THANKSGIVING OBSERVED (1912)

Source: Greenwich News, Greenwich, Connecticut: Friday, November 29, 1912. Page 1, Col. 6.

THANKSGIVING OBSERVED

MANY PLEASANT FAMILY REUNIONS AROUND THE FESTIVE BOARD FEATURED DAY

Snowfall Made It Unpleasant For Many Out-Door Pastimes, But Good Cheer Marked Many Home Gatherings-Stores And Business Places Closed – Some Family Gatherings And Reunions.

Thanksgiving was as generally observed throughout Greenwich as usual, and there were many pleasant home-gatherings of relatives in town yesterday. Friends and relatives who had not seen each other in years were united over the festive board, and good cheer was the rule of the day.

There were disappointments for many, however, because the day was not better suited to the holiday. We have had so many pleasant Thanksgiving days that the young people in particular associate with the day and after-dinner skating, automobile or walking party, but there was a little of these because of the weather.

Early dawn saw the first flights of snow and the white crystals continued to fall until about noon. There was no ice for skating, but pedestrians on streets or sidewalks found it difficult enough to keep from skating, for the coating of damp snow made it very slippery. An unusually small number of automobiles were out during the day.

Inside many Greenwich homes, however, there was no lack of good cheer and giving of thanks. A large congregation attended the Union Thanksgiving service at the Presbyterian church, and listened to good music and a sermon by Rev. Charles F. Taylor of the Second Congregational Church. The Methodist, Congregational and Presbyterian churches united. At Christ Church and at St. Mary's R. C. Church there were special services.

As usual a family Thanksgiving dinner was held at the old Mead Homestead in Cos Cob, over twenty members of the family been guests of Miss Catherine Mead for the day. All were seated at one table which was loaded down with good things. Among those present of the older generation were Miss Catherine Mead, Augustus Mead and Mrs. John G. Clarke of Bedford Hills. Seamen Mead was unable to be present, because of injuries received in an accident recently. This is the first family reunion he has missed in many years. Among the others were Mr. and Mrs. Merritt Clarke of Brookfield Center, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Williams and four children of White Plains, Mr. and Mrs. John R. Holmes of Katonah, Miss Louisa N. Mead, Miss Amelia W. Mead, Mr. and Mrs. Seamen M. Mead, and three children, Thomas A. Mead and Miss Mary Dominy of New York City.

At the home of Mr. and Mrs. Isaac L. Mead on Lafayette Place, there was another pleasant family re-union, an annual event. Among those present were Mr. and Mrs. Isaac L. Mead and Mr. and Mrs. Willis T. Mead and family, Mr. and Mrs. S. Warren Mead and family, Mr. and Mrs. George H. Mills and family, Mr. and Mrs. George Merriman of Bristol, Connecticut, Miss Lucy A. Mead and Miss Lucy A. Smith.

Bessie Mead, Missionary to Japan (1954)

Death Notice: Bessie Mead

Source: Greenwich Time, Greenwich CT. October 28 and October 29, 1954. Page 2, col. 1. 

MEAD-Bessie, at Tacoma, Washington. October 26, 1954, daughter of the late Henry W. and Emily C. Mead. Services at the New Burial Ground, Greenwich, on Saturday at 11 a.m.

OBITUARY: Miss Bessie Mead

Source: Greenwich Time, Greenwich CT. October 27, 1954. Page 2, col. 1.

Miss Bessie Mead, 85, a former resident of Greenwich who had been an Episcopal missionary to Japan from 1904 until 1934, died Tuesday in Tacoma, Wash., where she had made her home since returning from Japan. A native of Stamford, Miss Mead was born on Dec. 3, 1868, daughter of the late Henry W. and Emily C. Brush Mead. She is survived by three cousins, Mrs. Sarah E. Close, (scratched microfiche here-unreadable), and Helen _____ of Millerton, N.Y. While in Japan Miss Mead was stationed in Acita [Akita] and Yamagata. Notice of the funeral will be given later. Burial will be in New Burial Ground in Greenwich. 

Mead Home Will Be Open To Sell Items (1975)

Source: Greenwich Time. June 19, 1975. Page 15, column 6.


One of Greenwich's historic homes will be opened to the public Friday and Saturday for the sale of items that have been in the family of Edgar and Emily Mead, Jr., for generations. The house is at 560 North Street.

