HISTORIC NORTHAMPTON
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Historic Northampton and the Berkshire Appalachian Mountain Club invite you to attend an illustrated talk & book signing
Sleuthing & Serendipity: The “Discovered” Adventure of Two Intrepid Women Naturalists Who Helped Inspire Congress To Preserve The White Mountains
Hosted by A.P.E.@Hawley Street

Date:
Speakers:​
​Location:
​Details:
Admission:

Friday, February 22, 2019 at 7 pm
Authors Allison Bell and Maida Goodwin
33 Hawley Street, The Arts Trust Building in Northampton, MA

Limited seating. To reserve your place, register here.
$8 members/donors of Historic Northampton and BAMC and students
$12 all others
REGISTER

Valley authors Allison Bell & Maida Goodwin will describe three remarkable stories: (1) how three independent research projects reunited long-separated photographs and letters (some with secret code) that (2) tell the story of a 1902 hike in the White Mountains of two women naturalists, who subsequently took leading roles in the successful effort to protect the White Mountains of New Hampshire and (3) the region’s extraordinary alpine habitats and hiking trails. 
 
Allison Bell is co-author of two field guides to the alpine areas in New York and New England. Maida Goodwin worked for many years as an archivist at Smith College’s Special Collections. 
 
After their talk, Bell and Goodwin will be on-hand to sign their new book, Glorious Mountain Days: The 1902 Hike that Helped Save the White Mountains.  The book includes the letters, historic photographs and Bell’s gorgeous modern-day images of the flora and fauna of the Whites. 

Picture

Picture
Photo taken by Hattie Freeman of Fred Freeman and Emma Cummings
on the Gulfside Trail, Mt. Adams, during their week-long traverse
of the Presidential and Carter Ranges in July 1902.​

For a week in July 1902 amateur naturalists Hattie Freeman and Emma Cummings hiked with legendary trail builder J. Rayner Edmands, two other companions, and a guide across New Hampshire’s Presidential Range. Both were early members of the Berkshire Appalachian Mountain Club and the White Mountains were a favorite destination.  Freeman, meanwhile, also had strong ties to Northampton. 
 
During their 7-day hike, Hattie took dozens of photographs and both she and Emma wrote letters to a mutual friend—the well-known Reverend Edward Everett Hale—describing the mountain birds, alpine flowers, rugged trails, and camp life. But all was not idyllic. Aside from the black flies, as they tramped across the mountains, they saw first hand the impact of extensive forest cutting as well as new development threats to the Range. Upon their return, the two women helped lead a passionate and savvy political campaign, which ultimately resulted in the establishment of the White Mountain National Forest. 
This once-forgotten adventure story was rediscovered thanks to three separate, but overlapping research projects that included work at The Library of Congress in Washington, DC; Smith College’s Special Collections and photographs, which had been preserved by the Freeman/Rankin family in Massachusetts; and the Lowe family in the tiny town of Randolph, NH. How these letters and photographs were re-united after more than a century is a story in itself and a model for researchers and historians. That story, along with the letters and photographs, are all included in Glorious Mountain Days, a new book by naturalist Allison Bell and archivist Maida Goodwin. 
 
“It’s inspiration for anyone interested in local history, women’s history and for any environmental advocate looking for a model of success,” said Allison Bell, a 35-year resident of Northampton, who recently moved to Whately.

Co-sponsored by Berkshire ​Appalachian Mountain Club.
Picture
​Harriet Freeman, Edith Hull, Emma Cummings and Fred Freeman stand
on a log bridge in Cascade Ravine during their week-long traverse
of the Presidential and Carter Ranges in July 1902.


HISTORIC
​NORTHAMPTON
46 Bridge Street
Northampton
​Massachusetts 01060
[email protected]
​413-584-6011
Museum Hours

Historic Northampton is temporarily closed in May and June 2025. Stay tuned for the next exhibit:
Slavery and Freedom in Northampton, 1654 to 1783.


For upcoming events and programs, see the  Events Calendar.
​

Hours and Directions
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  • About
    • About Historic Northampton
    • Hours and Directions
    • Volunteer
    • Board-Staff
    • Legal/Financial
  • Programs
    • Upcoming Programs
    • Past Events at Historic Northampton >
      • Past Programs 2025
      • Past Programs 2024
      • Mill River Flood 150 Commemoration >
        • Mill River Flood 150 Commemoration Events
        • Mill River Flood Introduction
        • Mill River Flood Lives Lost
        • Mill River Flood Commemoration Markers >
          • \\\\Williamsburg Mill River Flood Markers
          • Skinnerville Mill River Flood Markers
          • Haydenville Mill River Flood Markers
          • Leeds Mill River Markers
          • Florence Mill River Markers
          • Northampton Mill River Markers
        • Mill River Flood Who Was Responsible
        • Mill River Flood Guided Walks to the Dam Ruins
        • Mill River Flood Memorial Tree Project
      • Past Programs 2023
      • Past Programs 2022
      • Past Programs 2021
      • Past Programs 2020
      • Past Programs 2019
    • MCC Card to Culture at Historic Northampton
    • Help I am not receiving email announcements
  • Explore
    • Collections & Research
    • History at Home >
      • Videos
      • Interactive Witch Trial
      • Paper Dolls
      • Hidden Histories
      • Scavenger Hunts
      • Coloring Pages
      • Brain Teasers
      • Peg Doll Hunts
      • Jonathan Edwards Prayer Requests
    • Properties >
      • Parsons House
      • Damon House
      • Shepherd House
      • Shepherd Barn 2020
      • The Bridge Street School Sprouts
    • Educational Websites
    • Historic Highlights
    • COVID-19 Stories >
      • Vaccination Photos
      • Submit Your COVID Story
      • Children React
      • Family and Neighborhood Fun
      • It's a New World
      • Hope and Togetherness
      • Images
      • How Illness Feels
      • Brings Forth Memory
      • Blessings and the New Busy
      • Fear and Worry
  • Indigenous Native History
    • Native Histories in Nonotuck
    • Nonotuck Histories Essay by Margaret M. Bruchac
    • Recovering Nonotuck Histories Photo Essay
    • Profiles of Native People
    • Extended Biographies of Native People
    • Nonotuck to Northampton Maps
    • Native LIves Bibliography
  • History of Slavery
    • About the Slavery Research Project
    • Black Enslaved People
    • Free Black People
    • Native Enslaved People
    • Enslavers of People
    • Relationship Map >
      • Relationship Map Family Groups
      • Relationship Map Enslavement
      • Relationship Map Indenture
      • Relationship Map Legal
      • Relationship Map Commerce
      • Relationship Map Foster or Guardian
      • Relationship Map Social Connections
    • Timeline of Slavery in Northampton
  • DONATE
    • Donate to the Spring Appeal
    • Donate to the exhibit Slavery and Freedom in Northampton
    • WAYS TO GIVE >
      • Monthly Donation
      • IRA Giving
      • Stock Giving
    • Join the Email List
    • Donate to the Collection