A complete archive of mail from December 2004

December 27
MORE ON SAMUEL ROWELL
With regards your mailbag article about Samuel Rowell, (in November 2004 READ OUR MAIL) artist then painter, he originally came from Essex County, Massachusetts. He returned there and lived out his life running the family business, S. Rowell and Sons carriage manufacturers. His family included daughter Abby Elizabeth, and sons Jacob, Oliver Dennett, Samuel Junior, Edward Herrick, and John. A daughter, Lydia, died young. The family lived in Amesbury and Newport for some years. John had a daughter, Lydia, but other than her I know of no continuing family line.
Mary Stewart

December 23
MEMORIES OF THE DENTIST
I've been meaning to get in touch with you, and today's Herald did the trick! First of all, I have wanted to tell you how happy I am for you that you are making it in a big way in writing and publishing. I had once worked as a waitress at the Wentworth (in 1934) Sorry I didn't know you were working on that. I might have been able to fill you in on a few details. It's a splendid book, and one you can be very proud of. Re the picture of the dental office: Believe it or not, I thought at first it was a picture of the office I had to visit while living in Belgium in 1967. I came to distrust the whole idea of National Health Care while living there for about 3 years. On the day I went to that dentist, his waiting room was filled with suffering people, like those in your 1890 photo. There were also three or four sitting in the room where the dentist filled my tooth (not too expertly). He confessed to me that he had always wanted to study dentistry in the U.S., but with 7 children at home he had not been able to afford it. I used to see people leaving dentists' offices with scarves wrapped around their jaws. And this in a so-called "developed" country! I also visited a doctor once who charged me about $1.85 and I always said he was worth every penny. By the way, because I was the wife of an American plant manager, I always was served by doctors and dentists before any other patients! Talk about democracy!
Olive Tardiff, Exeter Historian

December 21
SEES PRIESTLY CONNECTION
Having received your latest book, Wentworth by the sea, from my mother , Katherine Jane Cambell Priest Mckune, was very pleased to hear that the grand old inn has been restored though saddened that all the houses of my childhood are gone the summers spent at my grammies who rented rooms to some of the employees will always be memories i will cherish was surprised to hear of the Priest connection ill have to do some more research to see if there is any other connection to myself have done alot concurring the Priest of Florida but no further once again thank you for a very enjoyable book
Eric Priest

Decembner 17
KITTERY TO FLORIDA
I lived in Kittery most of my life...but now am a Florida resident. I so enjoy reading and learning about our historical New England past. I sit at the computer with my cup of coffee and read thru every article.Thank you so much for your web site. Happy Holidays to you and yours.
Lynn Lait, Orlando, FL

December 13
WHY PISCATAQUA?
I am looking for the origin of the name "Pisacaqua" Am out west and can't find it on the net.
Suzanne Out West

EDITOR’S REPLY: Well, it only took us about a year, but it’s on the Internet now – out west and out here and everywhere.

December 11
WHY WIBIRD?
Saw your photog and short blurb on Wibird Penhallow in the Portsmouth Herald today 12/9/04. Can you tell me any more about him ???? Funny that they named a Portsmouth street after his first name. Did he acquire the first name from some other slice of history ??? Would love to know more about him, as my niece just moved to town and bought a house on Wibird Street.
Melissa Alden

EDITOR’S REPLYL We know nothing more about old Wibird, except that Wibird and Penhallow streets are very likely not named for the old porter. He was likely named for whomever honored citizens the streets were named for. There is a short description of him in Aldrich’s Old Town by the Sea.

