A Flood of Images: 2011 edition

Posted on May 12, 2011 by SCblogger

Now that the River has receded from its crest of 20.7 feet,* we thought it was time to take a look back at this year’s flood, which knocked the 1892 flood out of fourth place by almost a foot and a half.

***

On River Drive, the traffic signs tried valiantly to keep their heads above water:

While our Front Porch got a little damp:

 

But Davenport had been warned and, with the help of volunteers  put up its defenses in record time:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We may be getting the hang of this flooding thing . . .

But that doesn’t mean the River didn’t try its best to wander afield:

Do a little window shopping downtown:

And maybe take in a baseball game:

 

But, as usual, the web-footed citizens of Davenport didn’t seem to mind at all:

 

 

(Pictures taken by our own intrepid Amy D.  We still aren’t sure what she was standing on for some of these)

___

* “River crests at 20.7 feet – Floodwaters in the Q-C begin to slowly recede, Quad-City Times, April 24, 2011, p.1

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How do your Mayflowers grow?

Posted on May 5, 2011 by SCblogger

If April showers bring May flowers, what do Mayflowers bring?

Ancestors!

If you’d like to research your Pilgrim ancestors, try searching our library catalog for “Mayflower”, “Pilgrim” and “Plymouth”, and see what we have available. Or try our subscription databases from home! (DPL library card required) Search the book collection on Heritage Quest or check out images of postcards from the Boston Public Library collections on Footnote.

Here are some of the Mayflower resources available at the Richardson-Sloane Special Collections Center of the Davenport Public Library.

Societies:

–    General Society of Mayflower Descendants. Meetings, officers and members arranged in state societies, ancestors and their descendants (1901); Proceedings of the general congress, 1915-1933. (SC 973.2 GEN); Mayflower ancestral index (SC 973 TER)

–    Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants. Pilgrim notes and queries, 1913-1917 (SC 974.4 PIL); Officers & committees, membership roll, publications, by-laws, 1916 (SC 973.2 MAS)

–    National Society of Sons and Daughters of the Pilgrims. Lineage Book (SC 929.3 NAT)

Periodicals:

–    General Society of Mayflower Descendants. The Mayflower quarterly. Vols. 47 -current , 1981-current (SC 974.4 MAY)

–    Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants. The Mayflower descendant: a quarterly magazine of Pilgrim and history – Microfiche vols. 1-34 (index available); bound vols. 35-48, 1899-1998 (SC 974.4 MAY)

Vital & other records:

–    Ames, Azel. The May-flower and her log, July 15, 1620-May 6th, 1921: chiefly from original sources (SC CLOSED STACKS 974.4 AME)

–    Bangs, Jeremy Dupertuis. Indian deeds: land transactions in Plymouth Colony, 1620-1691 (SC 929.3 BAN)

–    New Plymouth Colony. Records of Plymouth Colony; birth, marriages, deaths, burials, and other records, 1633-1689 (SC 974.482 NEW)

–    Plymouth (Mass.) First Church. Plymouth Church Records, 1620-1859 (SC 974.482 PLY)

–    Records of the town of Plymouth (SC 974.482 PLY)

–    Roberts, Gary Boyd. Mayflower source records: primary data concerning southern Massachusetts, Cape Cod, and the islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard: from the New England Historical and genealogical register. (SC 974.4 ROB)

–    Roser, Susan E. Mayflower birth & deaths; marriages; deeds & probates: from the files of George Ernest Bowman at the Massachusetts Society of Mayflower descendants (SC 974.4 ROS)

–    Sherman, Ruth Ann Wilder. Plymouth colony probate guide: where to find wills and related data for 800 people of Plymouth Colony, 1620-1691 (SC 974.482 SHE)

–    Wood, Ralph V. Plymouth County Massachusetts probate index, 1886-1881 (SC 974.482 WOO)

Family histories and genealogies:

–    Anderson, Robert Charles. Pilgrim: a biography of William Brewster; The Pilgrim migration: immigrants to Plymouth colony, 1620-1633 (SC 974.482 AND)

–    Banks, Charles Edward. The English ancestry and homes of the Pilgrim fathers who came to Plymouth on the “Mayflower” in 1620, the “Fortune” in 1621 and the “Little James” in 1623. (SC 973.2 BAN)

–    Davis, William T. Genealogical register of Plymouth families (SC 974.482 DAV)

–    Heath, Dwight B. A journal of the Pilgrims at Plymouth. (SC 974.482 MOU)

–    Hills, Leon Clark. History and genealogy of the Mayflower planters and first comers to ye olde colonie. (SC 974.492 HIL)

