October 2001

Volume 10, Issue 2 ISHRA Newsletter

In this issue:

• GosportMercantile

• Sea Songsand Chanteys

• TheAppledoreTrip

.• Shoals Nixies.

• Ocean Trash

• Bushel ofLobsters

"ISHKr'\'sTenthAnniversary

• Star IslandConference

ISHRA meetingsare held on the 2nd

Tuesdays of May andNovember at 7 p.m.at the SeacoastScience Center atOdiorne State Park,Route L\, Rye, NH.Fun and informal;here's your chance tomeet other Shoalers.

Guests arealwavs welcome.

November 13MeetingSeacoast Science Center -Rte. L-\ - R,·e. NH

J. DENNIS ROBINSONSHOALS TV: ISLES

LEGENDS MEETMASS MEDIA

Dennis, who participated on-camera and behind-the-scenes in both TV specials,will give us a backgroundlook at Chronicle's report onthe Smuttynose Murder andthe History Channel'scoverage of Blackbeard onLunging Island. DennisRobinson created, writes andmanages the award-winning

SeacoastNH.com web site,founded in 1997. It containsalmost 3000 web pages ofinformation, including manyoriginal essays and photosabout the Isles of Shoals.10,000 visitors accessSeacoastNH.com each week,and 8,500 subscriberscurrently receive his monthlyemail newsletter withupdates on the Seacoastregion. He wrote theintroductory essay in SharonStephan's newly releasedbook, "One Woman's Work:The Visual Art of Celia

Laighton Thaxter." He's theauthor of "A Brief History ofPortsmouth" and"Portsmouth and CoastalNH: A PhotographicPerspective," and writes apopular history column inFoster's Sunday Citizen .

COME AND GET AFASCINATING INSIDERS

VIEW' OF A TV CREWAT THE ISLANDS!

7:00 p.m.Come and bring a friend.

ISHRA's Tenth Anniversary

Barbara Newall, Program Chair, Jean Ragonese, & Company, haveput together a birthday party to honor ISHRA. Sue & Charlie West will beon hand to lead some singing; they are "old Shoalers," good friends, and twoof the early Docents in the Sea Grant Program at UNH. Sue is a painter,Charlie's a photographer; both love to sing.

Sue has composed words for ISHRA's own Sea Chantey! There will bea special decorated cake, our usual coffee and refreshments (anyone maycontribute) and a general good time will be had by all.

ONE WOMAN'S WORKTHE VISUAL ART OF CELIA LAIGHTON THAXTER

(SPStephan@msn.com) or,ISHRA volunteer in chargeof book sales, Diane Monti,(MontiDiane@aol.com).ISHRA is very proud to havebeen a co-sponsor with theAthenaeum of thismarvelous and highlysuccessful event inPortsmouth.

Gallery of the Society for thePreservation of NewEngland Antiquities(SPNEA), from October 15,2001, through April 12,2002. (tel. 617-570-9105)THE BOOK IS OUT! Theaccompanying exhibit"catalog" has been publishedby Peter Randall, and (wordhas it) will be for sale at ourNovember 13 meeting. Formore information on the saleof the book contact theauthor & editor, SharonStephan,

An extraordinary success!Congratulations to SharonStephan and her entire teamof ISHRA and PortsmouthAthenaeum volunteers fortheir work and wonderfulpresentation of the watercolors, china painting, andbook illustrations done byour 19th century poet andartist, Celia Thaxter. Over200 , people a week visitedthe Athenaeum during thesummer to see this can beseen in Boston in OneBowden Square at the

Our thanks toALL who

contributed.

The ISHRA Board

Sea Songs and ChanteysPresidentDonna Marion TitusTitu.66t>arkliiJp'. (om

Sue and Charlie West havebeen involved with theShoals for many years, Theyvisited briefly for some timebefore attending the first"Arts" conference on Star.They continued to come tothat conference for anumber of years. Then theyjoined the UNH MarineDocents in the first year thatthey began, and worked withart and photography untilsomeone discovered thatthey also sing. Then they did

Sea Songs and Chanteysfor the Days of the Coastand at many venues inNH and Maine. Duringthus time they were oftenon Appledore with theDocents. Now they arehappy to be involved withISHRA, and to be askedto sing for the Novembermeeting. They have beenworking on a chantey forthe Isles of Shoals whichwill premiere at themeeting!

