Harriet Messer diary, 1849-1852

Title:

Harriet Messer diary, 1849-1852

Creator:

Briggs, Harriet Messer, 1837-1881

Creator Role:

Author

Accession / Call Number:

1996.050

Object ID:

1996-050

Date:

1849-1852

Type of Material:

textual record

Physical Description:

1 volume ; 6.75" x 8.25"

Language:

English

Scope and Content:

Harriet (or Harriott) Messer (1837-1881) kept a journal intermittently between the ages of 12 and 15 (1849-1852). She tended to write more in the winter, probably because she was unhappily confined indoors. Especially towards the end, the diary is full of adolescent angst: she hated the cold, was bored in Colebrook, felt sad, and cried often. Her social activities included paying and receiving calls, playing whist, attending church, and attending both regular school and singing school. The journal also records neighborhood and family gossip and comments on what were evidently newsworthy events, such as people going to California to find gold; a flying machine exhibit in Boston; paying for an exhibit of pictures shown through a "magic lantern"; the construction preparing for the coming of the railroad in Henniker, NH; and the preaching of a Universalist minister. Though she was sent to boarding school in Henniker in 1849 for a few months and then, in the last entry, one in Concord in 1852, she was too busy to describe those experiences in any detail. A transcription of this diary is available. See the finding aid for biographical information.

Subjects:

Adolescence , Diaries , Students

Locations:

Colebrook, NH
Concord, NH
Henniker, NH

People:

Briggs, Harriet Messer, 1837-1881

Terms of Use:

For permission to reproduce or publish this item, please contact the New Hampshire Historical Society. Users are responsible for following all copyright and intellectual property laws.

Credit Line:

New Hampshire Historical Society purchase.

Restrictions:

Available for research.

Level Description:

Item

Finding Aid Link:

RS63967_Messer_Harriet_Diary_1996.050.pdf