A Little Genealogy, Beautiful Flowers, Old House, Antiques..Need More?

Tree taken last year, in front
of the House, see last
photo.

As with almost all my blog posts, I try to incorporate a little genealogy, showcase beautiful flowers or scenery, an old house, collectibles, and/or antiques into it. In this post, I finally get to do everything. Fortunately, the Stevens-Coolidge Place in North Andover, MA is rather close to where I live and I've been visiting the property for a good 9-10 years. We go to walk around the grounds, smell the fresh air, and view all the gardens. NOTE: About 5-6 years ago, the landscaping was completely changed, including the parking and directions to get there. As far as I know, everything is the same inside the house.

However, I always wondered what was in the house, and several times when I inquired about it, I was told they didn't have enough volunteers to act as docents. This year, I got a notice that they were having a tour of the house. (I appeared there bright and early on June 21st for the first tour, and it didn't disappoint. I had NO idea it was even furnished! Photos are below. The post will also show the formal rose garden, a perennial garden (this was the best growing season ever), the cutting garden from beginning to end, and a large French garden.

The Stevens-Coolidge Place

139 Andover Street

North Andover, MA 

(A property of The Trustees of Reservations.)

The house as shown from various views from the front, side, and back.

 

The house is called a Place, but I like to call it an Estate since there are 91 acres. Helen Stevens married John Coolidge in 1909 and inherited this property, known as Ashdale Farm in 1914. They lived here in the summer until John Coolidge died in 1936. She remained spending summers here until her death in 1962 and she bequeathed the estate to The Trustees of Reservations, and they changed the name to Stevens-Coolidge Place. Note: Since I have quite a few ancestors and relatives from this area, I hope to do their genealogy to see if there is a connection to mine.

 The Rose Garden

The photo above was obtained from:

 https://www.digitalcommonwealth.org/search/commonwealth:b8516144v

This work is licensed for use under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives License (CC BY-NC-ND).

Early spring, not much is in bloom, but the lilacs are!

The Perennial Garden photos are below.

I usually go three times during mid-late spring. The first flowers that I go nuts over are the oriental poppies and purple iris.

Front entrance.

On the first floor we walked through several sitting rooms, a den, and a formal dining room, all filled with family antiques. (I've enlarged the photos, so you can see the items.)

Hallway.

Photo of the couple on Mr. Coolidge's desk, seen below.

A door opens to a patio overlooking the Perennial Garden.

Genealogy on the wall! Mr. John Gardner Coolidge was related to Thomas Jefferson. (Thomas Jefferson was his great-great grandfather). I was the only one who got excited and took the photos. He was also the nephew of Isabella Stewart Gardner.

The Cutting Garden, spring and late summer.

The French Garden

In the Spring there are hundreds of pink and white Peonies.

Below are some late blooming flowers in the French Garden.

Last year, 2015,  photo. Note for April 29, 2022: That beautiful tree and many, many others were removed in 2019-2020 to change the landscape.

Brochure with a map of the property.

Each Example is Different, and None Were Done on Computers

For many of us, we received a baby book with the new family tree filled out by a parent. This one of mine was filled out in full with all names, but unfortunately there are two small errors, and no dates nor locations. I received this book when I got married, I didn't think about these people until I began working at the DAR in Washington and decided to join as a member. Using this was my first source, until I discovered that my mother and great-grandmother had been members of the DAR.

I will show five examples of genealogy charts, all are quite different, and you might have the same luck if you just spread the news to your family members that you are big into genealogy, and ask if they have charts. Also, it would be a smart move to inquire at libraries where your family or ancestor lived as well as call, write or go online to see what the area Colleges, Historical Societies or any Repository has. Another suggestion is to ask other genealogists, especially if you belong to groups on facebook.

Since my old baby tree, I've been given several very detailed charts (typed and hand written) by family members and a stranger. In addition, I located a typed manuscript of over 200 pages. It appears that several of my ancestors were into genealogy. When I received these, I pretty much copied the data into my software. None of the charts had sources, but the manuscript did. The information came from an architect, a doctor, an archivist, a now Certified Genealogist and a lawyer, so I was very lucky...but remember they didn't source. I had lots of work to do because of that.

As you'll see, each example is different, and none were done on computers. I'll show them in the order that I received and include a brief description.

1. Several months after working at the DAR, a staff genealogist who was helping me with my line, surprised me with a nine-generation lineage chart, and more information as a gift. I wrote about this in a blog, seen HERE. I was in shock. You probably can't see it, but I didn't even know my grandfather's marriage or death date.

9 generation chart

2. Two years later, I received a rolled up sheet, measuring 30" x 43" from my uncle, containing our genealogy. It was based on my grandfather's information done in 1957. This was a total surprise. There was a notation that he (uncle) updated a few things (new births, deaths and marriages). What I liked were the 13 stars indicating military service. However, as shown below, it was very hard to follow the lines, and there were some errors.

Full chart spread across the bed.

