Life From The Roots

The Life From The Roots blog topics have changed several times since I began this blog in 2009. I initially wrote only about the family history I had been working on for 20 years. Years later, I was into visiting gardens, historical homes, churches, libraries that had genealogical collections, historical societies, war memorials, and travel/tourism places. I also enjoy posting autographs and photos of famous people I've met or have seen.

Along with my New England roots, other areas include New York, New Jersey, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and the Eastern Townships of Quebec, Canada.

Please check out the labels on the right side for topics (please note, they need work). Below the labels and pageviews is a listing of my top nine posts, according to Google. Four of them pertain to Lowell, MA. These posts change often because they are based on what people are reading.

Monday, August 26, 2013

First Settlers of Newbury, Massachusetts

Descendants of

These First Settlers

Erected This Memorial

ROBERT ADAMS	WILLIAM MOODY
CILES BADGER	ANTHONY MORSE
JOHN BAILEY	WILLIAM MOULTON
RICHARD BROWN	EDMUND MOORES
THOMAS BROWN	NICHOLAS NOYES
RICHARD BARTLETT	JAMES NOYES
JOHN CHENEY	JAMES ORDWAY
AQUILA CHASE	JOHN OSGOOD
NATHANIEL CLARK	THOMAS PARKER
THOMAS COLMAN	RICHARD PETTINCELL
TRISTRAM COFFIN	DANIEL PIERCE
ROBERT COKER	JOHN PIKE
JOHN CUTTING	WILLIAM PILLSBURY
JOHN DAVIS	FRANCIS PLUMER
RICHARD DOLE	JOHN POORE
RICHARD DUMMER	SAMUEL POORE
JOHN EMERY	EDWARD RAWSON
WILLIAM GERRISH	JOHN REMINGTON
EDMUND GREENLEAF	EDWARD RICHARDSON
THOMAS HALE	HENRY ROLFE
ABEL HUSE	ROBERT SAVORY
WILLIAM ILSLEY	HENRY SEWALL
JAMES JACKMAN	HENRY SHORT
HENRY JAQUES	THOMAS SMITH
JOHN KELLY	ANTHONY SOMERBY
RICHARD KENT	WILLIAM SAWYER
JOHN KNIGHT	STEVEN SWETT
RICHARD KNIGHT	WILLIAM TITCOMB
GEORGE LITTLE	RICHARD THURLOW
PERCIVAL LOWELL	DANIEL THURSTON
HENRY LUNT	ABRAHAM TOPPAN
ROBERT LONG	DAVID WHEELER
HUGH MARCH	THOMAS WHITTIER
WILLIAM MARSTON	JOHN WOODBRIDGE
NATHANIEL MERRILL	EDWARD WOODMAN

Update as of October 28, 2013. I discovered a website, Sons and Daughters of Newbury. Information is given as well as a list of the Heads of Families Who Settled in Newbury Previous to 1700, which is different from the above list on the monument.

Monument front and back.

The above photo was taken in the summer of 2013. In late October I drove by and discovered all the shrubs had been removed.

NOTE: These photos were taken in December 2015. Apparently the shrubs were removed, and I kind of think the wires above were too.

Lower Green, first settlement site, 1635.

Sunday, August 18, 2013

If You Like New England, You Might Enjoy Their Gardens

These five photos were taken at the Bedrock Gardens in Lee, NH. The 20-acre garden incorporates horticulture and art. The married couple have spent many years clearing away the woods to make this well-known garden.

These two gardens are maintained by Wentworth By the Sea in New Castle, NH.

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

The Letters on eBay

Gay Head, Martha's Vineyard, taken 2011.

A whole new world opened up to me after a friend sent me a link to an eBay site. His last name is Bishop, and this is the second time he informed me of something on eBay relating to Bishop, my mother's surname. I don't believe my friend is interested in genealogy. The item consisted of two letters, by two different people, dated 12 Sept. 1837, it was 3 pages long and included an envelope to Rev. James B. Wilcox of Castile, Genesee County, New York. Best of all, the asking price was $9.50.

Since I hadn't used eBay, I had to set up an account, then the fun began. I won't bore you with the bidding war that went on for several days between novice me and two pros. I am positive that neither was after the letters written from Martha's Vineyard, and mailed from Falmouth, MA, but they were after the 1837 envelope. I want to get word to the new owner and let them know I'd love a photocopy of the letters because I knew all the individuals mentioned, so I am hoping that this blog post will find its way to the letter owner who paid $39.00.

The seller had quite a few other envelopes to sell, and I was very pleased that he did an abstract, with just enough information for me to know these people were mine. Mentioned were my two cousins 4x removed, Eliza Bishop and Phebe Bishop Jenkins, news that my 2nd great-grandaunt, Flora Bishop Colegrove was married and had a 1 1/2-year-old daughter (died the following year), and several others were mentioned.

Several lines from the seller, "Our dear Ct relatives are few & scattered, this renders them doubly near & dear to us ...." and "We often speak of your dear family, although we have little knowledge of you. The fact that there is an Elisa Bishop among your number conveys additional interest to my mind ..." Of course I want to know who Elisa Bishop is too, I haven't a clue.

Now that I have an account, I plan on setting up alerts for letters and envelopes. There is a current offering for a letter written by J. Low in Hartford on December 15, 1828 and addressed to Mr. T. W. Gibb in Hinesburg, Vermont. The letter is sad because it informs him of the death of a brother Ephraphrae Hull of Typhus Fever.

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Bridge of Flowers, Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts

Beautiful web page for Bridge of Flowers

Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts

The bridge has flowers on both sides, but I took all my photos looking north, because of the view of the river. The web page, Blooming on the Bridge has a schedule of what is in bloom from April through October, with photos and names of flowers. These photos were taken August 3, 2013.