Author: drewarchives

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WWI Items on Display

Uniforms worn by Capt. Robinson Murray and Margaret Piersol Murray

You may have missed our WWI Letter Reading but it is not too late to see the many wonderful artifacts, uniforms and posters on display.  All four of our exhibit cases are full of artifacts generously loaned from the private collection of Bryan Felty.  Also on display are the Red Cross Nurse’s uniform worn by Margaret Piersol Murray and the Captain’s uniform worn by Robinson Murray during their tenure in France in 1918.  These items will remain on display until early June.

Also, look for an online exhibit of our letter reading coming soon.

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WWI through a girl’s eyes.

In preparing for our upcoming WWI Letter Reading I took a closer look at a diary we have at the Drew Archives.  It is a small blue day book that once belonged to a Duxbury summer resident, Eleanor Stearns Young, in 1916 .  Fourteen year old Eleanor was a faithful diarist for the first quarter of the year, recording her skating and sledding adventures with her best friend, Phyllis Winch Twombly (Phy); her crush on Atherton (Atty); her “peach of  dress” and her desire for a “tin lizzy.”  But peppered throughout her tales of sunny winter days are hints of a sadder, darker world.  Her diary gives us a sense of what it was like to be a young adult during the tumultuous days of WWI.  Below are a few examples of her entries:

“Wednesday, January 12, 1916

Going to Chin-Chin.  Good bye.  Went, had a simply corking time.  Montgomery & Stone were corking.  They had a clown band.  Simply great.  Grandma enjoyed it greatly.  Vera still presists in teasing me.  Father has a cold.  He gave me a ten dollar gold piece. I have got 152 dollars in the bank.  When I put this in I will have $172.  Gosh I am sure some rich kid.  Be able to buy a tin lizzy soon.  Mother is going to Mrs. T’s for a dinner next Wednesday.  Phy is coming over here.  My dress is getting on.

Thursday February 3, 1916

Damn those Germans.  The last raid in England they killed almost one hundred people.  Mostly women and children.  They are planning a new offensive to take Dunkirk and Calais.  They won’t get it though.  Phy to supper.  Got a little cold.  Went to bed early.  Gee, I could smash those Germans.

Monday, February. 21, 1916

10 below this morning.  Great fun riding lying down.  Awful cold. K. and G went too.  Just three of us.  Coasted all the afternoon.  Slept like a top.  The Germans on West Front capturing a few trenches.  Nothing new.

Friday, February. 25, 1916

Grandmother home from New York.  Brought me a red Chinese wrapper.  Great.  Went to school. Bad day.  Phy came to supper. Dressed in costume I am going to wear tomorrow night.  Germans are still giving it.  Kaiser is sending them on to slaughter like pigs.

Wednesday, March 1, 1916

Verdun attack calmed down a little.  Went to school.  Phy has bought of some of her spring clothes.  One of her hats looks awfully well on me.  Striped skirts are all in style.  Am going to have one suit.  Just wait til I get speeded up.

Friday, March 3, 1916

Germans on fresh drive for Verdun.  Oh well.  I guess we are very sure of a few things wave.  Katie came. I am having five white shirts made over from mother’s. Such is life.  I must be getting fat

Tuesday, June 6, 1916

Birthday

I am fifteen years old.  Lord Kitchener dead. He was on his way to Russia. The ship was torpedoed in the North Sea.  I am afraid this is a very disheartening thing to happen.  I never felt this sort of thing but I do now.  It seems so awfully queer.  There seems to be a black shadow always behind one.  The President of China is dead also.  This is an awful world. 

Shopped all the morning.  I got thirty dollars from Gram and Gramp.”

Eleanor’s diary does not continue after a few entries in early June.  Perhaps she left her diary her Brookline home when she packed for her summer house on Harrison Street.   Perhaps it became lost or she simply lost interest.  Whatever the reason, we are glad she wrote her mind for at least a few short months in 1916.

To hear Eleanor’s words come alive or hear other WWI letters, join us in the Wright Building on May 20, 2010 at 7pm.  The even its free of charge and, as always, refreshments will be served.  See you there!

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Four Generations of Duxbury Women

Four Generations of Duxbury Women

Four Generations of Duxbury Women, c. 1850

It is not often you come across a daguerrotype depicting four generations.  This one is especially fine considering the importance of the women photographed.