3. Ten years after I began my research, I went to Canada to get copies of the records my archivist cousin donated to a Historical Society. Below are a few examples. The first is a partial descendant report beginning with my fifth great-grandfather. The second report is the first page of six showing the family tree.

4. A year later, I received a huge package of information from a distant cousin, I believe he was ending his research, but I don't believe he actually did this work. Below are three very large sheets, (the top, middle and bottom, when put together would make an enormous page), showing the descendants of Hendrick Schrambling. A descendant, Henry Scrambling was my Revolutionary War Patriot, and I was obsessed with this line, even before I received this gift. The family arrived in New York ca. 1710 and I had an easy time tracing the lines until the later years when the family changed their spelling to Scramlin and other variations, so these sheets helped immensely.

5. The pages below are from a manuscript my great-great grandfather wrote. It is located at the New England Historic Genealogical Society's library. By the time I discovered this, most my Poole line had been completed by me, because many resources and sources are plentiful in Massachusetts. I still have not read all the pages and I know there are things I'll need to add, after I check for sources. My post about my discovery is shown HERE and the first 25 pages shown HERE. I purposely left the pages below because of the "tabular" chart, parts of a will and transcript from a cemetery stone, so they can be read.

manuscript is over 200 pages, and includes transcribed wills and cemetery tombstones.

Labor Day with the Mill Girls and an Irish Canal Worker

"Homage to Women" by Mico Kaufman (See link for his education and works.)

Located in the Market Mills Courtyard

Market Street, Lowell, Massachusetts

"This sculpture is a tribute to Lowell's nineteenth

century 'mill girls.' The intertwined figures also

represent the struggles and aspirations of all

women throughout time."

During the annual Folk Festival in July, the courtyard is used for music and fun. You can see the sculpture on the below left picture.

The Worker

Located in downtown Lowell, MA.

Corner of Shattuck and Market Streets

This work, constructed in 1985 by Elliot and Ivan Schwartz, depicts an Irish canal worker widening the canal ways of Lowell.

The Worker

In 1821 Hugh Commisky led a 

band of laborers on a trek from

Charlestown to Lowell. With muscle

and sweat they dredged canals in

the soil of rugged farmland. As

others joined in their toil a complex

waterpower system evolved, creat-

ing a new era of textile production.

When one generation had endured

and the clamor of manufacturing

increased, immigrants came by

the thousands seeking labor and

a better life. This fountain cele-

brates workers and their contribu-

tion to industrial and human heritage.

Lowell Heritage State Park

Lowell National Historical Park

ARTIST(S): Elliot Schwartz, sculptor; Ivan Schwartz, sculptor.

DATE: Installed 1985.

From the Lowell Historical Society,

Hugh Commiskey died at his home on Adams Street, at age of 82, December 12, 1871.

 

The above photo was taken Sept. 5, 2015 (a few days after it was repaired) and shows the complete sculpture (with trolley on the right). The pry bar had been sawed off just below this worker's lower hand (see previous photo). The photo below shows the water and stone boulders at a different angle.

 

This courtyard is also a place for people to mingle or wait, as the people below are doing during the Folk Festival in July.

To Remember "Homage to Women" and "The Worker" on this Labor Day

The Minister's Wife Suggestion

All Saints Church
Dunham, Brome-Missisquoi Co., Quebec, Canada

The above photo was taken in the fall of 1999, when my husband and I spent three days in the Eastern Townships of Quebec. My original photo lost much of it's color, so I've made it black and white.

Before we made the Canadian trip, I already knew that 22 of my ancestors were buried in five cemeteries, but in different small towns. How did I get so lucky getting that information? Several people helped. First, a local genealogy club friend, who was also a recently discovered 5th cousin told me she and her mother were going north to find where two of our ancestor's were buried. When Gail and her mother, Isabelle Westover returned, she gave me copies of her notes and a detailed map of all towns and cemeteries. I had to see the three stones, plus 19 others, so within two months we were on the road. Additional information was obtained from my visit to the Missisquoi Historical Society.

While at the above cemetery, we ran into the Minister's wife in her yard. She and her husband lived in a house behind the church and we began chatting. I wasn't looking for anything, but was wondering to myself about how I could get updated vital records information on more recent ancestors and family members. After my thinking, I asked the wife that question. Margaret Godsoe knew how, and ran into the house for a pen and paper and wrote the name and address of the Diocesan Archivist in Montreal, and suggested I write the archivist. With the addresses and good intentions of writing immediately, it took me seven months before I knew what to write and what to send. Below are my copies of correspondence and two family group sheets I sent. Regarding the group sheets, I left all sources off, so as to not confuse anybody. I tried to be as clear as possible in what I wanted. In looking at these requests today, and what they sent, I believe they read my mind because I received more than I requested, but that was okay by me.

Researchers should know, I was doing my research all wrong! Cemetery visiting should have been my last step, not my first!

