95 21 3400 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/4508a01a6dca12adaba6dcdba39b83d4.jpg 6e9fb953940fdaff606df32294518d36 Omeka Image File The metadata element set that was included in the `files_images` table in previous versions of Omeka. These elements are common to all image files. Bit Depth 8 Channels 3 Height 1564 Width 3600 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sarah Haven Foster Views of Portsmouth Description An account of the resource The Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections Room holds several albums containing nearly 1000 individual Sarah Haven Foster watercolors. These were painted locally and during travels abroad. They depict a wide array of buildings, landscapes, and wild flowers. Most of the images are painted in miniature, some as small as postage stamps. Sarah Haven Foster (1827-1900), was the daughter of John Welsh Foster (1789-1852) and Mary (Appleton) Foster. She had one sister, Mary Appleton Foster, and one brother, Joseph H. Foster. John Welsh Foster was a prominent member of the Portsmouth community. He was a bookseller and printer, Deacon of the South Meeting House, a Portsmouth Athenaeum founder, school committee member, on the board of selectmen, and incorporator of the Portsmouth Savings Bank. His businesses dealt with printing, book selling and bookbinding. His success allowed his daughters the opportunity to make summer trips to Europe. Sarah and her sister Mary lived in Europe from 1886-1890. On those trips Sarah produced approximately 600 watercolors depicting buildings and landscapes in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, England, Scotland, and Wales. Aside from a bit of correspondence found in the collection of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, little is known of Sarah Haven Foster’s life. Record of her public life is nearly non-existent. She was a member of the Unitarian Church. By all accounts she was shy and did not like public attention. No known likenesses of Sarah have been found. A 2013 publication entitled Portsmouth Women: Madams & Matriarchs Who Shaped New Hampshire’s Port City, edited by Laura Pope, includes a chapter on Sarah Haven Foster written by Maryellen Burke and illustrated with images from the Library’s collection. As explained in this chapter, the Foster family was involved in many benevolent and community building activities. It is likely that Mary, Sarah’s sister, deposited her paintings at the Public Library because of her involvement with the founding of the library, and their shared support of the institution throughout their lives. Sarah Haven Foster published two books, Watchwords for Young Soldiers, a volume of children’s Bible stories published in 1864, and The Portsmouth Guide Book, published in 1876 by her brother, Joseph H. Foster. In August 19, 1900, at the age of 74, Sarah was the victim of the first fatal accident on the Portsmouth Electric Railroad. The day was warm and extra cars were running to and from the beach. Reports claimed that the cars were running late and were going "at a good rate, though not a reckless one". She stepped out after waiting for a car to pass, but an extra car following hit her. She had been heading home from the Lyman residence. She died later that day of her sustained injuries. She was 74 years old. Foster is buried in Proprietors' cemetery. Views of Portsmouth In this album, Foster captures her fondness for the Portsmouth of old. Her realistic and gentle paintings capture a slightly ideal view of Portsmouth. These 174 miniature paintings are mounted and bound in a single volume entitled “Sketches of Portsmouth”. Collectively, they represent a view of mid-19th century Portsmouth and its environs unlike anything else we are aware of. It includes 34 paintings of buildings in Portsmouth (at last count, 14 of the Portsmouth buildings depicted are still standing). Also included are landscapes and buildings from York, New Castle, Newington, Kittery, Gerrish Island and the Isles of Shoals. Although in miniature, as you browse through this collection, you will notice Foster’s attention to detail, particularly in the architectural features. After more than a century, the colors remain brilliant and the condition of most of this collection is quite good. The provenance of this volume is somewhat uncertain; however, Library reports indicate that Sarah’s sister, Mary Appleton Foster, gave her sister’s painting albums to the Public Library between 1900 and 1903. Mary Appleton Foster was a Civil War Nurse in the 1862-1865. In 1871, with Reverend James De Normandie (Unitarian minister) and others she helped to establish the Young People’s Union, which collected books and loaned them to Portsmouth’s youth. In 1874, the Union ceased, and in 1880 Mary Foster conceived of the idea to loan these books to the public. She and others created the library in the Custom house which opened January 1, 1881. After several moves, eventually, in 1896, a library was established in the "Portsmouth Academy" building. The Library has addressed some of this album’s conservation needs in recent years through generous funding provided by a New Hampshire Moose Plate Grant. Deborah Mayer, local paper conservator, stabilized the album and re-housed individual fascicles in non-acidic enclosures, also enabling safe handling for digitization. These images were digitized almost solely by library volunteer Carolyn Giberti. Quality control and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Portsmouth Public Library Collection was digitized almost solely by library volunteer Carolyn Giberti. Quality control and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin Quality control and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin Omeka Team, Nicole Cloutier, Robyn Nielsen Subject The topic of the resource Buildings, homes, scenery of Portsmouth and Surrounding communities. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Portsmouth Public Library Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Watercolor coll Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Foster watercolor collection was gifted to the Portsmouth Library by Mary A. Foster, the artist's sister, 1901. Collection was scanned, 2012/2013. Quality control, research, and metadata created, 2013. Digital Archive Created, 2014. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource These images are intended for research and reference use only. The library holds copyright to the digital images of this collection. Please see the copyright information page (link at bottom of page) for information about obtaining permission for image use and reproduction. Relation A related resource The Library holds several other collections of Sarah Haven Foster watercolors -- European views, etc. These will also be scanned and added to the digital archive at a future time. Vertical Files in the Special Collections Room contain historical information about SH Foster and her other work. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource mages used in the database are jpg files derived from archival .tif files. Type The nature or genre of the resource Watercolor sketches of Portsmouth Architecture. Several used in book illustrations. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant This coverage of architectural rendering for the mid to late 1900's is a valuable resource in the history of Portsmouth Miscellaneous Miscellaneous Put whatever you want in here. --title::Sarah Haven Views of Portsmouth --text::The Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections Room holds several albums containing nearly 1000 individual Sarah Haven Foster watercolors. This album depicts a wide array of buildings and views in the Portsmouth and Seacoast area. Most of the images are painted in miniature, some as small as postage stamps. --images::874,865 Watercolor Provenance Gift of Mary A. Foster, 1901 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource On road to Basin, Woodstock, New Hampshire Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Foster, Sarah Haven (1827-1900) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sarah Haven Foster Views of Portsmouth Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Mid to late 19th century Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Jpg derived from Tif Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-AA1989.60.142 Subject The topic of the resource Woodstock (N.H.) Landscapes Watercolors (paintings) Description An account of the resource A watercolor painting captured from the road on the way to Agassiz Basin in North Woodstock, NH. Inscription reads, "On the road to Basin, Woodstock." Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource View our <a href="http://portsmouthexhibits.org/copyright-information">Terms of Use and Copyright Information</a> Language A language of the resource eng 19th Century Foster landscape New Hampshire watercolor White Mountains https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/a1ddff48f933926bab5c421bd4ea136c.jpg 4aa23dff0efc7beb4b94d35794a79ab3 Omeka Image File The metadata element set that was included in the `files_images` table in previous versions of Omeka. These elements are common to all image files. Bit Depth 8 Channels 3 Height 1807 Width 3599 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sarah Haven Foster Views of Portsmouth Description An account of the resource The Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections Room holds several albums containing nearly 1000 individual Sarah Haven Foster watercolors. These were painted locally and during travels abroad. They depict a wide array of buildings, landscapes, and wild flowers. Most of the images are painted in miniature, some as small as postage stamps. Sarah Haven Foster (1827-1900), was the daughter of John Welsh Foster (1789-1852) and Mary (Appleton) Foster. She had one sister, Mary Appleton Foster, and one brother, Joseph H. Foster. John Welsh Foster was a prominent member of the Portsmouth community. He was a bookseller and printer, Deacon of the South Meeting House, a Portsmouth Athenaeum founder, school committee member, on the board of selectmen, and incorporator of the Portsmouth Savings Bank. His businesses dealt with printing, book selling and bookbinding. His success allowed his daughters the opportunity to make summer trips to Europe. Sarah and her sister Mary lived in Europe from 1886-1890. On those trips Sarah produced approximately 600 watercolors depicting buildings and landscapes in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, England, Scotland, and Wales. Aside from a bit of correspondence found in the collection of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, little is known of Sarah Haven Foster’s life. Record of her public life is nearly non-existent. She was a member of the Unitarian Church. By all accounts she was shy and did not like public attention. No known likenesses of Sarah have been found. A 2013 publication entitled Portsmouth Women: Madams & Matriarchs Who Shaped New Hampshire’s Port City, edited by Laura Pope, includes a chapter on Sarah Haven Foster written by Maryellen Burke and illustrated with images from the Library’s collection. As explained in this chapter, the Foster family was involved in many benevolent and community building activities. It is likely that Mary, Sarah’s sister, deposited her paintings at the Public Library because of her involvement with the founding of the library, and their shared support of the institution throughout their lives. Sarah Haven Foster published two books, Watchwords for Young Soldiers, a volume of children’s Bible stories published in 1864, and The Portsmouth Guide Book, published in 1876 by her brother, Joseph H. Foster. In August 19, 1900, at the age of 74, Sarah was the victim of the first fatal accident on the Portsmouth Electric Railroad. The day was warm and extra cars were running to and from the beach. Reports claimed that the cars were running late and were going "at a good rate, though not a reckless one". She stepped out after waiting for a car to pass, but an extra car following hit her. She had been heading home from the Lyman residence. She died later that day of her sustained injuries. She was 74 years old. Foster is buried in Proprietors' cemetery. Views of Portsmouth In this album, Foster captures her fondness for the Portsmouth of old. Her realistic and gentle paintings capture a slightly ideal view of Portsmouth. These 174 miniature paintings are mounted and bound in a single volume entitled “Sketches of Portsmouth”. Collectively, they represent a view of mid-19th century Portsmouth and its environs unlike anything else we are aware of. It includes 34 paintings of buildings in Portsmouth (at last count, 14 of the Portsmouth buildings depicted are still standing). Also included are landscapes and buildings from York, New Castle, Newington, Kittery, Gerrish Island and the Isles of Shoals. Although in miniature, as you browse through this collection, you will notice Foster’s attention to detail, particularly in the architectural features. After more than a century, the colors remain brilliant and the condition of most of this collection is quite good. The provenance of this volume is somewhat uncertain; however, Library reports indicate that Sarah’s sister, Mary Appleton Foster, gave her sister’s painting albums to the Public Library between 1900 and 1903. Mary Appleton Foster was a Civil War Nurse in the 1862-1865. In 1871, with Reverend James De Normandie (Unitarian minister) and others she helped to establish the Young People’s Union, which collected books and loaned them to Portsmouth’s youth. In 1874, the Union ceased, and in 1880 Mary Foster conceived of the idea to loan these books to the public. She and others created the library in the Custom house which opened January 1, 1881. After several moves, eventually, in 1896, a library was established in the "Portsmouth Academy" building. The Library has addressed some of this album’s conservation needs in recent years through generous funding provided by a New Hampshire Moose Plate Grant. Deborah Mayer, local paper conservator, stabilized the album and re-housed individual fascicles in non-acidic enclosures, also enabling safe handling for digitization. These images were digitized almost solely by library volunteer Carolyn Giberti. Quality control and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Portsmouth Public Library Collection was digitized almost solely by library volunteer Carolyn Giberti. Quality control and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin Quality control and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin Omeka Team, Nicole Cloutier, Robyn Nielsen Subject The topic of the resource Buildings, homes, scenery of Portsmouth and Surrounding communities. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Portsmouth Public Library Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Watercolor coll Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Foster watercolor collection was gifted to the Portsmouth Library by Mary A. Foster, the artist's sister, 1901. Collection was scanned, 2012/2013. Quality control, research, and metadata created, 2013. Digital Archive Created, 2014. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource These images are intended for research and reference use only. The library holds copyright to the digital images of this collection. Please see the copyright information page (link at bottom of page) for information about obtaining permission for image use and reproduction. Relation A related resource The Library holds several other collections of Sarah Haven Foster watercolors -- European views, etc. These will also be scanned and added to the digital archive at a future time. Vertical Files in the Special Collections Room contain historical information about SH Foster and her other work. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource mages used in the database are jpg files derived from archival .tif files. Type The nature or genre of the resource Watercolor sketches of Portsmouth Architecture. Several used in book illustrations. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant This coverage of architectural rendering for the mid to late 1900's is a valuable resource in the history of Portsmouth Miscellaneous Miscellaneous Put whatever you want in here. --title::Sarah Haven Views of Portsmouth --text::The Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections Room holds several albums containing nearly 1000 individual Sarah Haven Foster watercolors. This album depicts a wide array of buildings and views in the Portsmouth and Seacoast area. Most of the images are painted in miniature, some as small as postage stamps. --images::874,865 Watercolor Provenance Gift of Mary A. Foster, 1901 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource On road to Little Harbor Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Foster, Sarah Haven (1827-1900) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sarah Haven Foster Views of Portsmouth Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Mid to late 19th century Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Jpg derived from Tif Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-AA1989.60.35 Subject The topic of the resource Portsmouth (N.H.) Little Harbor (N.H.) Watercolors (paintings) Description An account of the resource A watercolor painting of a man burning brush. Water and houses visible in the background. Inscription reads, "On road to Little Harbor." Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource View our <a href="http://portsmouthexhibits.org/copyright-information">Terms of Use and Copyright Information</a> Language A language of the resource eng 19th Century Foster landscape New Hampshire Portsmouth watercolor https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/80c154a96946be1f0c739d778647336c.jpg f51406d39f02e3236792a66e6c17fc7a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Higgins Family Photograph Collection Subject The topic of the resource Portsmouth (N.H.) Neighborhoods Streets Photographs Description An account of the resource The Higgins Family Photograph Collection consists of over 300 digital images primarily taken in the late 1800s through the first half of the 20th century. The images capture the everyday moments as well as the celebratory occasions of a family living in Portsmouth’s South End neighborhood.<br /><br />The original photographs come from the collection of Kathryn (Casey) Higgins (b. 1882). She is credited with the photography of much of the collection. The photos were provided to the library by the late J. Robert (Bob) Shouse, son of Elizabeth Higgins and V. Allen Shouse, and grandson of Kathryn.<br /><br />The Higgins family has lived in Portsmouth since the early 1900s when Dr. Martin Andrew Higgins (1883-1953) moved to Pleasant Street and began work as a physician and surgeon. Dr. Higgins was born in 1883 in Somersworth, New Hampshire to Andrew Higgins and Bridget Hanagan. He received his education at the University of Maryland Medical School. On July 12, 1913, Dr. Higgins married Kathryn Casey in Amesbury, Massachusetts, where Kathryn’s family lived. Her parents were Patrick Casey and Mary Burke, both immigrants from Northern Ireland. Kathryn and Dr. Higgins moved into 249 Pleasant Street in Portsmouth, a house that was built in 1900. It was here that they would raise their two daughters, Margaret “Peggy” (Higgins) Haid (1918-2012) and Elizabeth Martina “Betty” (Higgins) Shouse (1920-1997), and where Elizabeth and her husband Veazey Allen Shouse (1920-2002) would stay and raise their ten children. Both Peggy and Betty are the subjects of many of the photos. <br /><br />Also prominently featured in the photos is Delia “Dede” (Casey) Hassett (1868-1960), Kathryn’s sister. Delia was married to Joseph Martin Hassett (1869-1925), proprietor of Hassett’s Music and Art Shoppe located at 115 Congress Street. Joseph and Delia had three children – Ruth Hassett DeCourcy, Loretta Hassett Slawson, and John “Jack” Hassett, who can all be seen in several of the images. <br /><br />The digital images in this collection are for public viewing only. No use or reproduction is allowed. <br /><br />More images of the South End and the Puddledock neighborhoods can be seen in <a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Haven School Neighborhood Collection</a>. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Higgins, Kathryn (Casey) (b. 1882) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The Higgins Family Photograph Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Late 19th century-mid 20th century Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Metadata creation and Omeka entry by P. Vassiliev, 2020-2021, and R. Nielsen, 2023. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource No use or reproduction allowed Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-P: 2012.1 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples of still images are: paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type "text" to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource On the bridge, 1915 Subject The topic of the resource Family vacations New Hampshire Black-and-white photographs Description An account of the resource A black-and-white photograph of three men and two women standing on a wooden foot bridge over a small river surrounded by trees and shrubs. The men are wearing long button down coats and newsboy hats, and the women are wearing blouses and skirts. "On the bridge" is handwritten in white ink at the bottom of the photograph. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The Higgins Family Photograph Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1915-09 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource No use or reproduction allowed Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-P: 2012.1.156 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/e5a12c8b3a9080a1136e738e60587555.jpg d3600b8c50482b6b893107d6deb8d57d Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Higgins Family Photograph Collection Subject The topic of the resource Portsmouth (N.H.) Neighborhoods Streets Photographs Description An account of the resource The Higgins Family Photograph Collection consists of over 300 digital images primarily taken in the late 1800s through the first half of the 20th century. The images capture the everyday moments as well as the celebratory occasions of a family living in Portsmouth’s South End neighborhood.<br /><br />The original photographs come from the collection of Kathryn (Casey) Higgins (b. 1882). She is credited with the photography of much of the collection. The photos were provided to the library by the late J. Robert (Bob) Shouse, son of Elizabeth Higgins and V. Allen Shouse, and grandson of Kathryn.<br /><br />The Higgins family has lived in Portsmouth since the early 1900s when Dr. Martin Andrew Higgins (1883-1953) moved to Pleasant Street and began work as a physician and surgeon. Dr. Higgins was born in 1883 in Somersworth, New Hampshire to Andrew Higgins and Bridget Hanagan. He received his education at the University of Maryland Medical School. On July 12, 1913, Dr. Higgins married Kathryn Casey in Amesbury, Massachusetts, where Kathryn’s family lived. Her parents were Patrick Casey and Mary Burke, both immigrants from Northern Ireland. Kathryn and Dr. Higgins moved into 249 Pleasant Street in Portsmouth, a house that was built in 1900. It was here that they would raise their two daughters, Margaret “Peggy” (Higgins) Haid (1918-2012) and Elizabeth Martina “Betty” (Higgins) Shouse (1920-1997), and where Elizabeth and her husband Veazey Allen Shouse (1920-2002) would stay and raise their ten children. Both Peggy and Betty are the subjects of many of the photos. <br /><br />Also prominently featured in the photos is Delia “Dede” (Casey) Hassett (1868-1960), Kathryn’s sister. Delia was married to Joseph Martin Hassett (1869-1925), proprietor of Hassett’s Music and Art Shoppe located at 115 Congress Street. Joseph and Delia had three children – Ruth Hassett DeCourcy, Loretta Hassett Slawson, and John “Jack” Hassett, who can all be seen in several of the images. <br /><br />The digital images in this collection are for public viewing only. No use or reproduction is allowed. <br /><br />More images of the South End and the Puddledock neighborhoods can be seen in <a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Haven School Neighborhood Collection</a>. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Higgins, Kathryn (Casey) (b. 1882) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The Higgins Family Photograph Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Late 19th century-mid 20th century Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Metadata creation and Omeka entry by P. Vassiliev, 2020-2021, and R. Nielsen, 2023. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource No use or reproduction allowed Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-P: 2012.1 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples of still images are: paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type "text" to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource On the golf course, 1915 Subject The topic of the resource Family vacations New Hampshire Black-and-white photographs Description An account of the resource A black-and-white photograph of five people standing in a line in a field, wearing hats and long coats. A forest can be seen in the distance. The text "On the golf course" is handwritten at the bottom of the photographgraph in white ink. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The Higgins Family Photograph Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1915-09 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource No use or reproduction allowed Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-P: 2012.1.126 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/5cce41be94792c7032fef615cd3ac455.jpg f03cec86ffb723d45fcc2792077e74aa Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Higgins Family Photograph Collection Subject The topic of the resource Portsmouth (N.H.) Neighborhoods Streets Photographs Description An account of the resource The Higgins Family Photograph Collection consists of over 300 digital images primarily taken in the late 1800s through the first half of the 20th century. The images capture the everyday moments as well as the celebratory occasions of a family living in Portsmouth’s South End neighborhood.<br /><br />The original photographs come from the collection of Kathryn (Casey) Higgins (b. 1882). She is credited with the photography of much of the collection. The photos were provided to the library by the late J. Robert (Bob) Shouse, son of Elizabeth Higgins and V. Allen Shouse, and grandson of Kathryn.<br /><br />The Higgins family has lived in Portsmouth since the early 1900s when Dr. Martin Andrew Higgins (1883-1953) moved to Pleasant Street and began work as a physician and surgeon. Dr. Higgins was born in 1883 in Somersworth, New Hampshire to Andrew Higgins and Bridget Hanagan. He received his education at the University of Maryland Medical School. On July 12, 1913, Dr. Higgins married Kathryn Casey in Amesbury, Massachusetts, where Kathryn’s family lived. Her parents were Patrick Casey and Mary Burke, both immigrants from Northern Ireland. Kathryn and Dr. Higgins moved into 249 Pleasant Street in Portsmouth, a house that was built in 1900. It was here that they would raise their two daughters, Margaret “Peggy” (Higgins) Haid (1918-2012) and Elizabeth Martina “Betty” (Higgins) Shouse (1920-1997), and where Elizabeth and her husband Veazey Allen Shouse (1920-2002) would stay and raise their ten children. Both Peggy and Betty are the subjects of many of the photos. <br /><br />Also prominently featured in the photos is Delia “Dede” (Casey) Hassett (1868-1960), Kathryn’s sister. Delia was married to Joseph Martin Hassett (1869-1925), proprietor of Hassett’s Music and Art Shoppe located at 115 Congress Street. Joseph and Delia had three children – Ruth Hassett DeCourcy, Loretta Hassett Slawson, and John “Jack” Hassett, who can all be seen in several of the images. <br /><br />The digital images in this collection are for public viewing only. No use or reproduction is allowed. <br /><br />More images of the South End and the Puddledock neighborhoods can be seen in <a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Haven School Neighborhood Collection</a>. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Higgins, Kathryn (Casey) (b. 1882) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The Higgins Family Photograph Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Late 19th century-mid 20th century Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Metadata creation and Omeka entry by P. Vassiliev, 2020-2021, and R. Nielsen, 2023. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource No use or reproduction allowed Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-P: 2012.1 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples of still images are: paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type "text" to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource On the rocks, 1915 Subject The topic of the resource Family vacations New Hampshire Black-and-white photographs Description An account of the resource A black-and-white photograph of two men sitting on a large rock in a river with trees and mountains in the background. The men are dressed in white button down shirts and dark trousers with the legs rolled up above their knees. "On the rocks" is handwritten at the bottom of the photograph in white ink. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Higgins, Kathryn Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The Higgins Family Photograph Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1915-09 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource No use or reproduction allowed Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-P: 2012.1.139 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/3c08d90c2a16f95410b47e230d6143d8.jpg 64b6a3f85b2aae8c1d8fd85233c56219 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/0110e61e6be4fbc92d216fe736d4b58b.jpg 59da9a2bcdd67e6b9df25e629840b8d7 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Louis J. Mackles Postcard Subject The topic of the resource Postcards of Buildings and Scenes of Portsmouth and other Seacoast Locations Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Louis J. Mackles was the collector of these postcards. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Louis J. Mackles collected postcards depicting a variety of locations. The large collection was divided up by vicinity by the donor and deposited in locally appropriate collections. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Donated to the Portsmouth Public Library by Ross Moldoff and family, May 2015. Digitized, Spring 2016. Collection rehoused, Spring 2016 Digital Collection created in OMEKA, June 2016. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Collected by Louis J. Mackles. Digitized by Jessica Ross, Volunteer assistance from Wynn Welch, Spring 2016. Omeka addition and metadata by Jessica Ross. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource These images are intended for research and reference use only. The library holds copyright to the digital images of this collection. Please see the copyright information page (link at bottom of page) for information about obtaining permission for image use and reproduction. Relation A related resource This is a small part of a larger collection. Other parts of the collection may be found in.... Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource The images appearing in this database are JPG format, they are derived from archival TIF files. Type The nature or genre of the resource This collection of 400+ postcards are a mixture of U.S. printed, and foreign printed standards postcards. They were created for tourist/commercial reasons, but capture interesting historic views of the Portsmouth and Seacoast area. If written on and mailed, they serve an additional layer of historical importance to family historians and genealogists. