Sunday, June 29, 2014

1857-1872 Autograph Album of Martha Ellen Jackman of Newburyport, Massachusetts


Note of September 14, 2015:  In response to information supplied by a reader on Martha Ellen's schoolmate Edward Whittier Cross of Methuen, Massachusetts,  I've added an image of the page Edward shared with Eliza Philbrick of Seabrook, New Hampshire.  See the image and information farther below.

1857-1872 autograph album that belonged to Martha Ellen Jackman of Newburyport, Massachusetts, with some sentiments collected from faculty and students while she attended Putnam Free School at Newburyport.

Below, the Putnam Free School as shown in an engraving in a Gleason's Pictorial, published at Boston, Massachusetts, on November 13, 1852.


Note: Another post features the 1850s autograph album of Putnam Free School student, Sarah E. Hanson Corliss of Salisbury, Massachusetts.

The album was given to Martha Ellen Jackman by her brother.


Since Joseph Varnum Jackman wrote a dedication page at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on April 14, 1857, it's likely that he was the brother who gifted the album.  Martha Ellen's other brothers, William Henry Jackman and Winfield Scott Jackman, did not inscribe pages in her album.


The album, published by J. C. Riker of New York, is approximately 7-3/4" x 6-1/4" and contains the sentiments of 99 of Martha Ellen's relatives, instructors, classmates and friends.  An alphabetical list of the signers, complete with any residence, school or family relationship information, appears at the end of this post.


From online research, hopefully correct:  [corrections and additions welcome!]

Martha Ellen Jackman was born 15 August 1841 at Newburyport, Massachusetts, the daughter of William Thomas Jackman and Sarah Mary Coburn (Varnum) Jackman, Newbury, Massachusetts, natives.

There's no occupation listed for Martha Ellen Jackman in the 1870 Census of Newburyport, where she was living with her parents.  However, her father was listed as a farmer, so it's likely Martha was busy on the farm.  By 1880 Martha was still in the household but her father had died.  Martha was working in a shoe factory, and her brother and uncle David Jackman were keeping the farm going, it seems.  By 1900, her mother had passed away.  Martha was still living on the farm, it appears, now apparently run by her brother Joseph Varnum Jackman.

I don't believe Martha Ellen Jackman ever married.  She died 13 February 1908 at Newburyport, Massachusetts.  If you have corrections and/or additions to the information above, or information on any of the signers listed below, please leave a comment or contact me directly.

The N. W. Metcalf who signed a page at Putnam Free School on July 2, 1859, was presumably Nathaniel Whiting Metcalf, who taught at Putnam Free School from August 1857 to August 1859.


Update of September 14, 2015 in response to a reader request:  Eliza Philbrick of Seabrook, New Hampshire, a member of the Class of 1858 at Putnam Free School, and Edward Whittier Cross of Methuen, Massachusetts, shared a page, shown below.  A reader provided more information in the comments section on Edward Whittier Cross, reproduced here:  Edward W. Cross (W. for Whittier) became a teacher in Methuen, then Principal of the Brooks School in Medford from 1868 to 1872. In 1875 he became the Principal of the Damon School in Hyde Park, Mass, now part of Boston. He moved from Medford to Hyde Park in 1884 and remained there the rest of his life, passing away in 1919. I would love to see his signature as I have no visual reference for him. (I live in the house he built in Medford in 1875.) 


One page contained the sentiments of two of Martha Ellen's instructors.  Joseph Boardman inscribed the page on November 23, 1857.  Teacher H. T. Wheeler, presumably Hylas T. Wheeler, added his sentiment on May 26, 1861.


I'd like readers' opinions on the name of the signer below, who signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on August 18, 1861.  The surname is Badger, and the first initial appears to be a C, but the the jury is out on the middle initial.  Although it doesn't like much like an F, there was a Charles F. Badger at Newburyport, a stationer and bookseller.