The sale will begin at 10:00 a.m., and will include farm tools that date back 200 years, an Isaac Mead desk, Washington pictures, a trundle bed, 18th century chairs and a Potter Mead jar.

The house itself has been rebuilt and modernized by each generation of the Mead family, so much so that its exact origins are lost in the blurred history of the early 18th century.

Historians and visitors have often been misled by a plaque bearing the numbers "1796" over the front door. It is now evident that the was merely another periodic date of reconstruction. At least two other dates may be found scratched in stone by later remodelers. 

According to a book written in 1971 by Edgar and Emily Mead, Jr., 'The House on Lot and Drake's Corner,' the history of the Mead family in this area began when John Mead, son of William Mead, and grandson of Thomas, came from Hempstead, L.I., in 1660 at the age of 16. He purchased land near what is now Greenwich Point from Richard Crab.

After the Mead's settled in Old Greenwich, they spread out to other parts of the area, all playing an important role in the history of Greenwich. 

Suing Col. Thomas Mead: The Case of the State Against Him as Surety for E.J. Wright (1882)

Source: Greenwich Graphic, Saturday, December 2, 1882

“Yes, that is a very important case,” said Mr. J. B. Curtis, of Stamford, to a GRAPHIC representative, when questioned in regard to the suit brought by the State against Col. Thomas Mead, surety on ex-County Commissioner E. J. Wright’s bond.

“The great suit of Tweed against Ingersoll is similar to it, and you will remember that in that case the courts were obliged to go to the legislature to have special laws passed concerning it. In this case against Col. Mead, Mr. Wright is charged with being a defaulter for about $3,000, and the defense claimed that the bond was given to the State fir its sole protection and not as trustees for the towns. 

“This sum was in the nature of a tax collected from the inhabitants and paid into the treasury of the towns. The State had no control over it, and the surety was not amendable to the State for Mr. Wright’s performance of the duties to these several towns. 

“The bond did not cover the money, except for five per cent of the license money, $334.62, payable to the county of Fairfield, the county being an integral part of the State government. When Mr. Wright is alleged to have misappropriated the money he was holding an office that did not exist in the law. He was made treasurer of the board and all the moneys during the year of the alleged misappropriation were placed in his hands. During the time no account was rendered by him and no formal demand was made by other commissioners for an account, and no attempt was made to investigate his accounts. It was claimed that making him treasurer placed a liability upon him him that the law did not contemplate. 

The result of such action would be to place the responsibility of all the finances of the county on to one commissioner and his surety, and the others would escape. If there is any loss it should fall on all. The towns have authorized no suits by the State, but have brought suits themselves.”

The trial of the case came before the Superior Court at Danbury, Judge Beardsley, last week Thursday, and concluded Monday of this week. Messrs. Brewster and Tweedy of Danbury, appeared for the State, and J. B. Curtis of Stamford, and Levi Warner of Norwalk, for Mr. Mead. Decision is expected next week. 

The Ball That Hit Putnam-Mr. Augustus Mead Says He Has Found It-and is Positive it's the One. (1901)

Greenwich Graphic: Saturday, November 30, 1901, Page 4.

Authentic history, as well as popular opinion, as that of the many bullets fired at the daring General Putnam in his mad ride down the hill which bears his name, one passed through his head covering, and this has been verified, for the same bullet has been found.

While excavating in the repairing of the drive at the east side of his residence on the Post Road, men in the employee of Mr. Augustus Mead discovered this Revolutionary relic embedded in some three feet of earth. Mr. Mead is strong in his belief that this is the same ball that passed through the General's hat, and luckily so, for it is a three pounder, and if it had pierced the head instead of the hat, history must needs have been re-written, and instead of the thrilling account of a daring plunge down seventy-four stone steps, we would have had simply "Another fearless general killed in a skirmish between the British regulars and the Colonial patriots."

This now innocent, unassuming and harmless appearing piece of Revolutionary warfare we believe, with Mr. Mead, is the bullet which might have caused a change history and deprived the schoolboy of what is near and dear to his heart – stories of adventure and daring, and if a thorough scientific and scholarly  investigation should be had, with employment of algebra, geometry, or the higher mathematics, taking the hypothesis: the position of the rider, the angle at which the bullets were fired, and the distance traveled, together with other data, the only logical and current deduction would be as we have stated.

We are told that a picture of Putnam can be traced on the cannonball, with a date when it struck him. We have this on the authority of Mr. John Dayton, whose word is to be relied on.

