2006 Events

We wish to thank Ambit Press, Bruner-Cott and Associates, Channing Real Estate and Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage for their leadership gifts to our 2006 Spring Benefit.

And thanks also to Tod Beaty and the brokers at Hammond Real Estate for contributing 46 Historical Society memberships to new homeowners.

In kind donors for 2006: Artist & Craftsman Supply, The Basil Tree, Brattle Square Florist, Catering by Debby, Cuisine Chez Vous, Charles River Boat Co., East Meets West, Global Gourmet, Michael Hanlon, Jose's Mexican Restaurant, Riley to the Rescue, Royal Pastry, Tables of Content, Tags Hardware, Tartufo's Restaurant, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods Market

Wednesday, December 6
Holiday Open House
Time: 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.
Location: Hooper-Lee-Nichols House

The halls of the Hooper-Lee-Nichols House were decked out for our 19th annual holiday party.

Guests enjoyed the festive atmosphere, and food provided by A.J. Culinary, The Basil Tree, Catering by Debby, Cuisine Chez Vous, East Meets West, Global Gourmet, Riley to the Rescue, Tables of Content, and by friends and members.
Seasonal music was by the Movadi Woodwind Quintet. Local authors sold and signed their books.

Saturday, October 14, 2006
Preserving Your Family History
Time: 10:00 a.m. to noon
at the Hooper-Lee-Nichols House

CHS archivist Mark Vassar described basic archival techniques that people could use to preserve their family papers, scrapbooks, diaries, letters, photographs, and other materials. He also discussed how collections are donated and what happens to them at archival repositories.

Sunday, September 10
Mount Auburn Cemetery at 175:
A Jewel In Our Midst
Lecture and Walking Tour
Time: 2:00 p.m. Meet at Story Chapel,
Mount Auburn Cemetery

Founded 175 years ago, Mount Auburn Cemetery was the first large-scale, designed landscape open to the public in North America. The success of Mount Auburn inspired the creation of other rural ceme-teries and eventually led to the creation of public parks in America. For its important role in our nation's history, Mount Auburn was designated a National Historic Landmark by the Secretary of the Interior in 2003.

Bill Clendaniel, President and CEO, Mount Auburn Cemetery, gave and illustrated talk about the local and national significance of this jewel in our midst.He then led a walk on the grounds to visit the graves of some of the notable figures from Cambridge now buried at Mount Auburn including Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, James Russell Lowell, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Charles Eliot, and Edward Winslow Hincks.

Wednesday, August 9
Bridges to Boston:
CHS' Annual Charles River Cruise
with George H. Hanford,
past president of the Cambridge Historical Society

The history of the bridges between Cambridge and Boston reflects the history of the city on the north bank of the Charles from its evolution as a rural college town to a manufacturing center spawned by the Industrial Revolution.

The bridges have similarly evolved, from simple, flat, wooden
crossings to today's arched stone, metal, and brick structures, from
private toll bridges to free public ones, from drawbridges to fixed ones,
from passages over a busy industrial waterway to ones that span a vibrant
river park.

Today, there are ten bridges: eight vehicular, one pedestsrian, and one railroad. In our passage up the river from the Craigie Bridge to the Eliot Bridge at Gerry's Landing, the stories of the individual crossings were explored in the context of the changing circumstances in which they evolved, answering such questions as: When and where was the first bridge built? What is the correct name of the bridge at the foot of JFK Street? and at the crossing at MIT? How long is the latter?

Saturdays, July 1 and 8
Cambridge Discovery Days
Free tours throughout the city
Time: 9 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Under the auspices of the Historic Cambridge Collaborative, the --CHS offered the following tours:

July 1,10:00-11:30 a.m.

Discovering History through a Child's Eyes
Sally Hild (in red blouse) led children entering grades 4 and 5 and their families on a tour of the Hooper-Lee-Nichols House and grounds. Afterward the children participated in a special art activity related to the building's architecture, gardens, or their favorite artifacts. The children's art projects will be displayed in an exhibition at the CHS throughout the summer.

Our thanks to Artist & Craftsman Supply, 580 Mass Avenue, for donating supplies for this event.

July 1, 1:00-2:00 p.m.
The British Loyalists of Brattle Street
Ted Hansen led a walking tour of "Tory Houses" and related the trials and tribulations of those loyal to the crown just prior to the American Revolution.

July 8, 10:00-11:00 a.m.
The Oldest House on Brattle Street
Lewis Bushnell and Karen Davis led a tour of the Hooper-Lee-Nichols House, a fine example of a high-end dwelling that evolved over the course of four centuries from a 17th century farmhouse to a Colonial Revival mansion. They traced its evolution, and spoke of three of the families who lived in it. Through the objects and paintings on display in the rooms, they told stories about the history of Cambridge itself.

July 8, 11:00-noon.
What Style Is It?
Using examples of Cambridge houses in this slide lecture, Karen Davis, traced the evolving architectural styles from Colonial to Modernism, concentrating on the plethora of 19th century styles that dominate the Cambridge streetscape.

