1873
HAV-01-403-Z-K-301 Box 10
GUSN-384895
There is little digital record of Mary E. Otis' life. From the entries in the diary, it appears that she may have been part of a religious organization. Handwritten entries show that she preached and prayed with people she met. Many of her entries are devotions and prayerful. She often uses the abbreviations "Bro." or "Sr." when she refers to other people. Her accounting in the back of her diary show the purchase of bibles on a nearly montly basis among other purchases. Mary also kept lists of names of people to whom wrote in the back of her diary.
Mary noted different towns in her entries including the Massachusetts towns of Brownell's Corner, Charlton, Chicopee Falls, Springfield, Westport, and Worcester. There are locations outside Massachusetts that include Gardiner Maine, Alton Bay, New Hampshire, Providence, Rhode Island, and Rutland, Vermont.
diaries
travel
families
friends
prayers
handwriting
account books
diaries
1 Diary, 3.5 x 6 inches
MS029
Miscellaneous manuscript collection
2020
MS029.002.056
"Pocket Diary for 1873 / Published for The Trade" Small, diary/daybook with a leather cover and almanac style monthly pages at the front. Lined pages are filled with Mary's writing. She recorded her thoughts, prayers, and activities on a regular basis for the year. Toward the back, there are pages that show Mary's financial transactions and the names of people she paid or from whom she received payment.
Gift
Gift of John G.W. Kelley, PhD, 2020
Springfield (Hampden County, Massachusetts)
Worcester county (Massachusetts) [county]
Brownell Corner (Bristol county, Massachusetts)
Charlton (Worcester county, Massachusetts)
Chicopee Falls (Chicopee, Hampden County, Massachusetts) [neighborhood]
Gardiner (Kennebec county, Maine)
Alton Bay (Belknap county, New Hampshire) [bay]
Providence (Providence county, Rhode Island)
Rutland county (Vermont) [county]
Kingston (Washington county, Rhode Island)
Probably Otis, Mary E, 1839- (Diarist)
diaries
Otis , Mary E., 1839-
Diary is fragile, pages are loose. Some clippings are inserted.
Item
HAV-01-403-Z-K-301 Box 10
Materials are in English
This diary was found at Wild Meadow Farm in Peace Dale [Kingstown], Rhode Island. The name Mary E Otis, Springfield Mass. appears on the first page. Other addresses listed on the first page include 75 Pynchon Street [Springfield] and 12 George Street in Worcester, Mass., and 18 Goulding Street in Worcester, Mass.
In her January 4, 1873 entry, Mary E. Otis writes that it was her birthday and noted that she was thirty-four years old. Records found online show Mary E. Otis was born in Hubbardston, Massachusetts and was 54 years old when she married Charles H. Kimball in Clairmont, New Hampshire on February 16,1893.
From the diary's donor: "Mary Otis may have been childhood friends of Jessie P. and Nettie P. Northrup who lived on Wild Meadow Farm in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The diary indicates she wrote letters to Jessie, Nettie P., and Gertie. "P". was an abbreviation for their last name; Pettiaplace. Nettie was the first wife of James Northrup and Jessie (Nettie's sister) was James Northrup's second wife. This is possibly why the diary remained at the Northrup-Kelley Farm."
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