Boston’s sultry summers made seaside resorts appealing, but each year Regina Shober Gray [1] struggled to find her family attractive rooms in likely houses outside the city.

61 Bowdoin..

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The name Campbell has been a favored first or middle name in the Steward family for the last..

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After less than a week in Philadelphia, Regina Shober Gray [1] was back in Boston and deep in domestic duties. In the following entries the diarist manages to refer to two of her husband’s..Continue reading →

[Author's note: This blog post originally appeared in Vita Brevis on 9 June 2016.]

I am fortunate in having photographs of many of my relatives, and more fortunate still in that I can identify so many of them. Often the work has been done for me, as to names; sometimes..

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By the end of May 1865, Regina Shober Gray’s son Reginald had been staying with his aunts for six months; his visit was meant to help the Shober sisters as they mourned their brother John...Continue reading →

The recent acquisition of a 1947 photograph of the mezzo-soprano Dorothy Dow playing Susan B. Anthony[1] made me think about how historic figures have been represented on stage and in film – and, thus, in the still..

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In these entries from the Regina Shober Gray [1] diary, we find her analysis of a sermon at King’s Chapel as well as reflections on a yearned-for musical performance of the Handel & Haydn..Continue reading →

Many of us have bunches of old family letters set aside to review – preferably with the sender and the recipient already noted on the envelope. Years ago, as I was researching my first family history (The Sarsaparilla Kings[1]), I was fortunate enough..

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[This series on royal cartes de visite began here.]

At left: The wedding of the Prince of Wales and Princess Alexandra of Denmark, 1863. Standing: The Crown Princess of Prussia, Prince Louis of Hesse, the bridegroom, and Princess Helena. Seated or kneeling: Princess..

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While the obsequies associated with President Lincoln’s death and burial continued into May 1865, Regina Shober Gray’s [1] thoughts turned to other subjects as well. It would also seem that..Continue reading →