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Portsmouth and the Seacoast, NH. Description An account of the resource This collection of 400+ postcards, depicting buildings and scenes of Portsmouth and the Seacoast area, was donated to the Portsmouth Public Library by the family of Louis J. Mackles in May of 2015. It was given specifically by Ross A. Moldoff, Gloria F. Moldoff and Harold Moldoff, who felt the collection should be made available for study and enjoyment. The rehousing of the physical collection into archival albums was made possible by the Moldoffs as well. Mr. Mackles collected postcards throughout his life. This collection, only a small portion of a much larger number, left behind for family and friends to enjoy, is an interesting historic journey through the Seacoast. Some buildings depicted are long gone while multiple postcards of the same building show the progression of time. Postcards (aka "post cards") became popular at the turn of the 20th Century, after being introduced to the U.S. during the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893. Used primarily for sending short messages to friends and relatives, people collected them immediately as mementos of a trip or journey, historical events, holidays, etc. They were sold to tourists and often advertised local businesses. Individuals created real photograph postcards to send home to relatives when travelling abroad as well. Immigrants to the U.S. often had photos taken when they arrived at their destination to send home to their native countries. DELTIOLOGY is the hobby of collecting postcards according to Merriam-Webster, but more broadly it is considered the collection, study, and preservation of picture postcards for fun, recreation, relaxation, and enjoyment – and for the historical preservation of life in years past [As described by the American Association of Philatelic Exhibitors http://www.aape.org/collectingpicturepostcardsver17jul.asp]. The Mackles collection was primarily published in the U.S. and Germany and contains many different types of postcards. The standard photo cards, printed and colored or tinted cards, several fold-out strips which became popular in the 1950’s, as well as miniature postcards. Major Louis J. Mackles, USAR (Born in Brownsville, Texas, October 4, 1923. Died at Pease Air Force Base, September 6, 1987) _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Excerpted from obituary in the Portsmouth Herald, September 8, 1987: ‘…Maj. Mackles attended A&M and UNH, receiving a master’s degree with high honors in chemical engineering. He served in the Philippines during World War II, retiring as a major in the U.S. Army Reserves. He was the recipient of the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star. He retired after 30 years as head of the Radiation Control branch of the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard working with Adm. Rickover. Maj. Mackles was a consultant for L.P.I. Engineering in Dover until April 1987. He was a member of Temple Israel, NARFE, Wentworth and Pease Golf Club, the National Association of Technical Supervisors and the Registered Maine State Board of Professional Engineers…’ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ His family kindly provided a copy of the eulogy given in his honor, transcribed as follows: Eulogy for Louis Mackles – Label ben Yudel U’Miriam – d. 9/6/87: 12 Elul We are gathered here today to mourn the passing of Louis Mackles, Label ben Yudel u Miriam, and to speak about his life. Lou, as everyone called him, was born October 4, 1923, the second of two sons, to Idel and Mary Mackles, in Brownsville, TX, and grew up in Galveston, TX. As a young man, he attended Texas A & M for two years. In 1942, when the U.S. entered WWII, he enlisted in the Army. After achieving the rank of Corporal, he was sent to Officers Candidates School in New England. In 1944, before being sent overseas, Lou and his fellow Jewish soldiers attended services at Temple Israel of Portsmouth. Then Rabbi Oscar Fleishaker had urged his congregant families to welcome the Jewish soldiers, and so it was that Lou met Charlotte, the girl he was to marry. Lou was commissioned a second Lt. and sent to the Philippines. During an enemy attack, Lou Mackles, despite being wounded himself, saved the life of a wounded comrade, and refused to leave his men. In addition to his wounds, he developed pneumonia from exposure and might have died, had friendly natives not taken him to an Army field hospital – a three-day journey on foot. Army doctors saved his life. Lou was awarded a Bronze Star for bravery under fire. He also gained a lifelong respect and love for the Army, and it was his wish, in the last days of his life, to be treated in a military hospital, this time at Pease Air Force Base. Following the war, Lou served in the Army Reserves, finally retiring with the rank of Major. After his discharge at the war’s end, Lou married Charlotte in Boston on Jan.1, 1946. He then attended the University of NH, attaining his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Chemical Engineering, becoming a professional engineer licensed in both NH and Maine. Son Glenn was born during this period. Then followed a 3-year stint in Wash., DC, where Lou worked for the Bureau of Standards. Thereafter, the family settled permanently in Portsmouth, where daughter Linda was born. Lou took a job at the Navy Yard, where he spent approximately 35 years, working his way up to head of the Radiation Division, building nuclear submarines. Lou was part of the team that produced the Albacore, among other submarines, he served under the legendary Adm. Hyman Rickover. During his years at the yard, he was honored by being asked to present a gold plate to the sponsor of a nuclear sub – which Navy Yard personnel regarded as the highest honor attainable. But more importantly, Lou was well-respected and liked greatly by his colleagues at work, many of whom stayed in touch over the years. It is symbolic of how well-liked he was that old service buddies and friends from work would stay in touch. When Lou became ill, friends would often call the family to find out how he was doing. About 10 years ago, Lou retired from the Yard and worked as a consultant for a private engineering firm in Dover. What sort of man was Lou Mackles? Though I myself arrived in Portsmouth only during the last months of his life, I have the testimony of those who knew and loved him. His family and friends can testify that he was a quiet, soft-spoken man who never said an unkind word about anyone else. I can tell you that he loved children, and was happy to serve as Scoutmaster in a boy scout troop when his children were young. But is more of an eloquent tribute to his memory that, when the little boy who lived across the way from the Mackles was told of Lou’s death, he burst into tears. Lou worked hard, often putting in 18-hours days at the Yard, but he was devoted to his family as well. He was proud of his children’s accomplishments, and loved them unquestioningly. He was also especially close to his nieces and nephews, and was godfather to many of them. As for hobbies, Lou was especially good with his hands. He enjoyed gardening, photography, furniture finishing, and working around the house. He himself did much of the work on the home which he and Charlotte built on Moebus Drive. Golf was a great love, as well. But Lou’s sense of involvement went beyond job, family and hobbies. Having been raised in a traditional family, he retained a strong respect for Judaism, leading him to become an active member of Temple Israel. He served on the Religious Committee, volunteered as an usher on the High Holidays, and helped run the bingo program. Even when he became ill, he refused to take his medicine on Yom Kippur, preferring to fast completely. When, 6 years ago, Lou discovered he had cancer, he determined to fight it. Recalling his WWII bout with combat wounds and pneumonia, he said, “I was supposed to be a goner in the Philippines, but God gave me 40 more good years.” He fought with courage and determination that serve as an example to us all. Lou was a quiet man who never complained, who did not wish to be a burden on anyone. But he was a fighter to the end, a self-made man who loved life, who loved people, who made every minute count of the years he was given. His memory will be cherished by all who knew him. Our religion speaks of the resurrection of the righteous dead. It is one of the most fundamental beliefs of our faith, but one of the most difficult to comprehend. I myself believe that our resurrection depends, not only upon the grade of God, but on the memories we leave our friends and loved ones. Anyone who touched as many lives as did Lou Mackles will surely merit resurrection and eternal life. He will be deeply missed. __________________________________________________________________________________________ This collection was digitized by Jessica Ross with volunteer help by Wynn Welch, Spring/Summer 2016. Please see below for copyright information. Please contact the Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Room, if you have any questions. 603-766-1720. Miscellaneous Miscellaneous Put whatever you want in here. --title::Mackles Postcard Collection --text::This collection of 400+ postcards, depicting buildings and scenes of Portsmouth and the Seacoast area, was donated to the Portsmouth Public Library by the family of Louis J. Mackles in May of 2015 --images::975,1367 Postcard PPL Acc. # 2015.1-419 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource On the Sagamore Subject The topic of the resource Sagamore Creek, Portsmouth, NH Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Canney's Music Store, Portsmouth, NH Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Louis J. Mackles Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Relation A related resource Additional portions of the Louis J. Mackles Collection may be found at the Rye Historical Society, the New Castle Historical Society, the Portsmouth Navy Yard and a single private collector. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG derived as TFF Type The nature or genre of the resource Paper postcard Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Volume 3, Portsmouth Bridge and Water Views #53-54 history local history Mackles Collection New Hampshire Portsmouth postcard Sagamore Ave. Sagamore Bridge Sagamore Creek https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/255a9592dfdbfe4f6c07eb58f9364e3f.jpg 60aa40985801f898f1cd489203607846 Omeka Image File The metadata element set that was included in the `files_images` table in previous versions of Omeka. These elements are common to all image files. Bit Depth 8 Channels 3 Height 1448 Width 3600 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sarah Haven Foster Views of Portsmouth Description An account of the resource The Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections Room holds several albums containing nearly 1000 individual Sarah Haven Foster watercolors. These were painted locally and during travels abroad. They depict a wide array of buildings, landscapes, and wild flowers. Most of the images are painted in miniature, some as small as postage stamps. Sarah Haven Foster (1827-1900), was the daughter of John Welsh Foster (1789-1852) and Mary (Appleton) Foster. She had one sister, Mary Appleton Foster, and one brother, Joseph H. Foster. John Welsh Foster was a prominent member of the Portsmouth community. He was a bookseller and printer, Deacon of the South Meeting House, a Portsmouth Athenaeum founder, school committee member, on the board of selectmen, and incorporator of the Portsmouth Savings Bank. His businesses dealt with printing, book selling and bookbinding. His success allowed his daughters the opportunity to make summer trips to Europe. Sarah and her sister Mary lived in Europe from 1886-1890. On those trips Sarah produced approximately 600 watercolors depicting buildings and landscapes in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, England, Scotland, and Wales. Aside from a bit of correspondence found in the collection of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, little is known of Sarah Haven Foster’s life. Record of her public life is nearly non-existent. She was a member of the Unitarian Church. By all accounts she was shy and did not like public attention. No known likenesses of Sarah have been found. A 2013 publication entitled Portsmouth Women: Madams & Matriarchs Who Shaped New Hampshire’s Port City, edited by Laura Pope, includes a chapter on Sarah Haven Foster written by Maryellen Burke and illustrated with images from the Library’s collection. As explained in this chapter, the Foster family was involved in many benevolent and community building activities. It is likely that Mary, Sarah’s sister, deposited her paintings at the Public Library because of her involvement with the founding of the library, and their shared support of the institution throughout their lives. Sarah Haven Foster published two books, Watchwords for Young Soldiers, a volume of children’s Bible stories published in 1864, and The Portsmouth Guide Book, published in 1876 by her brother, Joseph H. Foster. In August 19, 1900, at the age of 74, Sarah was the victim of the first fatal accident on the Portsmouth Electric Railroad. The day was warm and extra cars were running to and from the beach. Reports claimed that the cars were running late and were going "at a good rate, though not a reckless one". She stepped out after waiting for a car to pass, but an extra car following hit her. She had been heading home from the Lyman residence. She died later that day of her sustained injuries. She was 74 years old. Foster is buried in Proprietors' cemetery. Views of Portsmouth In this album, Foster captures her fondness for the Portsmouth of old. Her realistic and gentle paintings capture a slightly ideal view of Portsmouth. These 174 miniature paintings are mounted and bound in a single volume entitled “Sketches of Portsmouth”. Collectively, they represent a view of mid-19th century Portsmouth and its environs unlike anything else we are aware of. It includes 34 paintings of buildings in Portsmouth (at last count, 14 of the Portsmouth buildings depicted are still standing). Also included are landscapes and buildings from York, New Castle, Newington, Kittery, Gerrish Island and the Isles of Shoals. Although in miniature, as you browse through this collection, you will notice Foster’s attention to detail, particularly in the architectural features. After more than a century, the colors remain brilliant and the condition of most of this collection is quite good. The provenance of this volume is somewhat uncertain; however, Library reports indicate that Sarah’s sister, Mary Appleton Foster, gave her sister’s painting albums to the Public Library between 1900 and 1903. Mary Appleton Foster was a Civil War Nurse in the 1862-1865. In 1871, with Reverend James De Normandie (Unitarian minister) and others she helped to establish the Young People’s Union, which collected books and loaned them to Portsmouth’s youth. In 1874, the Union ceased, and in 1880 Mary Foster conceived of the idea to loan these books to the public. She and others created the library in the Custom house which opened January 1, 1881. After several moves, eventually, in 1896, a library was established in the "Portsmouth Academy" building. The Library has addressed some of this album’s conservation needs in recent years through generous funding provided by a New Hampshire Moose Plate Grant. Deborah Mayer, local paper conservator, stabilized the album and re-housed individual fascicles in non-acidic enclosures, also enabling safe handling for digitization. These images were digitized almost solely by library volunteer Carolyn Giberti. Quality control and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Portsmouth Public Library Collection was digitized almost solely by library volunteer Carolyn Giberti. Quality control and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin Quality control and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin Omeka Team, Nicole Cloutier, Robyn Nielsen Subject The topic of the resource Buildings, homes, scenery of Portsmouth and Surrounding communities. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Portsmouth Public Library Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Watercolor coll Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Foster watercolor collection was gifted to the Portsmouth Library by Mary A. Foster, the artist's sister, 1901. Collection was scanned, 2012/2013. Quality control, research, and metadata created, 2013. Digital Archive Created, 2014. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource These images are intended for research and reference use only. The library holds copyright to the digital images of this collection. Please see the copyright information page (link at bottom of page) for information about obtaining permission for image use and reproduction. Relation A related resource The Library holds several other collections of Sarah Haven Foster watercolors -- European views, etc. These will also be scanned and added to the digital archive at a future time. Vertical Files in the Special Collections Room contain historical information about SH Foster and her other work. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource mages used in the database are jpg files derived from archival .tif files. Type The nature or genre of the resource Watercolor sketches of Portsmouth Architecture. Several used in book illustrations. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant This coverage of architectural rendering for the mid to late 1900's is a valuable resource in the history of Portsmouth Miscellaneous Miscellaneous Put whatever you want in here. --title::Sarah Haven Views of Portsmouth --text::The Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections Room holds several albums containing nearly 1000 individual Sarah Haven Foster watercolors. This album depicts a wide array of buildings and views in the Portsmouth and Seacoast area. Most of the images are painted in miniature, some as small as postage stamps. --images::874,865 Watercolor Provenance Gift of Mary A. Foster, 1901 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource On Thorn Hill Road, Jackson Falls, New Hampshire Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Foster, Sarah Haven (1827-1900) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sarah Haven Foster Views of Portsmouth Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Mid to late 19th century Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Jpg derived from Tif Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-AA1989.60.151 Subject The topic of the resource Jackson (N.H.) Landscapes Watercolors (paintings) Description An account of the resource A watercolor painting of a house on Thorn Hill Road in Jackson, NH. Scene features a dog in front of the house and mountains in the distance. Inscription reads, "On Thorn Hill Road, Jackson Falls." Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource View our <a href="http://portsmouthexhibits.org/copyright-information">Terms of Use and Copyright Information</a> Language A language of the resource eng 19th Century Foster historic building New Hampshire watercolor White Mountains https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/c83e062b790f3005f4d3c31a81ae62e5.jpg b2393d706feb92934014b01990977dbd Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Piscataqua River Bridge Construction Photograph Collection Description An account of the resource This collection of 97 black-and-white photographs was added to the Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections in 1995. The photos were taken between June 25, 1968 to September 29, 1969 and show the progression of work during the construction of the Piscataqua River Bridge, also known as the I-95 Bridge. Construction of the I-95 bridge, a significant landmark in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, was initiated in the late 1960s as part of the Vaughan Street Urban Renewal Project, which also included the demolition of the North End neighborhood. The project aimed to modernize the city and improve its connectivity to the interstate highway system. The bridge specifically was a response to the growing traffic congestion and bottleneck created by the outdated Maine-New Hampshire Lift Bridge. The original plan for the I-95 bridge envisioned a 1,344-foot-long steel-arch span flanked by cantilever truss spans and boasting a 125-foot clearance. However, due to concerns about accommodating ocean-going vessels, the design was revised to provide a 135-foot clearance. Construction began in May 1968 and was a massive undertaking, requiring extensive engineering and construction efforts. Twenty piers were built to support the 4,500-foot-long bridge on the New Hampshire side and 15 were built on the Maine side. The six-lane roadway on the bridge spans 108-feet-wide over the Piscataqua River. Maplewood Avenue and Market Street Extension were developed with the express intent of linking Portsmouth’s downtown to the I-95 bridge. The bridge’s total cost was $21 million, with 90% coming from federal funds with the remainder split between Maine and New Hampshire. The project was marred by tragedy in 1970 when a platform on the Maine side of the bridge collapsed, resulting in the deaths of four construction workers. This incident led to legal proceedings and public scrutiny of the project's safety measures. Despite the challenges and setbacks, the I-95 bridge was ultimately completed and opened to traffic in 1972. A dedication ceremony was held on November 1, 1972 and the Portsmouth High School Clipper Band and the Kittery School Band both performed. One year later, the bridge was named the nation’s most outstanding bridge by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The I-95 bridge’s construction marked a significant milestone in Portsmouth's development, transforming the city into a more accessible and connected urban center. Its construction was a significant achievement, earning recognition from the American Institute of Steel Construction and the U.S. Department of Transportation. In recent years, the bridge has undergone maintenance and restoration efforts to ensure its continued structural integrity and safety. The Piscataqua River Bridge remains a vital component of the Interstate 95 corridor, serving as a testament to the ingenuity and perseverance of its builders. The photographs were scanned by intern Anya Bake in the fall of 2023. The metadata was created by Reference Librarian Robyn Nielsen and Special Collections Librarian Katie Czajkowski during the summer of 2024. Finding aid created by Katie Czajkowski, 2024. This collection is permanently housed in the Portsmouth Public Library Special Collections. The digital images are available here for research and public access. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-P: 2023.2 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples of still images are: paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type "text" to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource On-site concrete plant, 1968 Subject The topic of the resource Black-and-white photography Piscataqua River (Me. and N.H.) Bridges Description An account of the resource A black-and-white photograph showing an on-site concrete plant. The Maine Sealer of Weights and Measures is calibrating the scales. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Jeeves, R.C. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Piscataqua River Bridge Construction Photograph Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1968-07-31 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource View our <a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/copyright-information" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Use and Copyright Information</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG derived from TIF Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-P: 2023.2.014 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/aca6eacdf22ffaf90646bfe6d070bfd4.jpg 8051ff7c3e2eda0fd83368ba1a478d9a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sarah Haven Foster Wildflowers Description An account of the resource The Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections Room holds several albums containing nearly 1000 individual Sarah Haven Foster watercolors. These were painted locally and during travels abroad. They depict a wide array of buildings, landscapes, and wild flowers. Most of the images are painted in miniature, some as small as postage stamps. Sarah Haven Foster (1827-1900), was the daughter of John Welsh Foster (1789-1852) and Mary (Appleton) Foster. She had one sister, Mary Appleton Foster, and one brother, Joseph H. Foster. John Welsh Foster was a prominent member of the Portsmouth community. He was a bookseller and printer, Deacon of the South Meeting House, a Portsmouth Athenaeum founder, school committee member, on the board of selectmen, and incorporator of the Portsmouth Savings Bank. His businesses dealt with printing, book selling and bookbinding. His success allowed his daughters the opportunity to make summer trips to Europe. Sarah and her sister Mary lived in Europe from 1886-1890. On those trips Sarah produced approximately 600 watercolors depicting buildings and landscapes in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, England, Scotland, and Wales. Aside from a bit of correspondence found in the collection of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, little is known of Sarah Haven Foster’s life. Record of her public life is nearly non-existent. She was a member of the Unitarian Church. By all accounts she was shy and did not like public attention. No known likenesses of Sarah have been found. A 2013 publication entitled Portsmouth Women: Madams & Matriarchs Who Shaped New Hampshire’s Port City, edited by Laura Pope, includes a chapter on Sarah Haven Foster written by Maryellen Burke and illustrated with images from the Library’s collection. As explained in this chapter, the Foster family was involved in many benevolent and community building activities. It is likely that Mary, Sarah’s sister, deposited her paintings at the Public Library because of her involvement with the founding of the library, and their shared support of the institution throughout their lives. Sarah Haven Foster published two books, Watchwords for Young Soldiers, a volume of children’s Bible stories published in 1864, and The Portsmouth Guide Book, published in 1876 by her brother, Joseph H. Foster. In August 19, 1900, at the age of 74, Sarah was the victim of the first fatal accident on the Portsmouth Electric Railroad. The day was warm and extra cars were running to and from the beach. Reports claimed that the cars were running late and were going "at a good rate, though not a reckless one". She stepped out after waiting for a car to pass, but an extra car following hit her. She had been heading home from the Lyman residence. She died later that day of her sustained injuries. She was 74 years old. Foster is buried in Proprietors' cemetery. Wildflowers The Library has a collection of 75 Wildflower paintings. Sarah Haven Foster’s original “Catalogue of Water Color Copies of Wild Flowers Presented by Miss Sarah H. Foster to the Portsmouth Public Library 1900” included 81 paintings, but when the collection was gifted by her sister, Mary A. Foster, in 1901, it appears that the collection contained only 75 individual paintings. The images represent wild flowers that are native to North America, primarily in the Northeast Seacoast area. Foster likely painted them during the mid to late 1900’s. Preservation care included removing each painting from acidic mounts and rehousing in polypropylene sleeves. These images were scanned by volunteers Carolyn Gilberti, Cathryn Czajkowski, and Simmons intern Jillian Carkin. Quality control, research, and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Portsmouth Public Library Scanned by volunteers Carolyn Gilberti, Cathryn Czajkowski, and Simmons intern Jillian Carkin Omeka team, Nicole Luongo Cloutier and Robyn Nielsen, created the collection, 2014. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource These images are intended for research and reference use only. The library holds copyright to the digital images of this collection. Please see the copyright information page (link at bottom of page) for information about obtaining permission for image use and reproduction. Relation A related resource The Library holds several other collections of Sarah Haven Foster watercolors -- European views, etc. These will also be scanned and added to the digital archive at a future time. Vertical Files in the Special Collections Room contain historical information about SH Foster and her other work. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Foster watercolor collection was gifted to the Portsmouth Library by Mary A. Foster, the artist's sister, 1901. Collection was scanned, 2012/2013. Quality control, research, and metadata created, 2013. Digital Archive Created, 2014. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Images used in the database are jpg files derived from archival .tif files. Type The nature or genre of the resource This collection contains botanical style watercolors. Plant types are included. Subject The topic of the resource Primarily North American Wildflowers. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library Watercolor Provenance Gift of Mary A. Foster, 1901 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oneflowered broomrape Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Foster, Sarah Haven (1827-1900) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sarah Haven Foster Wildflowers Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Mid to late 19th century Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Jpg derived from Tif Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-AA1989.75.9 Subject The topic of the resource Wildflowers Watercolors (paintings) Description An account of the resource A watercolor painting of one-flowered broomrape. Inscription reads, "Orobanche Uniflora. / Oneflowered Broomrape." Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource View our <a href="http://portsmouthexhibits.org/copyright-information">Terms of Use and Copyright Information</a> Language A language of the resource eng 20th century Foster watercolor wildflower https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/81bcbddfa1e09048ec09a9cea118bcbb.jpg d044734d7ac3e394a6f7e34826708492 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sarah Haven Foster Wildflowers Description An account of the resource The Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections Room holds several albums containing nearly 1000 individual Sarah Haven Foster watercolors. These were painted locally and during travels abroad. They depict a wide array of buildings, landscapes, and wild flowers. Most of the images are painted in miniature, some as small as postage stamps. Sarah Haven Foster (1827-1900), was the daughter of John Welsh Foster (1789-1852) and Mary (Appleton) Foster. She had one sister, Mary Appleton Foster, and one brother, Joseph H. Foster. John Welsh Foster was a prominent member of the Portsmouth community. He was a bookseller and printer, Deacon of the South Meeting House, a Portsmouth Athenaeum founder, school committee member, on the board of selectmen, and incorporator of the Portsmouth Savings Bank. His businesses dealt with printing, book selling and bookbinding. His success allowed his daughters the opportunity to make summer trips to Europe. Sarah and her sister Mary lived in Europe from 1886-1890. On those trips Sarah produced approximately 600 watercolors depicting buildings and landscapes in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, England, Scotland, and Wales. Aside from a bit of correspondence found in the collection of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, little is known of Sarah Haven Foster’s life. Record of her public life is nearly non-existent. She was a member of the Unitarian Church. By all accounts she was shy and did not like public attention. No known likenesses of Sarah have been found. A 2013 publication entitled Portsmouth Women: Madams & Matriarchs Who Shaped New Hampshire’s Port City, edited by Laura Pope, includes a chapter on Sarah Haven Foster written by Maryellen Burke and illustrated with images from the Library’s collection. As explained in this chapter, the Foster family was involved in many benevolent and community building activities. It is likely that Mary, Sarah’s sister, deposited her paintings at the Public Library because of her involvement with the founding of the library, and their shared support of the institution throughout their lives. Sarah Haven Foster published two books, Watchwords for Young Soldiers, a volume of children’s Bible stories published in 1864, and The Portsmouth Guide Book, published in 1876 by her brother, Joseph H. Foster. In August 19, 1900, at the age of 74, Sarah was the victim of the first fatal accident on the Portsmouth Electric Railroad. The day was warm and extra cars were running to and from the beach. Reports claimed that the cars were running late and were going "at a good rate, though not a reckless one". She stepped out after waiting for a car to pass, but an extra car following hit her. She had been heading home from the Lyman residence. She died later that day of her sustained injuries. She was 74 years old. Foster is buried in Proprietors' cemetery. Wildflowers The Library has a collection of 75 Wildflower paintings. Sarah Haven Foster’s original “Catalogue of Water Color Copies of Wild Flowers Presented by Miss Sarah H. Foster to the Portsmouth Public Library 1900” included 81 paintings, but when the collection was gifted by her sister, Mary A. Foster, in 1901, it appears that the collection contained only 75 individual paintings. The images represent wild flowers that are native to North America, primarily in the Northeast Seacoast area. Foster likely painted them during the mid to late 1900’s. Preservation care included removing each painting from acidic mounts and rehousing in polypropylene sleeves. These images were scanned by volunteers Carolyn Gilberti, Cathryn Czajkowski, and Simmons intern Jillian Carkin. Quality control, research, and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Portsmouth Public Library Scanned by volunteers Carolyn Gilberti, Cathryn Czajkowski, and Simmons intern Jillian Carkin Omeka team, Nicole Luongo Cloutier and Robyn Nielsen, created the collection, 2014. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource These images are intended for research and reference use only. The library holds copyright to the digital images of this collection. Please see the copyright information page (link at bottom of page) for information about obtaining permission for image use and reproduction. Relation A related resource The Library holds several other collections of Sarah Haven Foster watercolors -- European views, etc. These will also be scanned and added to the digital archive at a future time. Vertical Files in the Special Collections Room contain historical information about SH Foster and her other work. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Foster watercolor collection was gifted to the Portsmouth Library by Mary A. Foster, the artist's sister, 1901. Collection was scanned, 2012/2013. Quality control, research, and metadata created, 2013. Digital Archive Created, 2014. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Images used in the database are jpg files derived from archival .tif files. Type The nature or genre of the resource This collection contains botanical style watercolors. Plant types are included. Subject The topic of the resource Primarily North American Wildflowers. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library Watercolor Provenance Gift of Mary A. Foster, 1901 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oneflowered pyrola Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Foster, Sarah Haven (1827-1900) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sarah Haven Foster Wildflowers Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Mid to late 19th century Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Jpg derived from Tif Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-AA1989.75.53 Subject The topic of the resource Wildflowers Watercolors (paintings) Description An account of the resource A watercolor painting of one-flowered pyrola, also known as one-flowered wintergreen. Scientific name is Moneses uniflora. Inscription reads, "Pyrola Uniflora. / Oneflowered Pyrola." Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource View our <a href="http://portsmouthexhibits.org/copyright-information">Terms of Use and Copyright Information</a> Language A language of the resource eng 20th century Foster watercolor wildflower https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/f5ba4d3506caffb6087ba720e1ce16e8.jpg b4b23bdfe714f97def803f2394699a5e Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sarah Haven Foster Wildflowers Description An account of the resource The Portsmouth Public Library’s Special Collections Room holds several albums containing nearly 1000 individual Sarah Haven Foster watercolors. These were painted locally and during travels abroad. They depict a wide array of buildings, landscapes, and wild flowers. Most of the images are painted in miniature, some as small as postage stamps. Sarah Haven Foster (1827-1900), was the daughter of John Welsh Foster (1789-1852) and Mary (Appleton) Foster. She had one sister, Mary Appleton Foster, and one brother, Joseph H. Foster. John Welsh Foster was a prominent member of the Portsmouth community. He was a bookseller and printer, Deacon of the South Meeting House, a Portsmouth Athenaeum founder, school committee member, on the board of selectmen, and incorporator of the Portsmouth Savings Bank. His businesses dealt with printing, book selling and bookbinding. His success allowed his daughters the opportunity to make summer trips to Europe. Sarah and her sister Mary lived in Europe from 1886-1890. On those trips Sarah produced approximately 600 watercolors depicting buildings and landscapes in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, England, Scotland, and Wales. Aside from a bit of correspondence found in the collection of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, little is known of Sarah Haven Foster’s life. Record of her public life is nearly non-existent. She was a member of the Unitarian Church. By all accounts she was shy and did not like public attention. No known likenesses of Sarah have been found. A 2013 publication entitled Portsmouth Women: Madams & Matriarchs Who Shaped New Hampshire’s Port City, edited by Laura Pope, includes a chapter on Sarah Haven Foster written by Maryellen Burke and illustrated with images from the Library’s collection. As explained in this chapter, the Foster family was involved in many benevolent and community building activities. It is likely that Mary, Sarah’s sister, deposited her paintings at the Public Library because of her involvement with the founding of the library, and their shared support of the institution throughout their lives. Sarah Haven Foster published two books, Watchwords for Young Soldiers, a volume of children’s Bible stories published in 1864, and The Portsmouth Guide Book, published in 1876 by her brother, Joseph H. Foster. In August 19, 1900, at the age of 74, Sarah was the victim of the first fatal accident on the Portsmouth Electric Railroad. The day was warm and extra cars were running to and from the beach. Reports claimed that the cars were running late and were going "at a good rate, though not a reckless one". She stepped out after waiting for a car to pass, but an extra car following hit her. She had been heading home from the Lyman residence. She died later that day of her sustained injuries. She was 74 years old. Foster is buried in Proprietors' cemetery. Wildflowers The Library has a collection of 75 Wildflower paintings. Sarah Haven Foster’s original “Catalogue of Water Color Copies of Wild Flowers Presented by Miss Sarah H. Foster to the Portsmouth Public Library 1900” included 81 paintings, but when the collection was gifted by her sister, Mary A. Foster, in 1901, it appears that the collection contained only 75 individual paintings. The images represent wild flowers that are native to North America, primarily in the Northeast Seacoast area. Foster likely painted them during the mid to late 1900’s. Preservation care included removing each painting from acidic mounts and rehousing in polypropylene sleeves. These images were scanned by volunteers Carolyn Gilberti, Cathryn Czajkowski, and Simmons intern Jillian Carkin. Quality control, research, and metadata created by Simmons GSLIS student intern, Jillian Carkin. