Dennis’ 400 sea captains earned their living upon the waves of the world. Their journeys took them to faraway lands inhabited by exotic peoples. Years, sometimes a good part of a decade would go by before they returned home to see family and friends. Yet this is the life they chose. Perhaps the spray and smell and salt of the ocean was in their blood, calling them from the rooted land to journey upon the rising and falling waves of the sea. ~ Jack Sheedy (Dennis Journal)
Capt. Martin Edward Thompson (1850-1928)
My grandmother loved telling me stories about her own grandfather and often reminded me that the sea was in my blood. I’m pretty sure it was this sea captain who took his second wife with him on a few of his voyages and bought her a “monkey” in some foreign land. Apparently the creature was a “holy terror” on the ship but she adored him.
My 2nd-great-grandfather, Capt. Martin Edward Thompson, son of Martin and Ann Isabella (Hughs) Thompson, was born 4 August 1850 in Dennis (Barnstable) Massachusetts, and died there 8 April 1928. He married (as his first wife) 5 July 1874 in Harwich (Barnstable) Massachusetts, Elisabeth Emma “Lizzie” Freeman, who was born 4 September 1851 in Harwich, and died there 4 October 1876, daughter of Warren and Elisabeth (Weekes) Freeman.
Martin was named after his father, a Norwegian immigrant, and followed in his footsteps, becoming a Master Mariner and captain of the schooner Nellie Lamphear. He also served on coasting vessels, tug boats, and was licensed to enter any port in the world. In 1910 he was elected port warden of Boston by the Boston Marine Society, the oldest association of sea captains in the world.
Elisabeth was a homemaker and died of a “stoppage” when she was only 25 years old. Her baby son Martin Freeman was only 18 months old. She lies buried in the older Thompson plot with her in-laws in Swan Lake Cemetery in Dennis Port. Her gravestone is inscribed:
Fled O forever from our view A dear daughter, wife and mother, too: She was a treasure lent, not given: To be called away from Earth to Heaven. Life to her looked bright and joyous And her home was very dear: To the summons of her Savior, She gently yielded without fear.
Rosilla Ida Freeman (1856-1923)
The 1880 census indicates that, now a widower, Martin was living with his parents and his young son. Five years after Lizzie’s death, Martin married (as his second wife) her younger sister, Rosilla Ida “Rosie” Freeman, 23 February 1882 in Dennis. Rosie was born 6 March 1856 in Harwich, and died 18 March 1923, daughter of Warren and Elisabeth (Weekes) Freeman. Martin & Rosie had no children. In 1900, Martin and Rosilla were living as lodgers in the house of Nancy H. Merrill in Lynn, Massachusetts.
Martin owned a beloved horse named Nellie (named after his schooner or vice versa?) who lived in the barn at 114 Depot St. in Dennis. He gave his granddaughter, my grandmother, her first three cars. According to my grandfather, Martin and his granddaughter Thommie worshiped each other. The first car was a Model T that had to have the carbon scraped every week. The next was a 2-door sedan Model T. Martin lies buried with his second wife, Rosilla, in the newer Thompson plot in Swan Lake Cemetery in Dennis Port.
1880 Captain Martin E. Thompson House
Elisabeth & Martin Edward were the parents of one son:
1. Capt. Martin Freeman Thompson (my great-grandfather), born 29 March 1875 in Harwich, died 13 July 1965 in Dennis. He married 1 February 1900 in Dennis, Amanda Eliza Hamblin, who was born there 2 August 1879 and died 6 July 1966 in Taunton (Bristol) Massachusetts, daughter of Capt. William Nelson and Anna Eliza (Baker) Hamblin. Martin & Amanda were the parents of one daughter.
my sister Beverly, Barbara and our cousin Matthew with Nellie’s carriage
In 1964 my grandparents inherited and moved into Martin’s house at 114 Depot Street in Dennis Port, along with my great-grandparents, who they were caring for. Some of our happiest family memories were made there. My dear cousin Matthew bought the house in 2001 after our grandfather died. He renovated the place, keeping its historical integrity and was awarded a certificate of appreciation from the Dennis Historical Commission in 2005. Sadly, the house had to be sold in 2009.
How can twins with identical genetics and environment become so different and tolerate these differences so well? J. David Smith suggests that conjoined twins demonstrate an important aspect of human differentiation: intentionality. He notes that the role of self-determination has been lost in the “nature-nurture” debate about whether heredity or environment rules our lives. These two perspectives may appear to be complete opposites, but they share a common deterministic outlook. Even a compromise position still ignores how self-direction shapes our destinies. When we ignore the role of free will and active participation in our own lives, we damage and discourage ourselves. ~ David Schnarch (Passionate Marriage: Keeping Love & Intimacy Alive in Committed Relationships)
It was perhaps fifteen years ago when I read an excellent book, Passionate Marriage, quoted above, back when I was very interested in the balance between autonomy and intimacy in marriage and other relationships. And the gist of the above paragraph was etched into my mind as I embraced the idea of self-determination playing as much of a role in the course of our lives as heredity or environment.
Ever since I started this blog I have wanted to find the quote to add to my collection here. But memory is a funny thing. About the same period of time I had read another excellent book, The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression by Andrew Solomon. I was certain I had read that paragraph in this book! Self-determination can definitely apply to will in the fight against depression, a very cruel disease. Who knows how many times I thumbed through The Noonday Demon, looking in vain for the desired paragraph? Eventually I abandoned the search.