Vice President

Jcan Ragoneselea it ,({i)tnediaofle. /'let

Secretary,\mv Cookbtl/ata(iD, yaboo. (Om

TreasurerMarvbeth Foster

SEPTEMBER II, 2001continue to work towardpeace on earth.

So many people werekilled or injured on thatsad day. We have no wayof knowing how manyISHRA members hadfamily or friends who areaffected. We extend oursympathy, friendship and

comfort to all who may bemourning now, or in someway struggling with theaftermath of this terribleevent. Our hearts andprayers are with all fellowShoalers and all Americancitizens as we

A Bushel of LobstersBy Terry Frost

If there is a RED"D" notation on youraddress label this will

be your lastnewsletter until yourdues are received.

Volunteer to help with layoutof future issues of this

newsletter.

Call Helen Brewster(8623161 )

During the very last UNH six-week credit course in1946, the seven students enrolled temporarily dwindled to rwo on weekends.Most of the crew took off for home and other places. Except Terry Frost andDeke Towne who remained as security at the anchorage on Professorjackson's ship hitched to a mooring just off Frisbie's Landing in Kittery harbor.

One memorable weekend this is what happened. Before Frost andTowne got settled in on Friday evening the ocean began to boil. Thousands offishes! Frost and Towne didn't know what kind, but they must somehow collectone specimen for Dr. Jackson to identify in Mondav morning's class. A.llof asudden it occurred to both men at once, that there was a good-sized purse seinestowed under the deck. Frost took one end and Towne the other in each of thetwo dories tied to stern cleats. As carefully as possible the lead line and floatline were straightened out and paved into the harbor as both dories rowed in acircle, one rowing one way the other in another direction planning to purse theseine as they circled to meet. \'(,'hen the purse closed as tight as possible, Frostand Towne realized their dilemma: they had a catch the size of a VolkswagenBeetle!

Two specimens were stashed in the bow to be later preserved informaldehyde back on the mother ship (for the Prof. to determine the species),but what to do with the substantial remainder?

"Ah! Great lobster bait!" said Towne, "Shouldn't we offer the catchtolobstermen who put out from Frisbie's?" Again we made certain the purse wastightly closed and Frost stayed with the fish and one dory. Towne stood up androwed ashore to seek lobstermen interested in coming out to collect the freebait.

Deke was gone a long time before he located and convinced afisherman of the catch. They motored out in his boat laden with emptywooden barrels and towing Deke's dory. Grinning widely, the gratefullobsterman filled his barrels with flopping fish ..As he motored ashore, Frostand Towne pulled the heavy seine aboard the big boat to dry.

On Monday, Professor Jackson came aboard ready for class. He didn'tchastise us for working the purse seine and revealed that we'd been surroundedby a good-sized school of common porgies, one of many species of herring.Thence on to Appledore for Monday's first class. All but Dave (Deke) Sleeperslept on shore that night. Deke bunked overnight on board as security andgalley man.

\X11enDeke Sleeper arose to get our morning meal, he climbed out ondeck where the thick fog hampered his vision. He almost tripped over severalbushel baskets brimming with lobster. He knew immediately where they camefrom but swore 'til his dying day that he never heard the stealthy Iobsterrnan putthe baskets aboard our boat.

\\11cn the others came aboard for breakfast we had a PO\vwow. TheProf suggested and immediately authorized a half-day leave to sail intoPortsmouth for beer, butter and chips. \Ve boiled 'em over a driftwood tirenear the Coast Guard boathouse (no longer there). Ever had more lobster thanYOU could possible eat at one sitting? \"X'edid ... with enough left over foranother meal.