Surnames in the albnum

?     [15]
Adams
Badger
Barnes
Bixby
Blake
Boardman
Briggs
Brookings
Brown
Carr
Clarkson
Cole
Cross     [2]
Currier     [5]
Davis     [2]
Deane
Dodge
Edwards
Elliott
Fiske
Gerrish     [2]
Greeley
Harris
Ilsley
Jackman     [2]
Lane
Little     [2]
Littlefield
Longfellow
Lowell
Marshall     [2]
Merrill     [2]
Metcalf
Moody     [2]
Moore
Morrill
Morse     [2]
Parsons
Perkins     [2]
Perry
Pettigrew
Philbrick     [2]
Pike
Pillsbury
Putnam
Ridgway
Riley
Rodgers
Sargent     [3]
Scott
Shaw
Stone
Story     [3]
Tenney     [2]
Tibbetts
Townsend
True
Varina
Varnum
Wheeler
Whiting
Wilkins
Winkley
Wood
Wyman

Signers in the album    [Note: Given names within a specific surname may not be in alphabetical order.]

?
  • Amelia M. D.
  • Josephine, signed at Putnam Free School on January 29, 1858; shared the page with Sarah B. Currier
  • Mattie, signed at Putnam Free School on November 10, 1857
  • H. S. G., signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on August 3, 1859
  • Ellen E. C., signed at Putnam Free School on May 8, 1861; shared the page with R. C. Gerrish
  • S. May S., signed at Putnam Free School on March 4, 1861. "Class of 1861"; shared the page with Margaret M. Stone
  • Hannah J., signed at Putnam Free School on May 4, 1861; shared the page with E. M. Ilsley
  • E. J. C., signed on November 19, 1857; shared the page with Margaret Clarkson
  • Martha, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on June 18, 1860
  • Annie, signed on April 6, 1859; shared the page with Carrie W.
  • Carrie W., signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on April 6, 1859; shared the page with Annie
  • S. M. B., signed at Putnam Free School on June 20, 1860; shared the page with Almira A. Elliott
  • Jenny
  • L. H. S., signed at East Salisbury, Massachusetts
  • Sar. Esther, signed at Putnam Free School on November 23, 1860; shared the page with Carrie M. Carr
A
  • William W. Adams of Newburyport, Massachusetts; shared the page with P. Albert True; and J. Burton Rodgers
B
  • C. ? Badger, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on August 18, 1861; middle initial might be I or L or S or F or ?
  • Sarah Barnes of Boxford, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on November 12, 1860
  • R. K. Bixby of Boxford, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on November 27, 1860
  • Annie E. Blake, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts; "Putnam from 75-61"
  • Joseph Boardman, signed at Putnam Free School on November 23, 1857; shared the page with Hylas T. Wheeler
  • Josephine Briggs, signed at Putnam Free School on March 11, 1859
  • Fanny Brookings of Newburyport, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on July 1 [no year written]; shared the page with Fanny E. Morrill
  • Susan N. Brown, signed at Putnam Free School, Newburyport, Massachusetts, on September 29, 1857
C
  • Carrie M. Carr, signed at Putnam Free School on March 11, 1859; shared the page with Sar. Esther
  • Margaret Clarkson, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on July 11, 1861; shared the page with E. J. C.
  • Nellie Cole of Boxford, Massachusetts, signed at the Putnam Free School on November 13, 1860; shared the page with Addie Little
  • Edward W. Cross of Methuen, Massachusetts [not sure of middle initial]; shared the page with Eliza Philbrick
  • Henry Martyn Cross, M.D.; shared the page with Elbridge B. Moody; James H. Townsend; and Alfred L. Sargent
  • Sarah B. Currier, signed on December 12, 1858; shared the page with Josephine
  • R. A. Currier, signed at Putnam Free School on November 27, 1860; shared the page with Jennie R. Wood
  • Myron R. Currier of Ring's Island, Massachusetts, signed on June 14, 1861. Ring's Island is in Salisbury, Massachusetts
  • Mary A. Currier of Salisbury, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School in July 1858; shared the page with Mary L. Moody
  • Alfred Currier of Newburyport, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on July 9, 1858
D
  • William H. Davis
  • B. P. Davis; Martha Ellen Jackman's cousin
