Miss Storrs, Professor Storrs and the American School for the Deaf

From the 1840's to the 1880's the connection between the American School for the Deaf in Hartford and the Storrs family of Longmeadow was a strong one. In recent years the Longmeadow Historical Society and the American School for the Deaf (today in West Hartford) have reconnected as we have sought to learn more about the time that Sarah Storrs and her brother Prof. Richard “Salter” Storrs spent at the school.

American Asylum for the Deaf in Hartford Asylum Ave. is named for it, though today the school is in West Hartford

Sarah Storrs was born in 1832, the granddaughter of the town’s 2nd minister, Richard Salter Storrs. As a baby, Sarah lost her hearing after contracting whooping cough. Deafness and blindness were common results of many childhood illnesses in the days before vaccinations. Countless children were left deaf and/ or blind by illnesses like whooping cough, measles, and scarlet fever. They were fortunate to survive their illness, but faced an uncertain future if they could not be educated to read, write and do math and therefore participate more fully in their communities. As a result, schools for the deaf and schools for the blind were created to educate this generation of children who were capable in so many ways of learning and growing as citizens and scholars.

Image of young Sarah Storrs signing the letter "A."

Fortunately for Sarah Storrs, one such school existed in nearby Hartford, CT. Founded in 1817, the school was called The American Asylum at Hartford for the Education and Instruction of the Deaf and Dumb - dumb, of course, meaning mute in 19th century parlance. The school aimed to bring the light of learning to children and young adults affected by hearing loss. At age eleven, Sarah Storrs was enrolled as a student. She was a bright student, and after eight years of study was asked to stay on as a teacher as well. She was a beloved teacher at the school for another fifteen years until her retirement in 1871 when she returned full time to Longmeadow to care for her aging parents.

On faculty was her brother, also named Richard Salter Storrs. Salter, as he was known, was not deaf, but upon graduating from Amherst College in 1852 as class valedictorian, he committed his life to the field of deaf education and spent nearly all his career as Prof. Storrs teaching alongside his sister and other talented faculty at ASD. Sarah and “Salter” were important faculty members at a time of incredible growth in the field of deaf education. Prof. Storrs wrote extensively on the topic of deaf education, and even moved briefly down to Washington D.C. to help establish the first college for the deaf in the country, Gallaudet University.

Though they lived and worked in Hartford during school terms, the Storrs’ parsonage at 697 Longmeadow Street was always home. Salter Storrs was a true keeper of the town’s history and wrote and published the Centennial Book for Longmeadow, which is a treasured resource for our work today.

Prof. Richard Salter Storrs' Business Card

After Salter’s death in 1884, Sarah continued living in the family home for another 23 years. She remained active in life in town through her involvement in church activities. She was known to frequently host colleagues and former students for weeks at a time as guests in her home. Upon her death in 1907, she left the house, family land and $5000 to establish the town library for Longmeadow, to be known as the Richard Salter Storrs Library.

Storrs Library as it appeared in 1910. Today this building stands in the rear of the current Storrs Library.

Male Faculty at American School for the Deaf Prof. Salter Storrs in back far right leaning over with a book. Image from the collection of the ASD Museum's Archives

Female Faculty at American School for the Deaf Sarah Storrs in back row, second from right. Image from the collection of the ASD Museum's Archives

Contributed by Melissa M. Cybulski, Longmeadow Historical Society Board Member

Originally published June 24, 2021

Granny Tales- Part II

"The Granny Tale: The Process of Discovering the Truth Behind the Note"

As some of our readers will recall, we recently discussed so called "granny notes," those scraps of paper that claim to know the details of a treasured object and how it came to be in the collection of the Historical Society. Last time we explored the illustrious history of a ceramic bough pot that was purported to have come over on the Mayflower (and was in reality two centuries too young). This week we will explore the story of the Indian baskets.

2014-007, Native American splint basket with side handles, hand decorated in red and black with hearts and medallions, southeastern New England, mid 19th century. Photograph by Lorraine German.

The Longmeadow Historical Society has a wonderful collection of baskets, many paint decorated. They range in size, shape and use. A review of 18th and early 19th century probate inventories from Longmeadow showed that about a half of households listed baskets. They were used for many purposes, including produce, textile production, and food storage. In the 1785 probate inventory of storekeeper Samuel Colton, a group of baskets is listed.

Samuel Colton probate inventory, BV 3 Longmeadow Historical Society archives

In another ledger belonging to Samuel Colton, a Timothy Pease of Enfield is credited for repairing baskets. That says a lot about the utility of the humble basket--everyone used them, and many farmers and their families made them, and they were worth repairing.

Samuel Colton ledger, BV 21 Longmeadow Historical Society Archives

In fact, the baskets in the Storrs House were supposedly made by Eunice Williams (1696-1785), the "unredeemed captive" from the 1704 raid on Deerfield, Massachusetts. On February 29, 1704, French and their Native American allies raided the outpost town of Deerfield, carrying 112 captives to Canada. Among those captives was a teenaged Stephen Williams (1693-1782), who later became Longmeadow's first minister. His seven year old sister Eunice was also taken, and unlike Stephen and other members of the Williams family, she was not "redeemed" or ransomed back. She remained with her native captors, later marrying a Native man named Arosen. Decades later Eunice visited her brother Stephen in Longmeadow. She was wary of potential efforts to return her to her brother's care, and famously refused to sleep under his roof, preferring instead to camp in the nearby orchard.

