was very annoyed that he been "demoted" due to failure to take the ship HMS Glasgow, which Jones blamed on the incompetence of another officer. In fact, he goes on to say, most of the American officers are incompetent, and to that he adds:
"It follow not that the Gentleman or Man of Merit should be Neglected, or overlooked on their [the unfit officer's] Account. None other than a Gentleman, as well as a Seamen both in Theory and in Practice is qualified to support the Character of Commission Officer in the Navy, nor is any Man fit to Command a Ship of War, who is not also capable of communicating his Ideas on Paper in Language that becomes his rank…"
October 08 ANOTHER MOVIE LOUIS NEVER MADE I am researching an Alabama writer named William Bradford Huie. In my research, I came across a screenplay Huie wrote in the late 1950s entitled WOLF WHISTLE (about the murder of Emmett Till in Mississippi in 1955). According to the cover page of the screenplay, Louis de Rochemont owns the copyright to this screenplay. I am assuming that Mr. de Rochemont hired Huie to write the screenplay for him. I want to reproduce the screenplay in an anthology I am editing, so I need to find out how to contact Mr. de Rochemont or his estate. Moreover, I am interested in finding out more about Mr. de Rochemont interest in the Emmett Till case and why the screenplay was never filmed. Thanks you very much for your help. Christopher Metress cpmetres@samford.edu EDITOR'S REPLY: Louis de Rochemont died in the 1970s and his wife recently. He has a surviving daughter and grandson. It is our understanding that a great deal of his film materials went out West to a University, but are recently being returned to Special Collections at the University of New Hampshire. We suggest you start the search there. When not winning an Academy award from his wife Virginia Shaler's work, de Rochemont apparently hired many writers to prepare screenplays for him and always had a lot of projects on the back burner. http://www.seacoastnh.com/louis/unmade.html October 08 PISCATAQUA FAIR THIS WEEKEND Do you have any information about a Renaissance Fair this weekend on Pierce Island? I'm looking for dates, times, cost, and if costumes are necessary to attend the fair, also if there are any tournaments, I'd love to know when they are. Mark Williams markw@ctron.com EDITOR'S REPLY: Amazing this Internet. We checked our OWN site to find out, and there it was, listed by Portfolio Magazine, as reliably as ever for Oct 9,10 and 11. You may also track down more details by checking the local newspaper events pages, also linked to our site EVENTS page. There is a big Herald feature, but the URL shifts so we cannot link it. There will be 25 shows on four stages Sat-Mon. According to George Hosker of Prescott Park Arts Festival there will be duels, comedic skits and plays, wandering minstrels and spontaneous interaction between actors and visitors. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children under 12. For more information, call (603) 436-2849. 11:00am-5:00pm, at Pierce Island Park. Costumes not required. We've provided the PPAF URL below, but it requires you to sign up before receiving information. http://www.artsfest.org/ http://www.seacoastnh.com/events/index.html#1 http://www.seacoastnh.com/arts/portfolio.html October 06 KAYAK TO THE SHOALS? Can you tell me if people kayak from the mainland to Isles of Shoals? Where is the typical put-in point? Are there dangerous currents we need to be concerned about? Rob Rowland rrowland@orioncapital.com EDITOR'S REPLY: They do, but it can be a risky trip. Changes of weather can be sudden, as it has been from the 1600s (see "Wreck of Rivermouth" below). We even shrink from taking our Alden Ocean Shell on that one. Be very careful of the high speed currents in the Piscataqua, especially at Portsmouth Harbor or Hilton Point. Put in on the coast can save miles of travel and there are a number of spots in Rye. We suggest you contact Aaron Caswell (Aaron@atlantickayaking.com) at Atlantic Kayaking, PO Box 5153, Portsmouth, NH 03802). We usually suggest chartering a boat from Kittery to the Shoals with kayaks aboard for a day trip and safe return. http://www.seacoastnh.com/poems/rivermouth.html http://www.atlantickayaking.com/ October 04 WANTS MORE TALES OF TERROR...OR ELSE! Love local Folklore tales, and history of the Coast. Over the years I have seen local Haunting stories of Hampton Beach and the Casino. Once I read of a young boy who was run over, and haunts his homes. It's that time of year for you to share with us local/interesting stories. Appreciate your web site, one of my favorites. Millie Cogan Millie.Cogan@unisys.com EDITOR'S REPLY: You're right, of course. There