  • E. E. Deane of Waynesville, Georgia, signed at Putnam Free School on November 20, 1858; "A Southern Friend"
  • John W. Dodge, signed at Putnam Free School at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on September 18, 1857
E
  • Abbie H. Edwards of Middlesex Village, Massachusetts, signed on August 11, 1862; shared the page with Carrie Varnum
  • Almira A. Elliott of Amesbury, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on August 22, 1860; shared the page with S. M. B.
F
  • D. T. Fiske, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on December 25, 1857
G
  • Richard Gerrish of East Salisbury, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on June 13, 1857
  • R. C. Gerrish of East Salisbury, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on May 15, 1861; shared the page with Ellen E. C.
  • Benjamin F. Greeley, signed at Putnam Free School on July 9, 1858; Martha Ellen's schoolmate
H
  • Ann Harris, signed in November 1857; "Age 97". She was Anna (Toppan/Tappan) Harris, daughter of Edward and Sarah (Bayley) Toppan/Tappan and widow of Jonathan Harris (1757-1822). Anna would die on December 22, 1860.
I
  • E. M. Ilsley, signed at Putnam Free School on March 9, 1859; shared the page with Hannah J.
J
  • Martha Ellen Jackman of Newburyport, Massachusetts; attended Putnam Free School.  Album owner
  • Joseph V. Jackman, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on April 14, 1857. A dedication - it was presumably Joseph Varnum Jackman who gave the album to his sister Martha Ellen Jackman.
L
  • Julia A. Lane of Seabrook, New Hampshire; signed at Putnam Free School
  • Eben Little, Jr. of Newbury, Massachusetts, signed on June 3, 1861.
  • Addie Little of Newbury, Massachusetts, signed at the Putnam Free School on June 17, 1861; shared the page with Nellie Cole
  • Joseph Littlefield of Newburyport, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School, Class of 1859
  • Hattie M. Longfellow of Byfield, Massachusetts; signed at Putnam Free School at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on October 6, 1857. She was Harriet M. Longfellow; Byfield is a village in Newbury, Massachusetts
  • Martha Lowell of Salisbury, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on July 13, 1858; shared the page with Climena Philbrick
M
  • Fanny Marshall, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on July 7, 1857
  • Hannah J. Marshall of Derry, New Hampshire, signed at Putnam Free School on November 21, 1857
  • M. G. Merrill, signed on August 6, 1858
  • Paul A. Merrill of Newburyport, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on July 9, 1858
  • N. W. Metcalf, signed at Putnam Free School, Newburyport, Massachusetts, on July 2, 1859. Presumably Nathaniel Whiting Metcalf, who taught at Putnam Free School from August 1857 to August 1859.  
  • Elbridge B. Moody of East Salisbury, Massachusetts, signed on May 31, 1861; "Class "61""; shared the page with James H. Townsend; Alfred L. Sargent; and Henry Martyn Cross, M.D.
  • Mary L. Moody, signed at Putnam Free School at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on July 28, 1860; shared the page with Mary A. Currier
  • Mary P. Moore, signed at Putnam Free School on June 9, 1861
  • Fanny E. Morrill of Salisbury, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on July 6, 1859; shared the page with Fanny Brookings
  • Mary E. Morse of Derry, New Hampshire
  • Maria A. Morse of Phippsburg, Maine, signed on July 11, 1860 - a reader has more information on Maria if anyone is interested.  Maria is presumably the Maria A. Morse who inscribed a page in another album of a Putnam Free School student - Sarah E. Corliss
P
  • Ellen J. Parsons of Byfield, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School in April 1859
  • Lizzie Perkins of East Boston, Massachusetts, signed on September 29, 1872
  • S. Lizzie Perkins of East Boston, Massachusetts, signed on October 3, 1872; shared the page with Sarah L. Story
  • Emma A. Perry of Ellsworth, Maine, signed on July 16, 1861