2014-003.a

photo by Lorraine German

014-006, rectangular Native American splint basket, hand decorated in Mohegan pink and blue, southeastern New England, photo by Lorraine German

A list of objects in the Storrs House Museum was compiled in 1930 by Lucy J. Smith. In that book is a reference to the baskets: "A Collection of a half dozen baskets, said to be the work of Eunice Williams and her Indian family when visiting her brother, the Rev. Stephen Williams (Deerfield has in its Memorial Museum a number of baskets of this kind)." The Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association's Memorial Hall Museum does indeed have at least one basket made by one of Eunice's descendants. In 1837, a group of Abenakis from Canada visited Deerfield. Sophie Watso, one of the visitors, gave a basket to Catherine Williams. Catherine noted "Basket given me September 1837 by Sophie one of the St. Francis Indians Connected with the Williams family." (Historic Deerfield Magazine Pocumtuck, Autumn 2020).

In 1992, a exhibit of baskets was shown in the Storrs Library. The description of the display is as follows: "Shown here are baskets and Indian items woven by Mrs. Chicklas' grandmother and given to her and her daughter. Claudia Chicklas and her daughter are direct line descendants from Eunice Williams and her Canadian Abenaki Indian husband. Also exhibited are baskets from the Storrs House Collections. Eunice brought several with her when she visited Longmeadow in 1756. Notice the colors and painted paw prints."

Several years ago, the LHS board enlisted the assistance of a local antiques expert to examine the basket collection. We discovered that many of the baskets appeared to be Native American made. Were any of them from the time period or area that would tie them to Eunice? Further study may help us to determine whether the style, decoration, method of construction and materials corroborate this story. Stay tuned as we learn more.

Contributed by Betsy McKee, Longmeadow Historical Society Board Member

Originally published June 17, 2021

Student Copy Books: The Good Old (Math) Days

This week, as many families with school-aged children are wrapping up another busy week, let us pause and recognize the struggles undertaken by many parents who have become acquainted with their children’s “new math,” which often feels quite foreign to how we learned to do math. After looking at the following examples of student math books from the early 19th century, you may find yourself even more perplexed as to what the best methods should be.

Marbled cover of Ebenezer Bliss' Math Copybook

Book measures approximately 13" x 9"

Ebenezer Bliss- Longmeadow

These two copybooks from the archives of the Longmeadow Historical Society are true marvels of “old math.” One c. 1810 belonged to Ebenezer Bliss (1795-1868) and the other dated 1806 belonging to Ethan Ely (1791-1875) - both of Longmeadow. The beautiful artistry of the penmanship aside, young Mr. Bliss and young Mr. Ely used their copybooks to collect and demonstrate their understanding of mathematical concepts that must have been taught in their Longmeadow District Schools in the first decade of the 19th century. They begin simply enough with addition - defining the concept and giving examples. Then they move through subtraction, multiplication, division. They then move onto applying these techniques to “Federal Money.” This is followed by the measurement terms and related math of a variety of items such as Time, Land, Solids, Wine, Bee & Ale, and Cloth. They progress through “Vulgar Fractions” and Decimals and into the important business of calculating Interest and even the math of Bartering. No algebra or calculus is included - just the type of math that would benefit the new nation’s farmers and merchants and other ordinary citizens.

"Addition is the putting together of

several smaller numbers into one larger number"

Definitions and Examples of Simple Subtraction and Simple Multiplication

Measurement Work

Vulgar Fractions ... indeed!

Work with Federal Money math

Both copybooks beautifully display the firm grasp each scholar had on the material. They must have been proud of their work to save these paper mementos of their school days.

The word problems in Bliss’ book are striking reminders of the pride the nation felt in its recent triumph over the British: “General Washington was born in 1732. What is his age in 1787” (answer: 55 Ans). It is followed by “The Massacre at boston (sic) by the British Troops happened March 5th 1770 and the Battle of lexington (sic) April 19th. How long between April 19th 1775 March 5th 1770” (answer: 5yr 1m 15d)

General Washington example from Ebenezer Bliss' book

Revolutionary War timeline example from Ebenezer Bliss' book

The language and organization of both books indicates that they are modeled on a popular Math textbook of the time called, “Arithmetick, Both in Theory and Practice” by John Hill. The preface of the book proclaims, “It appears to me, upon the Perusal of it, to be a curious piece: ‘Tis clean, methodical, and handsomely dressed: so plain, that the dullest person may learn by it; and so compleat, that he need learn no more.”

We hope you enjoy a peek into these early 19th century school day relics from our archives.

Contributed by Melissa M. Cybulski, Longmeadow Historical Society Board Member

Originally published May 20, 2021