The Hilton Homestead
The
Hilton Homestead, in Bremen Maine, is the latest guest blog to join us here on “On Being a Southender.”
Mary Sue Hilton Weeks is my cousin. We hope to bring you some historical
material and other facets of the Homestead in the months to come. Exciting
things are about to happen and we are both excited to bring them to you here.
I am living on a 100-acre farm that has been in my family
through my great-grandmother's side for over 200 years. My great-grandfather
William Bainbridge Hilton bought the farm from his wife Rhoda Little's family,
and from then on it was known as the Hilton Homestead. I live next door to the
family home where I grew up in the one-room school house where I went to school
grades 4 - 8. In 1998 my sister Diane and her husband Lee retired from
Washington, DC and took over the family home. They both passed away last year,
and having no children, I acquired the family home. This blog is about my
progress in trying to deal with it.
Mary Sue and I would both like to thank all
of you who contributed to the Well Project which made possible a new much
needed well on the farm. Mary Sue and her resident farmers were able to reach
their goal of $12,000 and more. The well drilling rig came one morning recently
at 6:30 a.m. and by 5:30 p.m. they had a new well which produces 10 gallons a minute.
The new well will be a boon in the summer when the crops need to be watered.
Letter From Gettysburg
This letter is from Thomas Hilton, written to
send home during the Civil War. Thomas is writing from the battlefield at
Gettysburg as part of the 19th Maine Regiment. He would have been
Mary Sue’s great uncle, brother to her great-grandmother, Rhoda Little Hilton.
The picture with the letter is of the battle of Gettysburg. The letters Mary
Sue found in the Homestead house she gave to the Maine Historical Society in
Augusta.
The letter reads, as far as I can decipher
as:
Heading:
General Hospital, Gettysburg
August. 23, 1863.
Dear Brother,
I received yours of last Sabbath this
morning, and was so much pleased to hear of your health and comfort—while those
around you are being summoned to the grave. My health and strength are daily
improving; if it continues to improve as fast in future as it has for the past
month I hope to visit you ….many months.
There are about 1400 (can’t read, looks like
patients) here now and as a general thing are doing well; there are exceptions
of course; some poor fellows must die; among them I fear will be Willard F.
Barslow of Damariscotta. (son of Seth Barstow). I believe it says here something like: He was hurt somehow through
the spine and “has a bedsore on his back that is awful to look upon and very
offensive in smell (while dressing). The
letter continues: I tink Dr. Stonelake has no hopes of his recovery. He
seems to be a fine young man (is but 19) and bears his suffering very
patiently.
We generally hear all kinds of rumors in the
army but I think your letter contained the first I ever heard of Hooker being
drunk at Chancell?
I suppose you recollect he was stuned by a
shell or something of the kind. If some one who did not know the cause should
see him in that condition they would be likely to call him drunk.
I have heard it said that he takes a glass
once in awhile, but never used it to excess. I wish it could be said of all our Army officers. That “he is strictly temporate.”
I cannot give you much of an idea of the
battlefield for the reason that we were kept out of sight of it lying behind
the ridge, until we were called into action, and then our attention was pretty
well engaged.
I am not acquainted with drawing, but can
give you a little sketch. We get the news this morning, through Reb papers,
that Gen. Sumpter must come down! Wishing you prosperity—spiritual and
temporal. I will bid you good morning.
Yours
Thos Little (son of William H. Little)
The map explanation is:
I should think the distance across from one
ridge to the other from a third to half a mile.
This is not correct as to relative distance
and directions but will give you some insight into our position.
Become
a Member of Crescent Run Farm
If you would like to
become a member of Crescent Run Farm, see details at:
They also have different
levels of participation. Choose the one that best suits you. Here’s what it
says on the site:
Each week we will
harvest, wash, and pack your produce to be picked up on the scheduled day. The
CSA will run for approximately 17 weeks, between early June and late September,
until the value of your share is met. Factors such as climatic conditions,
season, and pests can influence the value of an individual pick-up, and the
full value of your investment will be met over the course of your membership.
A
Note for the Family: If
you have pictures of the farm to share, especially one of the family reunions,
please email them to me at southendstories@aol.com. Thanks.
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