is no way to get through the Halloween season without exhuming some old legends for the ravenous readers. We thought we might get away with one advance horror story ("Skeletons in the Closet and Elsewhere") but seems it was only an appetizer. We'll get back to our digging. http://www.seacoastnh.com/arts/please091099.html October 03 SEACOASTNH VIDEO IN RUSSIA Hi. I saw one of your videos at Little Professor Bookstore. Do you have one of Portsmouth ? I think the one I saw was of the Maine coast. Also are they available in the European PAL/SECAM format ? Russia is still using PAL. I have a friend visiting in November and she'd like a souvenir video to bring home. I'll look around for a converter. I've seen the service advertised. Thanks. Ray rayhayes@autoprof.com EDITOR'S REPLY: Locally you can convert our "101 Highlight" tapes (we grant one time rights to you via the Internet magic wand) at Eastern Video with owner Byll Reeve. The Portsmouth tape is in our store online and at the Chamber of Commerce and Gulliver's Travels, the Little Professor, etc. Most of the world now offers NTSC adapters on their VCRs. To make things confusing, the USA will now move on to DVD and start the cycle all over again. We spend $50,000 each producing two tapes at Ideaworks, one of the NH coast, one of South Cosat, Maine. It took the same four year that this web site has taken. About as many people see the site in two days as purchased the videos. From now on, we're sticking to the Internet. We did, however, get to visit and videotape 250 locations -- which was the inspiration for this site. And who knows, maybe some of that footage will be resurrected online! October 03 APPLE OF THEIR EYES No question here, but a note of thanks for a past effort on your parts. My husband and I traveled the 60 or so miles from Barrington to Hollis yesterday to visit the Woodmont Orchard. Not only was it a lovely drive (except for the Deerfield Fair traffic we encountered, but so what? It was Sunday after all), but we were successful in our quest to find the elusive opalescent that I had written to ask about in August. (Read Our Mail Archives: August 18, 1999) They're wonderful and we were able to get about a bushel of them! If I don't get them cooked very soon my husband is going to finish them all off himself! We can't thank you enough and Woodmont Orchard was very excited to hear them mentioned on the Internet. They say the grafted trees are producing lots of apples and it should only get better as the years go by. Thanks again! Kathie Bystrek kmbart0250@aol.com October 03 SEA CHAT Not sure if this is where this should go, but did you ever consider having a chat room associated with your site? Just a thought..,.keep up the fine job! Kathie Bystrek kmbart0250@aol.com EDITOR'S REPLY: We have. It comes up again and again in our dialogue about the future. Here's the problem: nothing is deader than a dead chat room. With 5,000 people now checking out this site daily, we may be moving toward a critical mass, but chat rooms need a focus and a moderator, someone to keep things going in the right direction - and that'a a lot of hours. As a compromise, we will be releasing this week, our first BB, called "The Shoaler Bulletin Board" for people interested in the Isles of Shoals. If this experiment works, more interactively is bound to follow. Watch your October newsletter for details. October 01 AND IT'S SPELLED "COCHECHO" I need some help on a project that I'm doing for Environmental Science. I need to find some information on the history of the Cocheco River. I haven't really found that much on the Internet about it, but if you know some information or some websites. Please let me know. Thank you so much! Jenn jenniferlynne_2001@yahoo.com EDITOR'S REPLY: Too bad! We just produced a great video on this history of the LAMPREY River, but there is much in that video you can use if you can get a copy. To get that video contact Judith Spang at the Lamprey River Association. They are located in the town hall in Newmarket, NH. It took a year to produce and will REALLY give you the idea of how a river is formed and grows. Then you can transfer that basic info to the Cochecho. You won't be able to do this report off the Internet. Time to use some shoe leather, but there is a lot of info available. The person to talk to at first is Cathy Beaudoin at the Dover Public library. She and Robert Whitehouse wrote a book you will find there called "Port of Dover: Two Centuries of Shipping on the Cochecho River. You might be lucky enough to interview Mr. Whitehouse, and you will find a ton of info, including all the old charts and maps, at the Woodman Institute. Good luck.
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