Another Heroine of WWI: Pauline Hildreth Field (1885-1919)

Posted on 7 May, 2019 by Janice Brown

Photograph of Pauline H. Field from her July 1918 U.S. passport.

Pauline Hildreth Field was not born in New Hampshire, but her paternal grandmother was. Pauline  was one of over 160 women World War I Red Cross workers who died during service during World War I. She did not work as a nurse, but rather was a member of the American Red Cross  in France, in Hospital Hut Service, performing “hospital recreational work.”

In 1912 Pauline H. Field was listed on the New York City Social Register along with her sister.  On 15 June 1912 she attended the commencement exercises at Temple University (Philadelphia PA), receiving a certificate at the Teacher’s College, for having completed the Normal Course in Kindergarten Training. Continue reading →

Posted in History, New Hampshire Women, NH WW1 Military, Not New Hampshire | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Actor, Director, Comedian and Teacher: Peter Bonerz of Portsmouth New Hampshire (1938-Still Living)

Posted on 30 April, 2019 by Janice Brown

Photo of Peter Bonerz from the 1956 Marquette High School Year Book.

Peter Bonerz is quoted as saying, “I consider myself as a once upon a time, a minor celebrity.” This unassuming gentleman is so much more.  Most of us remember him for his role as Dr. Jerry on ‘The Bob Newhart Show,’ but he also directed two of my all time favorite shows, ‘Friends’ and ‘Home Improvement.’  Very few realize that he was born in New Hampshire. Continue reading →

Posted in Genealogy, New Hampshire Entertainers, New Hampshire Men | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Cow Hampshire Blog Turns 13

Posted on 16 April, 2019 by Janice Brown

Photograph of 13 unlucky cows killed by a lightning strike. From book: Lightning, and petroleum storage tanks, etc. by West Dodd; 1920. Internet Archive.

Some consider the number 13 to be unlucky, but then some folks think cows are useless animals.  Both are wrong.

On 16 March of 2006 after losing my twin sister to cancer, I began writing a blog, for it had been a pastime she greatly enjoyed at the end of her life. At first I had no idea where my writing might lead me.  My first few posts were photographs or short poems.

Then I was inspired to write about history.  That pastime seems to be in my blood, for my paternal grandmother and my father both loved the stories about New Hampshire.

Continue reading →

Posted in History, Personal History, Really Old News | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Descendant of Rev. James MacGregor of Londonderry NH — World War One Heroine: Ruth MacGregor (1889-1918)

Posted on 7 April, 2019 by Janice Brown

Ruth MacGregor from The News Journal, Wilmington DE of 10 Nov 1922 page 6

I was recently reviewing the list of “Gold Star Women” who had died during World War I service, and came across the name of a Delaware resident, Ruth MacGregor. Normally I would not be writing about her, then I discovered she just happens to have a connection to New Hampshire. She was the 3rd great-grand daughter of the Rev. James MacGregor of Nutfield (Londonderry) New Hampshire.

Another reason I chose to write about her is that several sources state she was buried at sea, and so there is no cemetery plot  where people can gather to honor her memory.  I hope this story will serve as a partial remembrance.  Continue reading →

Posted in History, Lost Faces of WW1, New Hampshire Women, NH WW1 Military, Not New Hampshire | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Before Helen Keller: The Education of the Deaf, Mute and Blind Girl — Laura Dewey Bridgman of Hanover NH (1829-1889)

Posted on 28 March, 2019 by Janice Brown

Daguerreotype of Laura Dewey Bridgman, Blind Poetess, taken about 1855, Southworth and Hawes; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Today through the film, The Miracle Worker, [the source material came from the H. Keller book “The Story of My Life”] many people are aware of the story of Helen Adams Keller who was born in 1880 and became deaf and blind as the result of an unknown illness. Helen’s famous teacher was Anne Mansfield Sullivan, a graduate of the Perkins School for the Blind.

Before Helen Keller was born, there was an amazing woman from New Hampshire, named Laura Dewey Bridgman who overcame similar challenges and became one of the “most celebrated women of her time.”  An article in The Scranton Republican of 14 May 1915 describes that “a doll dressed by Laura Bridgman, born forty years earlier, afforded the basis of the first teaching [of Helen Keller], helping the child to learn with amazing rapidity.” Continue reading →

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