Starting on the right, we have Judith Winsor Hathaway (1778-1881).  The story goes that Judith was such a lovely young woman that the painter/doctor, Rufus Hathaway, fell in love with her at first sight.  Next to Judith is her daughter, Polly Hathaway McLauthlin (1796-1879).  Polly was married to Lewis McLauthlin, the groundskeeper of Ezra “King Caesar” Weston’s estate.  Next is Judith Winsor McLauthlin Smith (1821-1921). She was married to shipbuilder, Sylvanus Smith.  Judith was active in political and social causes throughout her life.  She was an abolitionist and a suffragette.  In 1920, at the age of 100, she was able to cast her first vote.  Finally, on the left we have Frances Smith (1849-1916).  Like her mother, Frances was a reformer and spent her life working in Boston as a social worker and for many charitable organizations.

The photograph is from the Smith McLauthlin Collection.

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The Peleg Sprague Papers

What it lacks in size, it more than makes up for in content.  The Peleg Sprague Papers have been cataloged and are now open to the public.  The collection consists of correspondence from some of the most important “movers and shakers” of antebellum America – Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, Edward Everett and Rufus Choate.  Also included is a remarkable letter written by a very young Henry Wadsorth Longfellow while he was a student at Bowdoin College.

Peleg Sprague (April 27, 1793 – October 13, 1880) was an American politician and U.S. Federal judge.  He was born in Duxbury, MA to Seth Sprague and Deborah Sampson.  After graduating from Harvard in 1812, Sprague studied law in Conneticut and was admitted to the bar.  He practiced law in Maine before becoming involved in politics.

Sprague served in the Maine House of Representatives from 1821-1822.  In 1823 he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Maine’s Fourth Congressional District (1824-1829).  He then was elected to the U.S. Senate (1829-1835).  In 1835 he resigned from the Senate and practiced law in Boston from 1836-1841.  In 1840 he was a presidential elector for the Whig party.

In 1841 Sprague became a Judge for the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.  Due to his failing eyesight, he retired from the bench in 1865.

Peleg Sprague married Sarah Deming in 1818.  Together they had four children: Charles, Seth, Sarah, and Francis.  He died in Boston in 1880 and is buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge, MA.

For a complete item list of the Collection, click on the Peleg Sprague Papers in the menu bar on the right.

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Amasa Delano and Benito Cereno

Amasa Delano is one of Duxbury’s most famous historical figures.  Born in 1763 to Samuel Delano, Sr. and Abigail Drew, Amasa would spent most of his life as a master mariner, circumnavigating the globe three times.

In 1817 Amasa Delano published the account of his voyages in A Narrative of Voyages and Travels in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres: Comprising Three Voyages Round the World; Together with a Voyage of Survey and Discovery in the Pacific Ocean and Oriental Islands. While a terrific read, this book is most famous for being the inspiration for Herman Melville’s “Benito Cereno.”  The most recent scholarly work on this episode is Seeing Unseeing: The Historical Amasa Delano and his Voyages by Dr. Henry Hughes of Western Oregon University.

We are fortunate at the Drew Archival Library to have the Amasa and Samuel Delano Collection that includes fascinating letters written by Amasa during his time in the South Seas.

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A Duxbury Family

Jonathan Smith, Jr.

Come to the Drew Archival Library this evening and hear history come alive. Letters will be read from the family of Captain Jonathan Smith, a master mariner from Duxbury, MA.  Jonathan and his wife Zilpha Drew lived in the stately home located at 18 St. George Street.  The home was later occupied by their daughter, Zilpha Smith, and her husband, Dr. James Wilde.

The letters read will include those of Capt. Smith to his wife while he was away at sea; the entertaining news of Jonathan Smith, Jr. to his brother; those of Zilpha Wilde to her sister-in-law, Judith Winsor Smith (1858) concerning the care of a sick child and Duxbury gossip; and the letters of Judith to her husband, Sylvanus Smith.

The Letter Reading will be at 7p.m. at the Wright Building, 147 St. George Street, Duxbury.  Admission is free.

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Smith Family Letter Reading

The Drew Archival Library will continue its Letter Reading series on Thursday, March 18th with letters from the Smith family of Duxbury. Capt. Jonathan Smith (1780-1843) and his family lived in the stately home located at 18 St. George Street. While away at sea the Captain wrote loving letters to his wife, Zilpha Drew Smith. His daughter, Zilpha Smith, continued to live in the home with her husband, the town’s doctor, James Wilde. Her letters to her sister-in-law, Judith, describe life in Duxbury in the 1850’s. Other letters will include those of Jonathan Smith, Jr. and Judith Winsor McLauthlin Smith.