December 10
JOHN HANCOCK OUT OF THE HISTORY BIZ
Thanks for the article and the posting on the booklets. I have a collection of a little over 30. You have 16 that I don't have and I have several that you don't have, I have Lewis and Clark and The Presidents. I started collecting them a few years ago when I stumbled on some I had from when I was a kid that I found somewhere. I've recently got interested again and have been buying some. There is one on the American Indian and one on Clara Barton. I don't know if there are any other women though. The ones I had when I was a kid were from the 50s. The newest one I have is 1956 and the oldest is from 1922. I swear I once saw one on the old western territories that was dated something like 1913, but I can't remember. Wish I would have gotten it now. That's too bad John Hancock Insurance would want to distance themselves from American History.
Casey

December 9
HIS DAD SURRENDERED HERE
I found a picture with my father on it in Your web-site, which is also in original in my property, with other pictures from this boat and his crew. My father was on U-873, which surrendered and was brought to portsmouth. It was a interesting story about this submarine.
Peter Binnefeld

December 7
YOU ARE A FANTASTIC RESOURCE!
Thank you for your rapid response. I just want to add that SeacoastNH.com is a fantastic resource on local history. You have done a marvelous job of compiling data and on presenting it in an entertaining manner. Your sponsors should know that their money is well-spent on supporting an integral part of the Seacoast Community.
Tim Deal, Somersworth

December 5
TRUNK FUNK
I recently purchased an old trunk and was wanting to refurbish it to what it is supposed to look like. It has some wood strips but is mostly embossed metal. I do not know what to use to refinish the metal to get it back to what it is supposed to look like. I do not even know what to clean it up with and have not found anyone else that knows either. If you can help me, please let me know. I would really appreciate it.
Laurie Belcher

EDITOR’S REPLY: You want to go to Trunk.com and buy Pat’s the "The Trunk Guy" in the region and a nationally respected expert.

December 4
INDIAN SHOALS?
Hi--We visited Star Island this summer for the first time and loved it (of course!). Now my daughter, age 8, needs to do a Native American project for school, and she wants to research tribes who may have lived on the Isles of Shoals. Can you possibly direct me to a place in your website that might have this information, or another website? Thank you so much!
Jaye N in Brooklyn, NY

EDITOR’S REPLY: To our knowledge, no Indians lived at the Isles of Shoals, certainly not from the time of European occupation around 1600. And why would they? The trip to the Shoals would be treacherous. There is no way to grow crops. There was plentiful supplies of fish, fur and meat on the mainland. There is evidence of one major Indian raid on the settlers there in the late 1600s, but otherwise, the Natives were too wise to live on the barren Shoals.

December 2
HISTORY OF THE FLYING YANKEE
I am a retired engineer and am writing a 'history' of Commonwealth Engineering (Comeng), an Australian company for which I worked for 35 years. A copy will go into our State archives. Comeng shut down 15 years ago. From the early 1950s Comeng was licensed to the Budd Company to build stainless steel trains. Comeng became the largest manufacturer of rolling stock in the Southern Hemisphere. As part of the story I am telling how Comeng became associated with Budd. In doing so I have outlined part of the history of Budd. Amongst the illustrations for this chapter I wanted to know if you would let me use that wonderful shot of the Flying Yankee on your website.
John Dunn

EDITOR’S REPLY: The photo of the Flying Yankee is part of the Thom Hindle collection and included in his book about Dover, NH. Thom’s pictures are available through his web site at Images of the Past.

December 1
SHE OWNS THE DECLARATION
My father has a copy of the Declaration of Independence on parchment paper. In the lower left hand corner is the John Hancock insurance company name. If it wasn't for the insurance co name you would think it was the real thing. What can you tell us about it?
Lou

EDITOR’S REPLY: Not a thing except that is was likely one of the many patriotic reprints that the insurance company gave away to customers. It was part of the corporate branding in the early 20^th century to align themselves with American history, an approach they have long since abandoned. It was a good idea while it lasted and apparently helped a lot of young Americans learn about history. When we called a few years back, the person we spoke to was unable to locate even an archive of old historic promotions, so we printed a few covers online with the company’s OK.

December 1
OUR PRISON IS SCARIER
I just saw "The Last Detail" on Showtime this past weekend, the first time I had ever seen the film. Very '70s-ish! and the actors (Jack Nicholson, Randy Quaid, Carol Kane, Michael Moriarty, et al) looked SO YOUNG back then!! Anyway, I assume they filmed some of the later Boston scenes actually in Boston (did they?), so you think they could have driven the extra 40 miles to film the naval prison scenes where they should have filmed it! The prison stand-in just doesn't have that dreadful aura that the real Portsmouth prison had.
Pete Payette