+Terry Frost

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Ct-Ve-- receoved:

ISHRACommittees

CollectionsGayle Kadlikgayle@natick.com

PublicationsHelen BrewsterHelen.brewster@unh.edu

ProgramBarbara Newallbarbaranewall@aoZ.com

MembershipBetty Herrincio Donna Titus atTitus56park@cs.com

The grand opening of the Gosport Mercantile was a success! Seven membersof our ISHRA community shared their Isles of Shoals-related wares, includingused and antiquarian books, herbal products, cinematography, painting,woodcraft and more! Vendors donated $43.75 from their proceeds toISHRA's general fund!

Vendors WantedOnce again, one half hour before and after the meeting, there will be a chancefor members to buy and sell their Isles of Shoals-related wares. Presently, weare looking for vendors. We, the Collections Committee, will be providing thetables. Vendors must be present during store operations and provide their owncollection system including change. Donations to ISHRA (a small percentageof sales perhaps?) will be happily accepted, but are not mandatory. If you areinterested, please fill out the application below and mail to: Amy Cook, 14Juniper Drive, Amherst, NH 03031, or contact Gayle Kadlik at 603-585-9478 or Amy Cook at 603-673-3781.

Name:

Address:

City: State: _Zip: _

Home Phone #: _

Work Phone #: _

E-mail Address: _

Description of Vendor Items:

ONAPPLEDORE with Jean Ragonese

On a perfect day, July 29,ISHRA made it's annualpilgrimage to AppledoreIsland to visit historic spots,Celia Laighton Thaxter'sbeautifully restored gardenand of course the very activeShoals Marine Lab. Thegroup number was largerthan usual because of theexhibition of Celia's artworkat the Athenaeum and thetrip was made available topeople who attended andwere interested in seeing theIsland. Hence a group ofseventy ventured out on thesteamship "ThomasLaighton" and weretransferred from Star Islandby the SML's R.V. "John M.Kingsbury" in two trips.They were royally greeted atthe dock by SML's

Associate Director Dr.Michael Lesser and escortedto Kiggins Common for anorientation and a chance toeat their lunches.After lunch many visited thelab, the garden, the cemeteryand other historic spots withBob Tuttle, Donna Titus,Betty Herrin and JeanRagonese while some whoknew their way aroundenjoyed the opportunity toexplore the island on theirown. It was a larger thanusual group andthe ISHRA leaders were verygrateful to Mike Lesser forhis guidance. All returned toStar Is. on the "Kingsbury"and from there to themainland on the "Laighton."Other Applcdore items of

interest include the

completion of the director'scottage high on the hill abovethe dock, the arrival of a newresearch vessel to supplementthe "Kingsbury" in educationalexcursions, etc. the smaller butfaster "John B Heiser",officially launched andchristened on Sept. 23.

Very much worthmentioning to those who maynot be aware are the SMLAdult Education short coursesoffered by the lab during thesummer. There will be moreabout next year's offering inthe spring newsletter or accessSML via the internet atWWW.sml.comell.edu SomeISHRA member can attest tothe quality and enjoyment ofthe experience of attendingthese course, know'edge andexcellent hospitality.service.

SHOALS NIXIES byMalcolmFerguson

What do the following peoplehave in common: CharlesDickens, Edgar Allen Poe,Henry WadsworthLongfellow, Ralph WaldoEmerson and Henry DavidThoreau? They turn up asIsles of Shoals Nixies,individuals we have beenassured in recent years bytour guides as having beenvisitors to the Shoals. In fact,none of them was.Longfellow didn't visit buthis brother Samuel did;Emerson's family membersdid, he did not.A continuing task forISHRA, is to sort out notonly the Nixies, but also thevisitors to the Shoals over theyears, who have contributed

significantly to the Shoalsstory from the time ofCaptain John Smith in 1614and before. The redoubtableCaptain Smith enlarged uponthe story of his life with anaccount of an Indian maidennamed Pocahontas, who, heclaimed, had dramaticallyrescued him from executionby her father. Pocahontaswas real, though not aShoaler .. Today we haveaccounts and chronologies ofthese matters, notablyLyman V. Rutledge's ''TenMiles Out" and "The Isles ofShoals in Lore and Legend".With luck, patience and nowmoney, one can put togetheran interesting and attractivecollection of books on theIsles of Shoals - about Celia

