NEW HAMPSHIRE BOOKS COLUMN

by Eleanor O'Donnell

Adamowicz, Joe. HIKING THE MONADNOCK REGION. New England Cartographic, P.O. Box 9369, North Amherst, MA. 01059. 1996. $10.05 paper. ISBN 0-96248-019-3
A guidebook to 25 day hikes and nature walks in the heart of southwestern New Hampshire. Includes details on the flora and fauna, local history and sightseeing in the nearby area.

CONCORD TRAIL SYSTEM. Order from Concord Planning Department, City Hall, Concord, N.H. 03301, tele. 225-8515. 4th edition. 1997. $2.00
Prepared by Concord Conservation Commission for use by residents and visitors of the City of Concord, this trail guide includes maps and descriptions of each trail, walking time, and historical information about the area.

Dolph, James, and Roman Donohoe. AROUND PORTSMOUTH IN THE VICTORIAN ERA: THE PHOTOGRAPH OF THE DAVIS BROTHERS. Arcadia Publishing, 1 Washington Center, Dover, N.H. 03820. 1997. $16.99
Lewis and Charles Davis operated one of the most successful photographic studios in the Portsmouth area in the second half of the nineteenth century. This visual history of Portsmouth is based on the Portsmouth Athenaeum's collection of the Davis brothers stereopticon images.

Downs, John W. SPRAYS OF SALT: REMINISCENCES OF A NATIVE SHOALER. Peter E. Randall, Publisher. 1997. $24.00 ISBN 0194339-59-1
First published by the author in 1944, Sprays of Salt recounts every day living on the Isles of Shoals at the end of the nineteenth century.

Elcock, Nancy, and Sally Wilkins. INSIDERS' GUIDE TO NEW HAMPSHIRE. Co-published and marketed by the Telegraph, 17 Executive Drive, Hudson, N.H. 03051. 1997. $15.95 ISBN 1-57380-033-3
This guidebook provides an overview of the different regions of the state, then is arranged by topic, e.g. accommodations, restaurants, shopping, attractions, arts and culture. It packs a lot of useful information in its 498 pages.

GOSPORT REMEMBERED: THE LAST VILLAGE AT THE ISLES OF SHOALS. Edited by Peter E. Randall and Maryellen Burke. Portsmouth Marine Society Publication, no. 23. Peter E. Randall, Publisher. 1997. $35.00 ISBN 0-915819-22-8
The Village of Gosport on Star Island is brought to life again with previously unpublished old photographs, and selections from writers such as Celia Thaxter, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Richard Henry Dana, Jr.

Kenison, Arthur M. DUMAINE'S AMOSKEAG: LET THE RECORD SPEAK. Saint Anselm College Press, 100 Saint Anselm Drive, Manchester, N.H. 03102-1310. 1997. $37.50 ISBN 0-9629547-1-3
In its heyday, Amoskeag Manufacturing Company was the largest textile firm in the world. In this book, the author reveals facts that disprove popular held beliefs that the owners of the company abandoned its operations coldly and uncaringly during the Depression years. He contents the company could still be in operation if it had not been for the management's desire to keep the mills in Manchester.

LaBranche, John F. IN FEMALE WORTH AND ELEGANCE: SAMPLER AND NEEDLEWORK STUDENTS AND TEACHERS IN PORTSMOUTH, NEW HAMPSHIRE, 1741-1840. Published for the Portsmouth Marine Society by Peter E. Randall. 1996. $35.00 ISBN 0-915819-21-X
Instruction in needlework played an important part well into the late nineteenth century in the education of Portsmouth females, who were daughters of sea captains, shipbuilders, merchants, politicians, and gentlemen farmers. Many of the teachers were widows, or those women who needed to support themselves. The book includes chronologies of teachers and students, information on the samplers worked by the young women, and twenty-four samplers reproduced in full color.

Ladd, Alexander H. ALEXANDER H. LADD'S GARDEN BOOK, 1888-1895: A 19TH CENTURY VIEW OF PORTSMOUTH. Penobscot Press. Available from the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of New Hampshire, 154 Market Street, Portsmouth, N.H. 03801-3730. $20.00 ISBN 0-89725-103-2
In his handwritten journal, Alexander H. Ladd recorded seven years of Portsmouth information, including notes on gardening, observations about the times and attitudes, personal reflections, and details about family and friends. The New Hampshire Colonial Dames have transcribed this diary in the hope that it will be found useful by garden historians, botanists, family chroniclers, and students of American history.

Mann, Helen R. CRAWFORD'S HORN WINDING: A BIOGRAPHICAL NOVEL ABOUT ETHAN ALLEN CRAWFORD AND HIS WIFE LUCY OF CRAWFORD NOTCH. Peter E. Randall. 1997. $25.00 ISBN 0-914339-63-X
Using Lucy Crawford's classic book, History of the White Mountains, along with correspondence from Crawford descendants, and research in archives and libraries, the author presents a vivid story of the Crawfords and their life in the rugged wilderness of New Hampshire's White Mountains.

Silver, Walter Theo, and Linnea Stadig Silver. FROM THE KING'S PLANTATION TO HOME TOWN HERITAGE: BOSCAWEN AND WEBSTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE. Peter E. Randall. 1997. $45.00 ISBN 0-9914339-62-1
Until his death at the age of 89, Theo Silver, a surveyor, historian, archaeologist, and wildlife biologist collected information about Boscawen and Webster, the towns where he grew up. Thus, this book is a personal history and town history, both interesting reading.

Smith, Florence Horne. ROCHESTER. Images of America Series. Arcadia Publishing. 1996. $16.99 ISBN 0-7524-0454-7
The history of Rochester, Gonic, and East Rochester is portrayed in this visual history, dating from the era following the Civil War.

Waugh, H. Bernard. "A HARD ROAD TO TRAVEL": NHMA'S HANDBOOK ON NEW HAMPSHIRE LAW OF LOCAL HIGHWAYS, STREETS AND TRAILS. New Hampshire Municipal Association, 25 Triangle Park Drive, Concord, N.H. 03301. 1997. $35.00 for members; $40.00 for state and non-profits; $50.00 for non-members.
Revision of the 1986 edition of Roads and Highways Manual. Local officials have to deal with road issues, whether it be financing, regulation, liability, maintenance, land use, and development. The author attempts to explain the basics of road law, and gives examples of the legal questions most often asked about local highways in New Hampshire.