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Portsmouth Public Library Scanned by volunteers Carolyn Gilberti, Cathryn Czajkowski, and Simmons intern Jillian Carkin Omeka team, Nicole Luongo Cloutier and Robyn Nielsen, created the collection, 2014. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource These images are intended for research and reference use only. The library holds copyright to the digital images of this collection. Please see the copyright information page (link at bottom of page) for information about obtaining permission for image use and reproduction. Relation A related resource The Library holds several other collections of Sarah Haven Foster watercolors -- European views, etc. These will also be scanned and added to the digital archive at a future time. Vertical Files in the Special Collections Room contain historical information about SH Foster and her other work. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Foster watercolor collection was gifted to the Portsmouth Library by Mary A. Foster, the artist's sister, 1901. Collection was scanned, 2012/2013. Quality control, research, and metadata created, 2013. Digital Archive Created, 2014. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Images used in the database are jpg files derived from archival .tif files. Type The nature or genre of the resource This collection contains botanical style watercolors. Plant types are included. Subject The topic of the resource Primarily North American Wildflowers. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library Watercolor Provenance Gift of Mary A. Foster, 1901 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Onesided wintergreen Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Foster, Sarah Haven (1827-1900) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Sarah Haven Foster Wildflowers Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Mid to late 19th century Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Jpg derived from Tif Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-AA1989.75.54 Subject The topic of the resource Wildflowers Watercolors (paintings) Description An account of the resource A watercolor painting of one-sided wintergreen, also known as one-sided pyrola. Inscription reads, "Pyrola Secunda. / Onesided Wintergreen." Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource View our <a href="http://portsmouthexhibits.org/copyright-information">Terms of Use and Copyright Information</a> Language A language of the resource eng 20th century Foster watercolor wildflower https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/c6b499d42a93bdc1a0ce1ff26322aeb5.jpg 57f1dca77457fc1ae9f9beed68fb5b5c Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Helen Pearson Portfolio Subject The topic of the resource Art portfolios Drawing Still-life in art Figure drawing Watercolor painting Illustration of books Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Pearson, Helen (1870-1949) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Helen Pearson Portfolio Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Late 19th century-early 20th century Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource View our <a href="http://portsmouthexhibits.org/copyright-information">Terms of Use and Copyright Information</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Jpg derived from Tif Language A language of the resource eng Italian Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-AA: 2020.3-61 Description An account of the resource The items in this collection are part of Helen Pearson's portfolio of work that she created around the time she attended Cowles School of Art in Boston. Portsmouth Herald newspaper articles place her there in 1890, though some of her pieces are dated in the surrounding years.<br /><br />Many of the original pieces included in the portfolio are unfinished drawings and sketches. Pearson primarily used charcoal and graphite pencil. She continued to work with graphite throughout her career, most notably in her drawings for <em>Vignettes of Portsmouth</em>. For some of the works in the portfolio, Pearson used live models, but many of her drawings are of busts or statues, likely drawn from casts or other references. Other works collected in the portfolio include prints of pieces by Maxfield Parrish, William Roffe, and Jacques Lubin, among others, as well as an original painting by Boston artist C.E. Heil.<br /><br />Helen Pearson was born on November 13, 1870 to parents Amos and Susan Pearson. Amos Pearson was a florist and music teacher originally from Ipswich, MA. Susan E. (Miller) Pearson was an artist and musician from Portsmouth. Helen Pearson attended the Cowles School of Art in Boston sometime around 1890. She also trained as a concert pianist, playing with the Schenectady Symphony Orchestra in New York. In 1913, Pearson’s drawings were featured in <em>Vignettes of Portsmouth, New Hampshire</em>, a book she collaborated on with Harold Hotchkiss Bennett. She died on July 19, 1949 at her home on Broad Street in Portsmouth.<br /><br />This collection was gifted to the Portsmouth Public Library by Richard Candee in January 2020. It is permanently housed in the Portsmouth Public Library Special Collections. The digital images are available here for research and public viewing.<br /><br />More of Helen Pearson's work can be seen in <a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/8">The Helen Pearson Drawings Collection</a>. Her <a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/7">collection of bookplates</a> is also viewable and includes her own bookplate which features an original drawing of a meteor over Portsmouth. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Scanning, metadata, and Omeka entry by K. Czajkowski and P. Vassiliev, December 2020 Miscellaneous Miscellaneous Put whatever you want in here. The digital images in this collection were captured using a HoverCam Flex 11. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples of still images are: paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type "text" to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Only A Little Brook Subject The topic of the resource Angels Mother and child Engraving Description An account of the resource A black and white print of "Only a Little Brook." Original drawing by Miss A.R. Sawyer, engraved by J.C. Buttre, published by E.C. Allen and Co., Augusta, Maine. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Pearson, Helen (1870-1949) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Helen Pearson Portfolio Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Drawn by Sawyer, A.R. Engraved by J.C. Buttre Published by E.C. Allen and Co. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource View our <a href="http://portsmouthexhibits.org/copyright-information">Terms of Use and Copyright Information</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Jpg derived from Tif Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource StillImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPL-AA:2020.36 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/305d3d3f32527bebd9aca23b3a5caa5c.jpg 6055e16ac2261070e927911761fff575 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/f511c870c94cecfb24169dbbda1c3679.jpg 0ab07c5cfd7bdebc31896d6c64d1801f https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/2fcd96b41773702ae725bc2c4bc30096.jpg ec250c9d022a7255002f32763a978aa9 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/a7fce3bb3ce7bd9cfd9472fa5f877a46.jpg 467e2439369cd3fbd56ec96f8abb7492 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Adams Collection Subject The topic of the resource Hand carved folk art wildlife, boats, birds, etc., created by Captain Adams, Captain of the Gundalow. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The Adams Collection. Property of the City of Portsmouth, Trustees of the Trust. Cared for by the Portsmouth Public Library. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource Collection inventoried and relocated by the City, and the Trustees of the Trust, to the Portsmouth Public Library, 2009 Collection re-inventoried, re-housed, and photographed by Jessica Ross, and Nicole Luongo Cloutier, 2015/2016 Digital Archive created Spring/Summer 2016 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Photographs and database creation, Jessica Ross. Omeka addition and metadata creation by Jessica Ross and Nicole Cloutier. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource These images are intended for research and reference use only. The library holds copyright to the digital images of this collection. Please see the copyright information page (link at bottom of page) for information about obtaining permission for image use and reproduction. Relation A related resource The physical Adams' Collection is located in the Portsmouth Public Library, cared for by the Special Collections staff. Vertical Files contain historic information about Adams, the Gundalow, and the collection of carvings. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource The files for these items are .jpg derived from .tif archival files. Images have been post-edited for cropping and lighting deficiencies only. Type The nature or genre of the resource Folk art wood artifacts. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant This collection is relevant to Portsmouth, Maritime history, Portsmouth people, and Gundalow history. Description An account of the resource This collection is an assemblage of work by Captain Edward H. Adams. They are photographic representations of The Adams Collection which includes about 175 of his original models and carvings. The Adams Collection was previously housed at the Sheafe Warehouse, and is now cared for by the Special Collections staff at Portsmouth Public Library, on behalf of the City of Portsmouth Trustees of the Trust. The Captain was born Edward Hamlin Adams to Joseph and Olive Adams on October 22, 1860. Influenced by his artist mother, he began carving as a child, and started modelling his first scale gundalow in 1882. He completed it in 1886 and spent decades hauling freight and navigating the Piscataqua earning himself the title of “Captain.” Adams was a skilled builder and artist who completed his last gundalow, the Driftwood, in 1950 with his son and business partner Edward Cass Adams. Adams passed away on April 9, 1951 at the age of 91. Between Adams’ earliest carvings and those completed by Cass after his death, more than ninety years of animal and fish carvings, ship models and other folk art are represented in this collections, each of which offer singularly unique interactions with the region’s environmental and maritime past. As comprehensive as this collection is, it is only a portion of Capt. Adams work. Additional pieces of the Captain’s legacy exist in other local institutions and include artifacts and holdings at the Portsmouth Athenaeum, the Portsmouth Historical Society, and the Durham Historic Association Museum. Further holdings also range from the Adams family papers located in the University of New Hampshire archives, to a stunning replica gundalow, inspired by and aptly named for the man himself and sailing today courtesy of the Portsmouth Gundalow Company. The artifacts themselves range from intricately built ship models, carved waterfowl and other regionally-specific animals to miscellaneous household items and tools. They vary widely in size and condition causing the preservation and longevity concerns of this collection to remain a chief priority and part of the emphasis in digitization. Preservation care has included painstaking inventories with special attention paid to both long-term housing requirements, (i.e. size/weight/physical condition) and to the organization of the pieces, (i.e. chronological, thematically etc.) for the purposes of consistent tracking and physical access. The artifacts have also been photographed in order to aid in the efficiency of visual access to the physical artifacts once they are individually wrapped, while minimizing the disturbance of surrounding pieces. The dual roles required to both maintain and preserve a physical collection alongside the creation of a digital one is a purposeful process and specific to the individual collection. In this case, the process for preserving and digitizing the Adams Collection is both driven and compounded by his beloved status in our regional history and the integrity of his contributions as a skilled gundalow captain, navigator and builder. The work of Capt. Adams remains relevant and sought after in any number of fields and venues, rendering diversity of access to his work necessary as well. All preservation and digitization research, quality control, rehousing and organization was completed by PPL Special Collections staff, Nicole Luongo Cloutier and Jessica Ross. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Edward H. Adams Miscellaneous Miscellaneous Put whatever you want in here. --title::The Adams Collection --text::This collection is an assemblage of work by Captain Edward H. Adams. They are photographic representations of The Adams Collection which includes about 175 of his original models and carvings. The... --images::1397,1529 Adams Collection City Inventory # This will be the record # found in the Goodman Report (database held at library) 370 Adams Collection # This is the original number found on each object Vault, 0002FA Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Open-Hold Gundalow, Large Subject The topic of the resource Folk art wood carving Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Edward H. Adams Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The Adams Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Relation A related resource City of Portsmouth, Trustees of the Trust Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPEG derived from TIFF Type The nature or genre of the resource Three dimensional wood artifact Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 35.25"L x 7.75"W Adams Collection boat Captain Adams Edward Adams gundalow Portsmouth wood https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/77a497d6d4bd4ef738583a9463f4e761.png b3137e36f2e4c28282b7df57701a6532 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/802808d7f52ad34e08046d25c987b1ce.mov 50f936337ec72fc2a533c90603e6c5b8 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/c16e7baead6ff85b0b42d480fba07c15.pdf 295c072e4566f58c2a7bb109a0408515 PDF Text Text Jay Spears Index 02:08 – Adolescence [02:08-07:08] 07:08 – Portsmouth, 1970s [07:08-12:46, 19:17-22:20] 05:08 – Theatre by the Sea [05:08-07:08, 10:57-12:50, 19:17-22:28, 26:54-30:51] 12:50 – Coming out [12:50-19:17, 30:51-34:06, 57:04-01:52:00 (end)] 15:03 – Internalized homophobia [15:03-16:19, 34:12-37:17] 17:32 – Personal ads [17:32, 22:28-26:08] 34:12 – Representation [34:12-37:17] 40:39 – Musical inspiration [40:39-46:11, 54:48-56:06] 46:12 – Portsmouth, today [46:12-48:20] 48:20 – Ogunquit, today [48:20-49:53] 49:53 – Current climate [49:53-58:26] � https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/5590b0f67f23db2a01295fcc031b53bf.pdf 04878dc80f97a710c5223b0ebdc83420 PDF Text Text Jay Spears – 8/11/2018 Seacoast NH LGBTQ Oral History Project 00:00:01 Holly Cashman Now it is. I always have to make sure that the counter is going because I once did an entire interview that did not record. 00:00:09 Jay Spears I hate when that happens. 00:00:10 Holly Cashman Yes, not good. So I wanted to start out kind of with just a general overview of what we mean by oral history in case that's not clear from the not so clear consent form that the unlike other interviews the purpose of oral history interviews is to become part of the public record, right, to be available for future researchers and the public to have access to. And the -- so that's kind of the purpose, makes it different, and also the content is just in-depth, personal reflection and experiences. And so the other thing I wanted to focus at the outset is that you can refuse to answer any question or you can stop the interview at any time. And that by participating in the interview, you're transferring the rights to the content to the, let me get the title right, Seacoast New Hampshire LGBT History Project. And our hope is to have it archived in some place, whether it's the Portsmouth Historical Society or the Portsmouth Athenaeum, where the exhibit's going to be a year from now for the 50th anniversary of Stonewall. 00:01:33 Jay Spears Oh, great. 00:01:34 Holly Cashman So we're also supposed to say the beginning of the oral history and making sure it's still going. We're recording this on Saturday, August 11, 2018 at the Portsmouth Library. Interviewer is Holly Cashman. And the interviewee, also known as the narrator, is Jay Spears. And just to start, so you sent me a link to your bio. And I've been watching your videos all week, and I'm obsessed with them. 00:02:03 Jay Spears Oh, great. 00:02:08 Holly Cashman And the first question, I guess, to get started would be LA native, and here we are, all the way across the country, brought you to Portsmouth, and when, time frame-wise, was that? 00:02:20 Jay Spears �OK. Yes, LA native, but with an asterisk. My dad was a career Air Force officer, excuse me, and stationed in England after the war. And my mom flew back here, well to LA, where her parents lived to have her to have my older brother John to have my twin sister and me And then when my younger brother Alan came along, she said, to hell with it. And he was born in England. And so, yes. And so, so I was born in LA, but moved immediately to England where my dad was stationed. And Then we lived all over as Air Force family, as you do, we lived all over. So we lived in Turkey for two and a half years in the capital of Ankara, and England, Ireland, and of course a bunch of places in the US. And I checked my mom's address book one time and there had been 19 addresses before I went into high school. We settled in a town in Central California, name of Santa Maria, about halfway between LA and San Francisco on the central coast. And that's where I went to high school, Catholic high school there. They settled there because It was, they wanted to be near Air Force Base, Vandenberg Air Force Base is there, and when you're a retired military, you get to use the commissary privileges and all that kind of stuff. And they wanted to be near a Catholic high school, because we were all at that age going into high school. And mom always, wherever we were stationed, mom would get us into the local Catholic school, if there was one. And If not, then we would go to the Air Force Base school where my dad was stationed. Because in California, they needed a near Air Force Base with a Catholic high school, plus California because it was a community property state and mom could see the writing on the wall. 00:04:37 Holly Cashman Ah, okay. 00:04:38 Jay Spears And so, Smart woman. So that's where we settled. And so I was able to go through all four years of high school at the same place. And that was the first time that we ever lived for more than a couple of, well, the longest we had ever lived prior to that anywhere was Turkey for two and a half years. Some of the places we lived were just like a few months before we got transferred again. So I had the roaming life of an Air Force brat, which was great and we loved it and everyone said, oh, why didn't you? No, no. It was great and we really liked it because we were five kids and so we always had each other and it teaches you to make friends quickly because you knew you were going to be gone and the people you were meeting were going to be gone before you. And so we really liked that. And it was kind of interesting for me when I went into high school and there was meeting guys who had gone through kindergarten and all eight grades together, and now they're going to go through high school together. I said, what do you talk about anymore? 00:05:38 Holly Cashman What is this? 00:05:40 Jay Spears So that was my roaming life as an Air Force brat. And so it so happened that the local community college in Santa Maria had a nationally recognized theater conservatory called Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts. And so, I went there, got their -- It was a twoyear on the campus of a community college -- so I got their AA degree. Then I finished my theater degree in the California State University system. And it was shortly thereafter that one �of my classmates from PCPA, Scott Weintraub, had been, whereas I had gone to get my degree after finishing PCPA, he had moved to New York and had started working there. He had been hired here at Theatre by the Sea. And Jon Kimbell, the director of the theater, had shared with him what their upcoming season was. And he said, oh, I know a bunch of great people who could do that. And so, long story short -- too late! -- we got hired by Scott to come out here to do plays at Theatre by the Sea. So that's how I ended up in Portsmouth. 00:06:55 Holly Cashman And around what year was that? 00:06:58 Jay Spears Mid-70s. 1970s. 00:07:03 Holly Cashman Right, since it's long term. So when I read on the theater website about this reunion show that you're in town for, referring to the '70s and '80s as the Portsmouth theater of golden years or the theater renaissance. What was it like to be in Portsmouth? Like, when you first arrived, what was your impression? What was...? 00:07:35 Jay Spears We were totally, totally charmed. Being, although I have lived all over, I definitely kind of felt like a California person. And California is beautiful, but in a completely different way from here. For instance, there's no such thing as seasons really. It does kind of rain more in winter, but for, And just by chance, when I say we had been stationed in so many places around the country, it seemed to always be in the south. So I had never really lived in the north and in the northeast. And I was just completely unprepared for it. I mean, because everyone was telling me, oh, wait till you see the foliage. Okay, the leaves are going to like turn and fall off the trees, right? Is that what happens? Yeah, because for us, all those seasons would be the decorations that they would have at the mall. That's how you'd know what the seasons are. 00:08:29 Holly Cashman And I lived for a while in Arizona. 00:08:31 Jay Spears Oh, exactly. 00:08:32 Holly Cashman So I totally get that. 00:08:33 Jay Spears �Exactly. And so when I did come out here in, I guess it was the fall. Don't ask me what year. I'm not good with numbers. But in the mid-70s or something like that. And it was stunning. I mean, it was life-changing to see how that happened. I remember that I actually collected a bunch of big red, yellow, orange, maple leaves, put them in a padded envelope and mailed them to the theater department at Fresno State where I got my degree just to show them. And it turns out that they used them in a production of Charlie Brown. You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. At the end of which or something he's kind of lying depressed on the stage or something and they had this effect where they had these little electronic solenoids that would release them. So they used the leaves in the set and then they would fire and release them and they would come falling down. And they told me that in one performance it came and just landed right on his chest. So yeah, and so that was great. Plus having rivers and rain and the thunderstorms and stuff like that. And I thought we used to have thunderstorms in California and we just don't anymore. I don't know if that's a climate change thing or cyclical or what, but the idea of having just water running along the ground unsupervised. 00:10:13 Holly Cashman Unclaimed by ten different people fighting over it. 00:10:16 Jay Spears Yes, and no cement borders around it and under it. And water just falling out of the sky, I just don't get that. And so that's what we do. So these days we do. And we were in a long drought recently. And so I was glad we had a thunderstorm the other night, and I sat on their front porch and the screen porch of Mike Huxtable and his wife, who were putting us up, who put me and Luis up. One of the board members of the theater, I guess he is. And you really enjoyed that, so that's good. 00:10:53 Holly Cashman That's great. It's a good [to look forward to something in] New England. 00:10:55 Jay Spears Yes, exactly. And so that's how I came here, because one of my classmates got a job and hired us to come over. And I think the first thing was 1776. They needed a lot of men to play all those roles of the patriots and the founding fathers and whatnot in 1776. And so we came here and we did 1776 and Starshine, which was a Civil War musical, original Civil War musical. And several shows. This is when Theatre by the Sea was in Ceres Street, right by the tugboats. And to get here, a colleague, one of my fellow actors, I guess it was Jeff McCarthy and me, and he's worked extensively in Broadway and stuff like that since then. We did a drive-away car deal where you deliver someone's car who's moved from one coast to the other, you drive their car across. And so we drove out here and in the middle of the night we arrived and groggily went up the stairs from Market Street, we went up the stairs into the theater. And when we got up there, we crossed the room to the big window overlooking the Piscataqua and looked down and saw those tugboats there. And it's a memory that's been with me ever since. Those bright red tugboats moored by the side of Ceres Street. 00:12:27 Holly Cashman �It's such a postcard view. 00:12:28 Jay Spears Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So that's how I got here, doing plays with colleagues. And for all you young whippersnappers out there, the friends you make in college will take you places, bind them to you with chains of steel, and you'll be happy you did. 00:12:46 Holly Cashman That's great advice. So when you came here in 70-something [1975], maybe right around the bicentennial, I'm guessing, if 1776 was the play you were in. What kind of, where were you in your personal journey of coming out? Were you out? Were you to your self? 00:13:09 Jay Spears Gotcha. Not out at all. Oh no, Am I misremembering that? I was probably out to some friends. I was very sure that I was not out to my family, certainly not to my parents. My family dynamic was one of a little bit of, What do they call that? Dysfunctional, I think is what they call it. My dad was pretty much a pack of, six pack of Bud per day plus two packs of Camel unfiltered. He was a hard-bitten World War II war hero and a three-war vet. So he was in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam and was largely estranged from us and I never felt much of emotional connection to him, and rather, I was very close to my mom. So, but I was not out to them. And I guess I was kind of out to like Scott and those other people that they knew. It's just kind of hard for me to remember exactly who I was out to when, but generally, certainly not out in public the way I am now. And so, yeah, so I was, I would consider myself as not being out. And so when I came here, and also in theater, theater in general, when I first came out of high school, Catholic high school, in a small agricultural community, in an Air Force community. 00:14:57 Holly Cashman All of that says super open 00:14:58 Jay Spears all of that. And so I, in one of the first plays I did was, I had a bit part in a play called The Hostage by Brendan Behan, an Irish play about the Irish Troubles. And in it, and I'm not exactly sure why, there were two transvestite gay characters. One of them named Rio Rita, and another one. And this is one of my first kind of exposures to the world of homosexuality with these characters. And it really kind of threw me and kind of actually set me back because of my own internalized homophobia or something, but it was like I was looking at at those Characters every day and they were played by guys who I perceived to be gay in real life. And so they played, and I just couldn't, is that what being gay is? Because I knew that I was gay, and I said, well, I just don't. It didn't seem to comport with anything I felt about what I was feeling. And so that kind of confused me also. And so, yeah, so when I was here in Portsmouth, I was not out at all. So if, and so I lived, we lived in that building right by the Unitarian Church, the big Unitarian Church right there that burned down recently next door to it. All those things burned down. And so our apartment, it was gutted. We lived on the top �floor of that. 00:16:38 Holly Cashman So no walking by your old place? Oh that's so sad. 00:16:40 Jay Spears Yes. Yeah. So the building still stands. I think they're going to fix that one, because the two next to it on the corner are gone. And so, but the fire spread from the restaurant into that building. And so, our apartment where I lived with Scott and Jeff McCarthy, Pekka Thomas and some other, I think there were four of us in there. Yeah, there were four of me, Jeff McCarthy, Scott, and Paca Thomas, who is a successful producer in Los Angeles now, and he works with Bernie Taupin and is doing an American song project with Bernie Taupin, who's Elton John's lyricist. So we all lived there on the top floor of what probably Scott came up with as Tony's Hideaway Kingdom. So that was our apartment on a block off of the square. And so for me it was tough because I was in love with Jeff McCarthy, in love with Scott. Paca, I liked you, you're fine with it. And so, but that's the life of a closeted guy. You fall in love with straight, your straight pals and have to deal with that. And so, that was good and fun and stressful and unhealthy and all of that rolled into one. It was my experience of living in Portsmouth at the time as a basically closeted gay man. And if I ever wanted to explore any actual sexuality or anything, it would be through personal ads and stuff like that, usually involving a trip to Boston or something like that on a day off. And so that was the way I was able to, That was the extent of the way I was able to express myself as far as my sexuality. 00:18:36 Holly Cashman So there weren't any bars or places that people would meet up in Portsmouth that you went to at the time? 00:18:45 Jay Spears No. I didn't know of any. If there were, I didn't know any of them. And if I had known of them, I probably would not have gone. It wasn't until later, until I was in LA, that I remember going to my first gay bar. I don't drink anyway, so it's like I don't drink and so it's like I have nothing to do if I go there. And so it was kind of... So, yeah, so I... Yeah, so the short answer to that is no, I didn't. There was no scene here that I was aware of. 00:19:17 Holly Cashman And the kind of mid-70s time that you came, how long did you stay in Portsmouth? 00:19:28 Jay Spears I stayed that first year, I stayed through the winter. And it was great, because as I said, I got to have the foliage and then the leaves all went off the trees and it started to get cold and suddenly Halloween made so much more sense because that's how the world feels like it's getting scary and then Thanksgiving and of course Halloween in New England is like, you know, you got the whole headless horseman thing. It's all just, you got Salem, witches and everything else. It was great. And then Thanksgiving And then you have the holiday season �and you have the first snow and you have Christmas and everything and it's just all great. And I was in a Christmas show with, at Theatre by the Sea, that Jon Kimbell wrote an adaptation of Christmas Carol and it was just great. And the first snow and everything like that, I remember one time that we, and they put us up in Strawbery Banke, where I was living in a house on Manning Street, a big old salt bank, salt box house there. And I remember walking from there, going downtown one evening with some friends and we were crossing an open area, a lot or a parking lot or something. And I heard this noise and I couldn't tell where it was coming from and it was this kind of hissing, hissing noise and really quiet and soft but getting louder. And it was already a little after dark and we were in this parking lot that had these street lights above here like this. And so it was then that I looked, and the snow emerged from the darkness above the street lights. And it was the first time I had the experience of a snowfall starting, and that you can hear it. And so that was all just great. Because of course from California we have none of that. 00:21:23 Holly Cashman I'm imagining the Strawbery Banke in the 70s is very different from the very tourist, very polished Strawbery Banke today. 00:21:32 Jay Spears It was just an open neighborhood with all those houses that had been saved from elsewhere piled up there. Yes, and so. However, then there was all of January, all of February, all of March, and half of April of huge goddamn production just to go out to get a goddamn loaf of bread. So, yeah, so that was my one winter in New Hampshire. And then I got lucky because I would work here during the summer and the fall and through Christmas, which of course is great. And then I went back to California and worked through the winter there. And so there are several years that I was able to have the best of both worlds. 00:22:20 Holly Cashman Right. That makes a lot of sense. Winter here and summer there. Yes. So You mentioned about the personal ads and going to Boston. What was that like? What was that? 00:22:40 Jay Spears It was largely unsatisfactory, entirely unsuccessful from a technical point of view. And it was just me desperately trying to do something in my long and tortured trip from being a gay Catholic altar boy Air Force brat to the flaming international homopop sensation that I view myself as today. Yeah, so just entirely, entirely stupid. I don't think I ever got laid or anything on when I went into Boston for a personal ad. I'm sure I never got laid. I don't know if I ever even ended up meeting a guy or anything like that. So yeah, nothing. Zero. Zilch. Zilch, zero. 00:23:38 Holly Cashman I think it's hard for people who are coming of age today to imagine a world before the internet, before social media, before any of those kinds of connections? 