Lancaster NH’s John Wingate Weeks (1860-1926) — the “Weeks” behind the “Weeks Act”

Posted on 21 July, 2014 by Janice Brown
Portrait of John W. Weeks, then Senator of Massachusetts 31 May 1916 sitting in room, Chicago IL at Republican National Convention. From Chicago History Museum, via American Memory.

Portrait of John W. Weeks, then Senator of Massachusetts 31 May 1916 sitting in room, Chicago IL at Republican National Convention. From Chicago History Museum, via The Library of Congress: American Memory.

In 2011 the United States Forest Service celebrated the 100th anniversary of one of the most successful land conservation efforts in the United States. The Weeks Act was signed into law in 1911, after a decade-long debate about the role of the federal government in protecting forest lands.  The Weeks Act is named after John Wingate Weeks, a New Hampshire native who, in 1909 while serving in the U.S. Congress for 12th Congressional District of Massachusetts, introduced a bill concerning the federal purchase of forest reserves. Continue reading →

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Portsmouth NH Navy Yard: Genealogy Gleanings from the Life Buoy

Posted on 20 July, 2014 by Janice Brown

The Industrial Department Life Buoy was a magazine issued free, on a monthly basis, to Lifebuoyemployees of the Industrial Department of the Portsmouth Navy Yard, in Portsmouth New Hampshire. It was intended to inspire, to give a sense of collective purpose, and to provide news as one might share within a family.

This particular collection of magazines published from 1917 to 1920 contains important historical and biographical information, the excerpts of which I will provide here, with links back to the original text. Anyone with a relative who worked at the shipyard during this time, or who has an interest in submarine and ship building in the World War I era will find the information fascinating. Continue reading →

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New Hampshire Tidbits: Temple and The First Glass Factory

Posted on 15 July, 2014 by Janice Brown

glass bottles“A glass factory of considerable extent and remarkable for its employment of Hessians and Waldeckers who were deserters from the British army was established 1779 or 1780 at Temple, NH by a Mr. Hewes of Boston, but was burned down in 1780-81 and was not rebuilt; some of its products, a glass plate, etc. are in Harvard University.” [from Johnson's universal cyclopedia: a scientific and popular treasury; Vol 3: Glass, American Manufacture of", p 506] Continue reading →

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Health and Longevity in 18th & Early 19th Century New Hampshire

Posted on 11 July, 2014 by Janice Brown

Instances of Longevity in New-Hampshire, with the places of residence, and the time when each person died, and their ages.

YEAR DIED | NAME  | TOWN | AGEold postcard couple in rowboat
1732 William Perkins, of New-Market 116
1736 John Buss, of Durham 108
1739 James Wilson, of Chester 100
1754 William Scoby, of Londonderry 110
1754 James Shirley, of Chester 105
1765 Elizabeth Hight, of Newington 100
1772 Howard Henderson, of Dover 100
1775 William Craige, of Chester 100
1775 Mrs. Craige (his wife) of Chester 100
1775 Mrs. Lear, of Portsmouth 103
1775 Mrs. Mayo, of Portsmouth 106
1787 Robert Macklin, of Wakefield 115
1789 Mrs. Ulrick, of Hollis 104
1790 Mrs. Hayley, of Exeter 101
1791 Jacob Green, of Hanover 100
1791 Widow Davis 102
1791 James Shirley, of Chester 100 Continue reading →

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New Hampshire’s Post Road and Post Office History

Posted on 8 July, 2014 by Janice Brown

Today much of our communication is transmitted electronically. It was only a few decades ago that all of our correspondence, documents, and bills were delivered by human hand to our doorsteps. In colonial America, post roads influenced what people knew about current events, and houses along this road were considered prime real estate.  By ‘post road, ‘ I mean those byways specifically designated for the delivery of  mail or correspondence.

These roads were different from those of the New Hampshire turnpike system that I have written about previously.  The history of New Hampshire’s (and America’s) post roads is older than that of the United States Post Office.   Continue reading →

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