A couple of weeks ago I happened to be rearranging my daughter’s bookshelves when I came across my old copy of Passionate Marriage. I started leafing through it, looking to see what ideas I had underlined all those years ago, before passing the book on to her. Voila! There it was. I was dumbfounded.
Tim and I often joke about our ever-changing memories. I’ve taken to saying that the more certain I am of something I remember, the more likely it is that I am totally mistaken! This was certainly a case in point. 🙂
On Saturday afternoon my sister and I did some hiking in the uncultivated part of the Connecticut College Arboretum. It was like being in the woods we played in and rambled through as children. We encountered a doe along our path, she stopped short when she spotted us and then darted off sideways into the woods.
6.10.17 ~ Connecticut College Arboretum
Nature — sometimes sears a Sapling — Sometimes — scalps a Tree — Her Green People recollect it When they do not die — ~ Emily Dickinson (The Poems of Emily Dickinson, #457)
gypsy moth caterpillar, an invasive forest pest from Europe
When I was at the doctor for a check-up last week he said it seemed like he was treating nothing but rashes from these little villains. Why do people even touch them, I wondered? But they can dangle from invisible threads and I was startled when I walked right into one. No rash, so far…
Death is like the insect Menacing the tree Competent to kill it, But decoyed may be.
Bait it with the balsam Seek it with the saw, Baffle, it cost you Everything you are.
Then, if it have burrowed Out of reach of skill — Wring the tree and leave it. ‘Tis the vermin’s will.
~ Emily Dickinson (The Poems of Emily Dickinson, #1783)
6.10.17 ~ Connecticut College Arboretum
For some reason I am drawn to trees that seem dead, but sculptural, and yet still have a few green leaves up near the crown. Sometimes dying is a very gradual process.
this feels like a carefully composed still life to me
And this, our life, exempt from public haunt, Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, Sermons in stones, and good in everything. ~ William Shakespeare (As You Like It)
6.10.17 ~ Connecticut College Arboretum ~ roots
One will see roots while looking down (photo above), of course, but also when looking up (photo below). The tree below decided it could grow sticking out of a rock face, high above the ground. There must have been just enough soil between the layers of rock for it to sustain itself. Maybe it is strong enough to move the rock some to give the roots more space.
tree growing out from between two layers of rock
One impulse from a vernal wood May teach you more of man, Of moral evil and of good, Than all the sages can. ~ William Wordsworth (The Tables Turned)
ferns and mosses on the rock face
Ferns (above) with visible roots growing on the rock face. Plenty of moss to soften the surface, too.
6.10.17 ~ Connecticut College Arboretum
A tree (above) seems to have been blown over in a storm and left with a large cavity between its roots and the rock below. Stones and boulders, dumped by receding glaciers eons ago, are so ubiquitous in Connecticut and it seems the trees have no choice but to grow above, below, around and between them.
two more of Emily’s “scalped” trees
a stone benchmark?
I wondered if someone might have set this stone deliberately pointing up as a benchmark for future hiking adventures. It’s amazing to contemplate that these stone walls deep in the woods once surrounded fields and pastures in colonial days. Farmers used the stones cluttering their land to build the walls but in the end, growing crops was difficult. Many eventually abandoned their homes and headed west for better farmland. The woods slowly came back and claimed the landscape once again.
Most people on the spectrum have some level of executive function impairment, but how that impairment impacts our lives can vary greatly from person to person. ~ Cynthia Kim (Nerdy, Shy, and Socially Inappropriate)
The most fascinating aspect of autism that I have encountered so far is the idea of impaired executive function. It’s not something that usually gets listed with other features of autism and I had no idea what “executive functioning” could possibly mean.
Executive function is a broad term that refers to the cognitive processes that help us regulate, control, and manage our thoughts and actions. It includes planning, working memory, attention, problem solving, verbal reasoning, inhibition, cognitive flexibility, initiation of actions, and monitoring of actions. ~ Cynthia Kim (Nerdy, Shy, and Socially Inappropriate)
I have trouble with all these things! I’ve long considered myself to be inept, clumsy, absent-minded and inflexible — to think how long I’ve desperately tried to force myself to be flexible and easy-going. Even my children tried not to spring things on me, not wanting mom to get hopelessly flustered.
It’s difficult for me to finish a chore if it has too many steps. Sometimes I have to write down each and every step if I want to have any hope of getting the job done. Lists are my friends, I think.
Driving is overwhelming because there are too many things going on to pay attention to. I use my left foot for the brake because the right foot is for the gas pedal. One foot can’t seem to handle two different assignments. When I finally got my driver’s license at the age of 21 the person who tested me decided to pass me if I promised to work on using the one foot for both pedals. He said if I used both feet I would get mixed up and push the wrong pedal sometimes. Now I am glad I didn’t listen to him because I have never gotten the pedals mixed up doing it my way. Now I know why — my brain works a little differently.
I also have many difficulties with problem solving. Often it just doesn’t occur to me that doing something a bit differently would be faster or more effective. And very often I don’t even recognize a problem until someone points it out to me. (I do appreciate the helpful hints, by the way, humble being that I am.) And sometimes when trying to do something familiar in a new setting or at a different time or with different people I simply freeze. In fact freeze is my automatic response when faced with the anxiety of a fight-flight-freeze situation.