–    Kellogg, Lucy Mary. Mayflower families through five generations: descendants of the Pilgrims who landed at Plymouth, Mass., December 1620. Vols. 1-22 (SC 929.2 MAY)

–    MacKenzie, George Norbury. Colonial families of the United States of America, in which is given the history, genealogy, and armorial bearings of colonial families who settled in the American colonies from the time of the settlement of Jamestown, 13th May 1607, to the Battle of Lexington, 19th April 1775. Vols. 1-7 (SC 973 MAC)

–    Mayflower Descendants and their marriages for two generations after the landing: including a short history of the church of the Pilgrim founders of New England (SC 974 MAY)

–    Steele, Ashbel. Chief of Pilgrims: or, the life and time of William Brewster, ruling elder of the Pilgrim company that founded New Plymouth, the parent colony of New England, in 1620. (SC 974.48 STE)

–    Stratton, Eugene Aubrey. Plymouth colony, it’s history and people, 1620-1691 (SC 974.02 STR)

–    Tracy, Sherman Weld. The Tracy genealogy; being some of the descendants of Stephen Tracy of Plymouth colony, 1623 (SC 929.2 TRA)

–    Underhill, Lora Altine (Woodbury). Descendants of Edward Small of New England and the allied families, with tracings of English ancestry. (SC 929.2 SMA)

–    Mayflower families series: (SC 929.2 MAY)

  • Degory Priest
  • Edward Fuller
  • Edward Winslow
  • Francis Cooke
  • George Soule
  • Henry Sampson
  • John Billington
  • Myles Standish
  • Peter Brown
  • Philip Delano
  • Richard Church
  • Richard Warren
  • Robert Bartlett
  • Stephen Hopkins
  • William Bradford
  • William Brewster

So, if your forefathers (and mothers) were Forefathers, come visit us!  We’ll help your family tree bloom.

(posted by Cristina)

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Now, about those flying cars . . .

Posted on April 26, 2011 by SCblogger

 All aboard!  Please fasten your seatbelts. Buckle up!  Lift off!

If you are traveling to another city, state, or country by land or air—or if you’re even one of the chosen few to travel though space—you have to have vehicle transportation (no Stargates yet!).

While you are traveling along, ever wonder what material makes up your ride, or where it comes from?

In this modern age, aluminum is definitely involved—and most of it probably came from the Aluminum Corporation of America, better known as Alcoa.  And of that amount, some of it probably came from Alcoa’s Davenport Works.

The Davenport Works plant cost thirty million dollars to build, according the Davenport Times of  May 23,1946. That would be about $ 350,000,000 (CPI)  in today’s economy. The groundbreaking was in July 1946 on 453 acres of what used to be onion and corn fields, as well as residential and commercial property.  

All the way from Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, to Iowa, many minds and hands were involved to bring Alcoa here.  The Davenport Works plant has given jobs and lifted the quality of life for many, many people.

May they always continue to be one of our best employers and neighbors.

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Poets and Poetry: With a Mississippi Walking Stick

Posted on April 21, 2011 by SCblogger

April is National Poetry Month, so it seems fitting to share  the work of a few of our local poets each week.

Richard Stahl was born and raised in Davenport.  He graduated from Central High School in 1957 and later taught English there for 34 years.

His award-winning poems have been published  in many literary journals and appear in various anthologies. Mr. Stahl’s books include After the Milk Route (1988), Under the Green Tree Hotel (1996), and Mr. Farnam’s Guests (2004).

In 2001, Mr. Stahl was appointed the first Quad-City Poet Laureate, serving until 2003.

With a Mississippi Walking Stick*

This river’s rhythms live
inside my sfot pine
leg, a crooked
branch some backwater pulled
down, nearly drowning its face,
before hte current listed it, peeling
it clean as a cane. This driftwood ran
the channel until it grounded
In my hand
on Davenport’s levee,
but it remembers the bends
and twists and whirlpools
of the river. This stick teases
my shoulders
like the heady fizz
of a Mississippi Highball.
My fingers drink the sweep’s straight
handle again, the hold I need
to work my lungs and shoulders
and river legs. No part of this stick
is straight. Some twists puff
into knots. The bark has been skinned off
for easier handling. As I walk back
to The Green Tree Hotel
asn wader
ten feet away,
the bottom
noses down, closing
its fork
like a divining rod,
driving me
back to the river
and The Hotel
to wait
for my next berth.

___
*From Under the Green Tree Hotel

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Early (Early) Education

Posted on April 18, 2011 by SCblogger

The Kindergarten was developed by Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852) in Blankenburg, Germany, beginning in the 1830’s and 1840’s. Germans that immigrated to the United States brought with them Froeble’s concept. The first English-speaking Kindergarten was opened by Elizabeth Palmer Peabody in Boston in 1860. Another pioneer of the Kindergarten movement was Elizabeth Harrison (1849-1927), who grew up in Davenport and attended Davenport Schools. She was President of the National Kindergarten College from 1890-1919 and wrote the book “Study of Child Nature”.

