Despite our “office” being closed by the pandemic considerations, our collections have been improved by two significant donations.
Bob Muzzy donated items related to the Barstow family. A little pamphlet contains the purpose and agreement of the Barstow Endowment Funds. Two copies of a leather-bound booklet of the “Frederic Duclos Barstow Foundation for American Samoa Barstow Foundation in Samoa,” are a reprint of the article appearing in the Mid-Pacific Magazine in April 1933 by Frank E. Midlafff. A second leather-bound booklet was written by Frederic Duclos Barstow himself. “Under the Southern Cross” tells of his adventures travelling to and in American Samoa. Additionally, a scrapbook kept by Juna Rollins, great-aunt of Bob Muzzy, containing interesting news clippings, poems and obituaries of the time was donated.
In July, the second donation was by Lynn Chernoff of items from her grandmother Clara Atwood’s days as a member of the Arza Noyes Grand Army of the Republic Women’s Relief Corps No. 82. Included were three journals from the Corps’ initial meeting in 1907 through 1928, which were very exciting to see. They have provided answers to questions we have had about their endeavors, such as when the Civil War monument fence was put in.
The journals note that purchase of the Civil War monument was proposed in October 1911. A town-wide meeting the following April determined its placement, and the monument was dedicated in October 1912 — quite an endeavor because we have learned that it cost $900. The surrounding curbing was installed “immediately” after the November 1912 meeting, and now we know that the fence apparently was not erected until 1926.
Other items include a book with details of the Women’s Relief Corps national convention that was held in Rutland, Vermont, in May 1933. Some beautiful needlework sample items were part of the donation. They are now wrapped in conservation tissue, and we will work out a way to display some of them.
We are grateful to receive all of these historical items, and we look forward to the day we can show them to you.