When I was a child we often went to visit my widowed aunt who needed my parents’ help with home maintenance and yard work. She always had a stack of gift catalogs — like Harriet Carter, Lillian Vernon, Carol Wright, Miles Kimball — but I called them problem-solving catalogs. My parents never had these fascinating resources! While Auntie was cooking a Sunday dinner I used to study them carefully, amazed at all the clever gadgets people invented to solve problems I never imagined existed!
Something more recent now… I have two tall bookcases with glass doors that I need to move to finish painting the living/dining room. I wanted someone to help me by standing on the floor while I stood on a chair and emptied the top shelf, handing them the items to put on the table. I wanted to do it this way because I didn’t want to have to keep getting up on and down off the chair. That’s pretty much how I always tackled the problem but when I was younger there was always a child available to help me out.
Then one night about a week ago I was sitting on the couch looking at them and it suddenly occurred to me that I could take things off a lower shelf and then move the things off the top shelf onto the lower shelf while still standing on the chair. I was amazed at my sudden and unfamiliar brilliance! Why didn’t I think of this years ago?
What is unusual here is that I figured this one out by myself. To do things my way is usually tedious at best. Most of the shortcuts I’ve learned over the years for doing housework have come from how-to books or from friends and relatives pointing things out to me. I still remember how enlightened I felt when my aunt told me about felt circles I could stick to the bottom of the kitchen chairs to muffle the loud noise they made when moved across the floor. Who knew?
Frustratingly, an executive function deficit is not something you can fix by simply trying harder. Often, other people will look at the symptoms of impaired executive function and assume the autistic person is lazy, spaced out, or disorganized. If only they would make more effort, everything could be fixed. In fact, I think most autistic people — including me — think this of themselves at times. ~ Cynthia Kim (Nerdy, Shy, and Socially Inappropriate)
Tim’s 2nd great-grandfather, William Franklin Raven, son of Henry Charles and Clarinda (Sweet) Raven, was born 12 July 1851 in Macomb (St. Lawrence) New York, and died 14 September 1917 in Escanaba (Delta) Michigan. He married, 5 March 1888 in Cambridge (Lenawee) Michigan, Elona Naomi Case, who was born 7 July 1853 in Cambridge, and died 22 January 1929 in Badaxe (Huron) Michigan, the daughter of Hermon Roberts and Paulina (Minor) Case.
The following is from Col. Charles V. DeLand, DeLand’s History of Jackson County, (Logansport, Indiana: B.F. Bowen, 1893), 1075-1076:
WILLIAM F. RAVEN
Elona Naomi Case (1853-1929)
Among the representative farmers and dairymen of Columbia township, where he owns a fine landed estate of nearly three hundred acres, is Mr. Raven, who comes of ancestry long identified with the annals of American history. Mr. Raven is a native of the old Empire state, having been born on the parental homestead farm, in St. Lawrence county, New York, on the 12th of July, 1852, a son of Henry and Clarinda (Sweet) Raven, the former of whom was born in Merrickville, province of Ontario, Canada, while the latter was born in the state of Vermont. ……. The subject of this review passed the first ten years of his life in his native county, and thereafter was for a time a resident of Herkimer and Oneida counties. His early education was received in the public schools of the locality and period, and was supplemented by a course of study in Fairfield Academy, where he was graduated as a member of the class of 1873. Between his public school and academic courses he had learned the printer’s trade, and for some nine months he was employed as a compositor in an establishment on Fulton street, New York city. Thereafter he secured employment in connection with a lumber business at Ilion, New York, being thus engaged for four years, at the expiration of which, in 1877, he came to Michigan and after looking about the state in search of a suitable location finally took up his residence in the township of Cambridge, Lenawee county, where he made his home for the ensuing two years. He then, in 1880, effected the purchase of the Hoag farm of one hundred and thirty acres, in section 15, Columbia township, Jackson county, the same being most eligibly situated a short distance to the northeast of Clark’s lake. Since that time he has added to the area of his farm until he now has a finely improved and valuable landed estate of nearly three hundred acres. In addition to diversified farming he is now making a specialty of the dairy business, keeping a high grade of Jersey cattle and being known as one of the most progressive, practical and successful dairymen of this section. He takes a loyal interest in public affairs of a local nature and has been a member of the school board of this district for the past eight years, while in 1901 he was called upon to serve in the office of township treasurer, giving a discriminating and most acceptable administration of the fiscal affairs in his charge. Fraternally, he is a popular member of the Masonic order, in which he has passed the capitular degrees and also of the adjunct body, the Order of the Eastern Star, as well as the Knights of the Maccabees and the Grange. Mrs. Raven is identified also with the Eastern Star, the Ladies of the Maccabees and the Grange. In politics the subject is a stanch adherent of the Democratic party, taking an intelligent and lively interest in the questions of the hour, and in the community he commands the unequivocal confidence and esteem of all who know him and wields no slight influence in local affairs. On the 5th of March, 1888, Mr. Raven was united in marriage to Miss Eleanora Case, who was born in Lenawee county, Michigan, a daughter of Herman R. Case, a native of Connecticut, who came to Michigan in the pioneer epoch. Mr. and Mrs. Raven have seven children, all of whom are at home save the eldest, who is attending the Agricultural College, at Lansing, their names, in order of birth, being as follows: Paulina, Hermon, Marion, William, Emmett, Julia and Ayesha.
All the photographs on this post were contributed anonymously to Ancestry.com in 2013.