  • Frances Pettigrew, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on May 8, 1861
  • Eliza Philbrick of Seabrook, New Hampshire, signed at Putnam Free School on July 14 [no year written], Class of 1858; shared the page with Edward Cross
  • Climena Philbrick of Seabrook, New Hampshire, signed at Putnam Free School on June 23, 1859; shared the page with Martha Lowell
  • Charlotte Pike, signed at Putnam Free School on June 28, 1860; shared the page with Julia M. Scott
  • Sarah J. Pillsbury, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on January 15, 1858
  • L. R. Putnam, signed at Putnam Free School, Newburyport, Massachusetts
R
  • Mary A. Ridgway of West Reading, Massachusetts, at Putnam Free School on June 6, 1861
  • John Riley of Seabrook, New Hampshire, signed at Putnam Free School on June 7, 1859
  • J. Burton Rodgers of Byfield, Massachusetts; shared the page with William W. Adams; and P. Albert True
S
  • M. Lizzie Sargent, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on August 16, 1857
  • Alfred L. Sargent, signed on May 31, 1861 at Putnam Free School; shared the page with Elbridge B. Moody; James H. Townsend; and Henry Martyn Cross, M.D.
  • Amelia C. Sargent, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, in September 1857
  • Julia M. Scott of Salem, New Hampshire, signed at Putnam Free School, Class of 1858; shared the page with Charlotte Pike
  • Sarah H. Shaw of Newburyport, Massachusetts, signed on July 14, 1858
  • Margaret M. Stone, signed on November 28, 1860; shared the page with S. May S.
  • Elizabeth M. Story of East Boston, Massachusetts, signed on September 4, 1862
  • Sarah L. Story of East Boston, Massachusetts, signed on September 3, 1862; shared the page with S. Lizzie Perkins
  • Etta Story of East Boston, Massachusetts, signed on August 22, 1870
T
  • Lucy S. Tenney, signed at Georgetown, Massachusetts, on June 23, 1858. She was a student [or instructor] at Putnam Free School
  • F. E. Tenney of Newburyport, Massachusetts, signed at Putnam Free School on June 3, 1861
  • Ada G. Tibbetts of Peabody, Massachusetts, signed on August 22, 1870
  • James H. Townsend, signed on May 31, 1861; shared the page with Elbridge B. Moody; Alfred L. Sargent; and Henry Martyn Cross, M.D.
  • P. Albert True of East Salisbury, Massachusetts; shared the page with William W. Adams; and J. Burton Rodgers
V
  • J. C. Varina, signed at Putnam Free School on January 28, 1858; perhaps Juliette C. Varina
  • Carrie Varnum of Newburyport, Massachusetts, signed on August 11, 1862; shared the page with Abbie H. Edwards
W
  • H. T. Wheeler, signed at Putnam Free School on May 26, 1861.  Hylas T. Wheeler was a teacher at the school from August 1859 to April 1866.  He shared the page with Joseph Boardman; 
  • William H. H. Whiting, signed on June 13, 1861 at Putnam Free School
  • Susan H. Wilkins of St. Johnsbury, Vermont, signed at Putnam Free School on July 13, 1858
  • S. M. Winkley, signed at Putnam Free School on March 16, 1868. Perhaps Susan Maria Winkley, who would marry Rev. Henry Webster Parker in 1876.
  • Jennie R. Wood of Newburyport, Massachusetts, signed on July 14, 1858; shared the page with R. A. Currier
  • Mary W. Wyman, signed at Newburyport, Massachusetts, on February 9, 1858
Newburyport, Massachusetts


Thanks for stopping by!



2 comments:

  1. Edward W. Cross (W. for Whittier) became a teacher in Methuen, then Principal of the Brooks School in Medford from 1868 to 1872. In 1875 he became the Principal of the Damon School in Hyde Park, Mass, now part of Boston. He moved from Medford to Hyde Park in 1884 and remained there the rest of his life, passing away in 1919. I would love to see his signature as I have no visual reference for him. (I live in the house he built in Medford in 1875.)

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for this information, Will! I've amended the post to include the image of the page Edward shared with Eliza Philbrick of Seabrook, New Hampshire. Whether they knew each other well or just happened to share the page, I don't know.

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