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A Letter for the Day

The Mid-Atlantic states may be reeling from a bout of cold, snowy weather but 194 years ago Capt. Jonathan Smith was experiencing similar conditions.   In the following letter, Capt. Smith writes home to his wife, Zilpha Drew Smith as he awaits cargo in Baltimore. 

Baltimore, February 17th, 1816

My Dear Wife,

I suppose that you will begin to look for a letter by the time you receive this, I have nothing new to write, the prospect for freight is small, we have not had any offer.  Today we have advertised the ship for Gibraltar.  Mr. Thompson says that he will put in 500 barrels of Flour, & we must put as much more if we can get the remainder on freight.  I expect to have a letter from Capt. Reuben [Drew] in 2 or 3 days & likewise one from Charles [Drew], then I shall conclude on something.  I have sold about 60 ton of plants at $11.50.  I suppose you would like to know how I spend my time, I go to town, which is about 1 mile in general about 9 am, & return about 12, & sometimes I take a trip up there in the afternoon.  The remainder of the time I spend on board of the ship.  The evening after supper which is about dark Mr. Chandler & Mr. Soul go or stroll off and I am left alone.  I have spent one evening at Mr. Ramsay’s, a ship chandler.  That is the only house I have been in.  Mr. Chandler has spent 2 evenings on board, the remainder I have been alone.  I sit by the stove as it has been very cold & read a little & think a little, and be assured that you and the boys have their share of my thoughts.  At 9 or a little before or after, I go to bed.  I thank kind Heaven that I enjoy good health, except I have rather a bad taste in my mouth. I expect that my stomach is rather foul.  It has been very cold.  The 14th and 15th it froze the harbor over, say 3 inches thick.  Last night the snow fell about 6 inches deep & at 8 this morning it commenced raining and has rained very hard all of the fore noon.  It is 1/2 past 12.  I must leave off to dinner.  My love to you and the boys and all of our Friends.

I remain your Dear Husband,
Jonathan Smith

The Drew Archives will be reading letters written by Capt. Jonathan Smith and his family on March 18 at 7pm.

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Volunteer Opportunity – Photographs

I am looking for a volunteer to assist with a scanning project.  The volunteer would scan cased photographs, carte de visites and cabinet cards for the Drew Archival Library’s next photographic exhibit.  If you are somewhat computer savvy, like peace and quiet and enjoy old photographs, this is the job for you.  No experience is necessary.

The project will take approximately 5 hours and can be done over multiple days.   

The Drew Archival Library is open Monday-Friday, 9am – 1pm.  However, I am here until 2:45 on many days.  If you are a high school student who is interested in this project, other arrangements can be made.

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Tsk, tsk, Mr. Weston

Ezra “King Caesar” Weston II (1772-1842) was one of Duxbury’s most prominent 19th century citizens.  He ruled his vast ship building empire from his stately home on Powder Point.  But even Ezra Weston was not above the law.  In 1834 a warrant was issued for Mr. Weston’s arrest. It seems he was selling distilled liquor and allowing it to be consumed in his shop.

Ezra Weston Warrant, 1834

According to Massachusetts law at the time, “no person shall presume to be a retailer or seller of spirituous liquor in less quantity than 28 gallons, unless he is first licensed as a retailer of spirits…” (I assume the 28 gallon limit distinguished wholesalers/importers from retailers).  You also needed a license if you were running an establishment that served alcohol.  Three witnessed instances of a sale were considered sufficient to indict.  In Weston’s case, Bradford Holmes, Robert Orr, Reuben Witherell and one other person were seen purchasing and drinking spirits on the premises. 

On June 14, 1834 Deputy Sherrif Spencer Cushman “arrested” Weston and had him appear before one of the Justices of the Peace in Duxbury, Gershom Bradford Weston. It must have been a comical hearing as G. B. Weston was Ezra’s son.  Ezra Weston paid a fee of $200 and promised to appear in court.

Whether or not King Caesar’s case ever went to trial, whether he was found guilty or made to pay a fine, I simply do not know.  If you would like to visit the scene of the crime, however, the King Caesar House is open for tours in the summer.