William & Elona (Case) Raven and their seven children…
The following is from an undated and unidentified newspaper clipping:
Sudden Death of William F. Raven
Remains Brought to Brooklyn for Burial
William F. Raven, formerly a resident of Columbia township, died suddenly in a restaurant at Escanaba last Friday morning of heart trouble. he had been in Chicago to attend a wool growers’ convention and had gone north in the interests of the state agricultural extension department, being at the head of the live stock section. The remains were taken to his home at East Lansing where the funeral was held and on Monday brought to Brooklyn for burial at Highland Cemetery. He was buried with special Masonic honors, the Master of the Lansing Masonic lodge coming with the funeral party.
William Raven was well and favorably known to every Columbia resident and few men have become so well known throughout the state. He came here, a farmer boy from Ohio, and working on farms and teaching for a few years bought a farm, now tenanted by one of his sons, William. He was united in marriage to Miss Elona Case of Cambridge and a large family came to bless their home. Besides the widow the surviving children are herman, John, Emmett, Marion and Will, daughters Paulina, Julia and Ayesha, all grown men and women, a family of honor and credit to the community.
Mr. Raven has for about ten years been in the employ of the state and made his home in East Lansing. He was for a time in charge of all the college extension work in the upper peninsula. He spent a year or two on the soil survey and had charge of the live stock extension work through out the state. Prof. R.S. Shaw, dean of agriculture, and Prof. R.J. Baldwin, director of extension work, of the M.A.C. paid tribute to Mr. Raven at the Exponent office on Monday. They spoke in highest terms of his work stating that he was the best informed and most reliable of any of the men on the extension work and that his death would be a distinct loss to the state.
And the following is from “Reminiscences” by Ayesha Raven Laidlaw, Elona’s youngest daughter:
In our neighborhood the community of Jefferson had a cemetery which was supported by the township, which did not take very good care of it, except for mowing. So the women formed an organization called the Memory Circle, and they raised money for that little cemetery. It continued for many, many years. they had Ice Cream Socials, and we had the biggest house in the township, so the Ice Cream Socials were always at our house in the summer. In the winter they had a Chicken Pie Dinner, and that, too, was at our house. Brother Herman always spoke of those dinners. When Mother was entertaining, he would say, “Well, Mother’s having another Graveyard Social.” As I said, that continued many years, and, as late as when we lived in Tecumseh on Democrat Street, Paulina and I entertained those women for Julia when she was home from the East. Many, many of them came from Jackson, Liberty, Cass Lake, and Jefferson and the community, and one lady, when she got out of the car, said, “Well, you don’t know me. I’m Zilla McCready.” And I was shocked because I thought she had been dead for many years. I think there were six or eight ladies there who were past eighty years old.
Elona & William lie buried in Highland Cemetery in Brooklyn (Jackson) Michigan. They were the parents of seven children:
1. Paulina Elona “Polly” Raven, born 20 July 1879, died 2 January 1959 in Lyon (Fulton) Ohio. She married 30 June 1917 in East Lansing (Ingham) Michigan, Frederick Elwin Morse, who was born 19 January 1876 and died 21 April 1958. Paulina & Frederick were the parents of two sons.
2. Herman Case Raven, born 24 April 1882, died 5 April 1937 in Portland (Multnomah) Oregon. He married 1 February 1908 in Cook Valley (Dunn) Wisconsin, Elvira Florence Scritsmier, who was born 1 February 1880 in Auburn (Chippewa) Wisconsin and died 28 January 1969 in Portland. Herman & Elvira had no children.
3. Marion Case Raven (Tim’s great-grandfather), born 18 October 1883, died 4 December 1926 in Jackson (Jackson) Michigan. He married (as her first husband) 20 June 1906 in Hanover (Jackson) Michigan, Catherine Alta Verplanck, who was born there 2 May 1885 and died there 27 July 1941, daughter of George Washington and Ermina (Huntley) Verplank. Marion & Catherine were the parents of three children.
4. John William “Will” “Bill” Raven, born 5 February 1886, died in Highland Park (Wayne) Michigan. He married (as his first wife and as her second husband) 13 February 1913 in Jackson, Emma Belle (Faxon) Clark, who was born there 17 October 1873 and died there 7 February 1927, daughter of Dewitt Clinton and Lucy Ann (Campbell) Faxon and widow of Harry B. Clark. Bill married (as his second wife and as her second husband) Evelyn (—). Bill married (as his third wife) Mabel (—). Bill never had any children of his own.
5. Emmett Leroy Raven, born 16 September 1889, died 20 December 1971 in Badaxe. He married (as his first wife) 23 June 1915 in Mulliken (Eaton) Michigan, Ethel Alvina Peabody, who was born 24 September 1892 in Roxand (Eaton) Michigan and died there 25 October 1927. Emmett & Ethel were the parents of four children. Emmett married (as his second wife) 18 June 1929, Mildred Nellie Gardnen, who was born 6 January 1890 and died 26 July 1979 in Colfax (Huron) Michigan.
6. Julia Agnes Raven, born 17 October 1891, died 29 February 1968 in Middletown (Middlesex) Connecticut. She married 17 May 1932 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, William Homan, who was born 3 August 1889 and died 13 January 1951. Julia never had any children of her own.
7. Clarinda Ayesha Raven, born 8 June 1895, died 29 August 1987 in Fort Myers (Lee) Florida. She married 19 July 1917 in East Lansing (Ingham) Michigan, Orville William Laidlaw, who was born 14 July 1893, and died 24 December 1978. Ayesha & Orville were the parents of two sons.