I was very lucky that my very early ancestor sources were correct (many names not on these sheets), thanks to my researching the Quebec National Archives Microfilm Collection of vital records also called Drouin Collection up to 1898 or so. I was viewing the microfilm weekly at the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS). Eventually this collection was put online. (Back then, I would never have imagined I could have researched these now indexed records from home.) From, the Library and Archives Canada site, "Parish registers are an important source for information on births, baptisms, marriages, deaths and burials. For you to locate relevant records, you must know the place and the religious denomination of a person. Religious denomination is indicated in Census records." Since almost all my lines were Loyalists, and all ancestors spoke and wrote English, I had a rather easy time reading the writing. However, it must have taken me hundreds of hours to go through the microfilm, because nothing was indexed like it is now.

Moral of story, if you are thinking something and wondering if you should ask a question, Just Do It. If I hadn't asked the Minister's wife about recent records, my research on these lines would have taken much longer. I was absolutely thrilled to get a copy of my grandmother's birth, and the marriage record for my great-grandparents, both shown below.

Baptism and birth dates for my grandmother, Sarah Dumont Ten Eyck.

Marriage Record for my great-grandparents, Charles Ten Eyck and Lydia Jane Pell.

Three Cemeteries in Lowell, Massachusetts

Why do some people love cemeteries so much? Is it because of the peace and quiet along the trails and paths, your curiosity, thinking about the unknown stories that lie beneath the stones, the beauty of the surroundings or the fun in discovering who you are looking for?

I'm covering some of the cemeteries located in Lowell, Massachusetts because this is where I live. I have no relatives or family buried here. My in-laws were buried in the next town. Since I often help people with their Lowell genealogy and I've posted a good many Lowell Cemetery cemetery stone photos on this blog, I thought it was about time to give you some information on this subject.

There are quite a few cemeteries in the city, all sizes, some private and one, the Hildreth Cemetery is always locked, this is where Major General Benjamin F. Butler was buried. A list of all cemeteries was prepared by several agencies and groups and may be seen HERE.

I will only discuss in order, the Lowell Cemetery (private), the Edson Cemetery (City of Lowell), and the St. Patrick Cemetery (private).

The Lowell Cemetery, est. 1841, is one of the original Garden Cemeteries in Massachusetts. This is where I go to get the first feel of spring and say goodbye to the last of the red leaves in the fall. The cemetery is very hilly, with narrow roads and lots of paths. A lot of the burials are on FindAGrave, but if you want to physically visit the site, you can call the cemetery office and get the street name and location. The site states that 6,259 were buried here with 75% photographed.

Below are photos of the two entrances and a brochure of the cemetery, with map and listing of all street names with a grid. 

The Lowell Cemetery

77 Knapp Avenue

Phone: 978-454-5191

http://www.lowellcemetery.com/

Lawrence Street Entrance

Knapp Street Entrance

Lowell Cemetery

There are two entrances, the Knapp Street entrance, off of Rogers Street (Rt. 38), near Shedd Park and the Lawrence Street entrance. Since this is a private cemetery, the gates are locked in the evening, and opened at 8 am. Unfortunately, the map above was too large to scan for this page.

The Edson Cemetery, 1375 Gorham Street
Lowell, Massachusetts
978-970-3323

The 1845 Edson Cemetery is large, but because the roads are wide and the entire area if flat, it's easy to find your way around, especially if you stop in the office for directions and information. I have done a lot of look-ups here and found the staff very helpful. From their website is the below information:

"​The Edson Cemetery Office is located at 1375 Gorham Street and can be easily reached as follows:

• Off of 495 or Route 3 take the Lowell Connector exit
• From the Lowell Connector take exit 5A, South Lowell
• Follow the ramp onto Gorham Street
• Follow the road, and once you go under the black “Prince Spaghettiville” bridge you will start to see Cemeteries on your right-hand side
• The Edson Cemetery is the last Cemetery on the right. 
• You will see a fork in the road with a Citgo gas station; we are on the right BEFORE the fork in the road. 
• The office is a small white cottage right at the main entrance to Edson Cemetery.

Additional comments, questions or concerns?  Please contact the Cemetery office at 978-970-3323."

The Find A Grave site states there are 3,580 burials and 51% have been photographed.

Entrance to the cemetery, the photo was taken under the gate. Office on the right, with plenty of parking. Writer Jack Kerouac is buried here (map and photos from my blog).

1251 Gorham Street approximately one mile from the Lowell Connector.

Phone: (978) 458-8464

St. Patrick Cemetery is next door to the Edson Cemetery, so it is also very flat and looks similar. There is a large gate, locked at night, and the office is on the right. Per their information, "Records from 1832 to 1894 at St. Patrick Cemetery are incomplete and are not available online at this point in time. They do have Genealogy Burial Listings from 1895 through 2011.

According to FindAGrave, there are 46,903 interments and 25% have been photographed.

This cemetery has the most detailed website, with everything you want to know, like a map, and a complete listing of everybody buried there. In addition, some show the funeral director's name. Many Lowell Catholics were buried here. 

The Cemetery Office on the right, as you enter through the gate.

My recent post, Doing Genealogy in Lowell, Massachusetts? Here is Help might help in your research.