Junior Docents Delight with Heartfelt House Tours

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At Maine Historical Society, we like to think that every tour of the Wadsworth-Longfellow House is special, and we know that a large part of what makes them special is the dedication and knowledge of our volunteer docents. On July 10, MHS’s newest crop of volunteer docents had the chance to ply their newly acquired tour-guiding skills for the very first time, delighting the visiting public with an open-house style tour of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s childhood home from a perspective the poet would have surely appreciated: a youthful one!

The hosts of the open house that day were fourth and fifth grade Portland-area students who had just completed MHS’s third annual Junior Docent Camp. Campers spent a week learning not only about the Longfellow family, their home, and Henry’s poetry, but also about what life was like for kids in the 19^th century, the best practices for leading public tours, and about the work of history museums.

The camp was a unique opportunity for kids to interact with museum staff and collections in ways that are not often available to history buffs who are so young. Collections Manager Holly Hurd-Forsyth showed the campers objects from the collection, explaining how to handle historic artifacts and how they can be read just like books as a way to learn about the past. Director of Library Services Jamie Rice shared documents associated with the Wadsworth and Longfellow families and provided campers with a behind the scenes tour of the Brown Research Library.

Other popular activities included spirited rounds of “games of graces,” making butter, exploring the Portland Farmer’s Market, and even dipping candles. After escorting an impressive 59 visitors through the Wadsworth-Longfellow House in just two hours, the campers and their families celebrated their graduation from the program with a small ceremony in the Longfellow Garden.

For inquiries about the 2015 Junior Docent Camp, contact Kathleen Neumann at 207-774-1822 ext. 214, or kneumann@mainehistory.org.

Books in the Wadsworth-Longfellow House | Part I: Anne Longfellow Pierce’s Library

Notes from the Archives by Nancy Noble, MHS Archivist & Cataloger

Anne Longfellow Pierce’s library in the Wadsworth-Longfellow House.

In the rear second floor bedroom of the Wadsworth-Longfellow House is a small bookshelf filled with books that belonged to Anne Longfellow Pierce, the sister of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Anne grew up in the family home on Congress Street in Portland, and lived there for 87 of her 90 years. Anne eventually became the sole owner of the house, bequeathing it to the Maine Historical Society when she died in 1901.

During the fall of 2014 I catalogued these books, and along the way gleaned a little information about Anne and her family and community. Anne was a devoted member of the First Parish Church (Unitarian) just down the street from her home, and many of these books were given to the church by Anne, only to be returned many years later to the Maine Historical Society. Many contain a bookplate from the “Minister’s Library” at First Parish.

Wadsworth-Longfellow House, Portland, ca. 1880. Anne Longfellow Pierce, the poet’s sister, gave the building to the Maine Historical Society in 1901.

Beyond the association with the church are associations with Anne’s family. Many of the books were given to her by her younger brother Samuel Longfellow (1819-1892), a minister and hymn writer. Hymns and Meditations is inscribed: “Anne L. Pierce with love & good wishes from her brother S., Jan. 1^st, 1864.” Anne’s sister Mary Longfellow Greenleaf presented to her Seven Voices of Sympathy: From the Writings of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, the work of their famous brother. Lucia Wadsworth, Anne’s aunt, gave her a Bible dated 1833, when Anne was in her early 20s. A five-volume series of The Works by Jeremy Taylor belonged to Anne’s husband George Washington Pierce, a classmate and close friend of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow who studied law in Stephen (Henry and Anne’s father) Longfellow’s office. Sadly George Washington Pierce died a year after inscribing into these volumes: “Geo. W. Pierce, Oct. 1834.”He was 29, having been married to Anne only three years.

Anne Longfellow Pierce’s library in the Wadsworth-Longfellow House.

There are presentation copies from friends, such as Life in the Sick-Room by Harriet Martineau, which is inscribed: “Anne L. Pierce from her friend, P. C. Jones [?], June 6th, 1844.” The may possibly be Paulina Cony Jones (1809-1845), who must have had sympathy for Anne who was caring for her father Stephen, who died in 1849, and her mother Zilpah, who died in 1851.

Anne Longfellow Pierce, Portland, 1830

One book contained newspaper clippings about geraniums and potatoes, and a manuscript envelope with list of countries on it, from which one could glean more insight into the thoughts of Anne Longfellow Pierce.

Apart from Anne’s imprints on these books, many were owned by Nathaniel F. Deering. A few were used in the pews of the First Parish Church, such as A Collection of Psalms and Hymns for Christian Worship which is inscribed at the top of the title page: “John J. Brown [?], Pew 96.”

Given the connection to the First Parish Church, most of these books are religious in nature, but occasionally there are a few glimpses of life beyond the spiritual realm. The Golden Chersonese and the Way Thither by Isabella L. Bird is a surprising find. Isabella Lucy Bird was a nineteenth-century English explorer, writer, photographer and naturalist; she was the first woman to be elected Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. The golden Chersonese is about Bird’s travels to Malay and China. There are also a few books of poetry, a book about Lord Lyttleton, and a book about Edward the Sixth.

To learn more about these books you can search our Minerva catalog (Dewey Call Number Search) for W-L 600 through W-L 641.

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COMING SOON: Books in the Wadsworth-Longfellow House | Part II: Stephen Longfellow’s Library