The first public kindergarten in Davenport was started by the Davenport Kindergarten Association on November 18th, 1901, at the old Methodist Church on 14th Street. On the first day they had 28 children in attendance, although many more were expected to enroll. Their hours were from 9am until 12 noon. The “tuition” was free, but they asked for 5 cents per week, to purchase materials. They had 4 instructors, so each child would get the attention they required.

By February of 1905, the Association was sponsoring 3 Kindergartens in Davenport, operating at a cost of $1,800. They had found that even after public subscriptions, they were still left with $600 to be paid.  The Davenport Morning star reported that “the time was not yet ripe for the matter to be taken up by the school board, but must be supported by public subscription.”

Apparently, this did not happen:  after that school year, the Davenport City Directory only lists the People’s Union Mission Kindergarten, located at 312 E 2nd Street, until 1909.

The Davenport School Board introduced Kindergartens at 5 of their public schools on January 27th, 1913. The participating schools were Tyler, Buchanan, Pierce, Jackson and Jefferson. On that first day, a total of 111 children had registered. Tyler school had the largest enrollment, with 48 children attending.

With such a large number, the school board felt they were going to need another Kindergarten at some of the schools in the east end of Davenport.  The school board had intended to establish a Kindergarten at Van Buren school, but they couldn’t open it on time because of repairs being made to the building.

The enrollment would have been much larger, but some parents kept their children home due to an epidemic of whooping cough. Because they had so much success with enrollment on the first day, the school board was certain they were going to add Kindergartens at other schools in September.

And they did.

Kindergarten round-up for the 2011-2012 school year is taking place this week at Davenport Community Schools.  Over twelve-hundred students are already enrolled in the twenty-two kindergartens in the district, but the total will probably be higher!

_____

Sources:

Branch, Sandra F.; Elizabeth Harrison and her contribution to the Kindergarten movement in Chicago 1880-1920. Chicago, IL, May 1922

Davenport Times.  Amuse children: a new institution is started in this city. 19 November 1901.

Davenport Morning Star. Are seeking to raise aid for Kindergartens. 11 February 1905.

Davenport Democrat and Leader. Big registration at Kindergartens. 29 January 1913.

(posted by Cristina)

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Poets and Poetry: Sonnets of a Portrait-Painter

Posted on April 14, 2011 by SCblogger

April is National Poetry Month, so it seems fitting to share  the work of a few of our local poets each week.

Arthur Davison Ficke, son of prominent businessman Charles August Ficke, was born in Davenport in 1883.  Although he studied law and worked with his father, he eventually made the decision to be a full time author and poet—a decision he never regretted.

He is best known for two things:  a poetry hoax he and his friend Harold Witter Bynner pulled on the literary world, and his lovely sonnets.  In 1914, a collection of some of his best sonnets were gathered into a single volume,  Sonnets of a Portrait-Painter.


XIX

Strange! To remember that I late was fain
To yield death back my poor undated lease,
So wearied had I at life’s gate in vain
Asked wonders, and been doled not even peace.
I had grown sceptic of the exalted will
That winds not ever nearer to its aim.
Grey seemed all lures, all calling voices still;
Rest only seems salvation . . . Then you came
And filled my dusk with stars. I understood
At last what coward languor had been mine.
And as your sweetness stung my brain and blood
Like the wild rapture of some winged wine
I stormed the gates that crusts to beggars give!
Life decks its halls for him who dares to live . . . .

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150 Years Ago Today

Posted on April 12, 2011 by SCblogger

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April 12, 2011, marks the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War— a war from which 13,589 Iowa men, and countless others, never returned home.

Our Special Collections Center, is home to many interesting primary and secondary resources for those interested in learning more about the War of the Rebellion (or the War of Northern Aggression, if you are so inclined):

—The Daily Democrat and the Davenport Daily Gazette are the local newspapers that cover the relevant time period

—Returns from U.S. Military Posts, 1800 – 1916: Camp McClellan, Iowa

—The Roster of Union Soldiers 1861 – 1865, by Janet Hewett.

—Camp McClellan During the Civil War by Seth J. Temple.

—Roll of Honor – U. S. Quartermaster’s Department.

—War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies.

—Adjutant General’s Reports. State of Iowa.

—Roster and record of Iowa soldiers in the war of the rebellion, together with historical sketches of volunteer organizations, 1861-1866, Adjutant General’s Office.