Tim’s 2nd-great-grandfather, Neadom Rodgers, son of Jacob and Mahala (Bedford) Rogers, was born 11 June 1837 in Guysborough (Guysborough) Nova Scotia, and died 30 June 1897 in Provincetown (Barnstable) Massachusetts. He married 3 April 1866 in Boston (Suffolk) Massachusetts, Hanorah “Nora” O’Brien, who was born 12 December 1846 in Massachusetts, and died 16 January 1921 in Marshfield (Plymouth) Massachusetts, daughter of William and Mary (—) O’Brien.
Neadom was a fisherman, and Hanorah was a homemaker, the daughter of Irish immigrants. They were married by Rev. Thomas Sheahan. Neadom had arrived in Provincetown from Canada in September 1858. He died of arterial insufficiency, and is buried with Hanorah in Gifford Cemetery in Provincetown.
Hanorah O’Brien (1846-1921)
On 11 March 1888, Neadom & Hanorah survived The Great Blizzard of 1888 that killed more than 400 people along the eastern seaboard.
Hanorah was a widow for 23 years. She stayed in Provincetown with three of her children and was there when the 1900 census was taken. By the time of the 1910 census she was living in Worcester, Massachusetts with her daughter Mary Jane and her family, and by the time of the 1920 census whe was living in Somerville, Massachusetts with her daughter Naomi and her family.
Hanorah & Neadom were the parents of nine children:
1. Mary Jane “Jenny” Rodgers (Tim’s great-grandmother), born 7 June 1867 in Boston, died 10 July 1916 in Somerville (Middlesex) Massachusetts. She married (as his first wife) on 18 February 1891 in Provincetown, her first cousin, George Lincoln Rodgers, who was born 1 January 1865 in Guysborough, and died 16 July 1939 in Fall River (Bristol) Massachusetts, son of Elijah and Zippora Ann (Horton) Rodgers. Mary & George were the parents of one son. Mary Jane lies buried with her parents in Gifford Cemetery in Provincetown.
Gifford Cemetery, Provincetown, Massachusetts
2. John Neadom Rodgers, born 14 February 1869 in Provincetown, died 10 October 1933 in Boston. He married 29 June 1893 in Provincetown, Bessie Robert Bennett, who was born in January 1871, daughter of Samuel and Irene (Smith) Bennett. John & Bessie were the parents of one son, named for his father, who was born and died the same day, 30 November 1907.
3. George J. Rodgers, born 3 July 1871 in Provincetown, died there 17 March 1872, age 8 months, of “putrefied congestion of the lungs.”
4. Naomi Mahala Rodgers, born 1 August 1873 in Provincetown. She married 2 August 1896 in Boston, Henry Scott Sylvanus Akers, who was born about 1868 in Maine, son of Samuel and Sarah Baldwin (Cutting) Akers. Naomi & Henry were the parents of one son.
Georgianna Rodgers (1875-1941) painting by her husband, E. Ambrose Webster
5. Georgianna Rodgers, born 4 May 1875 in Provincetown, died 27 May 1941 in Manhattan (New York) New York. She married 6 December 1911 in Chelsea (Suffolk) Massachusetts, Edwin Ambrose Webster, who was born 31 January 1869 in Chelsea, and died 23 January 1935 in Provincetown, son of Edwin and Caroline (Emerson) Webster. They had no children. Georgianna was a nurse, and would not agree to marry Ambrose until he was financially established as an artist. She was 36 when she and the Provincetown artist were finally married by R. Perry Bush, Clergyman.
E. Ambrose Webster (1869-1935)
Ever a modest person, Webster seems to have pursued his art and his teaching with remarkable talent, intensity, and intellect, but apparently with no bent for self-promotion. ~ Miriam Stubbs
He attended the Boston Museum of Fine Arts School, under Frank Benson and Edmund Tarbell, and Acadamie Julian in Paris studying with Jean Paul Laurens and Jean-Joseph Benjamin Constant. In 1913 he exhibited at the 69th Regiment Armory in New York City, “Old Hut, Jamaica” and “Sunlight, Jamaica”. He started Ambrose Webster’s Summer School of Painting, and was a founding member of the Provincetown Art Association & Museum. After his death, Georgianna lived in New York City with her nephew, Karl Rodgers and his wife, Allegra, while she was in her final illness and while their daughter, Delorma was a small child. Georgianna left the house at 180 Bradford St. in Provincetown, where she and Ambrose had lived, to Karl when she died. The house remained in the family and was enjoyed as a vacation getaway until 2008, when unfortunately it had to be sold.
Ambrose & Georgianna lie buried in an unmarked grave in the Webster plot at 2653 Hawthorn Path at Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Timothy Webster Rodgers, Karl’s grandson, was given a portrait of Georgianna painted by her husband, E. Ambrose Webster, after whom Tim was named.
On 24 August 2001, Aunt Delorma, Jon & Jannai, little Ella Grace, Tim & Barbara attended the opening night of an exhibition of Webster paintings at the Provincetown Art Association & Museum. Most of the paintings and drawings were from private collections, and we met the curator, Miriam Stubbs, a relative of Kenneth Stubbs who was one of Webster’s students.
6. Elijah Jacob Rodgers, born 16 January 1878 in Provincetown, died in 1960 in Arlington (Middlesex) Massachusetts. He was a baker and married 27 April 1898 in Provincetown, Clara Louise Bangs, who was born there 23 May 1879, and died 17 January 1979 in Arlington, daughter of Perez and Julia (Smith) Bangs. Elijah & Clara were the parents of one daughter. They lie buried with Elijah’s parents and his sister in Gifford Cemetery (see headstone pictured above).
