Monday, February 3, 2014

1870s Autograph Album of Lois, possibly Lois Viola Gilbert of Leeds, Maine


Update:  Please see the comment section where a reader provides more evidence that the owner of the album was most likely Lois Viola Gilbert of Leeds, Maine.

1870s autograph album that belonged to a Lois from Lewiston, Maine, or possibly Leeds, Maine, or Poland, Maine, which many of the signers indicated as their residences.

The album is approximately 6-1/2" x 4-1/4" and contains the sentiments of 44 of Lois' relatives and friends.  An alphabetical list of the signers appears at the end of this post.

Sadly, the album is lacking a title page and any page that might have provided Lois' surname.  The first signed page in the album was that of Rosa at Lewiston, Maine, signed on September 12, 1872.  Rosa indicated that she was Lois' sister.


The only other page that indicated a family relationship with Lois was that signed at Lewiston, Maine, on June 8, 1873, by "Mother", who also did not give her surname, nor even her given name.


I tried looking for a family with siblings Lois and Rosa in the towns of Lewiston, Leeds and Poland and found a few.  One instance was the Gilbert family of Leeds, Maine, with siblings Lois and Rosa.  Rosa married Mellen J. Hanscom, who signed a page in the album directly after the page signed by "Mother".  It's a tempting speculation.  [Note: see the comments section where a reader mentions more signers with a connection to Lois Viola Gilbert of Leeds, Maine.]


Several other people with the surname Gilbert signed pages

  • M. B. Gilbert, who signed page on April 5, 1874
  • P. S. Gilbert
  • Carrie L. Gilbert

Other than Lewiston, Leeds and Poland, signers came from New Gloucester; North Yarmouth; Empire [though I think that's in Poland]; and Auburn in Maine; and from Lowell, Billerica and East Boston in Massachusetts.

Jennie Lathrop signed a page at East Boston, Massachusetts, on October 21, 1872.


F. W. Strout signed a page at Empire, Maine; I believe this was the "Empire" located in or near Poland, Maine.


Lydia White signed a page at Billerica, Massachusetts, on October 29, 1879.


George Pottle of Lewiston, Maine, signed a page on May 14, 1875.


William M. Tefft of Bangor, Maine, signed a page.


Rosa Tefft Pulsifer of Leeds, Maine, signed a page on December 12, 1876.

Surnames of the signers:

  • Baldwin
  • Bowers
  • Coffin
  • Estes
  • Farley
  • Gilbert
  • Gowell
  • Hanscom
  • Higgins
  • Lathrop
  • Locke
  • McFadden
  • Mower
  • Parker
  • Porter
  • Pottle
  • Powell
  • Pulsifer
  • Reed
  • Richardson
  • Staples
  • Strout
  • Tatten 
  • Tefft
  • Wagg
  • White
  • Wing

List of signers:  [Note: given names within a specific surname may not be in alphabetical order.]

