State Library Newsletter - October Issue

Curious about what's happening at the State Library this month? Then check out our October newsletter! 

Pictured here is a preview, but the full issue can be accessed by clicking here. And you can also sign up for our mailing list to receive the newsletter straight to your inbox.

On Display in the State Library

One of the busiest spots in Massachusetts during the month of October is the city of Salem! And though the crowds, traffic, and parking might make it difficult to visit this time of year, you can check it out through our displayed collection item. Visit us this month to see “City of Salem” a 1916 map that is part of our Special Collections holdings.

The map was published by the Walker Lithograph and Publishing Company, which was located at 400 Newbury Street in downtown Boston. Though this map is just an individual page, you might notice the page numbers “34” and “35” printed in the top left and right corners. That is because this map was originally part of the Atlas of Massachusetts, which was compiled under the direction of O.W. Walker, with assistance from more than one hundred civil engineers and surveyors. In addition to the individual map on display this month, our library holdings also include the full atlas, which has been digitized and can be accessed here. In the preface, Walker writes, “The information it [the atlas] contains represents a vast amount of labor, the design being to represent as many of the important features and locations as possible without giving the maps a crowded appearance.” And as the library’s preservation librarian, I appreciate that the preface also includes this notation, “the paper was made especially for this purpose by one of the acknowledged leaders in that great industry. It is a Bond paper that will be found adapted to resist reasonable use for many years. The bindings are all neat and substantial.” You can read the full preface and explore all of the towns and cities in the atlas by clicking on the link above.

And now for a closer look at the map itself, which shows the boundary lines of Salem as it appeared in 1916. The map lays out the city’s streets and provides street names, along with identifying buildings like schools, city hall, the county jail, the Custom House, and the railroad station. Extending into Salem harbor are the city’s wharves and even a designation for Derby Wharf Light Station. But one of the more prominent features on the map is the illustration of Salem Common, which dates to Salem’s earliest European settlement in the 1620s. Salem was first settled by Europeans in 1626, making it the second oldest settlement in the state, and colonized in 1628. Before Europeans arrived, the land was known as Naumkeag and inhabited by Indigenous people of the Massachusetts Tribe. From Salem’s Pioneer Village website, we learned that in 1626, “Naumkeag homes (known as wigwams) were discovered “abandoned” due to seasonal travel by the indigenous population, and the English took them over for their own dwellings.” Read more about Naumkeag and the people who originally lived there on the Pioneer Village website. When Salem was inhabited by European settlers, Salem Common was established as an area to be collectively used (hence the name “common”) for animal grazing. It became a more established park in the early 1800s and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

Visit us through November 1 to see this map on display and check out all of the nooks and crannies of Salem that you might want to explore once the October crowds wind down. And while you are visiting us, be sure to check out another case in our library that shares books on the spookier side of Salem!


Elizabeth Roscio
Preservation Librarian

New Exhibit: The Four Lost Towns of the Quabbin Reservoir

Now on display is the State Library’s new annual exhibit: The Four Lost Towns of the Quabbin  Reservoir. In 1938, four Massachusetts towns were disincorporated, evacuated, and flooded to accommodate the construction of the Quabbin Reservoir. The reservoir was the solution to providing Boston and the State’s metropolitan areas with fresh drinking water. We invite you to visit the library (room 341 of the State House) to view the exhibit and learn more about the towns of Dana, Enfield, Greenwich, and Prescott. A few highlights of the exhibit include Prescott’s last Annual Town Report, a picture from Greenwich’s last town meeting, and documents from the Metropolitan District Water Supply Commission, the agency responsible for the reservoir. The State Library is open Monday - Friday, 9-5. The full exhibit is also available to view on Flickr! 

    In addition, be sure to mark your calendars for December 6th! Author Elena Palladino will be at the State Library discussing her new book, Lost Towns of the Swift River Valley: Drowned by the Quabbin. Please sign up for our Author Talks Series mailing list or follow us on Facebook or Instagram to get the latest updates! 

2023 Reading Challenge - Check In

Have you been keeping up with the Massachusetts Reading Challenge? Sponsored by the Massachusetts Center for the Book, this year-long challenge is a great way to read more! To participate, readers must read a book that falls under the theme or genre for that month. The year is not quite yet over, so please find below some suggested titles to finish up the challenge!

September: A book by an author with your first or last name.

How Will I Know You? by Jessica Treadway- Looking for a good mystery to cozy up with this fall? Look no further than How Will I Know You? The tragic murder of a high school student in a small town and the ensuing investigation will pull you in as the story is told in four different perspectives - the victim’s mother, one of the suspects, someone from the investigation, and the victim’s best friend. Also available as an ebook.

