Published: April 18, 2007 11:34 pm            

Treasured Anne Bradstreet manuscript returns to town

NORTH ANDOVER ,Mass. — A historical document will make its way home to North Andover for the first time in more than 30 years.

The only surviving hand-written Anne Bradstreet manuscript will take a trip out of its climate-controlled, secure case at the Houghton Library at Harvard University and go on display in the Lehman Art Center at Brooks School.

"The Bradstreet manuscript is tiny, but irreplaceable," said Lehman Art Center Director Michael McCahill.

Bradstreet is considered the first American female poet to be published. She came to America in 1630 and eventually settled in North Andover, then known as Andover.

Her brother took her poems to England, where they were first published in 1650 as a collection titled "The Tenth Muse." While she was known for her intellectual poetry in her time, Library Trustee Mary Ellen Osgood said it is Bradstreet's poems about daily life that people can connect with now.

She wrote about her love for her husband, a fire that destroyed her house and her thoughts on family.

Bradstreet is not as widely known as some other poets, but interest in her was reignited during the feminist movement.

Bradstreet wrote about the difficulty of pursuing art in the Puritan community where she lived: "I am obnoxious to each carping tongue,/ Who sayes, my hand a needle better fits."

Stevens Memorial Library Director Sue Ellen Holmes described Bradstreet as a woman who was ahead of her time, writing and publishing her work while raising eight children, taking care of her home and supporting her husband, who was in politics.

"The things she was able to do are things that women weren't doing," she said.

The manuscript is a small, leather-bound book, slightly bigger than a paperback, where Bradstreet wrote thoughts, ideas and observations.

Osgood said she is "awe-struck" the book survived the centuries, as it was passed down through the family and read often.

"This is an artifact from our own town," she said. "It's a way to touch the past."

McCahill offered to display the manuscript in the gallery after Osgood mentioned the trustees wanted to show the manuscript as part of the library's 100th anniversary celebration.

Insurance costs in the thousands of dollars and the fragility of the pages had kept the library trustees from bringing out the manuscript, which was put in their care after 1951. The manuscript was placed in safe-keeping at the Houghton Library in 1972 and hasn't been on display since.

Leslie Morris, curator of modern books and manuscripts at the Houghton Library, said the book is not in great condition, but its survival was still remarkable.

"It is quite old, quite well-thumbed over the years," she said.

Because of its condition, the book cannot be opened and looked at often. At the Lehman Art Center, the library is hiring a conservator just to open the book correctly so it displays a page.

Morris is working with the Stevens Library trustees on plans to bring the manuscript into the 21st century | by making color digital photographs of the pages to put online.

Drake Lucas writes for The Eagle-Tribune of North Andover, Mass. E-mail her at dlucas@eagletribune.com



Drake Lucas writes for The Eagle-Tribune in North Andover, Mass.



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The Bradstreet Manuscript on display

When: May 7 to 18

Where: The Robert Lehman Art Center at Brooks School, 1160 Great Pond Road, North Andover

Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday; 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday; 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday

Admission: Free, donations accepted



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Learning more about Anne Bradstreet

On Saturday, the Stevens Memorial Library, 345 Main St., North Andover, will host its annual Anne Bradstreet Day, from 9:45 a.m. to noon. A round-table discussion will bring together Bradstreet scholars, authors and descendants. The library will also have a display of Anne Bradstreet work and memorabilia.

        

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