7. George Levan Rodgers, born 2 May 1880 in Provincetown, died 13 November 1967 in Los Angeles (Los Angeles) California. He married 15 November 1906 in (Scott) Iowa, Sarah “Sadie” Schneider, who was born in March 1886 in Austria [now Poland], and died 25 May 1923 in Los Angeles, daughter of Abraham and Mary (—) Schneider. George & Sadie were the parents of two daughters.
8. Alvin Morse Rodgers, born 21 November 1881 in Provincetown, died 29 July 1950 in (Cook) Illinois. He married 11 October 1919 in Chicago (Cook) Illinois, Anna Kahn, who was born there 13 April 1895, and died there in February 1966, daughter of Emil and Fanny (—) Kahn. Alvin & Anna were the parents of two children.
9. Inez Mitchell Rodgers, born 30 July 1889 in Provincetown, died in 1955 in Marshfield. She married in 1920 in Somerville, Alton Phillips Stephens, who was born 11 November 1890 in Marshfield, and died in 1956 in Weymouth (Norfolk) Massachusetts, son of Alonzo and Cora Minnie (Sherman) Stevens. Inez & Alton had no children.
Elisabeth (Weekes) Freeman and the oldest four of her five children, Warren, Rosilla, Ambrose and Elisabeth ~ early evidence of what became known as the Freeman frown
Cousins marrying cousins, close or distant, was very common on Cape Cod and throughout New England, which makes figuring out relationships tricky but utterly fascinating. I’ve tried my best to figure out the tangled roots and shoots from my 3rd-great-grandparents!
Warren Freeman, a watchmaker, son of Thomas and Roxanna (Cash) Freeman, was born 25 July 1814 in Harwich (Barnstable) Massachusetts, and died there 16 September 1894. He married (as his second wife) 12 June 1848 in Harwich, his double fourth cousin, Elisabeth Weekes, who was born 6 November 1822 in Harwich, and died there 18 September 1908, daughter of Isaac and Elisabeth (Allen) Weekes.
Warren married (as his first wife) in December 1836, his double fourth cousin, Priscilla E. Long, who was born 22 October 1817 and died 7 December 1846 in Harwich, daughter of Isaac and Esther (Ellis) Long. Warren & Priscilla shared two sets of 3rd-great-grandparents, Joshua and Mary (Cole) Hopkins and Edward and Mary (Woodman) Small.
A year and a half after Priscilla died, Warren married Elisabeth, Priscilla’s half third cousin. Elisabeth’s and Priscilla’s great-grandmothers, Hannah (Paine) Allen and Jane (Small) Long, were half sisters, both daughters of Hannah (Hopkins) (Paine) Smalley by two different fathers.
Warren & Elisabeth were also double fourth cousins, sharing the same two sets of 3rd-great-grandparents, Joshua and Mary (Cole) Hopkins and Edward and Mary (Woodman) Small.
On the 1870 Federal Census, Warren was recorded as living in Dennis Port, age 55, a “huckster”, with real estate valued at $5000 and a personal state of $3000. Warren is buried with both his wives and two of his children in the First Congregational Church Cemetery in Harwich.
Priscilla & Warren were the parents of two children:
1. Thomas Freeman, a blacksmith who was born 15 August 1837 in Harwich. He married Rosilla F. Allen.
2. Clemantina Freeman, born 26 March 1842 in Harwich, died 24 May 1858, age 16. Clemantina was buried next to her mother, Priscilla E. (Long) Freeman, in the First Congregational Church Cemetery.
Elisabeth & Warren were the parents of five children (all born in Harwich), but they only had one grandchild together, and only one great-grandchild:
1. Elisabeth Emma “Lizzie” Freeman (my 2nd-great-grandmother), born 4 September 1851, died 4 October 1876 in Harwich, age 25. She married 5 July 1874 in Harwich, Capt. Martin Edward Thompson, who was born 4 August 1850 in Dennis and died in 1928, son of Martin and Ann Isabella (Hughs) Thompson. When Elisabeth died her 18-month-old son was left without his mother. She lies buried in Swan Lake Cemetery in Dennis.
2. Warren Wallace Freeman, born 3 July 1853, died 27 August 1868, age 15. Warren lies buried with his parents in the First Congregational Church Cemetery.
3. Rosilla Ida “Rosie” Freeman, born 6 March 1856, died 18 March 1923, age 67. She married 23 February 1882 in Dennis (Barnstable) Massachusetts, Capt. Martin Edward Thompson, who was born 4 August 1850 in Dennis and died in 1928, widower of her sister, Elisabeth, and son of Martin and Ann Isabella (Hughs) Thompson. Rosie raised her nephew but never had children of her own. She also lies buried in Swan Lake Cemetery.
4. Ambrose Eldridge Freeman, born 21 April 1858, died 1944 in Boston, age 83. Ambrose was a confirmed bachelor with a fondness for alcohol. His little child’s rocking chair was given to Jonathan Freeman Rodgers by his great-grandmother, Emma Freeman (Thompson) White, who was Ambrose’s grandniece. The gift was made following a little episode in Jonathan’s young toddler life. One day his mother, absent mindedly kept giving him sips of a “Cape Codder” cocktail she was enjoying with her grandparents. His great-grandmother was the first to notice that Jon was getting a little tipsy, and made the observation that he was the spit and image of Uncle Ambrose! Ambrose lies buried with his parents in the First Congregational Church Cemetery.