  • Lois, album owner, possibly of Lewiston, Maine
  • Rosa, signed at Lewiston, Maine, on September 12, 1872; Lois' sister
  • Mother, signed at Lewiston, Maine, on June 8, 1873
  • Joel W. Baldwin of Billerica, Massachusetts, signed on October 27, 1872
  • Hannah Bowers or Hannah Rowe or ?, signed at Lowell, Massachusetts, on October 22, 1876; "aged 76"
  • Edith May Coffin, signed on June 30, 1878
  • Sybil D. Estes, signed on the "Sixth mo., 28, 1881
  • Very faint, but I think it's Elsie C. Farley, signed September 30, 1873
  • M. B. Gilbert, signed on April 5, 1874
  • P. S. Gilbert
  • Carrie L. Gilbert
  • Will H. Gowell of East Poland, Maine, signed on December 31, 1877
  • Herbert Gowell of East Poland, Maine
  • Cattie C. Gowell of East Poland, Maine, signed on January 1, 1878
  • Mellen J. Hanscom of Leeds, Maine
  • M. C. Higgins of New Gloucester
  • Jennie Lathrop, signed at East Boston, Massachusetts, on October 21, 1872
  • Lizzie M. Locke of East Poland, Maine, signed on April 2, 1877
  • E. O. Locke of East Poland, Maine, signed on February 15, 1877
  • Belle McFadden, signed at East Boston, Massachuse
  • Frank N. Mower
  • Abbie A. Parker of South Leeds, Maine, signed on June 30, 1878
  • Kate Porter, signed at East Poland, Maine, on June 4, 1875
  • George Pottle of Lewiston, Maine, signed on May 14, 1875
  • Mary E. Powell, signed on March 19, 1876
  • Elvin D. Pulsifer of East Poland, Maine, signed on December 12, 1876.  His wife Ellen (Locke) Pulsifer signed the overleaf.
  • Mrs. E. D. Pulsifer of East Poland, Maine, signed on December 12, 1876.  she was Ellen (Locke) Pulsifer, whose husband Elvin D. Pulsifer signed the overleaf.
  • Addie May Pulsifer of East Poland, Maine, signed on December 12, 1876.  Her parents Elvin D. and Ellen (Locke) Pulsifer and sister Rosa Tefft Pulsifer signed preceding pages.
  • Rosa Tefft Pulsifer, signed on December 12, 1876.  Her parents Elvin D. and Ellen (Locke) Pulsifer and sister Addie May Pulsifer also signed pages.
  • Catharine W. Reed, signed at Billerica, Massachusetts, on October 24, 1872
  • Fred A. Richardson
  • John Staples of North Yarmouth, Maine, signed on August 29, 1873; there's what could possibly be "Jr." after his name
  • V. T. Staples, or D. T. Staples of North Yarmouth, Maine, signed on August 29, 1875
  • F. W. Strout of Empire, Maine [presumably the Empire in or near Poland, Maine]
  • J. Weston Strout of East Poland, Maine
  • Erastus M. Strout of East Poland, Maine, signed on November 22, 1878
  • Georgia Strout of East Poland, Maine, signed on November 30, 1878
  • Mrs. William H. Tatten of Billerica, Massachusetts, signed on October 27 [no year written]; not sure of surname
  • William M. Tefft of Bangor, Maine
  • Josie F. Wagg, signed August 20, 1876.  It was possibly her husband G. William Wagg who signed a subsequent page.
  • G. William Wagg of Auburn, Maine, signed on August 20, 1876.  It was possibly his wife Josie F. Wagg who signed a previous page.
  • Samuel G. White of Billerica, Massachusetts
  • Lydia White, signed at Billerica, Massachusetts, on October 29, 1879
  • M. Emma Wing of South Leeds, Maine, signed on April 20, 1884.  She was Mary Emma (Hammond) Wing, whose husband Junius Carlos Wing signed the right facing page.
  • J. C. Wing, signed at Leeds, Maine, on April 16, 1884.  He was Junius Carlos Wing, whose wife Mary Emma (Hammond) Wing signed the left facing page.

Lewiston, Maine  [Poland is to the southwest; Leeds is north of Greene.]


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Thanks for stopping by!



1 comment:

  1. I think you have the right Lois.

    This tree at rootsweb says Lois V. Gilbert married Frederick Augustine Parker on May 10, 1879.
    http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=greenemaine&id=I1479

    Ancestry has a record of the marriage.
    http://search.ancestry.com/mercury/pages/recordlist.aspx?did=17&pidlist=7667-44212109_1961-2787681&o_iid=39552&o_lid=39552&o_sch=Web+Property

    Frederick had a sister named Abbie A Parker, who signed the album.
    http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=greenemaine&id=I1457

    ----------------
    Lois V Gilbert's mother was named Dianna Wing.
    http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=greenemaine&id=I1479


    This tree at ancestry.com shows that Lois' mother, Diana Turner Wing, was the sister of a Salmon Alden Wing. Salmon had a son named Junius Carlos Wing, who signed the album.
    http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/126868/person/24062304258

    So one of the signers is a sister in law to Lois Gilbert, and another is a first cousin.

    ReplyDelete