Tuesday, June 27
Benjamin Franklin: A How-to Guide
"The Circulation of Knowledge"
Time: 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Place: Houghton Library

At a private reception and gallery talk at the Houghton Library, history professor Joyce Chaplin (at right in white blouse) described and explained the collection which commemorates the 300th anniversary of Benjamin Franklin's birth. The program was introduced by associate librarian for collections, Thomas Horrocks, Ph.D. The exhibition is open to the public weekdays and on Saturday mornings. A second part of the exhibition, featuring scientific instruments, can be viewed at the Harvard Science Center.

Sunday, June 11
The Secret Gardens of Cambridge
Time: 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

The Cambridge Historical Society served lemonade and offered tours of the Hooper-Lee-Nichols House to people visiting gardens throughout the city on this, the 7th annual Open Gardens Day. Sponsored by the Friends of the Cambridge Public Library.

Saturday, May 13
Tour of the Massachusetts State Archives
Time: 10:00 a.m. to noon
Place: 220 Morrissey Blvd.(Columbia Point), Dorchester
Michael Comeau, assistant archivist, described the inventory of the State Archives and displaedy such treasures as the original Massachusetts Bay Colony Charter signed by John Winthrop, and the Massachusetts Constitution written by John Adams.

CHS resident archivist Mark Vassar-who is also an archivist at the State Archives- pointed out research materials pertaining to Cambridge. He then discussed the Cambridge connection to the current exhibition, "Le Grande Dérangement: The Acadian Exile in Massachusetts, 1755-1766," which he curated. CHS executive director Karen Davis showed how to use the research files of the Massachusetts Historical Commission.

Other things to do at the State Archives:

• View the "Highway to the Past" exhibition at the Commonwealth Museum (archeological finds from the Big Dig).
• Visit the JFK Museum.
• Check out the University of Massachusetts campus.
• Have lunch at the JFK Museum cafe or at the University of Massachusetts cafeteria.
• Take the harbor walk around Columbia Point

Getting to the State Archives
via public transportation
Take the Red Line to the JFK/UMass station. A free shuttle bus (#2) runs every 20 minutes from the station to the Archives building. Parking is free.

by car:
From the North: Take Rte 93 South to exit 15. At traffic light turn left onto Columbia Road. Travel to rotary and turn right onto Morrissey Blvd. Bear right onto access road. Travel on access road to traffic light. Turn left onto the perimeter road, following signs for the J.F. Kennedy Library.
From the South: Take Rte 93 North to exit 14 onto Morrissey Blvd. Turn right at first traffic light, following signs for the JFK Kennedy Library.

Cambridge Historical Society Spring Benefit
Sunday, April 30, 2006, 2:00-4:30 p.m.
Discovering Cambridge: A Touch of Glass
Place: Avon Place Glass,147 Sherman Street, North Cambridge

(See photo gallery from A Touch of Glass, history of the New England Glass Company)

Outstanding glass was produced in Cambridge for most of the 19th century by the New England Glass Company. Today it is highly collectable, often quite valuable, and frequently attributed incorrectly to the glass factory in Sandwich, MA. The highest quality was flint glass, which rings like a bell when it is flicked. A goblet engraved by Louis H. Vaupel is on display at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Other New England Glass Company engravers whose work will be on display at the CHS benefit are Henry S. Fillebrown and Joseph Locke--exhibition courtesy of Fred Meyer and Edward Nalebuff.

Master glass artist, Andrew Magdanz, an owner of Avon Place Glass and Martha's Vineyard Glassworks, demonstrated his skills as a glassblower with 35 years of experience. He answered questions about the components of glass and details of the craft. In addition, contemporary art glass was available for purchase with 30% of the proceeds going to the Cambridge Historical Society.

Ron Bourgeault and Rebecca Davis appraised antique glass brought to the event by those who purchase tickets at the Patron level or above.

Remarks:
The Historical Perspective: Susan Maycock, survey director of the Cambridge Historical Commission
The Collector's Perspective: Fred Meyer and Edward Nalebuff, M.D.
The Appraiser's Perspective: Ronald Bourgeault, owner, appraiser, auctioneer, Northeast Auctions, Portsmouth, N.H.

The Historical Society wishes to thank:

Susan Shapiro and Andrew Magdanz, the owners of Avon Place Glass, for hosting this event

Jose's Mexican Restaurant, Tartufo, and Whole Foods for the refreshments

Brattle Square Florist for flowers

Ambit Press for the invitations

Because of these in-kind donations, all proceeds of the event will benefit the operation of the Cambridge Historical Society.

