Photographer Charles Henry Shaw of Manchester, New Hampshire (1864-1932)

Posted on 7 June, 2015 by Janice Brown

Shaws Studio bannerFrom 1897 to 1927, a span of thirty years, Charles Henry Shaw photographed the people of Manchester.  His studio for most of that time was at 895 Elm Street, though briefly it was also located at 68 Opera Block. Charles and his wife Ida (Doughty) Shaw lived in the city and raised their children while they lived on 510 Maple and 73 Malvern Streets.  When their children grew and moved away, they spent the rest of their lives at 219 Walnut Street.  Continue reading →

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Manchester NH’s Wagner Memorial Park aka Pretty Park

Posted on 3 June, 2015 by Janice Brown
Photograph of Edward Wagner, father of Ottilie (Wagner) Hosser, for whom (along with his wife, Wilhelmina) the park was originally dedicated, and where it gets its name.

Photograph of Edward Wagner, father of Ottilie (Wagner) Hosser, for whom (along with his wife, Wilhelmina) Wagner Memorial Park in Manchester NH was originally dedicated, and from whom it derives its name. From The Mirror’s Pictorial Manchester 1846-1896.

Wagner Memorial Park is a well-landscaped park with a Greek-revival monument and benches, located in the Arts & Cultural District of Manchester, New Hampshire. The park was created on an entire block of land (one and one-half acres) located between Prospect, Myrtle, Maple and Oak Streets. Before it became a park it was part of a larger farm belonging to the Weston Family.

The land was given to the city by Ottilie “Matilda” (Wagner) Hosser to honor her parents, Edward & Wilhelmina (Seelig) Wagner. According to a history article written in 2012 by Aurore Eaton, and published in the Union Leader newspaper, when Ottilie died in 1944 her will offered the land to the city along with $150,000 to build a memorial park to her parents that would be a place of “peace and love,” a reminder of the friendship between the German American people. Aurore notes in her article, “Understandably, the city was reluctant to make these feelings known while the park was being constructed in 1944 and 1945, in the middle of World War II.”

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The Face of Oriseville Sarah (Fisher) Frost of Peterborough NH (1848-1929)

Posted on 29 May, 2015 by Janice Brown
Mrs. Oriseville Sarah (Fisher) Frost of Peterborough NH, from a gem sized tintype photograph

Mrs. Oriseville Sarah (Fisher) Frost of Peterborough NH, from a gem sized tintype photograph

At first I thought the handwriting on the back of a lovely gem-sized tintype photo read Drusilla.  The other side with the actual photograph was entitled “Mrs. Frost,” in pencil.  The face that looked out at me was lovely, and strangely I had not remembered purchasing it.  It had arrived in an envelope with several others that I did order.  I dutifully researched and connected the relationships between those other photographs.  But this one of Mrs. Frost seemed to be unrelated.

After several hours of pouring through records, I had a genealogist’s “Aha!” moment.  It became clear that the wording on the back of the photograph read Oriseville.

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New Hampshire’s Decoration Day 1869 (now known as Memorial Day)

Posted on 25 May, 2015 by Janice Brown

Boy with Flag Memorial Day

Today we celebrate Memorial Day, as an official date to honor and to decorate the graves of those who perished in the wars and skirmishes of the United States. In 1869 this time of year was called DECORATION DAY, and was mainly focused on those who had recently died during the Civil War, as the following article describes. Continue reading →

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Nashua NH Composer, Piano Merchant and Civic Leader, William Law “Will” Nutting (1874-1925)

Posted on 22 May, 2015 by Janice Brown
William L. "Will" Nutting

William L. “Will” Nutting

Before it was Darrell’s Music Hall, it was Paine Furniture Music Hall. Before that it was Nutting’s Music Store. And before that it was William L. Nutting Inc.

William Law Nutting was not born, nor did he die, in New Hampshire. But from a lowly piano tuner, he worked his way up until he was one of the leading retail merchants of pianos and “talking machines” in New England. For over twenty years he had a shop and warehouse in Nashua, New Hampshire. After his death, the company continued in his name for several years. Continue reading →

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