Uncle Ed & Aunt Flora
5. Susan Flora “Susie” Freeman, born 22 March 1864, died 7 May 1963 at Woods Hole, age 99. She married 19 February 1891, Edward Ellsworth “Eddie” Swift, who was born 25 August 1861 in Falmouth (Barnstable) Massachusetts, and died in May 1964, age 102, son of Ezekiel Eldridge and Lucy G. (Thompson) Swift.
Susie & Eddie lived at 10 School St., Woods Hole, Cape Cod, Massachusetts. They had no children so my grandparents (along with my great-grandparents) moved into their house and cared for them there in their old age. My grandmother was Susie’s (Flora’s) grandniece. I well remember playing as a very small child in the yard there while visiting my grandparents and great-grandparents and 2nd great-granduncle and aunt! The lawn stretched down a hill to a harbor (perhaps a marina?), and the barns were full of sea crafts. Uncle Ed lived to be 102, and died when I was 7 years old.
Uncle Ed, 95, meeting his 2nd-great-grandneice, Barbara, 1957
In the picture above, I am being held by my 2nd great-granduncle Ed! By the time I was 2, Uncle Ed was bedridden and my grandmother would put me on his bed for a visit. Uncle Ed would ask, “And how old are you, Barbara?” I would bravely hold up two fingers while staring at his long white beard.
The following is from the Cape Cod Standard Times:
Falmouth Pair Married 70 Years [PHOTO] Caption: Mr. and Mrs. Edward E. Swift of Woods Hole show their marriage certificate dated Feb. 19, 1891. The Swifts are looking forward to their 70th anniversary celebration, to be shared with family and friends.
Swifts to Observe 70th Anniversary by Robert G. Elphick, Cape Cod Standard Times Staff Writer
Barbara, 4, arriving for the party
WOODS HOLE, Feb. 3–A candy sailing ship shall cruise across a pastry map of Cape Cod, atop a cake to be baked in affectionate observance of a very rare occasion. The 70th wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Ellsworth Swift of School Street. Mrs. Carlyle R. Hayes of Middle Street, locally noted cake baker and old friend of the Swifts, will have the masterpiece ready for the anniversary observance on Feb. 19.
Mr. Swift will be 100 years old on Aug. 25. Mrs. Swift will be 97 next month. Though confined to their antique-and-memory filled home overlooking Eel Pond, they remain articulate, cheerful and endowed with quick humor and ready memory.
“I used to sail a lot,” Mr. Swift recalled, citing trophies in Class B, for skill and speed with the 13-foot spritsail boats. While on the subject of boats and ships, he said his great uncle Elijah Swift ran the British blockade during the War of 1812, and in more peaceful times planted the elms that today tower above Falmouth’s Village Green.
Were Shipbuilders “Both my grandfathers were ship builders,” Mr. Swift added. Ezekiel Swift, he said, built whaling ships in Woods Hole, and Marshall Grew built other wooden ships for iron men in New Bedford.
Mrs. Swift is the former Flora Susan Freeman of Harwich. The Swift’s wedding certificate, larger and more elaborate than those issued today, states that the pair were married by the Rev. R. M. Wilkins, pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church on Feb. 19, 1891, in South Harwich. The 70th anniversary observance will be at the Swift’s home, and will be limited to family and close friends.
Family includes the Swift’s grandniece, Mrs. John E. White, who came from West Harwich last September to care for the Swifts and her parents, Captain and Mrs. Martin Thompson. The Thompsons came to live with the Swifts five years ago.
Captain Thompson is a nephew of Mr. Swift. Until recently he has helped to run the hardware and ship’s chandler’s shop at the rear of the Swift’s home. The antique wooden sign over the shop entrance reads “Edward E. Swift, Dealer in Hardware, Cordage, Paints, Oil, Glass, and Galvanized Nails and Specialty.” The shop is rarely opened any more. Like the Swifts themselves, it is a survivor from another age.
Mrs. White said she is happy to be able to live with the Swifts and her parents and take care of them. “My parents observed their 61st wedding anniversary Wednesday,” Mrs. White commented. “My son is in the service and my daughter is at the University of Connecticut, so I have no one else to care for now, except my husband, of course. He’s a land surveyor and commutes daily to his office in West Harwich.”
Presented Symbol In 1956 Falmouth selectmen presented Mr. Swift with the cane marking him as the town’s oldest native resident. It was reported at the time that this was “a distinction that greatly pleased him.” The canes were made available to all Massachusetts towns many years ago by a Boston newspaper, to be handed down from one senior citizen to another.
“I enjoy books very much these days,” Mr. Swift commented. Each night Mr. and Mrs. White take turns reading aloud to the Swifts. “We are on Washington Irving now,” Mrs. White interjected. “Next we will do Dickens.”
Mr. Swift recalled that his middle name of Ellsworth was in honor of a relative who was serving at the time in the Civil War. He also remembered that he was born in Shiverick House when it was located in the parking lot that adjoins his present home–a short move to make in a century. He was graduated from Lawrence Academy, now the Falmouth USO and Legion Hall. In 1880, he then joined his father as E. Swift and Son, contractors, and in 1882 built the former Fay residence, now owned by the Oceanographic Institution. He also built the Congregational Church in Woods Hole during the 1880s, as well as many other structures long since passed into oblivion.
Open Shop The elder Swift died in 1909. The business was continued by his son until a shortage of labor and materials in World War I ended building operations. Mr. Swift remembers that we then opened his ship chandler’s shop at the rear of his home and has operated it until recent years, most recently with the assistance of Captain Thompson.