00:23:56 Jay Spears �Yeah, when we were... 00:23:57 Holly Cashman A whole different, like how were you... 00:24:00 Jay Spears Of course. Yeah, we, for us, a personal ad was you would write a letter to the PO box on the ad. And then the person who took out the ad, and when I moved back to LA, I did that myself, took out ads, then every few days you could go into the alternative newspaper that had published these ads and get your mail. And then you would read the ones that you wanted. And I thought the hottest ones were the ones where the guy had written in block letters on legal paper. That always just got me. And so you would read your mail and the ones that you thought, and I don't think usually they would send a picture of themselves. And then you would have to write a goddamn letter back to them, because usually they don't think they put their phone numbers in there, because this was before the age of cell phones anyway. So it was very slow analog communication. And so you would essentially do it by mail. And so, and then if you could set up a date, you would set up a date and then meet someone. 00:25:11 Holly Cashman And there were like alternative, Not necessarily specifically gay community publications, but just like alternative papers. 00:25:24 Jay Spears In Los Angeles, the LA Weekly and the LA Reader, of which I think only the Weekly survives. So they would have been somewhat similar. And it definitely was not a gay paper. But they would have a section in the back for personal ads, which even then did categorize or did subcategorize themselves into male seeking male, male seeking female, blah, blah, blah. 00:25:53 Holly Cashman So there was actual category that you had and not having to be like code words or any kind of. 00:26:00 Jay Spears Yes, I do believe so. 00:26:01 Holly Cashman And you could get the alternative newspapers here in Portsmouth. 00:26:06 Jay Spears Yeah, in any street corner or wherever they have them. 00:26:13 Holly Cashman �So because I'm kind of on the cusp, I didn't get email until I was in college, but I am still a sucker for any kind of like, because of having lived through times like that, any kind of pandering of advertisers. Last night My partner and I were looking for, we're both into craft beer. We're looking for craft beer and this brewery in Portland, Maine has a beer that's called Girl Meets Girl. I don't even care what kind it was. They also had Boy Meets Boy and Boy Meets Girl. But I'm like, that's 00:26:49 Jay Spears It did, for heaven's sake. 00:26:51 Holly Cashman So take my money. So until coming back for the reunion show, did you go back and forth for a while? 00:27:03 Jay Spears Yes, so I would say I worked here on and off for maybe 10 years because I finally settled in LA in the early or mid 80s. So I was here for seven or so years and then landed in LA. 00:27:24 Holly Cashman And you've kept in touch with people from the theater over the years? 00:27:30 Jay Spears Definitely. From our theater pals, even in my neighborhood in Los Angeles, one of my best pals from college lives a few blocks away. Another one is visiting here now, two of them actually are visiting here now because they know Scott and me to see the show. And she lives four or five blocks from me, so so I have these some of these theater people that live within a few blocks me in LA. When I moved to LA, I moved in with some people from Santa Maria. Yeah, including people from the theater. So, I moved in with them. So that was kind of a huge reason why we, one of the huge reasons why we're still kind of together is that when I did finally move to LA it was with people from, with friends from school. So, so we, and yeah, so I've lived in the same neighborhood in LA for 30 plus years and in my apartment, I've lived for 26 or 7 years in the same apartment. Finally, I have roots put down. So, yeah, so that's how that worked out. And so, we're still very much in our day-to-day lives. And Scott lives a few miles away in LA. And so, Scott got married here. And in fact, when we came out here to do one of Scott's productions on the Viking Queen cruise ship that's anchored by the salt piles down there and it goes out the Piscataqua to the Isles of Shoals and does whale watching and whatnot and then comes back. So, Scott had the idea that we would be on board to do a play on board. And so, we actually mounted this musical review called The Bon Voyage on the boat. It turned out that the engines were much too loud for us to be heard at all. And we ended up, the band would just play during the trip and then we convinced the captain to let us have the boat at night when it was parked there. And So we turned it into sort of a nightclub and we did our play at 10 o'clock over by the salt piles and people would come and park there and come and see the play on the boat. But in the band, the bass player met his wife here, Ginny Russell, who was at the show last night, the woman that sang I Remember It �Well, the guest that came up and sang with Scott. So he married her and Scott got Nancy. Another pal of mine got Jane Anson. Jill Anson was there. They're from Dover. And so it's like these Californios came over here and plundered New Hampshire for all their women and dragged them off to California. I wasn't so lucky. And so I'm in touch with all these people still today. 00:30:51 Holly Cashman So since you weren't out when you were here, and you've kept in touch with all those people, how did the kind of00:30:58 Jay Spears Oh, it was always the same thing. Every time it was the same thing, I would finally say, well, you know, I'm, well, you know, I'm, I'm gay. And they would go, we were wondering when you were going to tell us. They totally know. They know. Everyone knows. Don't be afraid. Don't be afraid. And when the last, the one thing I'll say about coming out, it feels like you're up against this huge barrier to your freedom and to your expression and to your life and to your happiness. This whole big barrier. And then it finally comes and it falls. And you realize it was a piece of cardboard. It was a piece of fucking cardboard. That's all it was in front of you and you thought it was an impenetrable barrier. So if I don't have many regrets in life and I'm a pretty happy person, but it, but you know, I should have been out sooner. You can't be out soon enough. You can't be out soon enough. Well, everyone has privacy. You need to have privacy. It's important to human dignity is privacy. You have a private life and that's why prison is so horrible. You have no privacy, right? So you have to have a private life. Secrecy is not the same thing as privacy. Privacy and secrecy are two different things. The tape just went off. 00:32:21 Holly Cashman Oh no. Oh, it says it's still going. This is why I've been obsessively looking at it. 00:32:28 Jay Spears Hello, are you going? I do not want to have it happen again. 00:32:32 Jay Spears The red light went off and now it's blinking again. 00:32:34 Holly Cashman Oh, I think the red light is a sound. 00:32:37 Jay Spears Hello? 00:32:37 Holly Cashman �The sound, yeah. 00:32:39 Jay Spears Hola. Okay. What was I saying so pithily and importantly? Yeah, yeah. Is it secrecy? Yes. You have to have a private life. You don't want to have any secrets. Harboring a deep dark secret is just is bad for you and for everyone else Especially if you look at your sexuality as being a deep dark evil secret. How could that possibly possibly be healthy? I think that I'm too late with my message now because I think that the young gay people that I meet now know that and are saying, of course, old man, what are you talking about? But that was definitely the way it was in my time. And there are still closeted guys out there, I suppose. But my boyfriend Luis is not out to his parents. And he's justifiably afraid. And the fear is real, but the problem isn't. So it's a cliche that when you're out to people, the people who matter aren't going to care about it, and the people who care about it then actually don't matter. So yeah, so that's, you know, I don't really have regrets as I say, but I, yeah, I do. I wish I was out sooner and got laid more. OK, so that's my regrets. 00:34:06 Holly Cashman That sounds like it would make a good t-shirt: "Come out earlier and get laid more". 00:34:10 Jay Spears ...get laid more, yes. 00:34:12 Holly Cashman So back in the '70s, early '80s, do you remember from Portsmouth people who were out? Like, did you remember knowing of people who were? 00:34:23 Jay Spears Yes. Jon Kimbell, the director of the theater. Michael Spellman, the prop master that I met. And so we worked closely. They were gay, but I didn't socialize with them. I was hanging out with Scotty and Jeff and all of my college pals. 00:34:40 Holly Cashman So it wasn't like there was no one who was out, but because maybe of that first experience of like these gay actors playing straight characters, it was kind of... 00:34:53 Jay Spears Yes. And of course, those would be extreme examples of gay people that dress up and wear dresses and put outlandish makeup on and stuff like that, which is one whole kind of end of the spectrum. But my homophobia and intolerance for that extended much farther along to the normal spectrum. And so I didn't see myself as being like Jon Kimbell. I didn't see myself as being like Michael Spellman, those gay guys. And so it's painful and embarrassing to say, but that's how I felt. �00:35:32 Holly Cashman Well, because there is such limited representation, and if you don't identify with it, then you're like, well. 00:35:40 Jay Spears Yeah, am I like that? No. Because if you're a straight person, you can mock and dislike any person in the straight spectrum and say, I'm not like that, I'm something else. But yeah, for not having a, I mean, there wasn't even any Will and Grace or any of the other. And everyone will say, you've heard this ad nauseum, that whenever there was a gay character on TV or movies they always ended up dead or worse and so it was kind of like 00:36:12 Holly Cashman I remember my first character that I was obsessed with was Monroe on Too Close for Comfort. And he was like Jack in Will & Grace, you know 00:36:22 Jay Spears Right 00:36:23 Holly Cashman over the top. Everyone was laughing at him. 00:36:26 Jay Spears Yes. 00:36:27 Holly Cashman Not with him. 00:36:28 Jay Spears Do you remember Billy Crystal in Soap? 00:36:31 Holly Cashman Yes. Oh, that's true. I might have been too young to become really focused on that because I might not have kind of identified in the way that I already was with Monroe. But yes, I'd forgotten about that. 00:36:47 Jay Spears But even so, and being a theater person, you just don't get to watch much TV because you're always busy. And so I didn't really follow that show very much. But I was just aware that that was a gay character. And to his credit, I think he did - He wasn't as a cliche. I think that for the writers of that show, they did a good job of presenting him as a person. But I don't �remember really what, that's a good Wikipedia question. 00:37:14 Holly Cashman Yeah, I should go back and watch that, see if it's on Netflix. 00:37:17 Jay Spears Yeah, yeah. So that was the only kind of thing. And all the rest of it was very covertly finding materials to read about or porn or something like that. 00:37:35 Holly Cashman And and not on the Internet yet. 00:37:37 Jay Spears No, you had to do analog porn. And but so when I was really little, I mean, my self discovery of being gay was I would look find myself and in libraries, like this beautiful one here, getting medical books and seeing pictures of naked men in them and not knowing why. Not knowing why because I wasn't sexually aware, but I was attracted to this image, but I couldn't tell why. And my dad being Air Force, at the end of his career, he was a commander of A&E squadron, which is armaments and electronics maintenance. And so he would bring home fascinating things that I'm sure would get him arrested now. But he would bring home bullets and air-to-air rocket shells and things. He brought home a bottle of mercury one time. And we played with it. And we put it, because you put mercury in your hand, it's so cool. And I'm sure we were, this is, oh. 00:38:46 Holly Cashman Child endangerment! 00:38:47 Jay Spears Yeah. And one day, and the thing about that is that when you're you have five kids and your dad brings them something everyone gets to share it, but it usually ends up as being the sort of owned by one kid or the other. So one day he brings home this airman's first aid manual that's shaped like this to go in the pocket of their flight suit. And in it, it had two line drawings of naked guys. One of them was to show pressure points for bleeding. So to press this artery here and in your groin. 00:39:28 Holly Cashman So someone didn't bleed out? 00:39:28 Jay Spears Yes. And the other one was a diagram of a guy standing there in briefs with lines labeled hair, pointing to his various hairy parts, for where you should wash extra carefully when you're exposed to a nuclear explosion and fallout, to wash the fallout out of your hair. Like, yeah, �before you die horribly of radiation poisoning. And so I made sure I got that sucker because the guy in the briefs and the guy with the pressure points was standing there wearing a jockstrap. And again, this was before I was sexual, before I knew anything about masturbation or orgasm or anything. And I had this book and I was just in love with this and I didn't know why. But that was the only sort of secret kind of way to express or to manifest the experiences that I was feeling when I was becoming a man, becoming an adolescent I guess it was. 00:40:38 Holly Cashman So going from there and then to coming out to becoming the kind of out musician that you are now What was that decision like because I see for example in your your video for I Like Mike which is my favorite because it is exactly that kind of representation that you never see of like athletic gay men. I remember when I was doing a different research project and I was telling someone I had to get up at 6 a.m. to go record a gay softball practice. And then people were like, so how are the lesbians this morning? And I was like, no, I told you it was gay softball. They were like, gay men playing softball? Like they couldn't wrap their head around it. 00:41:27 Jay Spears And I'll have you know that all of the ball players in that were from my gay softball team. So all of them were gay. When I moved to LA, obviously that was gonna be a new chapter in the whole life. And so I got on the softball team and met all kinds of different, instead of the one stereotype, all kinds of different representations of what a gay person or gay life would be like. And of course, that's what people do. They move to the big city. They don't, they're not in Portsmouth. They're not in Santa Maria. They moved to New York. They moved to San Francisco, they moved to LA, and that's for that. And so, that's the short answer. So, when I moved there, I found any number of different kinds of examples of what it was like to be gay. And so I was in the gay softball league, went to the, one of my first experiences, or one of my longest lasting gay bar affiliations was because I didn't drink. There's Oil Can Harry's, which is a two-stepping, cowpoke, country-western place, which was great because you had something to do when you went there. And so you would learn these different kinds of dances, line dances or partner dances, which was great. And so I loved that. So I went there a couple of times a week. Didn't drink anything, but I met a few boyfriends there, stuff like that, over the course. So yeah, moving to the big city is the deal. And so when I had a bad breakup and wrote the song, the first song I wrote was about that. And the song is called, My Ray. And it's the opening song on my first album. And for me, you have to have some sort of emotional freaking disaster in order to get your artistic juices flowing or whatever. And so that's what was the catalyst for that. Because I'd been a musician all along, but I had never really written much in the way of my own songs. In college, I made money playing guitar, banjo, or mandolin in the orchestras for the musicals that the theater department would put on. And so practically all... 00:43:55 Holly Cashman You were in the orchestra, not in the, not acting? 00:43:59 Jay Spears �I was in both, but to make money, I would do that. And part of my schooling, I would be on stage. And to get my theater degree, I'd have to be on stage. But practically every American musical has like Hello, Dolly and Mame and all that have banjo parts. And Shenandoah and what is it? Old Man River, Show Boat. Those are all that kind of Civil War era stuff has banjo in it. And then there's guitar things like Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell and Man of La Mancha. There's all guitar in that. And then there's Mandolin like Fiddler on the Roof and all that. So all of those had, so many of them have guitar parts in the score and I would make money doing that. So my musical style is greatly influenced by that. So my songwriting isn't very rock and roll-y, although I do like to do that. I always make sure I hire some kick-ass guitarists when I do stuff, but it's mostly informed by that. And my songs usually have characters in them, sometimes even dialogue and stuff like that. And so it came out of that bad breakup I wrote, My Ray, You Will Love Again, which we're doing in the show. Were you there last night? No. 00:45:14 Holly Cashman No, I've heard details about it from Tom. 00:45:18 Jay Spears So about how, yeah, your heart's broken now, but don't worry, you will love again. And so that's how that started. And I had no intention of making an album and putting it out to the public for God's sake, but but that's that's how it happened. And then I Like Mike is about a guy from the softball league who I fell in love with, who was already involved with his longtime boyfriend. I don't think they've been, I don't think they got married, but yeah I fell in love with him And that was a huge step for me, because he was the first gay, completely unavailable man that I fell for. So that was progress. 00:46:02 Holly Cashman Following the same pattern, but a twist. 00:46:06 Jay Spears Yeah, yeah. And I got a great song out of it. So that's good. So yeah, so that's how that happened. 00:46:11 Holly Cashman So coming back to Portsmouth, What has that been like? 00:46:16 Jay Spears Oh, it's been great. Two years ago, Scott and Nancy came back here to renew their vows, because they got married in Prescott Park. And at the time, he invited me and Randa to come, because they were going to, they were going to, he put together a show for one night in Theater West where Stephanie Voss' theater is now. And so we did a one-night show there. And so then, but that event was their vows, and we knew their vows, and so we came in to the celebration of them and stuff. We went to Prescott Park, and it was great. So a bunch of us came here for that. And so apparently, he got the idea that, well, why don't we just go there �just to do a show? And so he put this together, a friend. And they contacted Pontine. Stephanie Voss at Pontine, another Santa Maria, PCPA person, friend of ours from all those years back. So she's part of the whole web. And when Scott, when we weren't working in Theatre by the Sea, Scott and Nancy had their own production company called We Sing, We Dance, Etc. And they're the ones that put on with us the cruise Viking Queen thing. We had a singing waiters gig over in Kittery. There was a crab house or something like that, The Fish Company it was called. So we did singing waiters there. We did Ogunquit Square Theatre play. We did a Christmas show, not at The Music Hall, but there's some other huge auditorium in Portsmouth that we could not fill. We did a Christmas show one year there. And so he did a whole bunch of different projects around town. 00:48:13 Holly Cashman Was the Ogunquit Playhouse around back then? 00:48:15 Jay Spears Yes, it was. Yeah, And that was the Equity Playhouse, and we weren't in that. 00:48:20 Holly Cashman Oh, OK. And in those days, was Ogunquit known for being the gay destination that it is now? Did it have that connotation or no? 00:48:32 Jay Spears It is? 00:48:32 Holly Cashman It does. 00:48:33 Jay Spears Oh. No. 00:48:35 Holly Cashman Go check it out. 00:48:37 Jay Spears Oh, news to me. 00:48:38 Holly Cashman It does. Yeah. It does have that. 00:48:39 Jay Spears �Really? I'll be darned. 00:48:40 Holly Cashman I mean, lots of other folks go there as well, but 00:48:42 Jay Spears Yeah. Yeah. Yes. The Ogunquit Square Theatre, I think it was, is just this little small theater right in like downtown Ogunquit. 00:48:54 Holly Cashman Yeah, yeah. I think, I mean, there's a movie theater there now that might be in that same space, I wonder, like a white kind of clapboard New England-y looking building. And then right on one of the streets that goes right into that crisscross area, there's a huge gay bar now called Maine Street. Maine with an E at the end of it, because they're cute. 00:49:17 Jay Spears I see what you did there. 00:49:20 Holly Cashman Exactly. With tea dances and the you know I think once a month lesbians get to go there. But it's definitely a more laid-back kind of open scene than anything down in Boston, for sure. 00:49:36 Jay Spears Oh, gotcha. 00:49:37 Holly Cashman One of my friends who was visiting from Phoenix said, I actually love this bar because it looks nice, but I don't have to suck my gut in. 00:49:50 Jay Spears I can relate. 00:49:53 Holly Cashman So any other thoughts you want to share about kind of the coming up on the 50th anniversary of Stonewall, about any kind of the major events and milestones that have happened, marriage equality, all those kinds of things, the current political climate. 00:50:14 Jay Spears Yeah. Well, it's definitely, in spite of the ridiculous current situation that we're in now, it is certainly a testament to progress the way the gay life in America and in the world in general �has made progress since I was in Portsmouth in the '70s. Yeah, I mean gay marriage, really? Come on, like that could ever happen? And yeah, I mean, it's pretty incredible. And my main anger, as far as it goes, is the way that our community has been used as a tool to frighten the ignorant, you know? And it's like, that's what the conservatives do. They haul up a boogeyman, frighten their ignorant base with them, promise them that they will save them from you. Vote for us, we'll save you from the homos that are going to come and take your kids. Vote for us. 00:51:29 Holly Cashman These bathrooms, right? If we let them in their neutral bathrooms. 00:51:32 Jay Spears Yes. Vote for us, we'll save you from all these women that are going to have an abortion. 00:51:36 Holly Cashman Vote for us, We'll save you 00:51:36 Jay Spears from all these women that are going to have an abortion. Vote for us. We'll save you from all these Mexicans that are going to take your job. The terrorists are coming. Vote for us and we'll protect you from them. And they fall for it every time. Every time. Time and time again. And so that's the main thing that pisses me off about our political climate now is that they successfully, cynically successfully used us as a, to literally demonize us in order to get votes from their base. And so, now that more than half the country at least says, you know. It's the same thing about Black people and Mexicans and everything. It's like they're gonna come and get you, Vote for us and we'll save you. And for the people that say, well, the courts need to wait till the public opinion kind of goes that way. And then the courts, when in the '60s, they had the Loving vs. Virginia. Warren Burger, Earl Warren, not Warren Burger, Earl Warren, the Chief Justice, went to all of the justices on the Supreme Court to make sure that they had a consensus. And he, when they outlawed or when they voided all of those anti-mixed-race marriage laws in their unanimous decision, shortly thereafter a poll was taken and 80something percent of people thought that Black people shouldn't marry white people. 80 something! Which means that a lot of black people thought that too, in order to get that kind of percentage. And so the courts have to be ahead of the people on these kinds of issues, because that's obvious that the courts, that the Legislature puts in action to the law the will of the majority, that's how they got voted in, and the judiciary protects the rights of the minorities. That's what they're there for. It seems to me that that is not going to be the case these days with the politicized Supreme Court. And they're gonna just be using it as an issue. And luckily, thank God for fucking Justice Kennedy. He's a conservative, but he's the one that was the swing vote in all these cases. And we'll see now what's going to happen if they're going to get another conservative justice to screw the court for the next 50 years. That's the thing that worries me. I don't think that there's going to be a reversal. Usually when rights are won, they're never taken away. So I don't think that that's going to be a problem. But then again, I didn't think there was going to be Trump either. So yeah. 00:54:45 Holly Cashman �You can always be surprised. 00:54:46 Jay Spears Yeah. So. 00:54:47 Holly Cashman It is in your song about, I can't remember the exact title now, but about Smashing the Christians Down 00:54:55 Jay Spears Smack, Smack Them Christians Down. 00:54:57 Holly Cashman But I love how it shows kind of historically how piece by piece by piece what has been kind of the attempt to Christianize or biblicize the country has been reversed. So I'm taking that as a sign of hope. 00:55:18 Jay Spears For future generations in the year 3077 who are watching this video, you can probably still find my demented music videos on what we today call YouTube. I don't know what you would call it. And you can see, and that song was written, remember I said I needed an emotional upheaval? Direct response to the Defense of Marriage Act. That's why I wrote that song. And the third verse of, about, the third verse is about, specifically about that. So yeah, so that was written specifically to Bill Clinton signing the Defense of Marriage Act. I know it's embarrassing, but yeah, they put that into law. I'm sorry, I apologize for America. 00:56:06 Holly Cashman And then now, I mean, the Don't Ask, Don't Tell, kind of under threat of coming back into some kind of... One thing that I was stunned by when I was doing my ethnography in Phoenix, Arizona actually, among LGBTQ Latinos there was how many people left their family, got out of their community to come out by joining the military. And this was back in the '90s. You know? And They're like, yeah, Don't Ask, Don't Tell was not as scary as my Mexican dad. 00:56:50 Jay Spears Yeah. Yeah. 00:56:51 Holly Cashman So we got out. 00:56:52 Jay Spears �Yeah. Sad, but true. 00:56:55 Holly Cashman And just kind of an example of how things really change and shift depending on your position or your location. 00:57:04 Jay Spears Yeah. And that's what gay people have historically had to do. Get out. Establish your identity yourself, especially as an adult. I'm going through the same thing with Luis, with my boyfriend. He's not out to his parents, but he was living at home with them. You can't really come, for some people, you can't really come out in those circumstances because, "as long as you're under my roof", and that whole thing, and you're depending on them for everything. And then kids get kicked into the street and they become homeless. So you got to move up, move out, become a person, get a job, establish a career, establish yourself as an adult. Then you're not just their kid living, their kid living in their basement, and then you can relate to them one-on-one and tell them, this is me, this is who I am. I'm an adult now, I do this for a living. I'm not dependent on you for that. And parents want you to do that. They want you to be a good parent. You want your kids to turn into adults, obviously successful adults. So you turn into successful adults and then you can tell them if they're worried if this is the kind of thing that they would be freaked by. It's much better to have it coming from an established, successful, safe adult than from a kid that's living under their, you know, under their roof. And so that's what Luis is doing right now. He's moved to L.A. And he's a machinist and he has a good job and making a lot of money. And he just bought his dad for Father's Day a good expensive lawnmower because they would always mow the lawn together. And so he's afraid, but he's still afraid of what his parents would think if he comes out, although his mom knows, I know she knows. But anyway, so, and he moved his dad to tears by giving him this lawnmower. So he's, instead of living in their basement as a college dropout kind of thing, He's moved to LA, set himself up, got a great job as a machinist, paying much better than minimum wage, bought his dad an important present, and you know he's changing himself in their eyes to a point where he's much more, I think, you have a much better standing to do something that's controversial or something that might be a problem or that might be controversial in your family. 00:59:33 Holly Cashman Yeah. And what you said before about in your time in Portsmouth, where everyone pretty much knew when you came out to them later. 00:59:44 Jay Spears Yes. 00:59:45 Holly Cashman But there's something very different about when you actually put words to it. And even if it's just for you, even if they think what we knew and it doesn't matter, it's a big... �00:59:55 Jay Spears Yes. Yes. And I don't want to look like I'm saying, oh, there's nothing to be afraid of, because in some families, in some cases, there is. There is. And my parents, when I finally told them, my mom was just kind of, "Why do I have to know that?" Because she was old at the time, you know, and I said, "Well, I donít know." But so, yeah. Yeah. So, it could be a problem. It might be a problem for him. His dad and his family might get really super mad. They're Hispanic. They're Puerto Rican and Cuban. So they have a Christian and conservative culture. And so it might be more of a problem for him. But that's the way to do it. And I hope that by the time that, I don't know, the next generation or two, that we can do it. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Seacoast NH LGBTQ+ Oral History Project Description An account of the resource The NH Seacoast LGBT History Project was founded by Tom Kaufhold in 2015. Tom had been collecting papers, ephemera, and artifacts related to or created by the LGBTQ+ community on the Seacoast region of New Hampshire. To tell the story more fully, Holly Cashman, a professor at the University of New Hampshire, began collecting oral histories from the same community. <br /><br />With the assistance of interns and student workers, Dr. Cashman conducted ten interviews over a six-year period. The team processed each interview and created indexes and transcripts. Interviewees, also called narrators, were found through flyers and by visiting with local LGBTQ+ social groups such as Seacoast Gay Men. Participants were given the option to provide their full name or a partial name. This project is ongoing and Dr. Cashman and her team will continue conducting interviews which will be added to this site.<br /><br />Thanks to Holly Cashman, Tom Kaufhold, Aliya Sarris, Lily Pudlo, Zoe Dawson, the narrators, the interns, and the student workers who contributed to this project.<br /><br /><span>View the collections of the NH Seacoast LGBT History Project! Their video archive is available here: </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25</a><span> and the recordings of Women Singing OUT!, a lesbian-based choir, are available here </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32</a><span>.</span> Moving Image A series of visual representations that, when shown in succession, impart an impression of motion. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral history with Jay Spears, August 11, 2018 Subject The topic of the resource New Hampshire -- History LGBTQ+ history Gay men Description An account of the resource An oral interview with Jay Spears with transcript and index. Topics discussed include growing up, Portsmouth in the 1970s, Theatre-By-The-Sea, and the current climate. Recorded at the Portsmouth Public Library in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cashman, Holly (interviewer) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seacoast NH LGBT History Project Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2018-08-11 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Spears, Jay (interviewee) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">In copyright - educational use permitted</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource MOV 01:00:51 PDF Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource MovingImage Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 1. Jay Spears https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/20041e2086ca37d743c1e4646c90823c.jpg 124abecb601cd10986c2d333602d6d7e https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/9feba8e2da829076da468cd897d21529.MOV 11dd76d2ffef62996ef74837ff627367 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Seacoast NH LGBTQ+ Oral History Project Description An account of the resource The NH Seacoast LGBT History Project was founded by Tom Kaufhold in 2015. Tom had been collecting papers, ephemera, and artifacts related to or created by the LGBTQ+ community on the Seacoast region of New Hampshire. To tell the story more fully, Holly Cashman, a professor at the University of New Hampshire, began collecting oral histories from the same community. <br /><br />With the assistance of interns and student workers, Dr. Cashman conducted ten interviews over a six-year period. The team processed each interview and created indexes and transcripts. Interviewees, also called narrators, were found through flyers and by visiting with local LGBTQ+ social groups such as Seacoast Gay Men. Participants were given the option to provide their full name or a partial name. This project is ongoing and Dr. Cashman and her team will continue conducting interviews which will be added to this site.<br /><br />Thanks to Holly Cashman, Tom Kaufhold, Aliya Sarris, Lily Pudlo, Zoe Dawson, the narrators, the interns, and the student workers who contributed to this project.<br /><br /><span>View the collections of the NH Seacoast LGBT History Project! Their video archive is available here: </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25</a><span> and the recordings of Women Singing OUT!, a lesbian-based choir, are available here </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32</a><span>.</span> Moving Image A series of visual representations that, when shown in succession, impart an impression of motion. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral history with Joe-Est, April 29, 2019 Subject The topic of the resource New Hampshire -- History LGBTQ+ history Gay men Description An account of the resource An oral interview with Joe-Est. Topics covered include AIDS, coming out, PRIDE, and life in Florida. Recorded at the Portsmouth Public Library in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cashman, Holly (interviewer) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seacoast NH LGBT History Project Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-04-29 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/?language=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">In copyright - educational use permitted</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource MOV 1:11:07 Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource MovingImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 5. Joe-Est https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/034ccca8de0dfd4ba0eb01879075002c.jpg f8b1b608c731e6c9baa2bdb5035b0255 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/6c4e73626e060da3691d324504276917.MOV 16bd7c57eb62ddd28df865ecd19af987 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Seacoast NH LGBTQ+ Oral History Project Description An account of the resource The NH Seacoast LGBT History Project was founded by Tom Kaufhold in 2015. Tom had been collecting papers, ephemera, and artifacts related to or created by the LGBTQ+ community on the Seacoast region of New Hampshire. To tell the story more fully, Holly Cashman, a professor at the University of New Hampshire, began collecting oral histories from the same community. <br /><br />With the assistance of interns and student workers, Dr. Cashman conducted ten interviews over a six-year period. The team processed each interview and created indexes and transcripts. Interviewees, also called narrators, were found through flyers and by visiting with local LGBTQ+ social groups such as Seacoast Gay Men. Participants were given the option to provide their full name or a partial name. This project is ongoing and Dr. Cashman and her team will continue conducting interviews which will be added to this site.<br /><br />Thanks to Holly Cashman, Tom Kaufhold, Aliya Sarris, Lily Pudlo, Zoe Dawson, the narrators, the interns, and the student workers who contributed to this project.<br /><br /><span>View the collections of the NH Seacoast LGBT History Project! Their video archive is available here: </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25</a><span> and the recordings of Women Singing OUT!, a lesbian-based choir, are available here </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32</a><span>.</span> Moving Image A series of visual representations that, when shown in succession, impart an impression of motion. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral history with Jon Kimbell, October 27, 2019 Subject The topic of the resource New Hampshire -- History LGBTQ+ history Description An account of the resource An oral interview with Jon Kimbell. Recorded at the Discover Portsmouth Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cashman, Holly (interviewer) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seacoast NH LGBT History Project Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-10-27 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kimbell, Jon (interviewee) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/?language=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">In copyright - educational use permitted</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource MOV 1:11:45 Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource MovingImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 7. Jon Kimbell https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/9320ff151dabf7c0709b034036b2f725.png cfb9e34e15a82ced153b3d3fb71e49f4 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/486cb13e5959b5c4aaa39785a730fe70.MOV 04b1a6f220159ffea913cfbda07cfb56 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/7a291cec0b8f3e47e5660f5b9c373ced.pdf d63e019c0b977ff9584420eb2e7b47ed PDF Text Text Josephy Murphy oral history topics index Seacoast NH LGBTQ Oral History Project 00:53 – Manchester, NH [00:40-03:22, 06:49-16:08, 20:55] 01:10 – AA [01:10, 10:05-10:43, 22:10-25:05, 31:12-33:46, 36:01-37:05, 01:07:23-01:10:24] 03:11 – Depression, suicide 03:22 – St. Mary’s University (Halifax, Nova Scotia) [03:22-05:00] 04:52 – Benedictine Monastery (Benet Lake, Wisconsin) [04:52-6:55] 07:30 – Marriage [07:30-12:55, 14:52-16:30] 10:05 – Alcoholism [10:05-10:43, 11:15-13:48, 17:55-18:30, 20:22-21:00, 22:21-25:05, 01:07:2301:10:24] 13:51 – “Coming out” [13:51-16:08, 17:09, 01:10:25] 15.30 - Mental breakdown 16:08 – Portsmouth [16:08-18:28, 29:03-33:30] 16:30 – Blue Strawbery restaurant [16:30, 17:26, 21:19] 17:14 – Portsmouth, 1980s [17:14-17:48] 18:28 – Penhallow Group [18:28-19:28, 52:02] 19:28 – Florida, Clearwater Beach Hotel [19:28-20:58, 25:58] 21:22 – Relationship with family after “coming out” [21:22-22:10] 23:00 – Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), sobriety, St. John’s [23:13, 24:51] 25:05 – Gay AA [25:05-29:38] 25:20 – Seacoast Gay Men [25:20-31:12, 40:00-40:45, 42:48-44:02, 50:42, 52:02-53:45, 54:201:00:41] 26:57 – UU Church, State Street [26:57, 29:03] 27:05 – Durham, NH [27:05, 01:11:50] 27:18 – UNH [27:18, 01:11:00-01:12:05] 29:38 – LGBTQ+ places (names unknown) (businesses, hangouts, etc.) [29:38-31:12, 52:20-53:43] 33:47 – AIDS crisis [33:47, 42:03, 59:32-01:00:00] 34:45 – AIDS Response Seacoast [34:45-41:13] 40:27 – Feminist Health Center [40:27, 50:42] 41:16 – Gay Men Fight AIDS [40:49- 44:02, 56:19-56:48] 43:08 – The AIDS “cocktail” [43:08-44:02, 55:00] 43:26 – Tim/Kitty’s funeral; Religion, Catholicism [43:26-50:08] 47:30 – Portsmouth, discrimination [47:30-47:55, 50:12-51:34] 51:24 – Ogunquit, discrimination [51:24-51:50] 53:49 – The Rainbow Connection, collaboration with “gay women’s group” (name unknown) [53:4955:00] 54:20 – Seacoast Outright [54:20-56:48] 55:25 – Portland, Pride Dance [55:25-56:48] 56:48 – Message for the future [56:48-1:00:41] 01:00:51 – AIDS, personal loss [43:28-47:03, 01:00:51-01:06:36] 01:06:36 – Message for past self [01:06:36-01:10:58] 01:11:00 – Current life, hopes for the future [01:11:00-01:12:05] � https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/6960c8f8d47747648b7f8a6d77c8a49a.pdf ed5837a0c8d54dcabc1faf202d69950d PDF Text Text Joseph Murphy transcript - 2/23/2019 Seacoast NH LGBTQ Oral History Project 00:00:00 Holly Cashman I should start rolling. Yep. 00:00:03 Joseph Murphy Cool. 00:00:04 Holly Cashman So, thank you so much for agreeing to do this. 00:00:07 Joseph Murphy My pleasure. I'm glad to do it. 00:00:07 Holly Cashman A second time. 00:00:08 Joseph Murphy Yeah. Yeah. 00:00:09 Holly Cashman At least this time, for the record. Can we start out just with your name, where you were born, your age, or however you're comfortable sharing it, and start there? 00:00:23 Joseph Murphy Yep. My name is Joseph Murphy. I was born in Manchester, New Hampshire. I'm 75 years old, 76 next month. 00:00:34 Holly Cashman Oh, happy early birthday. 00:00:36 Joseph Murphy Thank you. What else? 00:00:39 Holly Cashman So, So, you maybe could talk a little bit about kind of growing up in Manchester, what your family was like, what your neighborhood or community was like. 00:00:52 Joseph Murphy Well, back in the days I grew up in, your neighborhood was your whole community. My family was Irish Catholic, very strict, went to church every Sunday. When I talk about my childhood, especially when I share it in an AA meeting, I'm in recovery, there's not a lot of memory about my childhood. Not because it was bad or it was exceptionally exceptional, it just was. Things for me started changing when I was in my early teens, about 13. I pretty much knew then that I was gay. Didn't know anything about what it meant, how to do gay, but I knew that I liked boys. Met an older guy who worked in a neighborhood drug store where we used to go and have sodas and stuff and talk to him. And connected with him a little bit. Had not really a sexual relationship, just experimenting. And at the time, my group of friends, it's hard to explain, in the back of my house was an old �barn and we had like a clubhouse in the barn. And there was one of the guys, in the barn. And there was one of the guys, an older man, he was 16 and I was 15. And we ended up having a sexual relationship, unbeknownst to the rest of the group. And somehow, and the details are very vague now for me, but it came out that I might be gay. In my group of friends. And I was, I just lost all my friends. So when that happened, I think I was a junior in high school. So my junior and senior year in high school was very, very lonely and very depressing. I did try to commit suicide on a bottle of aspirin. Nothing happened, of course, but I did try it. Anyway, when I graduated from high school, I decided to go. At the time, I don't know why this was popular, but it was St. Mary's University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. So So that was exciting. And so I went and I had two roommates. And like the second day we were there, one of my roommates was from New Brunswick and he had a car. So we were going to do a little road trip and explore the area. And area. And he had somehow gotten a bottle of rum. And so they were drinking rum and 7-Up, and I hated 7-Up, so I was just drinking rum. I was 17 I was 17 years old. Of course, by the time we get back to the dorm, I was drunk. And we had five flights of stairs to crawl up. There was no elevators. I remember going into the room, throwing up in the sink, taking a nap, and then saying, Okay, let's go, and we went out. That was the beginning of my drinking career at 17. I don't know why we were all 17, 18, but we always had booze. Somehow it was available. So I partied that whole year, flunked out of school, and decided that I was going to join the Benedictine monastery and become a monk. So I did. I left Manchester and went to Benet Lake, Wisconsin. It was a Benedictine monastery. 00:05:12 Holly Cashman Is there like an application process, or how did that work? 00:05:15 Joseph Murphy Oh, it was so easy. You just send them a letter. Yeah, it was easy to get in. And there were a lot of guys from Manchester who went to St. Mary's, and a couple went out to Benet Lake as well. Someone else introduced me to it. And it was a beautiful, beautiful place. We lived on this lake, Benet Lake. And the layout was great. The life was great. The only thing that disturbed me was our abbot's parents were both alcoholics. So there was no anything allowed in the monastery. No wine, no beer, no whiskey, anything. And I lasted about a year. I loved it. It was an idyllic life. It was college. It was studying again. We also were, it was funny, we received alcoholic priests trying to sober up. They were assigned to us. I remember we had this one Irish priest, he was so funny, and and he was still a drunk. I don't know where he got the booze, but, I mean, we would be Latin class and he'd be speaking to us in Greek, you know, stuff like that. Anyway, after a year, I had taken my simple vows, and after a year, I wanted to drink. And I left. So, came back home with my tail between my legs again, another failure. Ended up getting a job at a textile factory in Manchester. It was in the shipping room, it wasn't like a laborer, but anyway, I became part of management very quickly. And I got into a group of friends who were a little older than me, two and three years older, and we would go out every night in the car and just drink beer. 00:07:21 Holly Cashman Would that have been like in the 70s? That would have been, let's see, 00:07:27 Joseph Murphy late 60s, late 60s, early 70s. And so I met a girl there at work. We worked together in the department, and she lived not far from where I lived, and I didn't drive. For some reason, at that point, I had never got a license. I I learned to drive, crashed my father's car, and I never got my license. And anyway, she started picking me up, and up, and we started hanging out together on weekends. We went partying together with the group. It It was a whole group of us, and she drank like I did. And this went on for several years, because that would have been two years probably, and around just before my 21st birthday, the friends I was hanging around with were all getting engaged or married and blah, blah, blah, and my mother, who was a very wise Polish woman, said to me, well, all your friends are getting married. If you get married, I'll buy you a colored TV. And I said, oh, okay. 00:08:35 Holly Cashman Bribery. 00:08:36 Joseph Murphy �So that's how I got married. We did. We got married, and just before the wedding, I got my draft notice. So we moved the wedding up like a month. 00:08:51 Holly Cashman Vietnam. 00:08:52 Joseph Murphy Yup And I dodged the draft, and we got married. 00:08:58 Holly Cashman So they did not make you go if you had just gotten married? 00:09:01 Joseph Murphy Right. Right. 00:09:02 Holly Cashman That was like a hardship kind of thing? 00:09:03 Joseph Murphy Right. They weren't taking married men at the time. So we get married. I slept with a man on my honeymoon. We were in New York City. Like the third night, we had gone out to dinner and gone to theater and stuff like that. Like the third night, my wife said, I'm really tired. I don't want to go out tonight. I'm just going to go to bed early. I said, fine, I'm just going to go downstairs and have a cocktail. So I go down to the lounge, and it's mobbed. So they sent me at a booth, and they said, well, you know, we're going to have to settle the people in here, too. And sure enough, they did, and this guy came on to me in the booth, and in the booth, and we ended up sleeping together that night. So it should have been a signpost. 00:09:54 Holly Cashman What were you thinking at that time? Were time? Were you thinking, like, what have I done? 00:10:04 Joseph Murphy Yes and no, because what I'll tell you is, and I say this when I share at AA, that alcohol kept me married for 16 years. It was my escape. I was a binge drinker. I always said I didn't drink every day, but I really did. I always drank beer every day. But my modus operandi was I would go out on a Friday night to get a pack of cigarettes and be gone for three days. And that's how I dealt with my sexuality and my marriage. I had a wonderful marriage. I I had a wonderful wife. We wife. We have two beautiful children. We have a bunch of grandchildren. And after 16 years, through a set of circumstances, I've been leaving a lot off, I had a very successful career. When I left the textile mill, I was in management, and and I was recruited by a trucking firm because I used to deal with them. So I worked at a trucking firm in Manchester and had a very good job. I was assistant vice president and a lot of responsibility, promotion, promotion, promotion, more money, more money, more money. But my drinking was at that point out of control because the job I had was three, four martini lunch. One day after lunch, I came back to my office, and I was drunk. And I just said, I don't want to do this anymore. I left a note saying, I'm quitting. And that was it. It was a beautiful job. I had it made. Went home that day, and there was six workmen in my backyard putting in a pool. But my wife made good money as well. And our in-laws lived with us, my mother- and father-in-law, and and they were great. I loved them dearly. They gave us the opportunity to both work, make good money. They took care of the kids. My mother-in-law did the laundry. She did the housework. My father-in-law kept up the lawns, did the snow stuff. So we had it made. And we were very, very involved in our community, our church community. And to look at us, people would say we had the perfect ideal marriage and and that we were perfect. We were not. We were not. Inside the first 37 years of my life, I lived in total self-loathing and fear that someone would find out who I really was. 00:12:57 Holly Cashman �So do you think there's a connection between the self-loathing of being in the closet and drinking? 00:13:10 Joseph Murphy Well, yes. To set the record straight, I don't believe that my alcoholism made me gay. I do think that my gayness fed into my alcoholism because one of the classic symptoms of alcoholism is that your disease tells you you are worthless piece of shit, you will never amount to anything, nobody could possibly love you, and blah, blah, blah. So they fed off each other. It was finally, I actually met, I was working at the time at a hotel and and there was a young man who was the, what do you call him, he worked the desk with me, he took care of luggage, and and he brought people to their rooms and stuff. And he was gay. And I wasn't out at that time to anybody, barely to myself. Then he would start talking to me about his boyfriend and how they did this this weekend and blah, blah, blah. And all I knew of the life at the time was you get drunk, you black out, you have sex, you might have it in the bar, you might have it on the bar, you you might have it in the men's room, you might have it under a table, you didn't care. And he started talking about like a normal life that gay men had, and I had no concept of that, I had no experience with it. And he was pretty much the catalyst to make me decide that I had to come out. And I made that decision, and I told my wife, and she called my brother, my older brother, who was my rock growing up. He was my hero. And we were still very close, he and his wife and myself and my wife. And he is a very hard-headed, opinionated, stubborn bastard. And he came to the house and he said, No, you're not gay, you're sick, and we'll get a doctor. And at that point, my brain could not handle it, and I snapped. I I had a total one flew over the cuckoo's nest breakdown. So I ended up in the nut house for a while, I don't remember how long. It was a while, I do remember I was running the place when they left. At least I thought I did. But when I came out of that, it was like an enema to the brain is the only way I can describe it. I it. I had made up my mind that I was an alcoholic, that I would go into recovery, and that I was gay, and I was never going back into the closet. And that was it. I ended up leaving my home. Ended up moving to the Portsmouth area. The funny thing is my wife, my ex-wife, actually found me a living arrangement because she worked with a woman whose brother lived in Portsmouth. And I don't remember if you remember the Blue Strawbery Restaurant. 00:16:33 Holly Cashman I've heard of it. 00:16:34 Joseph Murphy He was one of the owners. 00:16:36 Holly Cashman Oh, wow. 00:16:37 Joseph Murphy And I moved in with him, and I fell into an incredibly wonderful situation. 00:16:42 Holly Cashman Yeah, you just arrived and you're right there in the center. 00:16:45 Joseph Murphy Yeah, and I was thrust into a circle of straight and gay people who were very open-minded and very accepting. He would take me to New York, we would go to plays, we'd go to Boston, we'd to Boston, we'd go to ballets, we'd go to museums. It just opened me up to a culture that I had never been involved in. 00:17:07 Holly Cashman Around what time was that? 00:17:09 Joseph Murphy �That would have been in 1980. I was 37 when I came out. 00:17:14 Holly Cashman And what was Portsmouth like in 1980? 00:17:17 Joseph Murphy To me, it was amazing. Bow Street was very, very busy. And the Blue Strawbery was one of the original draws to that whole area and and why it developed. 00:17:33 Holly Cashman That restaurant row. 00:17:35 Joseph Murphy Yes, yeah. It was very cultural. It was great. I loved it. But it it. But it was like moving to New York City from Manchester. It was just like a whole new world. So that went okay for a while. And at one point, I said to myself, well, you know what, I probably am not really an alcoholic. I probably drank because I was in the closet and fighting my sexuality. So I experimented. And within two or three weeks, I knew I was an alcoholic. In the course of probably two years, I ended up getting three DUIs. So lots of trouble. Then I was approached by a gentleman from a group called the Penhallow Group, which was a gay advertising agency. Oh, Oh, wow. They were right across the street from the post office on Daniel Street. So I took a job there. And the weirdest part of it was they were all potheads, and I never even smoked pot. I I was booze. So I said, well, I can't drink. And And they said, well, then you can smoke pot. And I go, okay. So I would buy it, and I liked cleaning it and all that. But then I would give it away. I never really smoked it that much. And that lasted about a year. And then business started really tanking. There was problems. I mean, it was so bad that I had to go to some of my accounts and ask for payments a month in advance to get the payroll for the staff. Anyway, I decided I was leaving that job. And a friend of mine who had worked for me in Porteus, Mitchell & Braun, which was a clothing store, used to be in the original Newington Mall, and he and some other people from the area were going to Florida to work in the Clearwater Beach Hotel. And at that point, how old am I? 40, 41. Why not become a waiter at 41? Who knows? So we went down, and it was a great situation because they had built a new hotel on the beach, but they left the old hotel right on the beach, and that was where they housed the staff. So we lived there, and they fed us all our meals. And I mean, I would wake up in the morning, walk two steps and be on this beautiful Clearwater Beach. And I was not doing very well being sober. I was drinking and not saving any money. And then I got really involved in the gay community and promiscuous sexual events. So that lasted about, well, I fell in love with another drunk. We We were both trying to recover. It didn't work, and I ended up coming back home. Anyway, I'm jumping all over the place. Back home, back in Manchester. 00:21:05 Holly Cashman Oh, so when you said back home, back in Manchester. 00:21:09 Joseph Murphy Yeah, because I had left everything. Anyway, I ended up back within a month. I was back in my original living situation with the owner of the Blue Strawbery, which was great. 00:21:23 Holly Cashman When you came back from Florida, what kind of, you know, between coming out and then being in Portsmouth and being in Florida, did you have any kind of relationship with your family, with your ex-wife, with your kids? 00:21:41 Joseph Murphy I didn't see much of my family, and it was just because the way it happened, it wasn't. I did go through a really hard time with my brother when I came out. It was really horrible, and we broke our relationship, and he didn't come around until my mother died, and at the funeral he apologized for the way he treated me. But then our relationship was never the same. But when I came back, things were good. I got right back into my circle, but �what did happen was my recovery became more a part of my life. I was still drinking, and I knew that I had a problem, and I was at a cocktail party one night, hitting on this guy, and I said, oh, excuse me, I have to go to the men's room. And I came back, and I go, who's the asshole that put the cigarette out of my drink? He said, that would be you. I said, oh. Anyway, we ended up in a sexual relationship for quite a while. He was 10 years sober. He was in AA. He got me into AA, you know, for real. And I remember going to my first meeting with him. It him. It was a huge meeting. I think it was St. John's on a Saturday night, and at that time there were like 200 people there. And I listened to a speaker, and I'm like, oh, my God, this is me. They're talking about me. And then the cinch or the hook to me was when the speaker said, remember this, you never have to do this alone again. And that was the hook that got me. So this guy I had the relationship, the sexual relationship with, and I found out he was in an open relationship with an older man. Anyway, I asked him to be my sponsor. I don't know what you know about AA, but part of it is sponsorship where you have a mentor that you go to if you have troubles or questions. 00:24:13 Holly Cashman But I would imagine you're not allowed to be in a relationship with that person. 00:24:17 Joseph Murphy Well, that was the other thing. He said, well, you know what that means. I said, yeah, that means. I said, yeah, that you'll be my sponsor. He says, no, you know what that means. I said, I said, no, what? He He said, no more sex. I said, what? But I said, okay, because I knew I needed someone who could handle me because I was very manipulative. I was a very charismatic personality, and I could get people to do almost anything I wanted because I would do that for them. I would be whatever you wanted me to be. 00:24:51 Holly Cashman And at that time was this huge, I'm guessing, that that this huge meeting at St. John's wasn't particularly gay community. 00:24:59 Joseph Murphy No. No. 00:25:00 Holly Cashman So having a sponsor who could also understand that part of it. 00:25:03 Joseph Murphy Well, he was of it. Well, he was gay. 00:25:04 Holly Cashman Yeah, it must have been important. 00:25:06 Joseph Murphy Yeah. But gay AA started very quickly right around that time. 00:25:16 Holly Cashman Like mid-'80s? 00:25:20 Joseph Murphy The best I can date it is in 1979, Seacoast Gay Men began. Oh, okay. Shortly after that, gay AA was founded by the same people who started Seacoast Gay Men. 00:25:37 Holly Cashman �Oh, okay. 00:25:38 Joseph Murphy So Seacoast okay. So Seacoast Gay Men is celebrating 40 years this year. 00:25:43 Holly Cashman That's amazing. 00:25:45 Joseph Murphy And And I think AA is like 38 or 39. 00:25:49 Holly Cashman Coming together as Seacoast Gay Men, a lot of people must have said, oh, hey, we also have this other thing in common. 00:25:56 Joseph Murphy Yeah, we were very enmeshed. And when I came back from Florida, I got involved in both, which was my lifesaver. Started going religiously to Seacoast Gay Men, and the gay AA meeting was Friday night, and I went to that. Plus, there was a group of us in the area, gay men and women, who hung out, and we would go to all the meetings in the area. We would go to meetings seven nights a week. We never got home before midnight because after the meeting, we did coffee, and we shared, we laughed, we cried. We had a really strong group of support. 00:26:42 Holly Cashman Men and women. 00:26:43 Joseph Murphy Men Men and women. Gay AA, the first five or six years that I attended, averaged three to five people. It was very small. So we decided, after like four or five years, to move to Portsmouth, to the UU church. So So did it start in Kittery? 00:27:06 Joseph Murphy Durham. 00:27:07 Holly Cashman Oh, in Durham. 00:27:08 Joseph Murphy Durham. Durham. A women's, I can't remember what building it was, but it was a lesbian kind of thing. Anyway. 00:27:18 Holly Cashman At UNH? 00:27:20 Joseph Murphy Yeah, at UNH. �00:27:21 Holly Cashman Oh, okay. 00:27:22 Joseph Murphy And And when we moved to Portsmouth, the first night, we had 80 people. Wow. We had 80 to 100 people every Friday night for ten years. Wow. It was a huge meeting. 00:27:37 Holly Cashman How did you get the word out in those days? Was there a newsletter? 00:27:40 Joseph Murphy Just word of mouth. No, AA is all word of mouth. In those days, it's not as strict now, but I mean, it was very, very anonymous, and it was very, we didn't want publicity, we didn't want anything in writing or anything. 00:27:56 Holly Cashman At this conference I go to every year, a huge conference, there's just a little line in the program with a room number, and it just says Friends of Bill W. And it doesn't say anything else. If you're looking for it, you know what it is. 00:28:11 Joseph Murphy Exactly. And that's, it's funny because last night at the meeting we read Tradition 3 about how when AA first started that that some groups had like hundreds of rules and regulations, and it was crazy. But now our only rule, if you want to call it a rule, is to become a member of AA. You only need to have the desire to stop drinking. That's it. There are no other rules, period. So AA at that time and SGM at the time were like the hottest things on the Seacoast for gay people. And went on like that for years and years. 00:29:03 Holly Cashman Where did, when you moved to Portsmouth from Durham, where did you meet? 00:29:08 Joseph Murphy In Portsmouth? 00:29:09 Holly Cashman Where did the gay AA meet in Portsmouth? 00:29:11 Joseph Murphy The The UU Church, State Street. We were there for years. Then the rents became too high and we had to move, just like Seacoast Gay Men had to move a couple years ago because because the rents were outrageous. 00:29:24 Holly Cashman Did Seacoast Gay Men meet in the same place? 00:29:26 Joseph Murphy Yeah. Yeah. 00:29:27 Holly Cashman �Oh, okay. 00:29:28 Joseph Murphy Yeah. Seacoast Gay Men met on Mondays and Gay AA was Friday. 00:29:34 Holly Cashman Nice little bookend to the week. 00:29:36 Joseph Murphy Yeah. Yeah. 00:29:38 Holly Cashman What other places can you remember from your earliest days in Portsmouth, like gay-owned businesses or places where gay people would go? Or places where lesbians would go? 00:29:53 Joseph Murphy Well, the, I'm trying to remember the name of it. There There was a restaurant on Market where the Gaslight is now. And I can't remember the name of it, but that was the go-to place. But also there was a couple, there was a restaurant on State Street where, do you know where Snip n Clip is? The pedicure place on State Street? Right? There was a restaurant there and that was like a Monday night place for Seacoast Gay Men. We always went there after the meeting. And there was this woman, a straight woman. I can't remember her name now. It's been so many years, but she was just wonderful for us. And it was a very redneck place. Right. They were mostly lobster men and stuff like that. And when we came into that restaurant, if we got a sidelong glance from one of those guys, she would go, don't you mess with my boys. And she took care of us. She set up a special room for us. And eventually we became very connected with the men in that room. Same with AA. I remember at some point there was a really bad incident in a downtown Portsmouth meeting, a straight AA meeting where a gay man was sharing, and he got really obnoxiously into his sexual proclivities. And it caused this furor in the whole AA community. People were like, no more fucking gays at the meetings, blah, blah, blah. So I wasn't there. I didn't hear it, but it was pretty bad. And we had a Tuesday night regular meeting. It was a small meeting, maybe 15, 20 people. And it was mostly men. So it was four or five gay men and about 10 or 11 straight fishermen, kind of redneck guys. But we always had good meetings. And right after the incident happened, at a smoke break, they came up to us, a few of them. They said, oh, we need to talk to you. And we're going, oh, shit, it's going to be about the mess. And they said, we just want you to know that we don't care what happened at that meeting. And that you are a very important part of this group. And we wouldn't want you to leave. And so there were incredible things like that happened through AA and the straight community and the gay community, which is remarkable. But it just should be that way. I mean, there's still problems in AA where people complain about, like, straight people coming to a gay meeting. And I'll like go off on them saying, they're a drunk. I don't care who they love. I don't care who they sleep with. They are a drunk, and this is where they belong. So it's a constant struggle. But for the most part, when I first started in AA, and I've been sober for 36 years, there was a lot of, not rules, but restrictions. Like, AA old-timers didn't want to hear anyone talking about drugs. And that's changed, thank God. Oh, yeah. That was it. They don't want to hear about your drug problem. But, you know, over problem. But, you know, over the years, I realized a drug is a drug is a drug. I don't care if you call it Quaaludes or whiskey. It does the same thing. So that's luckily changed. The AIDS crisis was devastating, obviously. But it crazily almost saved me. I had been in a 10-year relationship that should have probably lasted 10 weeks. But anyway, it ended, and I was totally devastated. I thought I was going to die. I really did. Didn't want to drink, but I didn't want to live. And I remember my ex's mother calling me and saying, you're you're not going to drink? I said, no, I forgot. I didn't think about that. But I did not want to live. But AA saved my ass, and I went back. Anyway, at the time, it was a struggle for me because I was shell-shocked that my whole life had been just turned around. I got a job at AIDS Response Seacoast, the AIDS service organization I'm sure you're familiar with. And that was such a saving event for me. I worked as the office manager. I didn't do case management or anything like that. But because of who I am and how involved in the community I was, I mean, the men and women, but the men primarily that were coming in, would stop into my office after they were with the case manager and we would talk for hours. And the case managers did not like it. 00:35:27 Holly Cashman �Because they would tell you things that you didn't tell them. 00:35:30 Joseph Murphy Right. And I remember at a staff meeting that it was brought up that they didn't think it was right for me to spend time with these men. And I said, let me tell you, they're my community. I said, I've slept with probably 30% of them. I said, I've loved them all at one point, maybe for a weekend or 10 days, but they're my people and they will always have my attention. So that was a very life-changing experience for me because I had men who were soon to die from AIDS ask me to sponsor them in AA. And I remember saying, why do you want to do this now? Give up drinking now? And then they would say, because I want some quality of life to what I have left. And that was another problem with the case managers. They didn't like it. They were making rules for AA people, like if you don't go to five meetings, you can't get services at ARS. And again, I blew up and said, no, you cannot do that. You have no right to it. I'm this individual's sponsor. I will tell him to run his program or I will help him run his program. It has nothing to do with you and you can't do anything. So that was always a point of contention. 00:37:05 Holly Cashman So were the majority of people at the AIDS Response Seacoast not members of the gay community? 00:37:17 Joseph Murphy Unfortunately, the two case managers I had a real problem with were gay women. Well, this is the reason I say that. The original one, who was the manager of the client services, wanted to hire her wife. And I just said, no. She would be reporting. You would be her boss. That's a conflict. It ended up happening and it became a huge, huge problem. And I loved the original one, and her wife and I did not get along. We clashed like oil and water immediately because she was really a whack job. I'm serious when I say that. I'm having a conversation with her and I went like this. She like this. She said, you're threatening me. I said, this is just things I do when I talk. And I said, you know, you're really crazy. I said, can you just leave my office? And then there was a battle. And they were the demise that got me fired from that job, laid off. How long were you off. 00:38:46 Holly Cashman How long were you there? 00:38:48 Joseph Murphy I was only there probably three years. 00:38:54 Holly Cashman But that was kind of at the very beginning of the AIDS crisis. 