About the experts…

Ron Bourgeault, owner of Northeast Auctions in Portsmouth, NH, is a seasoned appraiser and auctioneer. Fascinated by coins, glass and Currier & Ives prints as a youngster, Ron began to help a local auctioneer, and by age fourteen, he was exhibiting at the prestigious New Hampshire Antique Dealers Association Show. Active in the field ever since, he opened Northeast Auctions as a full-time business in 1987. He has been a guest lecturer and appraiser at numerous conferences and events and is a member of the Appraisers Association of America and the National Auctioneers Association. Ron also appears regularly on public television's Antiques Roadshow and was recently named by Art & Auction magazine as one of the art world's "Power Fifty: Who Mattered Most in 2002."

Rebecca J. Davis, senior cataloger in American, English, and European decorative arts at Northeast Auctions, specializes in appraising American, English, and Continental glass, ceramics and silver. An expert on the characteristics of New England Glass, Davis was introduced to art and antiques as a child. She has a master's degree in art history, and has worked for Sotheby's as well as Leslie Hindman, Auctioneers in Chicago.

Susan Maycock has been Survey Director of the Cambridge Historical Commission since 1980. She graduated from Wellesley College in 1965, earned a master's degree in art history at Boston University in 1971, and directed the BU program in historic preservation in 1979-80. At the Commission, she is primarily responsible for research and writing on the city's architectural history and advising homeowners on the historically appropriate paint colors for their Cambridge houses. She is the author of An Architectural History of East Cambridge (1988), and co-author of Painting Historic Exteriors (1998) and Building Old Cambridge (forthcoming).

Fred Meyer, a Realtor and Real Estate Appraiser, has owned and managed University Real Estate, Harvard Square, since 1963. For many years, he has his wife Maria have searched antiques shops, shows and museums to find surviving products of Cambridge's pre-eminent New England Glass Company. Fred edited the Glass Club Bulletin, the publication of the National Early American Glass Club, during the 1970's.

Edward A. Nalebuff, M.D., is a semi retired Hand Surgeon and Art Glass Collector. He was brought up in New Jersey by parents who collected 1880's New England Art Glass in the 1930s and 1940s. They passed on their collection and passion for this glass to their son. In recent years, Dr. Nalebuff donated a large portion of his collection of New England Glass to various museums including the Toledo Museum of Art. Dr. Nalebuff recently stepped down as Chief of Hand Surgery at the New England Baptist Hospital. He lives in Newton with his wife Marcia.

Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Dana Fellow Event* at the American Meteorological Society
Place: 45 Beacon Street, Boston
CHS member Jinny Nathans, who is the librarian and archivist at the American Meteorological Society, led a tour of the organization's headquarters. The historic building (1806) is the third one designed by Charles Bulfinch for Harrison Gray Otis, who lived in it until his death in 1848. Bulfinch, often regarded as the first American-born architect, designed the Massachusetts State House and the Middlesex County Superior Courthouse (1813) in East Cambridge. Karen Davis gave a brief biography of Bulfinch. The American Meteorological Society, founded in Boston in 1919, acquired the building in 1958.

-The following program was cancelled due to snowstorm-
Sunday, February 12, 2006, 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Stories of 20th-Century East Cambridge:
a slide lecture by Sarah Boyer,
author of "All in the Same Boat"
Based on a compilation of interviews, Sarah Boyer wrote "All in the Same Boat" as an oral history of East Cambridge, tracing our city's Irish, Italian, Polish, and Portuguese immigrants in the 19th and 20th centuries. Told from the perspective of their children and grandchildren, the book chronicles their struggles to establish themselves in America and realize their American dreams. All in the Same Boat was published in 2005 by the Cambridge Historical Commission and is available for sale ($22).
Refreshments courtesy of the Royal Pastry Shop, 738 Cambridge Street, Cambridge.

Sunday, January 29, 2006, 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Annual Meeting of the Society
Place: Hooper-Lee-Nichols House
Free for CHS members and guests
The program began with a short meeting to transact the business of the Society, including the election of officers, councilors, and advisors. Committee chairs gave reports. Then, Robert D. Mussey, Jr., delivered the keynote address on Federal Period Furniture. He discussed the essence of the neoclassical style of furniture produced in the Boston area after the American Revolution. Placing the designs in the social and economic context of the new nation, he presented the work of three accomplished cabinetmakers, Stephen Badlam and John and Thomas Seymour. Badlam was born in this country; the Seymours emigrated from England. Mussey compared their lives, demonstrated the impact of their native country on their extraordinary furniture. He also discussed the significance of the Society's 18th-century Standing Desk, which Mussey conserved for us in 2005.

A popular speaker, Mussey is the principal of Robert Mussey Associates, the region's preeminent furniture conservation studio. Its clients include the White House, the MFA Boston, the Winterthur Museum, and private collectors. After training as a custom furniture maker, Mussey mastered the art and science of furniture conservation at the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit. He founded the furniture conservation lab at SPNEA (now Historic New England) and was its head conservator until he established his own firm in 1989. An expert on Federal furniture, he served as guest curator for a 2003 exhibition at the Peabody Essex Museum on the furniture of John and Thomas Seymour. Mussey is the author of the accompanying book. After the talk, there were refreshments in the Chandler Room.

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