Sestercentennial

The Haverhill-Newbury 250th anniversary committee has established a web site for news and information about the planned celebrations.

The Haverhill Historical Society is pleased to be participating in the sestercentennial celebrations as the organizer of a number of the events on the calendar.

HHS Receives LCHIP Grant!

The Haverhill Historical Society has received a grant of $10,000 from LCHIP, the New Hampshire Land and Community Heritage Investment Program. This is the second grant LCHIP has awarded to support preservation work on Pearson Hall, one of the most significant academic structures to survive in New Hampshire.

The new LCHIP grant will help the Historical Society complete the exterior restoration of Pearson. Work will begin in 2013 and will include removal of the remnants of a former addition, restoration of the brickwork, reopening of windows and door spaces, and installation of new windows and doors to match the rest of the building. A replica of the original weathervane, crafted by board member Dick Ekwall, will also be installed.

The Historical Society ultimately plans to reopen a fully renovated Pearson Hall as a regional history museum.

Built for the Haverhill Academy in 1816, Pearson Hall initially housed both the academy and, until 1846, the Grafton County courts. Over time, the academy also shared Pearson with a library, Methodist worship hall, and Masonic meeting place. The building remained part of the local school system until 1992.

Pearson Hall was one of only eighteen projects to receive LCHIP funding in the 2012 round of grants. LCHIP is an independent state authority that provides matching grants to New Hampshire communities and non-profits to protect and preserve the state’s most important natural, cultural and historic resources. The grants just awarded will support protection of twelve historic structures dating from 1709 to 1950 and the permanent conservation of 2904 acres. 

Incorporated in 1794, Haverhill Academy represented a pioneering stage of private secondary education. Pearson Hall, with a largely intact exterior and with some original features surviving on the interior, is one of a small group of New Hampshire academy structures to survive from the early 1800s; others include Atkinson Academy (1803), Portsmouth Academy (1809), and Pinkerton Academy building (1814) in Derry. 

“Pearson Hall is a significant feature in both the history and the landscape of Haverhill,” notes Historical Society president Edith Celley; “we look forward to giving the building a new life as a history museum and conservation center.”

Pike Manufacturing Co.

The Historical Society has recently received a donation of letters and photographs pertaining to the history of Pike, including these two fascinating pictures featuring the Pike Manufacturing Company.

The first is believed to be of the company's display at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. The location of the second is unclear.

E. B. Pike and Herbert Smith

More Collections Clean-Up

HHS Trustee Mike Marshall and consulting curator Kimberly Alexander continue to lead the Historical Society's effort to organize and assess the collections. This work will facilitate our eventual move to the new Pearson Hall Museum.

Here are some further highlights from the collection:

The items in the picture on the right are labelled "Watercolor 'Bedell Covered Bridge' by Mr. Ross"; "ballot box marked Benton"; and "curtain pulley from the Woodsville Opera House."

In January, HHS intern Ariel Myers will return, and among other projects, hopes to tackle the contents of this map cabinet.

Fall Collections Clean-Up!

Last weekend, October 13 & 14, several members of the HHS board and friends spent time reviewing collections in the Ladd Street School and the Museum as part of the ongoing work with the historical society's artifacts and manuscripts. This preliminary work is in preparation for the move to the new HHS location at Pearson Hall, and was the first of several assessment and clean-up days.

The crew started at Ladd Street School and ended at the Haverhill Library. We wanted to share a few images of the day:

Ladd Street School

Mike Marshall, and his son Joe, make room for HHS objects

Items donated from the Blaisdell Family:

Leather covered bottle from Woodsville; green silk drawstring bag, with gold thread, c. 1825; and decorative hand painted wooden trunk, c. early 19th century.

Thank you to HHS President Edith Celley; to board members Susan Brown, Tom Stocker, and Mike Marshall; and to Joe Marshall and Kimberly Alexander, HHS Consulting Curator.

What were they drinking in 1793? Egg Rum & Egg Brandy

Dr. Kimberly Alexander has drawn on the Montgomery Daybook to investigate the imbibing habits of late 18th-century Haverhill. Her report on SilkDamask begins:

"On Monday May 20, 1793, there were a number of special alcohol purchases which appear in the Gen. Montgomery Store Daybook. They include postmaster Moses Dow’s 1 quart of Mallago (Malaga) wine, a glass of ginn [sic] and of particular interest, one 1/2 bowl of egg rum. A few days earlier the purchase of “egg brandy” was noted. According to food historians, this concoction was related to our contemporary eggnog, being a drink of egg, wine and milk/cream with many historic European antecedents.

"Egg brandy or egg rum as recorded in the Daybook, was in Colonial America somewhat different than its British counterpart in that it substituted the British use of wine for brandy or rum. It was quite popular in the Colonies, especially in the colder parts of the region where the egg beverage (egg, cream or fresh milk and brandy or rum) was rich, tasty, filling and was usually flavored with nutmeg or allspice. In a rural area like Haverhill, the ingredients – fresh cream and eggs, brandy or rum and spices-- would have been readily available. Given the fact that this was served at the Store, it is likely that it was served cold and not warm such as a posset, which required heating and carefully balanced ingredients, as well as appropriate ceramic serving vessels, frequently with a spout."

Continue reading here.

Great Coat & Small Clothes: The 1825 Inventory of Gen. John Montgomery

Dr. Kimberly Alexander has written a new post on SilkDamask, continuing her work on the General John Montgomery family of Haverhill:

"There is no denying it: General John Montgomery (1764-1825) was a wealthy man. He first arrived in Haverhill, NH. from Londonderry, NH. as a trader; by the time of his death in 1825, he was one of the wealthiest and most highly regarded citizens of this significant North Country town, with the esteemed 'esq.' appended to his name. Distinguished for his business acumen as well as his leadership during the War of 1812, the survival of his highly detailed probate inventory is a true find."

Continue reading here.