00:38:59 Joseph Murphy No, it was in the early 90s, yeah. And one of the board members, who happened to be an AA member, and a friend of mine, a woman, and she was on the board, and she came to us, she said, Joe, someone told us that you called the board assholes. I said, well, I did. I said, but you wouldn't know that if you didn't have your little spies eavesdropping. And I said, the reason I said that is, and you know this because we've had this discussion, one of the primary responsibilities of the board is the financial stability of this organization. And And I said, you don't do fundraising. You don't do anything to help. And I said, and that's why I have no respect for you. You may, you know, this may sound good on your resume that you're a member of the board, but this board is totally nonfunctional. And I said, I'm president of the premier gay men's organization in the Seacoast. There's not one member of our organization that's on the board. You have never come to us for any ideas or support or anything. We support this agency because of us. We used to run a cruise, and we would make maybe $2,000 or $3,000 every year, and we would give, say, $1,500 to ARS, $1,500 to the Feminist Health Center. So we supported them, and we volunteered for both organizations, but the board did shit. 00:40:46 Holly Cashman �They just took it for granted, kind of. 00:40:48 Joseph Murphy Yeah, you know. And coming from my job at ARS, at the time, there was no funding for programs for gay men prevention education. There were no funds. So we started a nonprofit called Gay Men Fight AIDS, who was originally going to be The Lifeguards, but when we tried to get the name with the state, it was already taken. So we just made up Gay Men Fight AIDS, and the funny thing is I went home that day and Googled it, and there was a Gay Men Fight AIDS organization in London, the same thing we just applied for. So we started that organization. And again, so we had a new gay men's support organization. Ninety-nine percent of the people who organized it were from Seacoast Gay Men. And that lasted for, like, 15 years. We did, like, Tupperware parties. We would have sessions where you would get 8 to 10 gay men and have a host in someone's home, and we would meet for five weeks, one night a week, to discuss prevention methods and what transmission was all about, because people were so ignorant and so much afraid of it. And we got awards from the state. I remember one year I picked up the award for Seacoast Gay Men and Gay Men Fight AIDS in Manchester at a state dinner. It was called the Red Heart Award. Yeah, so, yeah. 00:42:48 Holly Cashman So the focus of the Gay Men Fight AIDS was very different from AIDS Response Seacoast. 00:42:53 Joseph Murphy Correct. Correct. It was an educational program. 00:42:55 Holly Cashman But But were you kind of working together? 00:42:58 Joseph Murphy Oh, yeah. We were recruited from the Seacoast gay men's meetings. We ran programs with Seacoast gay men. We did presentations at Seacoast gay men. Yeah, I remember when the first cocktail came out, and everyone was like, oh, my God, this is it. We don't have to worry. We're all set. And that was not true, because it was being hyped. So we decided we had to do an information kind of thing. So we did a presentation at Seacoast Gay Men, and and we had two guys who were on the cocktail. This was probably six months after it came out. One of them was fabulous. Everything was fine. The other one had a really difficult time. Lots of side effects. Constantly nauseous and, you know, just totally debilitated. Six months later, the individual who was doing so well died. And it was shocking. And his mother asked me to do his eulogy. And I said I would. And I remember writing a eulogy for him. And I wrote part of it because he had his stage name, if you want, was Kitty. So I was writing, and I said, you know, a lot of gay men take female names. I said, not because they want to be a woman. I said, I think it's really to honor their mothers for the things that they instilled in them, like compassion and empathy and care. And anyway, I wrote this whole long eulogy, and I got to this Catholic church. And the priest said, oh, can I read your thing? And I said, sure. So I had written it out, so I gave it to him. And he goes, well, it's really well written. But I don't like the thing about the women's names. And I said, I really don't give a shit how you feel. I said, not about you. It's about my dead friend upstairs. He said, well, I know you'll do what you want. I said, you know what? My name is Joseph Daniel Mary Murphy. I said, every man, every male, starting with my grandfather, has always taken Mary as a confirmation name in honor of the Blessed Mother. Is that upsetting? Well, no, that's different. I said, no, it really isn't. He said, well, you'll do what you're going to do. And I did. And I said, you know, I talked for quite a while. And I said, Kitty, I left you a little note. And I said, dear Kitty, I will see you in heaven. Love, Sophie. That was the name that I was given by someone. And then before I ended, I just ad libbed. And I said, you know what? Look at this beautiful place we're in. I said, look at the beautiful stained glass windows, the gold candlesticks, the tabernacle. I said, it's so beautiful. But you know what? When we leave here with Tim, we are the church. We will take the church with us. So then the priest talked, and he quoted a lot of things I said. It said. It was very supportive. So as we're leaving, he's shaking hands with people. And he shakes me, and he says, you really did well. I said, you did pretty good. But then the mother, all the PFLAG mothers from that point on, if I see them in Portsmouth on the street, they'd be yelling across, hey, Sophie. How are you? But they heard that he was upset about my speech. And the mother was �furious. She said, I will never go back to the church. So. 00:47:06 Holly Cashman When did the PFLAG start? 00:47:08 Joseph Murphy Oh, God. I don't know. 00:47:12 Holly Cashman But it was around the 80s and the 90s? 00:47:15 Joseph Murphy Yeah. Probably, I would say, right at the beginning of the epidemic, in the probably mid-80s. 00:47:26 Holly Cashman And the, I mean, it's surprising to hear the, I don't know. I would wonder how many times a church would refuse to have a funeral or would not. Did you hear examples of that in Portsmouth? 00:47:47 Joseph Murphy We did not. No, that was the only time I ran into a problem. No, I never did. But I do have some good, good friends, and it's not the Portsmouth area. One of them is from here. Buddy was my roommate. He was in the Navy here, and he ended up living with me. He came out here. And he met someone, and they moved to Minnesota. But they, two gay men, the man he ended up with, Bruce, was like an organist. He was very talented. And they lived on an Indian reservation because Buddy is Chippewa. And so they always, Bruce would play at all the, like, three churches in the area. He would do the organ music for them on Sundays and all their funerals and this, and never charge or anything. And they would take, and they were very devoted. They would take care of the church cemetery, cleaning it and taking care of it and bringing flowers. They did a huge amount of work, and they still do. And at one point, Bruce's mom was running for some, like, selectment or something. And her opponent went to the bishop and wanted to know if he knew that he had two gay men running the church. And they were forbidden to receive the sacraments. But you know what? Bruce went to see the bishop. And he talked to him, and he said, yes, you can prevent us from taking the sacraments, he said, but do not prevent us from doing our work, he said, because if we don't do the music, there is no music for all those churches and all those people. So they continued to do that work. But that was one of the most heinous things I've ever heard. I said, thank God I'm not out there. I'm going to be at that communion rail in a dress. 00:49:56 Holly Cashman Sophie would make an appearance. 00:49:59 Joseph Murphy Oh, yeah, Sophie Sodomski, this friend of mine who's Polish as well. I'm half Polish. It means Sophie, the woman from Sodom. 00:50:11 Holly Cashman Oh, that's great. So were there other examples of discrimination or harassment? 00:50:25 Joseph Murphy That's one of the things about Portsmouth that you asked me about when I came back from Florida, or or when I moved to Portsmouth, what I felt. And that was one of the things. I felt I could be out. I did not feel afraid. At one point, Seacoast Gay Men were like guards for the Feminist Health Center. Women were getting harassed going into the clinic and stuff, so we were always at the door preventing anything from happening. For the most �part, I don't remember any gay bashings. I never experienced any of that in Portsmouth. The one bad incident was the man that was murdered on Pierce Island years ago from Newmarket. I I know the man closeted. But I never experienced a lot of gay bashing or name-calling. I did in Ogunquit. I mean, we would be walking 00:51:36 Holly Cashman in Ogunquit! 00:51:37 Joseph Murphy Oh, yeah, straight guys would drive by and yell faggots and queers and stuff like that. Oh, yeah, that happened a lot. And there was gay bashings on the beach at night in Ogunquit. But for the most part, I never felt unsafe in Portsmouth. And maybe it's because of the circle I moved in. I'm not sure. I remember one time at a Seacoast Gay Men's meeting when we were very small. We were actually meeting in the conference room of the gay advertising agency I worked at. And someone said, we're talking about possibilities of gay bashing or anything. At the time, our bar was out. What the hell was the name of it then? It was out behind the convention center at the circle. What's the name? 00:52:38 Holly Cashman I'm not picturing it. 00:52:43 Joseph Murphy Something Jones Center. 00:52:47 Holly Cashman At the circle in Portsmouth? 00:52:49 Joseph Murphy Portsmouth Circle, the traffic store where the liquor store is. 00:52:52 Holly Cashman Yeah, I know that and the Roundabout Diner. 00:52:55 Joseph Murphy Where the Roundabout is down from that on Route 1. Anyway, that's where our gay bar was. There was an old meat packing plant in the back lot and that's where the gay bar was. And someone said, we were at a meeting, he said, what if someone knocked on the door and we opened the door and there was a bunch of leather motorcyclists at the door. We'd open our arms and welcome them out at home. So yeah, I fortunately did not experience any of that. 00:53:33 Holly Cashman And And so there were bars that everyone knew were there that weren't known as gay bars? 00:53:37 Joseph Murphy Yeah, they were pretty, they were not like today, they were not mixed. It was 99% gay men and a lot of women at the time. At one time there was a gay women's group, but it didn't last long. But we did partner with them and in a venture we called the Rainbow Connection. We got a grant from somebody to do outreach or something. But they were never strong. It was sad to see them dissipate. One year I remember Seacoast Gay Men had a Halloween party and we invited, it was sponsored by Seacoast Gay Men and the gay women's group. 00:54:31 Holly Cashman �Do you remember what they were called? 00:54:33 Joseph Murphy I'd have to think, I can't. And then we had Seacoast Outright come to the party. It It was great, it was like 60 people there, it was a great event. And I miss those days when we had those events where several organizations coordinated. What the hell was the name of their group? I'll think of it and text you or email you. 00:54:59 Holly Cashman So you mentioned the moment where the first AIDS drug cocktail came out as being kind of a watershed moment. What are some other moments that you remember as like... 00:55:17 Joseph Murphy In the epidemic? 00:55:19 Holly Cashman Or just in general in the community in Portsmouth? 00:55:25 Joseph Murphy I remember many years ago at Gay Pride we went to Portland for the Pride dance. And it was in the early days of Seacoast Outright. And I remember we were like in the parking lot and all of a sudden I saw like three busloads pull up. They were all kids, 15 and up. Gay boys and girls. And I remember crying saying, this is so incredible. When I think of my years at 13 to 15, what they were like. And to see these kids who were like, we're here. And we're queer, get used to it. And they are the only group when The Lifeguards, Gay Men Fight AIDS, wrote up a mission statement. Our mission was only to educate gay men. That was our primary purpose. The only exception is that we would work with Seacoast Outright because they don't want to be separated. We would work with girls and boys, men and women for Seacoast Outright. And we did for years. 00:56:48 Holly Cashman What do you think about, like today, the community or looking forward? What message would you have to the people who are just kind of figuring out who they are? Either about what you experienced that they should keep in mind or kind of looking forward of what? 00:57:17 Joseph Murphy It's a difficult thing because we often talk about at Seacoast Gay Men why we don't have more younger members. And we've had this discussion for 30 years. And I've always said, and I still say it, gay men and young men between 18 and 21, their goal in life is to meet someone and get laid and have a good time. They don't want to come and listen to a bunch of old men. Whether our lectures are really interesting. We do have stuff to tell them, but we haven't yet found the method to do that. We haven't become a mentoring organization. Will we ever? I don't know. I think supporting Outright and things like that is probably one of the most important things we can do because I believe that that is a vehicle for them. We, of course, still encourage. Earlier days we got younger men, but we're an older group now. I mean our median age has got to be 65 now. I don't know the answer to how we can integrate them. I think just continuing to be who we are and where we are. Keep in mind that when Seacoast Gay Men was founded, it was a refuge. It was a safe place for gay men who are not out to meet outside of the bars. It was a safe place for married men to meet and mingle. A lot of people say it's just a viper's pit of older men trying to pick up young men. It has never been that. It has always had that reputation, but it has never been that. I've been part of it for 38 years. In the beginning, we struggled trying to protect people who were afraid. I I remember in the early days of the AIDS epidemic, I was really proud of the group at one point because at one point because it was talking about people living with AIDS and how they should be accepted in the community and the fears about transmission because there was still so much unknown. One of the members, a poor guy, got up and said he was very upset because he was at the gay bar Saturday night and he saw someone there who has AIDS. The whole group jumped down his throat and it was like, oh my God, they get it. This is why we're here. This is why we make a difference. They told him, no, you need to educate yourself. You need to realize how transmission works. There were a lot of moments like that that made me �really proud of Seacoast Gay Men and what we have accomplished. 01:00:42 Holly Cashman Even within the gay community in the early days, there was a lot of fear. 01:00:48 Joseph Murphy Yeah, a fear of the unknown. Another friend of mine, Michael Kirk, who started the Piscataqua Coffee Company years ago, he was sick. He was living in Boston and commuting back and forth. I I was living in Wells, really Ogunquit. So he would come up on the weekends sometimes or we would talk a lot. He was really struggling. He was having not very much success. A lot of his medication was making him ill. And I hadn't heard from him in a couple months, not weeks, not months. And I finally called him. I said, Michael, what's going on? He said, oh, I've been afraid to call you. I said, why? He says, I'm stopping my medications. I can't do this anymore. I said, Michael, I will support you 100% of the way. It's your decision. You've fought so hard for so long. And he did stop taking the medications. And the day that I did the eulogy for Kitty, I went to Boston. He was in the hospital in Boston. He was in a coma. His mother was there. I talked to her many times on the phone, but I had never met him. And I walked over and I bent down and I kissed him and I whispered, Michael, I told you I'd get the last word. Because we were always in competition. His mother cracked up. And then she asked me to do his eulogy. Yeah, he died right after that. And then the other most profound death was my friend Paul and I had a good friend, Billy, who was sick and had been struggling with alcoholism and drug addiction for years. And we worked with him for years trying to get him sober, keep him sober, keep him clean. And he was really sick and he was in and out of the hospital in Boston. And we were down there, like every other week, we were down there with him or bringing him back or bringing him back to the hospital. And at one point he said, I can't do it anymore. And nothing worked for him. Everything he took made him sick. And he was such a beautiful man. Everything he tried did not work. It just did the opposite. So he was going to stop his medication. So Paul and I said, come home, come back to Maine, and we'll take care of you. So we actually moved in with Paul. Paul bought a double, a beautiful pull-out sofa bed for him in his living room. Paul lived in a small little trailer. So we became his end-of-life caretakers. And it was very humbling. It was very hard. And I remember the day he died, I was over visiting, and Billy and I still smoked and Paul had an enclosed porch where we went out to smoke. And that was the bone of contention. Paul would be calling me. He says, I don't know what I'm going to do. Billy's going to burn the fucking house down. Because he's out there smoking and he's going to sleep. So I get on the phone and I said, Billy, you stupid shit. I said, I'm going to tell him to kick you out of the house if you don't stop this. He loves you, but you're not burning his fucking house. He was a good cop, bad cop. I was the bad cop. So anyway, we were smoking that day and he said, and I'm there with the ashtray because he's dropping his ashes. I said, I'm going to burn you with this fucking cigarette. I said, Billy, you can't. You're too weak, you idiot. So anyway, he finished his cigarette and he said, I'm really tired. I'm going to lay down. So we went in and he laid down and Paul and I were having coffee in the kitchen, like 10 feet away from him. And all of a sudden we knew he was more than asleep. And we tried to wake him. He was in a coma. So we called the hospice nurse and we said, what do we do? Because we know he could go in a coma for 10 months. Who knows? She says, just keep talking to him because he probably still can hear you. So we got on the bed with him, one on either side of him, and we held him. And we just kept saying, Billy, it's okay. Let go. Let go. We love you, but let go. It's been really hard on you. And he didn't say anything. He didn't wake up. One tear rolled down his cheek and then he died. And it was like Paul and I looked at each other and it was like his soul just went through us. So I have learned so much from dying men. I can't begin to tell you. The epidemic for me was very cathartic. I've lost a lot of friends. I've cried a lot. But I have learned what's important in life from those men. So life has been good. It's been tough, but it's been beautiful. Between that and my recovery, I am truly blessed. And the people I've met, and I will tell you, I have loved thousands of times. Some maybe for 10 minutes, two days, but I have loved thousands of men. And And it's a gift. 01:06:36 Holly Cashman What would you... I mean, if you think back to that 15-year-old kid in Manchester who was desperately sad after losing all his friends. I mean, can you imagine what's happened since then in your life and what you've been able to accomplish and all the lives that you've touched. What would you say to that kid? 01:07:15 Joseph Murphy One day at a time. Every day is a new challenge. Always be hopeful. And my new tenet of belief in life comes from a meditation book I read early in sobriety that said, don't fight evil, just do good. And I think that's been �what's gotten me through everything. And I will say in sobriety, I have had more pain than I ever thought, emotional pain than I ever thought one could experience. But I did. And when I got through it, I was much stronger. And I was much wiser. I was blessed with a better understanding of... The answer to me is, why are we here? To make a difference. It's on my card. To make a difference is the only thing I want to do. And I would tell a young man or woman not to fear who they are, to embrace who they are. It took me in AA to totally, finally accept my alcoholism. I had a year of sobriety, and I drank again. And I had this conversation with a priest friend of mine, who was part of my circle when I was married, and still in touch with him. And he was very supportive of my coming out and everything. And I called him and told him what he could do with his God, because because I was sick of the fact that he made me queer and a drunk. And I ranted and raved like three hours at this friend. I mean, screaming and crying and saying, how could he do this to me? And after like three and a half hours of that, there was this moment of clarity, and I said, I'm exactly who I was meant to be. I'm exactly who God meant me to be. I'm a gay man who's an alcoholic. But I can live a life of dignity and integrity, embracing who I am. And that was a turning point for me for everything, accepting my gayness, accepting my alcoholism, and moving on to an incredible, incredible life from that point on. My life is incredible because getting sober didn't mean just not drinking. It It meant living, living out loud, embracing the world, living, sharing other people's hopes and pain. That's what life to me is all about, is being involved. And what I gave of myself, I got back a million times over without asking, without, you know, it's karma, it's the universe, it's a gift. 01:10:29 Holly Cashman Doy you know what ever happened to that gay bellboy in the hotel? 01:10:29 Joseph Murphy I lost track of him. I did meet his boyfriend, and he was older, probably 10 years older than him. And they seemed very happy. 01:10:40 Holly Cashman Do you think he ever knew what an impact he had on your life? 01:10:43 Joseph Murphy I I don't. Wow, I've never thought of that. No, I don't. Once I moved away, I was so wrapped up in trying to be who I was going to be. Yeah, I lost touch. Now you've got me on a mission. 01:11:01 Holly Cashman Now we have to move back there. 01:11:03 Joseph Murphy Yes. Yes. 01:11:05 Holly Cashman So what's next in your life? What are you doing now? What are you looking forward to? 01:11:15 Joseph Murphy I don't know that. I try not to really think about it a lot. I'm still working. Two reasons I'm still working is I couldn't live, I could survive on Social Security, but Security, but I don't want to just survive, I want to be able to live. So So I continue working. I work four days a week at the university, 30 hours. I love my job, I love working with the students and parents. 01:11:45 Holly Cashman Here at UNH? �01:11:50 Joseph Murphy Yeah, UNH in Durham. 01:11:52 Holly Cashman Okay, we're colleagues then. 01:11:54 Joseph Murphy Yes, I work in financial aid. 01:11:56 Holly Cashman Oh, we should meet up. 01:11:58 Joseph Murphy I never leave the office, I have my lunch delivered and everything. 01:12:01 Holly Cashman I know, that's the saddest thing, having lunch at your desk when I do the same thing. 01:12:05 Joseph Murphy But I've had some health challenges. I have peripheral arterial disease, which is blood flow. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Seacoast NH LGBTQ+ Oral History Project Description An account of the resource The NH Seacoast LGBT History Project was founded by Tom Kaufhold in 2015. Tom had been collecting papers, ephemera, and artifacts related to or created by the LGBTQ+ community on the Seacoast region of New Hampshire. To tell the story more fully, Holly Cashman, a professor at the University of New Hampshire, began collecting oral histories from the same community. <br /><br />With the assistance of interns and student workers, Dr. Cashman conducted ten interviews over a six-year period. The team processed each interview and created indexes and transcripts. Interviewees, also called narrators, were found through flyers and by visiting with local LGBTQ+ social groups such as Seacoast Gay Men. Participants were given the option to provide their full name or a partial name. This project is ongoing and Dr. Cashman and her team will continue conducting interviews which will be added to this site.<br /><br />Thanks to Holly Cashman, Tom Kaufhold, Aliya Sarris, Lily Pudlo, Zoe Dawson, the narrators, the interns, and the student workers who contributed to this project.<br /><br /><span>View the collections of the NH Seacoast LGBT History Project! Their video archive is available here: </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25</a><span> and the recordings of Women Singing OUT!, a lesbian-based choir, are available here </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32</a><span>.</span> Moving Image A series of visual representations that, when shown in succession, impart an impression of motion. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral history with Joseph Murphy, February 23, 2019 Subject The topic of the resource New Hampshire -- History LGBTQ+ history Gay men Description An account of the resource An oral interview with Joseph Murphy with transcript and index included. Topics discussed include alcoholism, Seacoast Gay Men, and AIDS. Recorded at the Portsmouth Public Library in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cashman, Holly (interviewer) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seacoast NH LGBT History Project Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-02-23 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Murphy, Joseph (interviewee) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">In copyright - educational use permitted</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource MOV 01:12:13 PDF Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource MovingImage Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 3. Joseph Murphy https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/dbfff6014c76f6310697a643884e3735.jpg b1b92b1812fbf5a26c3e854ea15482ef https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/2837545783a79e6026652962fb780bdc.mp3 0899f0706cd81156ae5a40945cc498e1 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Seacoast NH LGBTQ+ Oral History Project Description An account of the resource The NH Seacoast LGBT History Project was founded by Tom Kaufhold in 2015. Tom had been collecting papers, ephemera, and artifacts related to or created by the LGBTQ+ community on the Seacoast region of New Hampshire. To tell the story more fully, Holly Cashman, a professor at the University of New Hampshire, began collecting oral histories from the same community. <br /><br />With the assistance of interns and student workers, Dr. Cashman conducted ten interviews over a six-year period. The team processed each interview and created indexes and transcripts. Interviewees, also called narrators, were found through flyers and by visiting with local LGBTQ+ social groups such as Seacoast Gay Men. Participants were given the option to provide their full name or a partial name. This project is ongoing and Dr. Cashman and her team will continue conducting interviews which will be added to this site.<br /><br />Thanks to Holly Cashman, Tom Kaufhold, Aliya Sarris, Lily Pudlo, Zoe Dawson, the narrators, the interns, and the student workers who contributed to this project.<br /><br /><span>View the collections of the NH Seacoast LGBT History Project! Their video archive is available here: </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25</a><span> and the recordings of Women Singing OUT!, a lesbian-based choir, are available here </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32</a><span>.</span> Sound A resource whose content is primarily intended to be rendered as audio. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral history with Kevin, February 27, 2019 Subject The topic of the resource New Hampshire -- History LGBTQ+ history Gay men Description An account of the resource An oral interview with Kevin (audio only). Topics covered include parents, bullying, PRIDE, Portsmouth clubs, and reflections on modern times. Recorded at Murkland Hall at the University of New Hampshire. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cashman, Holly (interviewer) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seacoast NH LGBT History Project Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-02-27 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/?language=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">In copyright - educational use permitted</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource mp3 1:16:57 Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 4. Kevin https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/8c9e373b5a1c15c1ba9d8f501f6f0fdb.png 867cd657589400fbed722898a61c2eef https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/4848f67de2d4df08d755a8429c475389.mov cf5457dffa54859475fc4fa462ca2588 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/e40cfb8de9c0e98b7a4d869c1fbb3311.pdf 35a90805c7bba3bf1a2ae22ed4aedcbc PDF Text Text Randa oral history topics index Seacoast NH LGBTQ Oral History Project 00:34 – Manchester, NH [00:34-00:58, 26:20-27:14] 00:58 – University of New Hampshire, Durham [1:03, 19:54-20:54] 01:07 – Portsmouth, 1960s [01:07-06:43] 01:53 – New World Gallery 03:20 – Theater by the Sea [03:20, 20:54-22:12, 22:46-24:12] 03:36 – Jarvis’s Restaurant, Congress Street 04:58 – The Starlight Club, State Street [04:58-06:40] 06:44 – “Coming out” [06:44-13:24] 10:32 – AIDS [10:32, 13:34-14:19] 15:24 – UNH, Gay Students Organization [15:24-16:58] 18:02 – Stonewall [18:02-19:29] 19:29 – Portsmouth, post-Stonewall effects [19:29-20:54] 24:12 – Portsmouth, 1970s [24:12-26:12] 26:14 – Seattle 27:14 – Portsmouth, today [27:14-28:45] 30:51 – Religious journey [30:51-33:21] 31:01 – Metropolitan Community Church [31:01-33:21] 33:21 – North Carolina [39:08-42:21, 45:50-47:35] 34:43 – ACT UP 36:48 – Pulse Nightclub shooting [36:48-38:16] 38:16 – Current political climate [38:16-39:08] 44:17 – Duke University [44:17-45:50] 47:35 – Message for the future [47:35-49:33] � https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/83f8a588b3be435e51e24c5a027143c5.pdf 14f16e06334c0fa6183d3b8aef0673d7 PDF Text Text Randa – 8/12/2018 Seacoast NH LGBTQ Oral History Project 00:00:00 Holly Cashman And it'll start the counter. Yes, OK. So do you want to start just by introducing yourself, however you would like to? 00:00:10 Randa Oh, OK. So hi, I'm Randa. I identify with she, hers. And I am 71. I was born in New Hampshire. I have lived in a number of different places, but my adolescence and college was spent in New Hampshire. 00:00:32 Holly Cashman Okay. So that would be a great place to start actually, about where in New Hampshire were you originally from the Seacoast or did you come here from somewhere else? 00:00:44 Randa Manchester. 00:00:45 Holly Cashman Ah, okay. Okay. 00:00:46 Randa The Queen City. 00:00:47 Holly Cashman The Queen City. Now apparently people call it "Manch Vegas". I don't know what that's about. 00:00:53 Randa I don't either. Oh, that's interesting. 00:00:55 Holly Cashman Oh, it's all marketing. So what brought you to the Seacoast region of New Hampshire? 00:01:02 Randa So I went to the University of New Hampshire in Durham, just down the road. And also, so there was a coffee house in, I'm a singer, there was a coffee house in Portsmouth. And I spent many happy moments there and I'm grasping for the name of the coffee house suddenly, but it'll come to me. Yes, and so, but that's really what drew me here, was being a folk singer. I did that the summer before I went to college. Oh, okay. So it became part of my whole reason for coming to Portsmouth. 00:01:35 Holly Cashman �And so they had like open mics or singers that would perform at the coffee house? 00:01:42 Randa Right, they booked you and all of that. Oh, that's great. 00:01:45 Holly Cashman Okay, just obsessively checking. 00:01:47 Randa Okay, all right. 00:01:48 Holly Cashman So in the... 00:01:52 Randa New World Gallery, that was the name of the coffee house. 00:01:55 Holly Cashman Oh, okay, oh, interesting. 00:01:55 Randa The New World Gallery on Bow Street. 00:01:57 Holly Cashman On Bow Street, okay. Not there anymore. 00:02:01 Randa Oh, no. 00:02:03 Holly Cashman And so in what time frame was that? Like what decade? 00:02:08 Randa Sure, the 60s. 00:02:09 Holly Cashman The 60s, oh, okay. 00:02:10 Randa So I started college in 1965. Okay. So that was, so Earlier that year was when I was at the New World. �00:02:18 Holly Cashman And what was your impression of Portsmouth and Durham when you came? What was it like in the 60s? What do you remember? 00:02:29 Randa Yeah. Well, you know, I think when you're 18, anything is magical. That's different from home. Oh my God, it was magic. And of course, it was really then, it was a real sailor, Air Force type town. So I mean, it was just, it was everything that Norman Mailer ever described in any of his novels about. Really! It was dark and scary and delicious in every way. Yeah, thrilling. Yeah, just every kind of person. And many, and also very, very diverse because of the base of Pease. So, you know, it was great. 00:03:10 Holly Cashman What were some of the, other than the New World Gallery, what were some of the other places that you remember? 00:03:18 Randa Okay, so Theater by the Sea. 00:03:21 Holly Cashman Okay. 00:03:23 Randa And let's see. 00:03:24 Holly Cashman And that was on the street where 00:03:26 Randa It was on Ceres, yeah, it was just on that little side street, you know, just a half a block from the coffee house. 00:03:32 Holly Cashman Oh, so that was in the same series, right? 00:03:35 Randa Yeah, yeah. Of course, Jarvis's Restaurant, where I went, ate often, which is where the bus stop is. Jarvis's isn't there anymore. 00:03:44 Holly Cashman I don't think so. 00:03:45 Randa �Oh, OK. Oh, Jarvis's. All right, So it's on Congress. Anyway, that is where you could get anything you wanted. In terms of, I mean anything, I don't mean the food. Jarvis's was the focal point of street action, all of that. So Jarvis's, I remember Jarvis's. 00:04:04 Holly Cashman All of the lovely, delicious seediness of Portsmouth. 00:04:07 Randa Exactly, that's right, that's right, that's right. The full Monty on that, yeah. 00:04:13 Holly Cashman And when, So, and that was right in the same area of the theater and the... 00:04:21 Randa So basically, so it's on Congress. So there you are on both, so then you'd have to just go over Market. 00:04:27 Holly Cashman Just a little walk. 00:04:28 Randa And then take a little, yeah, turn, yeah. 00:04:31 Holly Cashman Other, well I mean, I shouldn't make assumptions. I was gonna say other like bars or nightlife. 00:04:36 Randa Oh, sure. 00:04:37 Holly Cashman But you were young. 00:04:38 Randa I was young, that's right. I was young and then that's a whole story about coming out and I mean, you know, what that was all about. But, you know, these things are, they are invisible and visible at the same time. So this woman who I just really thought was the greatest, duh, and so there was a club called the Starlight Club and it was on State Street. 00:05:03 Holly Cashman Okay. 00:05:03 Randa But it was down like a, it wasn't an alley, but it was a walkway between buildings. �00:05:11 Holly Cashman Okay. 00:05:11 Randa And it was sort of a secret, a secret place at that point in the mid-60s. So she would always invite me to the Starlight Club, and I only went once. I mean, I was, you know, I was scared of everything imaginable that would be different, you know, even though, you know, we find out, oh, That's where the truth is. But yeah, yeah, so that's the gay part. But I knew a few gay people, but still gay was still like a, you know, scary. And, no, scary, no, Wrong word. You know, it was just hidden. It was so hidden. Yeah. So you didn't know. Yeah. 00:05:55 Holly Cashman So was the Starlight Club a generally kind of alternative place? Was it specifically a gay place? 