—Guide to Tracing Your African American Civil War Ancestor by Jeanette Braxton Secret.

—A User’s Guide to the Official Records of the American Civil War by Alan C. and Barbara A. Aimone.

—County publications including Wayne, Decatur, Van Buren, Keokuk, Linn, and Mahaska counties.

One of Special Collections more recent acquisitions is the Iowa Volunteer Civil War Enlistment Papers collection on microfilm.  These original forms provide detailed information enlistees from counties across the state of Iowa starting after August 1862.  This collection has also been indexed on our website at www.qcmemory.org.  Just click on Local Index Databases in the left hand column to start your search.

These resources and much more are waiting for you in the Richardson-Sloane Special Collections Center.  Our staff looks forward to assisting you in your search!

(posted by Amy D.)

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Poets and Poetry: I See the Hills

Posted on April 7, 2011 by SCblogger

April is National Poetry Month, so it seems fitting to share  the work of a few of our local poets each week.

George Cram Cook, author and playwright, was born in Davenport on October 7, 1873.   Although he considered Greece his “cultural home,” a few of Mr. Cook’s poems showed his affection for the Midwest:

I see the Hills


Southward from my window I see the hills of Illinois.
The river spreads between—a frozen tumult of jagged blocks of ice.
The slopes of the hills rise sunlit, covered with snow,
The crests of the hills and black with woods;
The valleys are black with the shadow of the hills.

Last week the ice-floes formed; the water crystallized.
Sheets of ice slid, ground, crunched, crackled, split into fragments that
        twisted, sank, thrust into the air, and fell piling one upon another,
Pushed gulfward by the unswerving weight of the Mississippi.
For weeks that water will slide down its bed of salt and sand and gravel in
        order to be at peace in the sea—a thousand feet nearer the center of the earth.
Unseen the water slides between the unmoving ice, the river’s roof
Built without hands by the cold of rushing air
Whose floor the ice is now.
The ice is man’s bridge. He has chopped a road for the wagon-sleds and
        horses of teamsters hauling loads of black and glittering coal from the coal banks.
The ice fascinated me,
I see the lines of force that broke the floes and thrust their fragments up
        in apparent confusion.
But I see more that what is apparent.
I see the unseen current;
I feel the mathematics of its forces,
The exactitude of position of each fragment,
The inexorable and flawless logic of each ice block in the river, each
        crystal in the block, each molecule in the crystal.
It is all true.
There is no error in it.
There has been no mistake.
Each inch and each iota of the ice
Is where it has to be—
Its present state and location the resultant of its history, indissolubly
        part of the history of the eternal universe,
I look from the rough wide fields of ice to the hills beyond,
I look carelessly, not prying into the secrets of the hills,
But they come to me
The secrets of the hills come giving themselves to me,
They lay off veil after veil for me—the veils of ages,
They are bare to the comprehension of my soul;
I see the lines of force that thrust them up.
I see the wear of the ages of frost and rain that wore them down.
My vision sweeps back to the days when the rock lay hardening beneath the sea;
And on to the days when the black and glittering coal was alive.
Mighty ferns waved slowly in mist,
The hot dampness of vapor sifted through giant fronds.
Forests of fern covered all the part of the earth where coal lies buried now,
The warmth of the earth rose in exhalations,
The envelope of cloud shut in the warmth of the earth,
Shut out the light of the sun,
And in the dim warm misty air grew giant fronds
The dying made the black and glittering coal.

 

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Flood of Images: the West End Perspective

Posted on March 30, 2011 by SCblogger

As we keep a watchful eye on the river levels around here, it might be interesting to look back at the last  few times it rose up to shake hands with Davenport.

Here are a some of our favorite flooding images from the west side of the city:

 

The river made a parking lot out of streets in 1993 . . .

. . . and lakes out of  parking lots in 2001.

****

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For two years running, gazebos were islands unto themselves . . .

.  . . and playgrounds required a snorkel.

****

1993 might have caught us flatfooted (though the telephone poles were an inspiration to us all). . .

But by 2001, we finally got the hang of sandbags.

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Genealogy Night!

Posted on March 23, 2011 by SCblogger

Are the nuts in your family tree taking up all of your precious research time?

 We in the Special Collections Center understand.  And we are once again opening our Center to give you a little extra time to root out those difficult ancestors and shear the black sheep of the family.

 For $10.00, you’ll have the run of the Special Collections Center between 4-9pm on Sunday, April 10th. 

You’ll be able to use our resources, pick the brains of your fellow genealogists, socialize with those who share your obsessions . . . and what the heck, we’ll feed you, too!

 So call us at 326-7902 for more information, or drop off your registration fee at the Special Collections Center at our Main Street location to secure your spot!

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