The Revolutionary Samuel Adams by Stacy Schiff - Perhaps historical nonfiction is more your cup of tea. This 2022 biography of Samuel Adams sets the scene of the American Revolution in Boston and sheds light on Adams, the leader of it all. Schiff is a Pulitzer Prize winning biographer, and her account of Adams is both entertaining and insightful. Also available as an ebook.

Search the catalog using the ‘Author’ field to find an author who shares your name!

October: A bestseller from the year you turned 18.

This is a fun one as it gives you a glimpse into what was popular at the time! Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you need assistance finding archived bestseller lists. For example, I turned 18 in 2010. Some bestsellers of 2010 included The Help by Kathryn Stockett, Change Your Brain, Change Your Body by Daniel G. Amen, and Caught by Harlan Coben. 

November: A book recommended by a local bookseller.

Check out our neighbor, Beacon Hill Books, for recommendations. A tip - check to see if your favorite local book shop has social media. Oftentimes, staff will post top picks, book suggestions, plot summaries, and more!

December: A book published in 2023.

 Interstellar: The Search for Extraterrestrial Life and Our Future in the Stars by Avi Loeb- Published in August of this year, comes Avi Loeb’s anticipated follow up to his 2021 book Extraterrestrial. Interstellar is an exciting and accessible read on the advances in technology to make contact with alien life. In addition, author Avi Loeb was at the State Library this month speaking on Interstellar. You can view the recorded author talk on our YouTube channel!

Harvard Square: A Love Story By Catherine J. Turco - Author, economic sociologist, and Harvard Square resident, Catherine Turco delves into the history of this Cambridge neighborhood. Described as intellectual and emotional, this book explores urban change and what it means for the people who inhabit, frequent, and enjoy marketplaces like Harvard Square. 

More 2023 Titles Below!

• Under the Skin: Tattoos, Scalps, and the Contested Language of Bodies in Early America by Mairin Odle
• Easy Money: American Puritans and the Invention of Modern Currency by Dror Goldberg
• American Inheritance: Liberty and Slavery in the Birth of a Nation, 1765-1795 by Edward J. Larson
• Ending Epidemics: A History of Escape from Contagion by Richard Conniff
• A Constitutional Culture: New England and the Struggle against Arbitrary Rule in the Restoration Empire by Adrian Chastain Weimer

We continually add new titles to the collection, so stop by room 341 of the State House to browse!

As a Reading Challenge Partner, please contact the Reference Department (reference.department@mass.gov) with any questions! September is Library Card Sign-Up Month! Massachusetts State Employees are eligible for a State Library Card. Sign up today so you can check out any of the titles above or read as ebooks!

April Pascucci
Legislative Reference Librarian

New Exhibit: Education in the Commonwealth: A Timeline

The State Library invites you to view one of our newest exhibits, Education in the Commonwealth: A Timeline. The exhibit highlights a selection of milestones in regards to education in Massachusetts, starting in 1635 when Boston Latin School opened, becoming the first school in the colonies. The timeline continues on to include the passage of the first education laws in the 1700s, the opening of the first school for the blind in the 1800s, and the start of bussing for the desegregation of Boston schools in the 1900s. To conclude the exhibit, we cover some of the recent initiatives from Governor Healey’s education agenda, such as the free lunch program which applies to all public schools in Massachusetts, permanently.

You’ll find lots more information in addition to those events, so be sure to stop by to see this exhibit for yourself! The exhibit is up now through December 2023 and is located outside the State Library, Room 341 of the State House. Our hours are Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm. Be sure to check out our other display cases in the reading room while you’re here and to chat with our friendly reference librarians! You can also see the exhibit online through the library’s Flickr page.

Who was the real Johnny Appleseed?

It is nearly impossible to think about Fall and Back-to-School without thinking about apples. And an American figure who is closely associated with apples is, of course, Johnny Appleseed. Massachusetts is known for many notable politicians, athletes, and celebrities hailing from the Bay State, but did you know the legendary folk hero was born in Massachusetts? Yes, Johnny Appleseed was a real person—John Chapman. The son of a farmer, he was born in Leominster on September 26, 1774 to Elizabeth and Nathaniel Chapman.  

During his childhood Chapman was an apprentice at an apple orchard. His mother and a younger brother had died from tuberculosis when he and his sister were very young. His father, Nathaniel Chapman, remarried in 1780 and would have 10 children with his second wife, Lucy Cooley Chapman. The Chapmans relocated to Longmeadow, Massachusetts where John Chapman lived for the rest of his childhood into early adulthood.  In 1792 when Chapman was in his early twenties, he set out to seek his fortune outside of New England along with his younger half-brother. Some accounts say that in addition to Chapman’s half-brother venturing out West with him, his sister Emily joined them.  