But to be serious with regard to this cannon ball. Opposite this place on the farm of Jabez Mead, often in ploughing, English coins were turned up, and the supposition is, that is more or less skirmishing was carried on in this locality during the Revolution, this evidence of British soldiers is accounted for, as in the case of this old relic of long ago.

Greenwich's Oldest Voter (1902)

Greenwich Graphic: November 8, 1902, Page 1.



Mr. Smith Mead, the oldest voter in town, went to the polls on Tuesday and cast his vote. Mr. Mead is close to 93 years of age. He has never failed to cast his ballot at an election since Andrew Jackson ran for the presidency in 1833, and he was 23 years old at that time. When the Republican party was formed in 1836, Mr. Mead became identified with it, and he has cast his ballot for the candidates since that date. 

In 1824 he met the Marquis de Lafayette when he passed through this town on his triumphal tour, and enjoys the distinction of being one of the very few living persons who shook the hand of the great French soldier. 

Mr. Mead is in fairly good health, and his mind is clear. He loves to sit down with a friend and talk of the Greenwich of years ago, and his fund of knowledge on the growth of the town is remarkable. 

Announcement: Greenwich, A Town For All Seasons Show on Radio 1490 WGCH/WGCH.COM

Historian and town native Jeffrey Bingham Mead, a descendant of the founders of the town, is the host of an upcoming new show on NewsTalk AM 1490 WGCH and WGCH.com anywhere. 

Greenwich, Town For All Seasons is scheduled to air every other Wednesday morning 9:00 a.m.-9:30 a.m. 

The show’s creator and host, Jeffrey Bingham Mead, is no stranger to Greenwich history. Born and raised in Greenwich, he as a direct descendant of one of its founding families. His background and interests are varied and ever-evolving. 

Mead is a former board member and trustee of the Greenwich Historical Society; former local history contributing writer at Greenwich Time in the 1980s and 1990s;  the vice-president of the Capt. Matthew Mead Branch of the Connecticut Society of the Sons of the American Revolution; a university professor and lecturer in the states of Hawaii and Connecticut; president and co-founder of History Education Hawaii, Inc., the Hawaii Council of the National Council for History Education (since 2006); president/founder of the Historic Mead Family Burying Grounds Association, author of Chains Unbound: Slave Emancipations in Greenwich, Connecticut, and more. 

Mead is also the creator, producer and host of the highly successful Marvels of China: Pathways to the Pacific Rim show on WGCH. Now in its third year, the show has an international audience and its heard in China with plans for national syndication across the USA in the near-future. 

“We’re planning on having a lot of fun with this,” said Mead. “The textures of Greenwich’s history make it interesting, so we’ll be featuring lively perspectives of the town’s heritage encompassing its 378-plus years. Greenwich: A Town for All Seasons is a first-of-its kind show on WGCH. The show seeks to build bridges between past and present; feature local business, historical news and cultural events for long-time residents and newcomers alike; entertain, contribute to and heighten knowledge of the history of Greenwich, Connecticut and ultimately do its part in its sustained preservation.” 

Mead was one of the early pioneers of featuring Greenwich history on the Internet. These include:

http://writingsofjeffreybinghammead.blogspot.com

http://meadburyinggrounds.blogspot.com

http://chainsunboundgreenwichct.blogspot.com

http://readerbeholdasyoupassby.blogspot.com

http://mydadtheuschinamarine.blogspot.com

http://jpnhawaiiembassy1860.blogspot.com

The show has a Facebook site that all are invited to join by clicking this link. 

The first show featured CEO and Executive Director Debra Mecky from the Greenwich Historical Society as it prepared to celebrate the public reopening of its reimagined campus on October 7, 2018.

“We’re looking forward to establishing long-term strategic partnerships with the town’s historic preservation organizations. Greenwich is a town for all seasons and all people -everyone is invited to our celebration of the town’s culture and heritage,” Mead added.

Click this link to visit and listen to archived broadcasts of Greenwich, A Town For All Seasons. Visit this link for the official blog site.  Contact GreenwichATownForAllSeasons@gmail.com to be added to the email list for announcements and updates. 

Sponsors and Potential guests can contact Jeffrey Bingham Mead at JeffreyBinghamMead@gmail.com, GreenwichATownForAllSeasons@gmail.com and via LinkedIn and Facebook.