Thaxter's "Island Garden",Shoals these days, but theShoals and ISHRA ain't donefishing ... about the wreck ofthe Squalus, about the foodserved there in "TheAppledore Cookbook", orFrederick and VirginiaMcGill's story of theStar Island ConferenceCenter, or even CeliaThaxter's telling of "AMemorable Murder." Thereis more to be told of naturalhistory, of marine biology, ofthe art of Childe Hassam andof Celia herself. I'm curiousabout the state of theunderwater world around theShoals. Is it full of trash ortreasures of human flotsamand jetsam (as Ogden Nashnoted: if you

OCEANTRASH

According to SteveCanelli, ISHRAmember and a memberof the United Divers ofNew Hampshire, weare killing our oceans.Steve was part of theNH state coastalprogram, "2001 CoastalCleanup.' which tookplace September 15 atHampton Harbor. Thetop items most foundin the trash cleanup are:cigarette butts, plasticfood bags andwrappers, plasticpieces, Styrofoam cups,and paper pieces .

...............................................................

want flotsam, I've gotsome; if you want jetsam Ican get some. (Jetsam wasejected stuff; flotsamfloated and washed away.)There may not be dun fishon the Shoals these days,but the Shoals and ISHRAain't done fishing ...

Malcolm Ferguson is abook dealer, an

island historian, an oldShoaler and an ISHRAmember. He lives in

Concord, Mass.

ISHRA

Directors

Laury Bussey~kirpcr({i~l1c\·achrs.com

Frank Coler'CCOIJ':({i)Juno.com

Sharon StephanSPS tephall({l)! nSl1.com

Elizabeth Ringlibring({l)eartblink.nct

ISHRA

ISHRA's Star Island Weekend ConferenceFELLOW SHOALERS: We became Shoalers for a brief time! 40 ISHRA membersand friends attended this year's conference. The theme was "The Environment ThatSurrounds You." Many activities introduced us to underwater beauty along with casualrocking on the porch or strolling to catch a glimpse of some of the birds and butterfliesmigrating through. I remember hearing, "Look, The Whimbrels are flying!" On Saturday,our trip to Appledore was overwhelming! (Thanks to our senior docent, Jean Ragonese.)That evening a Happy Hour was held jointly with the Photographer's Conference onLinquist Deck. Dinner (lobster) was the best we ever had and so was the weather. Theevening ceremonies included the traditional candlelight walk to the chapel for a serviceled by Peter Randall and Ron and Donna Titus with reader, Evelyn Higginson andsinger Maureen Adams. The theme was "Textures in Our Lives." Our bell ringer wasBobbie Alicen. A small gathering was held in Walker's Room. Each person placed a"Message in a Bottle". We were asked to set a bottle into the sea with wishes and hopes ofbeing discovered. The sounds of the "euphonium music," played by Holly Gagnon couldbe heard in the Oceanic Hotel. One could hear the lull of the new foghorn on WhiteIsland. Sunday was another beautiful day. Morning tide pool conducted by marinebiologist, Amy Cook, was enlightening. Remember Irish moss, Dulse, Sea Lettuce,Knotted Wrack, Bladderwrack, Rock Weed, and Northern Kelp, to name a few. Thankyou, Amy. A presentation was given by Steve Cantelli of United Divers of NewHampshire on a global project that is organized by divers who volunteer their to clean upour waters. They plan to conduct search and cleanup work in Gosport Harbor next year.Later a small group gathered for" One Child's Work." Leandra Merna conducted a paperflower exhibit. Her mom, Lanette, must be proud. Herbalist Holly Gagnon, presentedon the medicinal values of plants that surround us on the island. This was my fourth yearas chair for our conference and it has been especially rewarding! My time has come to goexploring other islands of the world and to feel that island camaraderie. It will nevercompare to the Shoals community! I will come back, I will come back.

LSinCerelY, LCUA.¥'ed"Pllotte: Conference Chair ~ ..

Isles of Shoals Historical Research AssociationP.O. Box 705

Portsmouth, New Hampshire 03802