His first destination was Pennsylvania, specifically the Wilkes-Barre region where he was a nurseryman and orchardist for apple orchards. According to accounts the first orchard he planted was in Warren, Pennsylvania. Now contrary to the myth the apples grown in these orchards were the juicy kind perfect for baking and snacking, the varieties Chapman specialized in growing were apples used for making hard cider. These apples were smaller, less uniform in shape, and sourer than their larger counterparts—hence earning the colloquial term “spitters.” Historians think during the 1790s he also embraced Swedeborgian Christianity and began proselytizing as he journeyed throughout Pennsylvania into the Potomac region of Virginia.   

Contrary to the legend, Chapman did not scatter the seeds randomly as he made his way West. Virginia is probably where he collected the seeds for free from the pomace left in cider mills after pressing apples; however, he may also have collected some seeds from Pennsylvania cider mills too. The owners of the cider mills encouraged Chapman to take the seeds from the mills since the more apple trees planted with cider-making varieties, the better for their cider businesses. Chapman then used the seeds in nurseries he planted en route to Ohio as part of an intentional plan to make a profit from apples and landownership. As he was pursuing success in the apple business, John would help struggling pioneers and sometimes give them seedlings for free. While offering aid to pioneers John would often do mission work—sharing stories about the Swedeborgian faith and gifting them with Bibles.  By the time John and his siblings reached Ohio in 1800, he was known as “Johnny Appleseed.”  

Two factors contributed to John’s success as a businessman. One was that many early American households consumed cider at meals. In fact, it was common for households to have small orchards for growing apples to make cider. This was because at this point in history the production of cider guaranteed a safe, bacteria-free drink. Since the Swedeborgian faith prohibited the practice of grafting apples, Chapman’s planting of the seeds directly into the ground would result in only apples suitable for cider. Grafting is a practice which allows for apples to be grown for consumption as a food source rather an alcoholic beverage. Many of Chapman’s contemporaries considered grafting to be a time-consuming process and preferred growing apple trees directly from seed.  

Secondly there was a Frontier Law that stated if a person wanted to form a homestead beyond the first permanent settlement in Ohio, they would be granted 100 acres. In order to prove the permanency of the homestead and to make a land claim legitimate, a settler had to plant 50 apple trees and 20 peach trees within 3 years. Chapman certainly made sure each of his land claims from Ohio to Illinois were legitimate. When groups of pioneers arrived in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, Chapman would sell them the apple saplings. Chapman returned every two years to each of his land claims to tend to orchards. By the time of his death in 1847 in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Chapman had established a 1,200 acre-estate of apple nurseries. 

Chapman’s actual appearance truly was simple and much like how he was described in folktales inspired by him, even long after he achieved success financially. A tall, lean, sinewy man with unkempt brown hair, he was frequently seen carrying around a sack of apple seeds with him. And the clothes he wore were threadbare and he was often barefoot. What type of hat he wore has never been authenticated.  

The legend of Johnny Appleseed continued to grow after he died in 1847. An 1871 issue of Harper’s Monthly Magazine published an article is credited to creating the modern-day mythos which surrounds John Chapman today. There are many places in the U.S. which commemorate “Johnny Appleseed”--one of which can be found in Leominster, Massachusetts today. In 1963 the Leominster Historical Society placed a marker near the site where John Chapman was born. Since 1993 Leominster hosts an annual Johnny Appleseed festival in late September celebrating his birthday and legacy with plenty of apple treats and fall fun. 

 

Emily Crawford
Technical Services Librarian

Researching Public Officers of the Commonwealth? Look no further!

Some of the most-used resources we have in the State Library are our collections of books that contain facts and images of legislators and public officials of the Commonwealth. These books, dating from 1885-2018, include the Official Gazette, the Souvenir of Massachusetts Legislators, and the Public Officers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, also known as Bird Books. These books are particularly useful when researching the terms of legislators and for finding biographical information about them. They also contain photographs of legislators in the early 1900s which can be difficult to come by otherwise. 

The library’s copies of these books are very fragile, so if you’d like to use them to do your research, please handle them with care. As always, photography is welcome as long as you don’t use flash.

While the physical copies of the Bird Books are great, we also have them available on our digital repository. They are keyword searchable and are available as PDFs. Take a look at these volumes here.  

Back in 2008, the library undertook a project to preserve some of the more fragile volumes. The volumes that were focused on were from the 1920s-1940s, as many of their leather covers were deteriorating. Read more about this project in this blog post. If you have any questions about these resources, contact us at Reference.Department@mass.gov.

Jessica Shrey
Reference Librarian