00:06:04 Randa Oh, that's a good question. So it was, so again, it's the 60s, right? So it's even mid-60s. And it's Portsmouth. So, you know, like the idea of a New York-type club, no. It was just a dark place, mostly men, some women. That's all, you know, just it had no, it was, the only theme was it was dark. 00:06:29 Holly Cashman And things can happen in the dark. 00:06:31 Randa Oh yes, oh no, no, absolutely. But that's my point, it was as dark as the idea of, oh I'm gay, you know. 00:06:39 Holly Cashman And pre-Stonewall, pre00:06:41 Randa Pre-Stonewall, that's right. 00:06:43 Holly Cashman So when, after moving here and college, when did you either start to kind of question your own identity, start to make any kind of more public declarations of it to friends or to other folks? 00:07:05 Randa Yeah, boy, that took me a long time. But my very best friend, her name was Dina, of course she'd want me to give you her entire life history besides her whole name and everything else. She was wild. She just died in May. Yeah. She was my first love of my life. And that happened my freshman year in college. But I'd known her in high school. And so it was traumatic and secret. And we both flunked out of school. She was at Syracuse. So it took a long time, and then I turned away from it because I was too scared if my parents ever found out. It was awful. Yeah, it was awful. But she and I stayed friends. But then, finally, really, literally, in like 19... That's awful. Like in 1982 probably I really came out. How awful is that? �00:08:00 Holly Cashman Twenty years of... 00:08:01 Randa Right, yeah, but I mean, twenty years of course of being gay as gay can be, but, you know, maybe not as can be, but yeah, so. Yeah, that was tough, but then I came out, and then, you know, when you're in show business, particularly then, it's just, it's the kiss of death. 00:08:22 Holly Cashman Oh, okay. 00:08:23 Randa I mean, this was the early 80s. It's hard to believe in a way. Well, no, it's not, it shouldn't be. It still is, kind of. But as a singer, so that's what I was trying to be. And I didn't have K.D. Lang's courage, you know, well, and maybe not her voice, but so yeah, it was not a happy time. 00:08:49 Holly Cashman I think the reason I might have looked surprised when you said that because you also think maybe of like theater and arts as being a place where people are more accepting, but then even if people are more accepting on a personal level, as far as making the leap to stardom, that would be where it was a kiss of death. 00:09:11 Randa That's right. I mean, if you're going for the brass ring, if you're viewing yourself as having a chance at making it. In this particular, such narrow way. You just manipulate as much as you can about yourself that you think will fit. I mean, No surprise on that. 00:09:31 Holly Cashman No, that makes sense. 00:09:32 Randa And then you have to just give that up. Now, what were the chances anyway, but that's, that you were gonna make it a person's, you know, that's "a million sad stories in the lights of Broadway"... But that's all. It's just the self-perception of, if I show that. Meanwhile, looking totally, completely like lesbian city, like dyke-o-rama, and you're thinking, oh yeah, little lipstick, some earrings. No, complete and utter, beyond. Yeah. 00:10:09 Holly Cashman So was it one of those things like when you tell people and they were like, yeah, or were people shocked? 00:10:15 Randa Each, each, each, each kind, each, each, each type. Yeah. But mostly, well I was wondering when you're gonna tell me that whole that whole normal story yeah �00:10:24 Holly Cashman yeah and was it around the same time that you also came out to your family or were you not still close to them? 00:10:31 Randa Oh, God. Oh, my God. Well, so AIDS, AIDS happened. And my very best male friend, his name was John. I mean, my best. And so John got sick. And then I was his main person to- I mean he had tons of friends, but on the line of the list I was the one to call first so he was also from Manchester So just unbelievable. So 1985 I bet or '86, I had brought John home to see his family and I went home and my mother said something a little disparaging about being gay, loving John, but... And she said, well, she said, I'm certainly glad you're not like that. You know, and I said, okay, universe. Door pushed open a tad. Let's open the damn door. And I said, well, Ma, you know, I wouldn't exactly say that. So that's how that happened. So it took, it took, it took a little while. You know, we went through the no money, no this, no that, as if there was money. But I mean, it was all she could really, you know, come up with. My father, my father, he had a little bit of a drinking situation, so he was in and out of, you know, so I never, my mother, she kind of made it clear, don't really discuss it with your father. But he had to know from day one. I'm sure he did, so. 00:12:07 Holly Cashman I can picture kind of the, on the one hand you have the situations where you're like planning a whole coming out thing, you're working your way up to it, but this was just like spur of the moment, I can't let this comment pass. Wow. 00:12:23 Randa It was a gift, actually it was a gift to me. Yeah, which, you know, John provided me with that gift. Yeah. 00:12:31 Holly Cashman Wow, But also super courageous to be like, doors open, I'm coming through, come on. 00:12:36 Randa Well, yeah, yeah, yeah. But, you know, at that point I was almost 40. So you know, really, you know, type of deal. 00:12:48 Holly Cashman And also seemingly coming from a place of your friendship with him and not wanting to let kind of that half-insult kind of thing stand. 00:13:02 Randa Yeah, yeah, that's true. That's true. I mean, but she came around big time. I mean, as life went on, I mean, really supportive. Oh my God, had my back, always, yeah. 00:13:12 Holly Cashman Oh, that's fantastic. 00:13:13 Randa �Oh yeah, yeah. She wasn't in P-FLAG or anything, but she, you know, the heart was with me. 00:13:22 Holly Cashman So when that was going on and you brought John back to Manchester to visit his family, you were living in Portsmouth? 00:13:31 Randa Okay, no. By then I had moved to New York. 00:13:34 Holly Cashman Ah, okay. 00:13:35 Randa Yeah. 00:13:36 Holly Cashman Okay, so the whole experience of the AIDS crisis in the community you experienced in New York? 00:13:43 Randa I did experience that in New York, yeah, yeah. 00:13:45 Holly Cashman Wow. And I mean, I can't even start to imagine what that would have been like. 00:13:53 Randa Yeah, that was tough. So many, everybody lost everybody. Yeah. Yeah, I lost John, he was my piano player. I lost my manager. And yeah, well we all did, we all lost our best friends, we lost our history. But here you are, you're gonna make it happen that it will not be gone. That's great. 00:14:19 Holly Cashman It's such, I mean, the kind of origin from this project came from Tom, who reached out to you, and kind of thinking a few years ago, like, oh, a few years from now, It will be the 50th anniversary of Stonewall Like we need to do something about that and there'll be things in New York and in LA, but what about what about smaller places where there is still a history that people lived and experienced and you don't see that in the documentaries or read about it in the books. So I'm super excited that he had that light bulb turn on and then the rest of us can can benefit from it. 00:15:09 Randa Well in terms of the Seacoast I will say so so I was here from '65 essentially really until '74. 00:15:21 Oh, okay. Holly Cashman �00:15:22 Randa So a lot happened in that time around the gay liberation movement. And so at UNH, there was a Gay Students Organization and it's gotten a little press lately which is great through UNH kind of circles. But I was a theater major and a number of my friends were in the GSO. And it was really, really pretty thrilling. Very, very out. So therefore, very, very demeaned and all of that. So that was kind of, that was always, it was like, Jesus, should I be in GSO? Well, no, you're not gay. Oh, oh, oh, okay, yeah, you're not gay. You know, that kind of thing. And yes, yes. 00:16:26 Holly Cashman So when you say the kind of internal monologue of whether or not to join and the, well you're not gay, meaning you're kind of not comfortable even admitting this to yourself at this point. It wasn't that, just to clarify, that it's not like you're not gay, you're a lesbian and it's only men who are involved. 00:16:48 Randa Oh, I see. Oh, good, good point, yeah. No, no, no, it was me saying, oh, I'm absolutely not a lesbian. Yeah, yeah, and... 00:16:55 Holly Cashman I just can't be, I'm not gonna... 00:16:56 Randa Yeah, I'm just, you know, and in the meantime, of course, my friends, my really close friends, they were using the word dyke, and they were really going for it in terms of a lot of witchy stuff, a lot of stuff that kind of was early lesbian culture. Not the earliest lesbian culture, but a certain thing that was happening in San Francisco that was spreading, and they were into that full tilt, camping in the woods, bacchanal, I mean, just having a great time. And you know, I was just uptight. Yeah. 00:17:36 Holly Cashman So it's not that you didn't know people or see that they were out there, it was that you did and they were kind of terrifying. 00:17:42 Randa Yes, I just thought, just so judgmental. Oh, so bad. We learn, I guess. What can I say? We learn. 00:17:54 Holly Cashman And kick yourself for all of the fun you're gonna have. 00:17:57 Randa I try to make up for some of it. 00:17:59 Holly Cashman Yeah, good. So even though, so we were saying that you experienced the kind of devastation of the AIDS crisis in New York, but you experienced kind of Stonewall, pre-Stonewall and post-Stonewall here. Did you hear about it? What did you think about it? How did people react to that riot moment? �00:18:26 Randa Right. Of course, Judy Garland was my idol. So that was definitely, I really got that big time that that was part of this piece. I mean, as time has gone on, we've learned more and more about who was standing where and when and all that, and really what was motivating them. No, I thought it was fantastic. But I mean, I believed in revolution. And I believe in revolution. Or evolution, I'm not sure what to call it. But if you've got to throw the bottle because you're just... But what are you going to do? That's the only option you have. And by any means, necessary is a really deep conversation to have. But yeah, I thought it was fantastic. And I really identified with those men who were drag queens and they were just saying this is who I am. I even knew then even though I was having my own thing I knew how strong and brave that was. Yeah. 00:19:29 Holly Cashman And was there at that time was there any kind of ripple effect in Portsmouth? Were people being harassed in similar ways by the police here? Did people kind of have any similar pushback? 00:19:52 Randa Boy, yeah. That's a good question. You know what? I was not part enough of what we would call subculture in that way to know. I can't answer that. Yeah. You know, UNH, I mean, you know, it's a bubble environment, particularly then, I mean, particularly then. Definitely the white ivory tower business, particularly white being the operative word on that. 00:20:20 Holly Cashman Still is in a lot of ways. 00:20:23 Randa Yeah, I know it is. So we were protected from that. That was in our life, you know? I don't recall that. And again, yeah, bad I'm white. I mean, you know, no, no, you know, there could have been a whole thing, but you know, the Black, the Black gay men, nevermind Black lesbians, God, I hadn't ever heard of a black lesbian in Portsmouth. You know, of course there were, but I didn't know them. 00:20:54 Holly Cashman What about this kind of, when I was reading the description of this reunion show online, it described this theater renaissance or the golden years. When did you get involved with the Theater by the Sea and what was that like? 00:21:16 Randa So I graduated in '71, and so the '71, '72 season, I did their children's theater season. So I was the director of the children's theater whatever. And my friend Dina, who I mentioned, Dina and I put together what we called the Surprise Theater. And that's what we did for the children's season. And to say it was a surprise, It was far more of a surprise to Dina and I what was going to happen than it was to the children. So I did that and then years went by and then I did the park in the early 80s. So that was my... But I mean, I hung with some of the people, but I was—music was really what I was going for more than acting at that point. 00:22:10 Holly Cashman �Right. And in that community or in those kinds of—after you graduated from UNH and were living in Portsmouth? 00:22:21 Randa I actually, I lived in Durham because I had an unbelievable situation there. But I was in Portsmouth all the time. I mean Portsmouth was a place to be, you know. The coffee house was here. It's still, was it still here? Yeah, it must have been. Yeah, I guess so. But, you know, I had a band, I was traveling around. So I was just, my home was Durham, my home base. 00:22:46 Holly Cashman And were there other, so were there people involved in the theater, in this Theater by the Sea, that you knew that were out? Were there other people that you knew that were out at that time? 00:23:01 Randa Yeah, no. Yeah, no. Boy, isn't that interesting? I mean, there would be occasionally an actor and I would wonder, but it, yeah, it never, so fascinating. 00:23:18 Holly Cashman It is. 00:23:19 Randa No, it is. It's just, it's, but it's the truth. You know, whatever, through, you know, glasses looking backward. It seems awful, but it was what it was. 00:23:32 Holly Cashman Well, and also, who could have imagined what's happened between then and now? 00:23:37 Randa I know, oh my God, I know. I mean, I assumed that the director of the theater, kind of I thought maybe he might've been gay. Of course he totally is. And just, I'm seeing him, I've seen him during this reunion. Lovely man. Hard director. And so, yeah. So in a way it would be like, oh well, he's in this position of power and he's gay. So that was kind of a touchstone, or thinking he was, yeah. 00:24:11 Holly Cashman And in the, can you think of other, even though it was all kind of like blurry or shadows or not really part of your world, other places or spaces that you kind of associate, even looking back like, oh, I bet that place was, or I bet that is trying to kind of bring to life what the '70s in Portsmouth might have looked like for people. 00:24:42 Randa Yeah, oh boy. There was a club out of town, out on the outskirts, it was a really good dance club, but I can't remember the name of it, but it was women and men together and it was probably, that was like a '70 from '72, '73, '74 on versus the Starlight Club, which you know, oh yes, whole different. So and you know, gay men would bring their straight women friends and, you know, just everybody would have a good time there. That I remember. But in terms of a place of thinking, well, where do gay people gather? That was not on my radar. Yeah, and I think women and men, it was really separate �then. Gay women and gay men. Lesbians and gay men. I'll use the word lesbians, I know I keep saying gay, gay, but gay, yeah, yeah, lesbians and gay men. It wasn't, even in New York it was that way. Well, you know, that's sort of how it is. Yeah. Still even. 00:25:49 Holly Cashman Still. 00:25:51 Randa We're working that. Yeah. Yeah. Still. 00:25:57 Holly Cashman And especially looking at like clubs and organizations and groups they still tend to be very-- Or can be very separate 00:26:09 Randa yes, that's right. That's right 00:26:13 Holly Cashman After so it was like '74 so you said that you left for New York? 00:26:20 Randa So '74, I moved to Seattle. Because I wanted to learn how to live in a city before I moved to New York. But I have some physical issues, and this is one of those, you believe somebody when you shouldn't have, or not, I don't know. But out there a doctor told me I really should not live in a city because of cement, I have a bad hip, because of cement and wear and tear. So I went back to Manchester. Oh my God. So then, it was great, I had a great thing in Manchester. I got to be in a lot of plays and everything, but Ultimately I ended up in New York. But even when I lived in Manchester, then I would trek to Portsmouth because it was so much freer. I mean, it was just, and it was my place. I mean, you know, yeah. 00:27:14 Holly Cashman And coming back now, I mean, I'm imagining that in the intervening years you've been here and seen changes, but how does it strike you now that you're back compared to how it was then? 00:27:30 Randa Yeah, oh it's night and day. Yeah, but commercially, specifically, it's night and day. Yes, from a perspective, now, of course, I'm older, and I've been in a relationship for a long time. I'm not perceiving what's going on with the younger crowd of gay people. But I will say it's always fascinating to me, endlessly fascinating how people are out in whatever way they are. I just am so excited by that and my astonishment, my excitement, and then And then thinking, is it a role or is it real? And then I say, you know what? It matters not. Because you're being seen. And you're being seen, and then it just, that moves stuff along to be seen. And I never understood that before. You know, but, you know, youth is youth. But that's thrilling to me. So that I see in Portsmouth all over the place. So that's exciting. Yeah. 00:28:43 Holly Cashman �It seems, I think, to be, I mean, it's something that also always blows my mind to see like gay student or gay-straight alliances in high schools and students who come to UNH and they're already out and it's like, what a world! 00:29:05 Randa I know it, I know it. And it just proves that there are those among us that were so strong that guided these kids. I mean, you're gonna be who you are and whatever, but boy, I just keep thinking somehow, there's a through line from those who learned so much about AIDS and learned so much about, I should say, suffering is what I mean, and then life. And then just said, you know, I'm gonna be a teacher, I'm gonna just, all that. I love that, I love that idea. 00:29:44 Holly Cashman The various kinds of progress that has come along, you know, the marriage equality or in some cases the protection from being fired for being gay, for example, even in schools. It's remarkable to think that that has all happened. 00:30:12 Randa Right. 00:30:12 Holly Cashman Back from the days in the late 60s and early 70s, for example, at UNH where a gay student organization wasn't even allowed to be recognized. 00:30:24 Randa That's right. That's right. 00:30:25 Holly Cashman It's, it's amazing. Yeah. Yeah. So where, after leaving Portsmouth and Seattle and Manchester, what kind of broad strokes, you mentioned being in a relationship for a long time, like where is your kind of life and identity and all of that? 00:30:50 Randa Sure. Good, yeah, the journey. So, let's see. So there I was in New York and I'd come out in the 80s. My friend Jeff told me, Jeff was from New Hampshire, he moved to New York and he said, there's this gay and lesbian church. Now at that point I was an atheist, I grew up Catholic and felt very, very, very, it was so sad, I just felt so sad in so many ways. So abandoned. So many Catholics. I mean, it was really painful, the Catholic church, but at any rate, I just thought, so I was an atheist, you know, what does that have to do with not being Catholic? Nothing, but that was where I went. Anyway, so Jeff says, this is church. I laughed, I said, you've got to be kidding me, that's the funniest thing I've ever heard. And he said, no, well, long story short, Metropolitan Community Church? Oh my God. First real political gay organization in this country. I mean, there was the Mattachine Society, but MCC does not get its due. I'm telling you, it was. So that's where, actually the person I've been with now for 33 years, She was a pastor in Metropolitan Community Church. Yeah, and so that's where then I just really, the political met, because I was political very much during the Vietnam War, and that's where the political finally, then I was, I landed where I belonged. Out, political, then trying to suddenly deal with language, with the pronouns in my music, et cetera, and learning from everyone around me. So I just, I kind of had a New York life, but then AIDS came very quickly after that. And then that defined what so many of us did. You know, women, this is of course, I'm talking about white �people, not talking about in the Black community, but this is just white gay men with white lesbians, some Black, but you know we learned about the color line slowly. So then I was gay. I mean, I was a lesbian, I mean, you know, I'm so mad, "silence equals death", et cetera. So I think that's the answer. It's just that then my partner changed careers after eleven funerals a week for six years, she really had to, yeah, change careers. So she went into nursing. That's a lovely change. And then Duke University offered her money to finish and get a master's. My career was, you know, so we moved to North Carolina in '94. So we had lost, I mean, we lost so many people between '89 and 9'3, we were breathless. I mean, we just couldn't, yeah. So again, my story is so many people's stories, so I'm not saying that as my own little tragic thing. I'm just, you know, it was so real. 00:34:09 Holly Cashman And I think it's hard for anyone who didn't live through it to really get their mind around what that was like. And so I think as many times as people can see that that is, like you said, everybody's story, that it helps get that point across. 00:34:32 Randa Yeah. Yeah, I mean, we knew more about, God, about pneumocystis. I mean, we were all like studying chemistry. I mean, and ACT UP. That was, ACT UP was, thank God for them. Really, it was thrilling, because they really said to the government, sorry, sorry, no. And so that mattered. That really mattered. And to be part of that, you felt at least a little bit of empowerment. 00:35:00 Holly Cashman That you could do something. 00:35:01 Randa Yes. Or at least you were, yes, you were not alone. You were not alone. 00:35:10 Holly Cashman I mean, I think in my case, it's like knowing people who are surviving, right? And who are taking their medicine, thankful to have health insurance. In 2005, no, it would have been a little bit earlier than that. 2004, I lost a friend. And it makes me so angry that it happened so long after, in the time when it could have been prevented. But he didn't want to face it, didn't want to accept help from people, and it was awful. But to imagine that happening over dozens and dozens of people that you knew is staggering to me. I can't even imagine it. 00:36:05 Randa Well, it's that the shame is so powerful and the messages are so powerful. Yeah. That, you know, and you just, I mean, that's what Karen, Karen found, Karen's the name of my partner, if I hadn't mentioned that. She found that she endlessly did, she would do meditations with a young man and she would say, Just know that Jesus loves you. Now, I'm just not necessarily, I mean, that was the, you know, she's since then become a Buddhist, but she had a relationship with Jesus that way. I wanna explain this right. And you know, And she said that was all she had to give them, to let them know. And I'm telling you, in New York, so a young man dies. His parents come from Idaho or Indiana. They had no idea he was gay. And the only thing they knew was he went to this church. And so there's Karen. I mean, I'm trying to I'm telling her story, but I'm with her and she's the parents turned to her to say, you know pastor what Tell us about our son and she would get to tell them about their son who they didn't know that son, that part of their son. I mean... 00:37:23 Holly Cashman �And in some ways, even looking at all the progress that's happened, you heard that kind of story happen after the Pulse nightclub shooting. And in that case instead of coming from Idaho people were coming from Puerto Rico or coming from from outside the country and and having the same experience. And even just like during the early days of the AIDS crisis when people were afraid of the bodies, people not wanting to claim the bodies of their relatives, it's just heartbreaking. 00:37:57 Randa It is, it is. 00:37:59 Holly Cashman To imagine those same conversations? 00:38:03 Randa I know. Yeah. Always sobering when we're all kind of full of this, like, well, marriage and la la la la, and then, you know, just, Yeah, it's deep. 00:38:16 Holly Cashman And then the current political climate has a lot of people wondering if we're going to be going back, right? 00:38:27 Randa Right. Yep. So just fortunately good people are working hard to try to not let that happen. But I mean, if it comes to it, and boots are put over heads and forced to the floor, then there are going to be a lot of people outed. And that's it. I mean, it's going to be info to info warfare. You know, yeah man, you're gay, you're a Republican, or you're a Democrat, I mean, wherever they stand, but it's just gonna get ugly. Let's get real, you know, that kind of stuff. So I think that's gonna happen. If, I'm just saying that will be the response to that. If we start getting all this stuff turned back. 00:39:09 Holly Cashman Where do you see, and are you still in North Carolina? 00:39:14 Randa Yes, I am, I am, yep. 00:39:17 Holly Cashman Where do you see kind of the present, future? Are you hopeful? Are you... Does it depend on the day? 00:39:28 Randa That's good. That's a good question, too. So, after the initial shock of what happened, and then the starting to really reveal itself, so Karen, who has really, I mean, she was a professional lesbian as a pastor out with the church, et cetera, et cetera. And then after the church, then she founded a few AIDS organizations. So Karen and I together, because I'm kind of the music, but Karen's really the person behind it. So we do a rally every week in front of the federal building in Raleigh, North Carolina against Senator Tom Tillis. I'm not trying to speak to Senator Tom Tillis, who won't even talk to us. So we do rallies every week. We've gathered a community. We've done it every Tuesday �since the election. So we do it all the time. So gathering together as slowly as this has grown, then you get a little bit of hope, because the only hope we have is in each other. You know, that's where I'm coming from. So, because we can't believe it. It's just, you can't touch it. It's so unbelievable. So that's why. Do I have hope? I have hope. Because if nothing else, we really have, we're starting to actually have to talk to each other about what we believe. And really, so... You know, I mean, I've got my own, you know, yes, I love the Statue of Liberty. You know, yes, I have friends who are Black who say, you've got to be kidding me. You know, and also, I'm trying to come out of a fog myself about all that, you know, two Americas, oh, didn't you know? That's been going on for a long time, blah, blah, blah. So, but I've got hope. I do, because I think people are really doing some personal work. 00:41:25 Holly Cashman And what you just said really resonates with me too about how the hope is kind of in the community and in the other people. 00:41:33 Randa Right, right. 00:41:34 Holly Cashman And the idea of kind of every week not letting, just not letting up. 00:41:41 Randa Right, that's right, that's right. That's right. Because that's, it's for nothing to be, pardon me, perhaps even grandiose, it's a spiritual practice. I mean, you are there every Tuesday. It is church. It happens to be the Church of Democracy or the Church of the Hope for Democracy or whatever. I mean, I made that up right now. I like it. Yeah. But it's just, we're angry, and it's a way to express that, and we talk amongst each other, as well as we have speakers, and then of course a few little tunes to just inspire, which is music's real job. So, yeah. 00:42:21 Holly Cashman It is, and I think one of the things that I, looking for community after moving down to Massachusetts, to Newburyport, I was kind of marveled at how my mom, who'd retired and moved up to York, she had all these friends and she knew all these people and she was always busy and I'm like, how come I don't know anyone yet? And so she said, well, it's because I joined the church. I was like, well, I'm kind of like you had the reaction back in New York. I thought, well, that's not really what I'm interested in. But I ended up joining the Unitarian Church in Newburyport. And if I had not been going there regularly when the election happened I don't know what I would have done. And the Sunday after the election I remember the first hymn that people started singing, I just started sobbing And I don't know where it even came from, but I was not the only one. Because the music has that something. It can inspire, it can let you, kind of a catharsis. But it definitely is necessary. 00:43:37 Randa It is. It's part of revolution. It always has been. The drumbeat. 00:43:43 Holly Cashman So even though kind of coming out and in a way kind of letting go of the idea that you are going to be a star. Music is still and singing has still been a part of your whole life. 00:44:01 Randa �Right, right. Yeah, so I mean, I still have been singing and all that. That's right, that's right. 00:44:07 Holly Cashman And having that kind of, having it be part of your activism, having it be part of your, having it be a career. 00:44:17 Randa Yes, that's right. I mean, I was very lucky. You know, I couldn't get arrested in show business, but at Duke University, I was at the right place at the right time. So, I got a job at Duke training actors to, I had a little department within the School of Medicine, training actors to work with medical students and residents on doctor-patient communication, which is of course part of the whole picture of our entire well-being. So it was, so, you know, I just was very lucky. So I get to sing, but then I didn't have to worry about how I was gonna pay the rent. So that kind of worked out. 00:44:59 Holly Cashman But what amazing work and also kind of an interesting through line with the AIDS activism and then working with future medical personnel to be better at working with people. Wow. 00:45:14 Randa That's right. Because that was, now I never, you know, yeah, that's, well, I hadn't thought of that. But that's right. I mean, the doctor thing was pretty tough in New York, except not all doctors. Oh, some doctors were, And doctors in North Carolina were pretty amazing, too. Yeah, when we went there, then we started hearing all the AIDS stories from North Carolina. Much, a little bit different than New York. There's a much less population, but... Yeah, anyway. 00:45:47 Holly Cashman And North Carolina is a state that's been pretty rapidly changing as well as far as not just being kind of a Black and White population, but also with a lot of Latinos and growth in Latinos and I imagine now kind of a language issue, a different kind of language issue coming in with what medical folks are working. 00:46:15 Randa Yes, yes and they're trying to stay ahead of that. But, North Carolina right now, super majority Republican in the state representation. Governor's a Democrat, but just barely is he governor. And it's only because the previous governor bought into this thing that they loved to call the "bathroom bill", which was they had the whole thing about transsexual kids. Anyway, he fortunately lost that election. But, so we have a lot of work to do in North Carolina. And we are, it's, yeah, it's, there's a lot of work to do. Because this whole thing that's happened with the border has really affected everybody in North Carolina who is Latino. I mean, you just can feel it when you're with them. You can just feel it. Because a lot of people come to our our rally that we do because we talk about DACA We talk about now, of course, it's who's even talking about DACA anymore. It's like, what? Yeah. 00:47:30 Holly Cashman What kind of if you had this seems kind of a contrived question, but like if you had a message for someone who's watching this video ten years from now, twenty years from now, what would you want to say about your experience, about anything really that something that you would hope travels �or remains after we're all out of here? 00:48:09 Randa Right, that's right. Okay, I will say that for me, without my friends, I would have been dead a long time ago. You know, the low self-esteem that comes with being kind of just put down in society for whatever reason. You have to fight so hard and you need friends to support you. So the thing is, I guess what I would say is, who we are is our strength. Who we are is what we have to give to make our community stronger and stronger. And that's the magic. That's the magic. It's when who you are comes out and you can give that away. That's where it's gonna make a difference. And serving and making a difference is the most beautiful feeling there is, you know, connecting. So that's what I would say is just, ugh, the hard it as hard as it is to be who you are, Oh my God is it hard. It takes so much. But when you are, you're giving the greatest gift you can to others. So they see what it looks like and then they say, Yeah, I can be myself. Okay. Yeah. 00:49:33 Holly Cashman That's great. Thank you. 00:49:35 Randa Thank you. 00:49:36 Holly Cashman Thank you for taking the time in this super busy weekend. And I think that's a super powerful message. 00:49:43 Randa Great, great, great. 00:49:46 Holly Cashman I think our battery lasted. That's good. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Seacoast NH LGBTQ+ Oral History Project Description An account of the resource The NH Seacoast LGBT History Project was founded by Tom Kaufhold in 2015. Tom had been collecting papers, ephemera, and artifacts related to or created by the LGBTQ+ community on the Seacoast region of New Hampshire. To tell the story more fully, Holly Cashman, a professor at the University of New Hampshire, began collecting oral histories from the same community. <br /><br />With the assistance of interns and student workers, Dr. Cashman conducted ten interviews over a six-year period. The team processed each interview and created indexes and transcripts. Interviewees, also called narrators, were found through flyers and by visiting with local LGBTQ+ social groups such as Seacoast Gay Men. Participants were given the option to provide their full name or a partial name. This project is ongoing and Dr. Cashman and her team will continue conducting interviews which will be added to this site.<br /><br />Thanks to Holly Cashman, Tom Kaufhold, Aliya Sarris, Lily Pudlo, Zoe Dawson, the narrators, the interns, and the student workers who contributed to this project.<br /><br /><span>View the collections of the NH Seacoast LGBT History Project! Their video archive is available here: </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25</a><span> and the recordings of Women Singing OUT!, a lesbian-based choir, are available here </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32</a><span>.</span> Moving Image A series of visual representations that, when shown in succession, impart an impression of motion. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral history with Randa, August 12, 2018 Subject The topic of the resource New Hampshire -- History LGBTQ+ history Lesbians Description An account of the resource An oral interview with Randa, transcript included. Topics discussed include UNH, AIDS, religion, and the current political climate. Recorded at the Discover Portsmouth Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cashman, Holly (interviewer) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seacoast NH LGBT History Project Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2018-08-12 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">In copyright - educational use permitted</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource mp4 0:49:51 PDF Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource MovingImage Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 2. Randa https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/1e25d1157ade5c6ba360e400cb69c326.png 5497c0330567aa881ede235e6b014a96 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/601656ab2b73b92715f1743175d5c2c1.mp4 628e46fee79f19ec68498dc7d5b5d056 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/7cf95aac99bfd0a57d7ca79b2621ba2c.pdf e65f83a794adc0da2e21ff9ce65fe161 PDF Text Text Randon T. Eddy oral history topics index Seacoast NH LGBTQ Oral History Project 1:10 – Childhood, Long Island, NY 1:30 – Summer camp, Bow Lake, Strafford, NH; [2:30-3:00] 3:00 – College, Iowa Wesleyan College [3:00-4:17] 4:17 – Graduate school, Michigan State [4:17-4:26] 4:27 – teaching career, Title IX, inequality in women’s and men’s athletics [4:27-6:00] 6:08 – Peace Corps [6:08-6:48] 7:43 – Iris, initial idea for a women’s bar, finding the location [7:43 – 9:30] 7:53 – Newmarket, NH 9:40 – Liquor license, discrimination [9:40 – 12:37, 30:12 - 30:42] 12:50 – Iris, renovating the space [12:50 – 15:53] 14:22 – Iris, sign getting stolen [14:22, 28:55 – 29:57] 15:54 – Iris, events and communication [15:54 – 18:01] 18:37 – Iris, physical description [18:37 - 20:20] 22:10 – Iris, second sign 23:00 – Financial issues, unemployment 25:10 – Annual Christmas dinner event in Ogunquit 26:26 – Community [26:26 – 26:46] 27:01 – Iris, moving location, closing [27:01 - 28:09] 28:14 – Randon leaving Iris [28:14 – 28:55] 31:23 – lesbian life in 1980s [31:23 - 33:23] 34:00 – Message for future LGBTQ+ community � https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/aaec07353afcddd52aa11284ab59ca62.pdf 1656916ffa54122855f7dfb1c7b96ea8 PDF Text Text Randon T. Eddy transcript – 9/28/2023 00:00:00 Holly Cashman And it should be recording. Hi, this is Holly Cashman. I am in Durham, New Hampshire. It's Thursday, September 28th, 2023, and I'm recording an oral history with Randon Eddy for the Seacoast New Hampshire LGBTQ Oral History Project. Good morning. 00:00:22 Randon T. Eddy Good morning to you, Holly. I am talking to you from Palm Coast, Florida, just south of St. Augustine. I've been down here in this town for going on 10 years. I moved north from Sanibel Island. And every day since a year ago today, I'm extraordinarily thankful that I did leave the area. But my heart is broken for those people and the environment. So welcome. Here we go. 00:00:51 Holly Cashman And that is your artwork behind you, which is beautiful. 00:00:55 Randon T. Eddy Yes, it is. 00:00:55 Holly Cashman What a beautiful setting. 00:00:57 Randon T. Eddy Thank you. 00:00:58 Holly Cashman So, my first question is about where you grew up. Did you grow up in the Portsmouth area or did you move here? 00:01:10 Randon T. Eddy Well, I grew up until I could escape, which was college, on Long Island, New York in Huntington. But as a child, starting in 1956, I was sent away to summer camp on Bow Lake, which is Northwood and Strafford. The camp was on the Strafford side of the lake. And I went there every summer for five years as a camper, which was glorious. And then as an adult, I wound up buying property across the lake and up the Hill from the same lake and spent ten fabulous, soul healing years in that environment. So Portsmouth came through the many lists of towns that I lived in in New Hampshire, but I was in Dover at the time that Portsmouth came in as far as developing Iris. So it was that sequence. 00:02:14 Holly Cashman So do you mind sharing your age? 00:02:18 Randon T. Eddy Oh, no. I just turned, in July, I just turned 76. 00:02:24 Holly Cashman Wonderful. 00:02:24 Randon T. Eddy �So I, I earned every gray hair I have. There are a few. 00:02:32 Holly Cashman And so how old were you when you started coming to the camp in New Hampshire? 00:02:38 Randon T. Eddy I turned nine that summer and went on to five summers there as a camper. And I spent five summers over a 10year period as a counselor at the same camp, and interspersed another one out in Colorado, just for a little variety, but that was right after college. 00:03:03 Holly Cashman And where did you go to college? 00:03:06 Randon T. Eddy I went to college in Iowa, my assistant is helping me with the wiring, so excuse me, at Iowa Wesleyan College, which at the time was the oldest college west of the Mississippi River. And it was a very interesting and marvelous experience to be out in the Midwest and see what that lifestyle is like compared to Long Island, New York, back in the 50s, 60s, which was a lot calmer than it is now. The sad thing is that after two hundred and some odd years that college closed this year, which is tragic because I mean, that's a historical site, but that's another story Moving right along. 00:03:51 Holly Cashman It's so sad. The pandemic has done that to a lot of really amazing, amazing higher educational institutions that were already struggling before and then the pandemic just was the final straw. 00:04:08 Randon T. Eddy Well, I got my undergrad degree there in physical education, recreation minor in biology and health. I went on to Michigan State, got a master's degree and taught there. They cut the budget, took 16 of us and said, "see ya". I wound up over in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and taught at the community college there, which was five times bigger than my undergrad school. I was the first woman in the physical education department, coached the first teams they ever had, had three sports, had two winning seasons, all under, for the three of them, the budget I had for the three of them was less than the smallest men's budget. That was needless to say before Title IX. They went on and on and said, how wonderful you are. We know we can ask you to teach anything, you're golden. And then proceeded to cut the budget and got rid of me, but they wanted me to coach. And I said, no. So I wound up back in New Hampshire. And the summer of '77, interviewed at West Point Military Academy. That would have been disastrous. He wanted me. I asked, you know, what is my freedom? And he pointed to a threeinch thick binder and said, you follow that word for word. And I said, "bye". Got a job at Mount Wachusett Community College as the aquatics director. The state had just set up the budget for that. The building was there, the pool was there. It would have been mine to direct the whole nine yards. And the state took the money back from the school to fund the teachers and any programs. So it took seven weeks for them to decide that. And I said, "I'm done, I'm done with education. I've been given my heart and soul and they keep cutting budgets". So I stepped out of that and went into industry in a million different jobs. That's the brief history on that. With one little sideline to Africa. I stepped over and lived in Liberia, West Africa, with the Peace Corps in the mid-70s and was the curriculum developer for the national schools. What a fabulous experience living in that country. The people were so beautiful. The experience was wonderful. The whole idea was a farce, but what can I say? I did what I was asked to do and then realized what a farce it was. Gave them what they asked for and said, "bye", came back to the United States. 00:06:49 Holly Cashman And then came back to New Hampshire? When you came back from the Peace Corps? 00:06:55 Randon T. Eddy �Let's see. I came back, at first I went back to Michigan and could not get a job. Michigan was in a major depression back then. I couldn't get a job sweeping floors in a factory. So I gave up after a year and then came back to New Hampshire and was back at the camp again as assistant director and a counselor, did the interviews at West Point and down at Mount Wachusett, and then in the fall of '77, after all of those and things fell through, I said goodbye and went into industry. 00:07:31 Holly Cashman So with that whole journey behind you, how did you come to decide to open a women's bar in Portsmouth? 00:07:45 Randon T. Eddy Well, at the time, I was a chemical engineering technician. I had my own lab over there in Newmarket up on the wonderful river in that beautiful stone former factory, which are all condos now. And it just came into my head that we need a space where women can go and enjoy each other's company, have wonderful kinds of meetings of various informative things, where they're safe. And I mentioned this to my business partner slash partner and got laughed at, you know, "dream on". I said, "oh, thank you". And then I started pointing out places that might be of interest in Dover. Thank God that didn't work because town would not have been receptive. And all of a sudden, she was interested, and she found the space, which was Napa Auto Parts. They had the basement area with all of their mufflers and things hanging from the ceiling. She said, come look at this. And we went in the back stairs, and all you could see was ceiling to floor mufflers. She said, you have to get down on your hands and knees and look underneath them to see the space. Well, we did it. We went from there. We got the space rental. They took everything out. It was a bare, granite walled [space]. All the pipes of Portsmouth, I think, ran through the ceiling. And just with a lot of hard work for many months, we opened New Year's Eve of 1980 without any advertising and had over 70 people and no liquor license. 00:09:30 Holly Cashman That's so amazing. 70 people, no advertising, coming out for New Year's Eve With no liquor license is just amazing. 00:09:40 Randon T. Eddy That's a story the no liquor license is a is a major story about the trials of what we had to go through and the discrimination. I always said this was a woman's space. I didn't say it was a lesbian bar, it was a woman's space. Most lesbians seem to be women, so that worked out very well. Men have their private clubs, their Lions and all that sort of stuff. Why couldn't we have a private club without there being a problem? Well, the individual who was the liquor representative for Portsmouth area, never said anything, but we asked for the list of things we had to comply with to get a license, and he gave us half of it. We didn't know that. So we got everything done, had them all checked off, sent away our money for the license approval and waited and waited. We opened, we made what little money we made by selling memberships And people had to bring their own, we had the mixers, they had to bring their own booze. Wasn't pleasant. So we made a little bit of money. Not. We didn't make any, we just got money coming in. Anyway, when we got our rejection letter from the Liquor Commission, which was all men except for the head commissioner was a woman praise the Lord What there was no reason why. We didn't comply with everything. Well we did with everything on the list we had, but there was the second page. So we got an appointment to go before the commission and actually had to hire a lawyer. I laid out my vision for going forward with the club, what I expected to go on there. And my partner laid out the business end. Couldn't have done it without her. This was over my head. I'm the one with the vision. And we went to the Liquor Commission, sat there and said we comply with everything. And one of the commissioners started reading off things. Well, you don't do, let's see, statute number, blah, blah, blah. And my partner read it off with him as he read it to us and said, yep, we do. Check that off. He went through a whole list and we complied with everything. And he was mumbling under his breath. And finally, someone said, I think we should adjourn to another room. So they left, left all their paperwork on the desk. And our lawyer got up and just put his hands behind his back and casually walked around their table whistling a nice little tune, looking at what they had written down on the pages and sat back down. And we waited. And one of them came in and said, this meeting is over. We will be in touch with you within a week. And within a week we had our liquor license. 00:12:38 Holly Cashman �And how long after you opened was that? 00:12:43 Randon T. Eddy I think it was something like a month and a half or more. I really can't remember, but it was very painful. We stupidly paid a contractor to build the beautiful bar that was downstairs and put in the dance floor and what little lighting we had. We did all of the painting of the granite walls. But the loan that we had to pay for anything and everything back in 1980, the percentage I think was 28% interest. Right, faces don't express the pain of that number. So it was very, very painful. But the work we put in just went on. How do you make something that looks like a granite basement into something that's enticing? Well, the idea is to paint everything black so it disappears in the ceiling, and the lighting will make the pipes disappear. And the granite wall on Christmas Day, 1980, we gave ourselves an hour off and then went into town. And I'll never forget going over the big bridge over the Piscataqua into town from Dover. And it was minus 10 degrees. And the sea fog was coming up off the river. It was absolutely stunning. It was just beautiful. And it was a little cool in that basement, but I painted a huge rainbow on the wall Just to add some color. Anyway, we survived. The membership kept growing. The sign got stolen off the back. Finally, the insurance company, which was on the second floor, left. We were able to get occupation of the upstairs, which was the street level, even though you had to go up three steps, it was the street level business. And now we had to pay contractors again to go through the marble-on-top-of-cement, steel-reinforced floor and cut a huge hole to put in metal stairs so that you can go from one floor to the other. And this time we built the wall. So when you come in the front door there was a wall and then a door that went into the upstairs space or you could go down the stairs. We did it ourselves so we didn't get in our heads over our heads even more. Upstairs the space was the quiet -- compared to downstairs, anything was quiet -- was the quiet space. We had a small bar, a nice salad bar, wonderful tables and chairs to sit and look out that spectacular set of windows that looked at the old church. And that was before they built that new whatever it is, condos, apartments, between the back of the theater and the old federal building. It was a beautiful, peaceful place with a slight rumbling under the feet from downstairs. But the air was cleaner, no smoke, because hardly anybody went up there. We had meetings. I'd have professionals come in and talk about maybe health issues, financial issues, legal issues, anything we could think of that might be of interest. And we'd tell people the week before and I don't know how I don't remember how we got the information out, but we had those little workshops just as a service to our members. That was the whole idea. Keep it going. 00:16:20 Holly Cashman About getting the word out, did you have a newsletter? Did you have ads that you put in the paper? Like how, it was just word of mouth? 00:16:31 Randon T. Eddy I would say it was word of mouth because I don't remember anything else. And this was this was back in the... '81. And we didn't have all of the communications that we have now at our fingertips. So it had to be word of mouth. You know, maybe they they did their own phone chain. I don't know. I really don't remember. But we had a small turnout for each one and depending on the topic, some of them were a little bigger than others but it pleased me. We also had Kate Clinton, the comedian, who was not Kate Clinton yet. This was before she was Kate Clinton. She was just beginning. She came and did a packed house. Fortunately the fire marshal didn't know. Absolutely hilarious set. She was wonderful. Holly Near stayed at the house when she did a concert at UNH. I can't remember if she came in and just greeted and stuff. I just remember that she was there. I think that was it for big names. We didn't have much in the way of outside entertainment come in. We did our own. We had costume parties at Halloween that were hilarious, very creative, funny, funny stuff, talent shows, just anything we could think of that would be different to just entertain ourselves and the others. So it was enjoyable. 00:18:03 Holly Cashman The, I'm, how do I ask it? I'm trying to picture, for someone who has never been there, will never get to go because it's closed. What if you were kind of imagining kind of walking in first to the original space, what would I see? Like as you're going through the door, where is the bar? Where is the dance floor? Where is the DJ? What kind of tables? 00:18:37 Randon T. Eddy �Okay, here we go. I got you. The original space, one had to find their parking space on the streets wherever or in the back. I think there was a bank parking lot that backed up to the back of the building. I can't really remember. But you had to go down the steps, excuse me, which were probably used for unloading products from the other businesses. Ring the bell. I was, even though I had my bartending license, went through the school, the whole nine yards, and for a non-drinker, I think that's pretty funny. I preferred to be the greeter, because I'm a hugger, so I got lots of hugs. It was quite lovely. And they'd ring the bell and I'd open the door, and as I got to know them, you know, it was wonderful to greet people and welcome them. And they'd sort of walk through this small hallway, I guess, probably eight feet, and turn left into the only room with the bathrooms off to the side, which was a big open space. It would be sort of darkish, since we did paint everything black, but we did have lights. We had a huge fan to suck smoke out. And there were tables set up. So you'd have, I don't remember how many, but you'd have tables set up and then there'd be the dance floor, which was probably 10 by 10 or 12 by 12. It was small. The bar ran along the right. It was a nice long bar and there were some stools, and then there were more tables, and then you hit the other wall. When the stairs went in, after you walked past the bar, they would be to the right opposite the doors that went to the restroom. Then you'd go up the stairs, turn left, the front door would be right there. You turn left, walk a short distance, and then go through the door to the upstairs space, which was a big open space, well lit, had, as I said, those spectacular, what, 10-foot windows that just view the church, and at night it was well lit. It was really a beautiful view. One I wish I painted many times. The bar would have been off to the left, the salad bar. It was a nice quiet space. We had a little backgammon table. Eventually a pool table came in. So that was the, downstairs was darker, loud with the music, talking and smoke. Upstairs was quiet. And that's once the upstairs opened, I volunteered to take care of that space. So It was peace and quiet for me. I had a nice rocking chair with the occasional visitor. 00:21:21 Holly Cashman Oh, I wish you had painted it too. I would love to have a painting to be able to... Do you have photos? 00:21:29 Randon T. Eddy I have nothing. 00:21:30 Holly Cashman Do you know anyone who has photos? Of course, we didn't all have a camera in our pocket at all times like we do now with a cell phone. 00:21:38 Randon T. Eddy This is true. This is true. 00:21:40 Holly Cashman I'm hoping to talk with people who were members who went there regularly who have photos. But I don't have very much hope because that's not -00:21:53 Randon T. Eddy I don't think they will. I don't remember people walking around taking pictures, not like today. Everybody would be doing selfies. But it was harder in those days, because it would have been a camera, there would have been flash, it would have had to been set up. So it wouldn't have been quiet. There was a second sign put out on the front. You showed me a picture of one that somebody had. And as I said, I don't remember which sign it was. If it was the first one that was stolen or the second one, which I made sure was higher and no one could reach without being very obvious on a high ladder. So anyway, I don't know what happened to the second sign. I got out of IRIS probably around November. I was done. I did not make one cent. Not one penny. I was on unemployment because I stopped my laboratory job because I needed to work full time at getting Iris up and running. So I was living on unemployment. My partner was living on unemployment because she had quit her job also. Someone somewhere saw an article about the bar and us and reported me, I think probably both of us, to the unemployment security, and they came after us. And demanded that we pay back because we were getting it fraudulently. I don't, all I know is I wasn't working, and you know New Hampshire gave you about one quarter of one quarter of what you were making. So it was a minuscule amount. My partner got a lawyer and fought it and won. I couldn't afford a lawyer. I didn't have any money. So they made me pay it back, which I �kind of stalled doing for a long time because I thought it was very unfair. And no one said anything. And finally, they came after me again. And we had a meeting, and they agreed that I could pay a small amount a month. I mean, it would have taken probably the rest of my life. And then basically, they forgave me the debt eventually. But I eventually got other jobs anyway and went on my merry way. But once I got out, my partner had it full. That's all she could do, full time, seven days a week. And she carried it on. The membership got up to over 600 people from all over the world. It was a good community for those who were local in New Hampshire and even Northern Massachusetts. It was a good community and it spawned other events that became annual events and gatherings, which I think is the most important thing that came out of that club, was the community. 00:25:03 Holly Cashman What kind of other events kind of grew out of the Iris community? 00:25:10 Randon T. Eddy Well there was, and might still be, I'm not sure, I haven't been up there for 23 years, an annual Christmas dinner that could have 250 women with a waiting list of well over 100 at a Ogunquit facility. I'm not gonna name any names because I don't have anybody's permission. But it was fabulous because the women would get all dressed up, and I loved to go and just watch them disembark from their jeeps or their limousines or their fancy cars. And they'd come in just dressed to the nines. And it was really enjoyable. Food was excellent. It was just a wonderful evening and I looked forward to it every year. Again, good community, meet new people, some of the old ones. And as I said, that was the important thing. Excuse me. We supported each other if someone had an event they were going to, like a road race running. Excuse me. We'd support each other and a group would go down and cheer them on as they raced around Boston for the women's 5K or whatever. 00:26:24 Holly Cashman Oh, that's great. 00:26:26 Randon T. Eddy It was just, it was fun. It was a good community. We'd get together for potlucks and birthday parties or whatever. It was a good way to meet some wonderful, wonderful people from all walks of life, jobs, intelligence level, you name it. It was very, very encouraging. It was a good community. I was very proud of that outcome. 00:26:53 Holly Cashman So when did Iris eventually have to close? 00:27:01 Randon T. Eddy She moved out of that space, I can't tell you any years, and she moved over to Route 1, right where the entrance ramp is that goes up to, what is it, Madbury Avenue, I think. There was a little business right at the base of that ramp. And she had that. It was there. I don't know if she had to move another time. But I think she went on for another six years until she said, time out. I'm done. She tried to sell it. But what are you selling? A liquor license and a name. You don't have to do that. Just if someone wanted to open another one, it'd just be osmosis. Bang. From one to another. So she got out of it. I mean, eventually she... 00:27:46 Holly Cashman Did she have the same name in the new location? 00:27:47 Randon T. Eddy Yes. When she moved, she took the name with her because she had to have the liquor license to go with her. So that's where you know the sign disappeared. No, I have no idea. Never asked her. Didn't care. But she, she hung on and kept things going. Didn't have an upstairs, downstairs. It was just a space. And I think there were two of them. 00:28:10 Holly Cashman �What year was it when you left? 00:28:14 Randon T. Eddy I left at the end of '81. So I was there working on it from the time we started working on it to the time I left, it was a little over a year, it was probably about 14 or 15 months. But I'm not a bar person. I enjoy the dancing, but I don't enjoy, I'm not a smoker, I certainly don't like the smoke. And I had other things to do in my life besides sitting upstairs in a rocking chair every evening and wondering where the money's gonna come from. So I had done my thing, which was having the site and getting it up and running and let the business person take it. 00:28:56 Holly Cashman The question of the sign and it being stolen, Do you think that was just a negative reaction to 00:29:08 Randon T. Eddy Yes! 00:29:09 Holly Cashman what the business was about? 00:29:10 Randon T. Eddy You don't even have to go on. We only had a couple of negative happenings, And that was when only the downstairs was open. One was the sign was stolen and another was the door was egged and someone came and bang on it and ran away. But that was it. And I'll say we got off very easily. No one tried to force their way in or anything. Men were allowed if they were accompanied by a member. And I really only remember one woman who brought her boyfriend, which there you go, it was a woman's space. And he was delightful, so it was good. But really nothing negative other than sign stolen, egging, and banging. 00:29:58 Holly Cashman And outside of the actual premises, was there Any kind of negative backlash like in the business community or anything else? 00:30:12 Randon T. Eddy No, the only negative thing would would be the male liquor commissioner in the beginning -- liquor commission representative -- in the beginning. Whatever his concept was that we were trying to achieve here, he just obviously by only giving us half of the application was making sure that we had a hard time. 00:30:43 Holly Cashman The one thing I'm thinking that kind of might be of interest to people who will listen to this interview, you know, now or in the future, is to try to imagine what life was like for women, and specifically for lesbians, in the 80s. Were most of the people who came to Iris, do you think they were out as lesbians in their lives? Were they closeted because of work? What did you experience? 00:31:23 Randon T. Eddy Yeah, I'm gonna have to make this short because I'm running out of time, but I think that's a good question. I am so thrilled with the changes that have taken place over the decades of my life. Back then, you really got looked at hard if you had the courage to walk down the street holding your partner's hand. You didn't even mention partner. This is my "friend", if you introduced them. It was avoided because there was quite a bit of discrimination. We did not get hassled. Most everybody behaved themselves. The community, the commercial community was very open. Can you pause it a minute? 00:32:08 Randon T. Eddy �I'm very happy with how many people have said, What's the problem here? You know, we're getting all blown away by people who love versus getting blown away by drugs and guns and everything else that we should be getting a little more upset about. Let's move on to priorities. And I know there are those who would try to dismiss us and the whole idea of people being coupled with people they love, regardless of what the sex is. But back then it was tough. We got by. I'm very happy with how the world is slowly changing in some countries. I just hope it continues on a positive note for everyone. And I'm very happy that we muddled through what was thrown in front of us for Iris and the community that it created. And my partner's keeping it going for six years of her life, given to that. It was an important moment in that space and time. And I'm very happy for how it has grown more open to more people. 00:33:24 Holly Cashman And I'm happy that people are going to be able to remember it because you were willing to do this interview and even beyond kind of our our lifespan for other people to be able to hear about it and hear about what you were able to accomplish. Last question, because I know you have to run. If you have any message for kind of the future generation of LGBTQ people? What would you want to share with them? 00:34:00 Randon T. Eddy Don't let people laugh at your ideas because they don't appreciate them. If you believe in something, stick to it. Find someone who has your sight and go for it. Put your priorities in the right place. Don't bang your head against the wall. As I always say, if gravity doesn't fail, it's not that important. So that I just be true to yourself. And you know, you know, you're going to get hurt emotionally by some people who reject you, but how you handle yourself is the most important thing, not how they handle themselves. You're your issue, not them. So stick to it. 00:34:50 Holly Cashman Beautiful that is perfect to end on I'm going to hit stop now and... � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Seacoast NH LGBTQ+ Oral History Project Description An account of the resource The NH Seacoast LGBT History Project was founded by Tom Kaufhold in 2015. Tom had been collecting papers, ephemera, and artifacts related to or created by the LGBTQ+ community on the Seacoast region of New Hampshire. To tell the story more fully, Holly Cashman, a professor at the University of New Hampshire, began collecting oral histories from the same community. <br /><br />With the assistance of interns and student workers, Dr. Cashman conducted ten interviews over a six-year period. The team processed each interview and created indexes and transcripts. Interviewees, also called narrators, were found through flyers and by visiting with local LGBTQ+ social groups such as Seacoast Gay Men. Participants were given the option to provide their full name or a partial name. This project is ongoing and Dr. Cashman and her team will continue conducting interviews which will be added to this site.<br /><br />Thanks to Holly Cashman, Tom Kaufhold, Aliya Sarris, Lily Pudlo, Zoe Dawson, the narrators, the interns, and the student workers who contributed to this project.<br /><br /><span>View the collections of the NH Seacoast LGBT History Project! Their video archive is available here: </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25</a><span> and the recordings of Women Singing OUT!, a lesbian-based choir, are available here </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32</a><span>.</span> Moving Image A series of visual representations that, when shown in succession, impart an impression of motion. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral history with Randon T. Eddy, September 28, 2023 Subject The topic of the resource New Hampshire -- History LGBTQ+ history Lesbians Description An account of the resource An oral interview with Randon T. Eddy with transcript and index included. Randon was the founder of Isis, a bar for women located in Portsmouth. She discusses its conception, opening, and operation during the 1980s. Recorded online using TheirStory. The interviewer was in Durham, New Hampshire and the interviewee was in Palm Coast, Florida. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cashman, Holly (interviewer) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seacoast NH LGBT History Project Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2023-09-28 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Eddy, Randon T. (interviewee) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/?language=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">In copyright - educational use permitted</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource mp4 0:34:51 PDF Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource MovingImage Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 10. Randon T. Eddy https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/d281048e1b9ed68b37637e1b06908188.png 2cced6904fc0c3d42e509cac5edf59a7 https://portsmouthexhibits.org/files/original/8142eba2311f91221f0314c2cf8461b5.mp4 9fa9b9de35ce545366d985d41744c208 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Seacoast NH LGBTQ+ Oral History Project Description An account of the resource The NH Seacoast LGBT History Project was founded by Tom Kaufhold in 2015. Tom had been collecting papers, ephemera, and artifacts related to or created by the LGBTQ+ community on the Seacoast region of New Hampshire. To tell the story more fully, Holly Cashman, a professor at the University of New Hampshire, began collecting oral histories from the same community. <br /><br />With the assistance of interns and student workers, Dr. Cashman conducted ten interviews over a six-year period. The team processed each interview and created indexes and transcripts. Interviewees, also called narrators, were found through flyers and by visiting with local LGBTQ+ social groups such as Seacoast Gay Men. Participants were given the option to provide their full name or a partial name. This project is ongoing and Dr. Cashman and her team will continue conducting interviews which will be added to this site.<br /><br />Thanks to Holly Cashman, Tom Kaufhold, Aliya Sarris, Lily Pudlo, Zoe Dawson, the narrators, the interns, and the student workers who contributed to this project.<br /><br /><span>View the collections of the NH Seacoast LGBT History Project! Their video archive is available here: </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/25</a><span> and the recordings of Women Singing OUT!, a lesbian-based choir, are available here </span><a href="https://portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">portsmouthexhibits.org/collections/show/32</a><span>.</span> Moving Image A series of visual representations that, when shown in succession, impart an impression of motion. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral history with Robert Stiefel, July 21, 2020 Subject The topic of the resource New Hampshire -- History LGBTQ+ history Description An account of the resource An oral interview with Robert Stiefel. Recorded over Zoom. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cashman, Holly (interviewer) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seacoast NH LGBT History Project Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Portsmouth Public Library, Special Collections Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-07-21 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Stiefel, Robert (interviewee) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/?language=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">In copyright - educational use permitted</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource mp4 1:53:09 Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource MovingImage Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 8. Robert Stiefel