How are the Roads?
New Ipswich Historical Society
Snow Rollers
We had snow last night but the roads are being opened for travel, just as they were in the past.
On this day - March 13, 1912
Readers will note that we have “sprung ahead” four years from 1908 to 1912 . James diary had missing pages for some of his 1908 entries, so in keeping with the “On this Day” theme I’ve chosen another year. Time travel is possible for members of the Historical Society.
James Roger diary entry
13th March 1912
Showery; snow melting; roads running. Hen house flooded. David went to Mrs. Walker’s and Blanchards for eggs for hatching. Had telephone about incubators from Mr. Tobey. Got post cards from May.
Notes
David: James’s son and bachelor jack of all trades in N.I. Lived with James.
Mrs. Walker: Wife of A.F. Walker wood turning on Ashby Road
An article about snow rollers, in use in New England from the late 1800s until the 1930s. https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/2018/09/17/history-space-snow-rollers-peacham/37808353/
Navigable roads at all times of the year popularized and enabled the explosive growth of automobiles as the primary mode of transportation. Within my lifetime it turned New Ipswich from an isolated farm and mill town into suburbia, more than tripling its population. I once chatted with a road salt salesman who explained that its use started in the mid-1950s. Still, I recall roads in New Ipswich remaining white with ice and snow for weeks at a time in the '50s. Great for sledding but many folks had chains on their front engine rear-wheel-drive cars. Commuting any distance was a challenge. A side effect of road salt use was the death of most of the roadside sugar maples that once graced Main Street.