Around Town

Civil War Nurses of Mount Auburn Cemetery: Harriet Ann Jacobs

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Harriet Ann Jacobs

By Bill McEvoy

In honor of National Nurses Week, local historian Bill McEvoy has compiled histories of some of the Civil War nurses who are buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery. This is part six of seven. Harriet Ann Jacobs was born into slavery, on February 11, 1813, in Edenton, North Carolina. She died on March 7, 1897, in Washington, D.C. Raised in Edenton, Harriet, and her brother, John Jacobs were born to Delilah Horniblow and Elijah Knox, a carpenter. Harriet recalled a happy early childhood. 

In her book, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, available as a free download on Google Books, she noted: We lived together in a comfortable home; and though we were all slaves, I was so fondly shielded that I never dreamed I was a piece of merchandise.

Around Town

Civil War Nurses of Mount Auburn Cemetery: Anna Cabot Lowell Woodbury

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By Bill McEvoy

In honor of National Nurses Week, local historian Bill McEvoy has compiled histories of some of the Civil War nurses who are buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery. This is part five of seven. Anna Cabot Lowell Woodbury was the niece of poet James Russell Lowell, and sister of Lt. James Jackson Lowell and Brig. General Charles Russell Lowell. 

In the early summer of 1862, having recently been trained as an Army nurse, Anna was assigned to the hospital ship Daniel Webster on the James River. When she arrived at Harrison’s Landing, Virginia in June 1862, she continued her work despite news that her brother James had been killed in the Seven Days Battles during the Peninsula Campaign.

Around Town

Civil War Nurses of Mount Auburn Cemetery: Mary Phinney von Olnhausen

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Mary Phinney von Olnhausen

By Bill McEvoy

In honor of National Nurses Week, local historian Bill McEvoy has compiled histories of some of the Civil War nurses who are buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery. This is part four of seven. If you heard this name recently, it stemmed from PBS’s series, Mercy Street. I located and read her diary in 2012, long before PBS’s 2016 series. I gave several lectures that noted her diary.

Around Town

Civil War Nurses of Mount Auburn Cemetery: Mary Sullivan Felton

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The grave of Mary Sullivan Felton at Mount Auburn Cemetery. By Bill McEvoy

In honor of National Nurses Week, local historian Bill McEvoy has compiled histories of some of the Civil War nurses who are buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery. This is part three of seven. Mary Sullivan Felton was born on April 30th, 1839, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She died April 29th, 1896, in Boston, from pneumonia and pericarditis. Her father, Cornelius Conway Felton, died in 1862 at age 57.

Around Town

Our History: Watertown Was Home to Two Dairies

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Woodland Dairy wagon (photo courtesy of the Watertown Free Public Library)

The following story was written by Sigrid Reddy Watson Terman for the April 2010 Historical Society newsletter, “The Town Crier.” Sigrid is a former Board member and former President of the Historical Society, as well at a former Director of the Watertown Free Public Library. For several years starting in 1997, she wrote a Watertown history column for the Watertown TAB/Press called “Echoes.”

WATERTOWN’S DAIRIES SUPPLIED SURROUNDING TOWNS

I’m sure many of you Watertown history fans remember the “Echoes” column that Sigrid Reddy Watson wrote for several years for the Watertown TAB/Press beginning in 1997. Ms. Watson was the Director of the Watertown Free Public Library from 1971-1989 and President of the Historical Society of Watertown from 2001-2003. Ms. Watson’s weekly column was about Watertown history. She covered subjects includingWatertown during the Revolution, the Arsenal, women’s suffrage, the Fowles, renowned localpeople and buildings and houses, our many ethnic groups, the industries that made Watertown aplace to settle in during the 19th and early 20th centuries, and many other subjects.

Around Town

One of Watertown’s Oldest Houses Has Quite a History

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Charlie BreitroseThe Edmund Fowle House has been in Watertown for 251 years, though not always at its current spot on Marshall Street. It played a role in the American Revolution, including the first reading of the Declaration of Independence in Massachusetts (re-enacted here in 2016) and was where the first treaty was signed by the United States. It is now home to the Historical Society of Watertown which is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Living in a house dating back to the time of the American Revolution can be an adventure, with bouncy floors, water coming through the ceiling, and evidence of superstitions of times past. Former Historical Society President Paul Brennan recalled his years spent living in the Edmund Fowle House on Saturday when he returned for the Society’s 100th anniversary and the celebration of 251 years for the home that played a role in the American Revolution.

Around Town

Our History: Long Lost Cane Given to Oldest Resident Returns to Watertown

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The head of Watertown’s cane has several dents, but you can see it says, “Presented by The Boston Post to the OLDEST CITIZEN of Watertown” (Photo courtesy of Joyce Kelly)

This article is part of a series on local history provided by the Historical Society of Watertown. It was written by Joyce Kelly, Board member of the Historical Society of Watertown. Joyce writes articles for the newsletter and is the newsletter editor. This was published in our July 2009 newsletter, “The Town Crier.”

1909 BOSTON POST CANE RETURNS TO WATERTOWN

In 1909, the Boston Post newspaper began a highly successful marketing scheme. They began presenting canes made of African ebony with 14-karat gold heads to the oldest man in 700 different towns in New England.

Around Town

Our History: Sam Adams Frequented Watertown’s Fowle House

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Charlie BreitroseThe Edmund Fowle House in Watertown housed the Massachusetts Council in Revolutionary times. Sam Adams was among the members of the Council. The following story is part of a series on local history provided by the Historical Society of Watertown. It was written by Historical Society President Marilynne Roach for the January 2009 Historical Society newsletter, “The Town Crier”. Marilynne is also on the board of the Watertown Historical Commission.