Frances Jones Burton
New Ipswich Historical Society
A Research Question
This photo was purported to have been taken in 1907. The woman on the far left was captioned as being Caroline F. Jones, but it is obvious that she is Frances Jones Burton. Also the caption indicated that Doctor Frederick W. Jones is in the photo. One reader suggested that might be impossible because he was dead in 1907.
These are the challenges we face at the society, trying to understand the past.
On this day - July 20, 1908
James Roger diary entry
20th (Monday)
Cloudy and cool wind variable. Hamish went with first train. David took John Cummings to party to camp at Souhegan and went for them at 5 o’clock, also brought Mrs. Preston home from camp at 230 pm. I planted one row of cabbage and thinned 8 rows of turnips. Went to committee meeting at parsonage in reference to ordination to take place on 30th.
On this day - July 20, 1897
William Jurian Kaula diary
A correspondent writes "I hope you and Mr. Hazard are following Corot's example? He said, you know, (?) that the most beautiful effects were to be found from three to five in the morning." Shall I describe our efforts to arise at that time and to get out to work? Never. Corot was such an early bird that he must have had lots of worms. We have no desire for the beautiful morning light and try to keep as much of it out of our room as possible so as to remain in darkness until eight A.M. We find enough during the usual hours of the day to keep us busy until the material gives out, and becomes so common-place that we will have to sleep during the day time and go forth at the hours best known to milk-men and yellow cats. Miss S. is making stupendous efforts to collect material for a Salon picture. The cheif [sic] object of this work is to be a donkey and cart in the marketplace. Donkeys are common enough but it has been difficult to obtain one that is willing to pose. It is impossible to make a bargain with the peasants who own one. There is always a misunderstanding about the price per pose and then there is trouble. This means hunting up a new beast. Miss S. now has a fifty-minute drive from Villiers in a donkey cart daily. It is an exhilarating sport and a sight worth seeing - at least the peasants think so. Miss L. is painting an excellent interior of the old stone church at La Chapelle. It is an old stained - whitewashed interior with old wooden pews, stone floors and green mold creeping up the side walls. With the addition of a few figures, the priest, choir boy, and a few old women it will make an interesting work as it is painted with a pleasing simplicity and good feeling for subdued color. Miss L. has none of the insipid sentiment about the picturesque, and has no desire to paint the anecdotal picture - the bane of art students in Paris or France.
Records and Reminiscences of the New Ipswich Children’s Fair from 1862 to 1911
By Mrs. C. H. Obear - Pages 23 - 24
Since coming to the year when it was voted to introduce. children's literary exercises as a part of the program, and consequently my using a few of those which were got up especially for the very little folks, it has been suggested to me that more, not confined to the earliest ages, would be accept able. That parents of children, who, in this later day, take part on the stage," would like to recall their first efforts at speaking in public; and their boys and girls would like to learn "what kind of pieces they used to speak when papa and mama were young." As I have stated, necessity compelled us to use original matter. Most of that is nowhere else preserved, and I have decided that a portion may be copied from a mass in my possession for this little work which is to preserve the memory of the Children's Benevolent Fair..
A SECRET (LULA RICHARDSON).
I've a secret to tell you, now and here,
Which we children are learning from year to year.
A secret the gracious Saviour did tell
To the dear disciples he loved so well,
But a secret the world is slow to believe
“It's more blessed to give than it is to receive,"
I add to the quotations from the little folks of the later years, more still from the first half of the fifty years which will terminate in October 1911, written for the very little folks. Little Mamie Perry's short speech:
"I like this little sermon that our minister preached to me all alone by myself
"Do all the good you can, To all the people you can,
And however you can, And whenever you can,
And wherever you can."
Closing speech of children's exercises:
"We have finished our recitations, And next your attention will call
To remarks of Mister Johnson.
At the other end of this hall.
I suppose he will tell the same story He has told you many a year,
But please give your strict attention: To our liberal auctioneer."
When my father and I were building our house on River Rd Joe Burton delivered the sand needed to make the cement that we mixed by hand for the foundation. When we were digging a well we came upon a boulder and Joe Burton's dump truck pulled it out of the 10 ft deep hole. We went down 22 ft before we gave up and started a new one further from the house. In any case, Joe must have been a descendant or relative of the woman pictured. Our house was the first house on River Rd to have electricity. Two previous homes , Reynolds and Perry homes, did not and burned down many years ago. Since there were no homes on River Rd that were occupied in 1952 the electric company would not deliver electricity to a building site, only to a house already built. Thus we did everything with hand tools.