Mr. Swift was for many years clerk of the Church of the Messiah in Woods Hole, and remains today as clerk emeritus. A frequent visitor is the rector, the Rev. Mason Wilson. Additional friends will certainly be on hand Feb. 19 to mark a very special occasion and incidentally share in the enjoyment of a very special cake.
Martin Freeman Thompson and his uncle, Edward Ellsworth Swift
The following is from the WHOI [Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute] Historic Structures Survey, Swift House, 10 School St, constructed 1834, acquired by WHOI 1965:
Ezekiel Swift built the house and its two barns around 1834. The house was handed down through the years from his son, to his grandson, Eddie Swift, who was a well known character in Woods Hole. Eddie and his father formalized the family carpentry trade into a business known as E. E. Swift and Son in the late 1800s. The family building business survived until Eddie decided to open a hardware store in the barn behind the house. Eddie, who lived to be 103, and the hardware store survived into the 1960s. WHOI purchased the property on New Year’s Eve of 1964 and has used both the house and the barns since then. The house has served as offices for the Applied Oceanography group, now Ocean Engineering, and as home for other elements of departments.
back of picture above
The following is from a sign by a Woods Hole Spritsail Boat made by Edward Swift, donated to Mystic Seaport, Mystic, Connecticut, by Mr. & Mrs. John E. White:
Never launched or given her final coats of paint, this craft was built about 1910, and between that time and 1968 when it was given to this museum, the boat and the shop in which she was built were left essentially undisturbed, thus her pristine condition. Additional information is contained in the adjoining article excerpted from Skipper magazine. Length 13’4”, Beam 6′. Those Handy Little BCats by H.V.R. Palmer, Jr.
The first time I ever saw a print of this painting was at an estate sale, not long after my father died on September 19th in 2013. The expression on the man’s face reminded me of my father and the little girl reminded me of myself so I bought it. It’s not in the greatest condition and the coloring is way off. Perhaps the coloring on this digital copy is off, too. Some day I may replace it with a better copy.
He’s been gone for three years now and I still miss him, my favorite teacher. Papa taught me how to wash my hair, how to cross the street, how to trust my own instincts, how to treat animals, how to be compassionate and kind, how to swim, how to ice skate, how to paddle a canoe, how to chop an onion, how to look up words in a dictionary, how to do research, how to enjoy bird-watching, how to garden, how to walk (and play) in the woods — the list goes on. I think of him every time I do any of those things.
It’s almost autumn and I will be eating as many Macoun apples as I can while the season lasts. They were his favorites. He often told me the following story when I was growing up. (It first appeared almost 6 years ago on my blog!)
When my father was a boy growing up on a New England farm during the Great Depression, his family picked as many apples as they could and stored some of them in a barrel in the root cellar. Of course he ate as many as he could while picking them, but his parents had a rule about the ones in the barrel he found exasperating. If anyone wanted an apple later in the fall or winter, he was required to take one that was the least fresh. By the time they got to the fresher ones they had also become much less fresh! So all winter he was having to make do with eating not-so-great apples. If only he had known he might have called on Iduna to keep the apples fresher longer! ~ Barbara Rodgers (Iduna: Keeper of Apples)
But perhaps I miss him the most whenever I hear a story on the news about a threat from a new virus or other infectious agent. Dad was a microbiologist and was utterly fascinated with microorganisms — viruses, bacteria, spirochetes, amoebas, fungi, parasites. He would never tire of explaining things about them to me and correcting any misinformation the media might be passing along to his fellow citizens. And I never tired of listening. I find myself wondering what he would have had to say about the Zika virus. It’s not easy finding someone so interested in this subject!
I didn’t notice it at first, but my father died on his older brother’s birthday. Jon Stephen was born on September 19th in 1909 in Ukraine. My father, Theodore William, never knew his older brother because Jon died of a ruptured appendix on March 15th in 1919 in New York, when he was only 9 years old. Papa was born three years later on March 13th in 1922. A little bit of synchronicity there I think.
Hanley Stafford, voice of John Perry on “John’s Other Wife.”
This morning I’ve been pleasantly occupied catching up with reading my favorite blogs. My blogging friend Jane, over at nichepoetryandprose, has been writing about one room schoolhouses. Reading her posts brought back a memory my father used to share frequently in his later years, when he was suffering from dementia.
He said he would walk home from school at noon to eat lunch with his mother. He always had to wait a few minutes for her to feed him while she was listening to the end of an episode of her favorite radio soap opera, “John’s Other Wife.”
Papa attended a one room schoolhouse in Montville, Connecticut. He also walked to high school at Norwich Free Academy in Norwich. One day Tim & I drove along the route to see if that was feasible, and it was 3 miles, no problem for a teenager.
I decided to search online for “John’s Other Wife,” and found this interesting blog post: September 14, 1936: Debut of John’s Other Wife. My father was 14 years old when this program debuted and he must have been in high school by then. Perhaps his mother was listening to it when he got home from school in the afternoon? I’m not sure he would have walked 3 miles home for lunch and then back to school again for a few hours. The memory of returning home for lunch from the one room schoolhouse must have mingled with the memory of returning home to find his mother completely absorbed in her soap opera, no doubt after a long day of hard work on the farm.
Then I found an episode online – “John’s Relapse” – it was only ten minutes long! Anyway, it was fun listening to the very program my grandmother listened to all those years ago.
