44th Annual Garden Tour, June 10 and 11

Here are just a few of the gardens on the 44th Annual Garden Tour, June 10 & 11. The event features 12 gardens and occurs from 10am-4pm, rain or shine both days. Buy your garden tour tickets today! Early bird prices through May 31: Members $20, Non-member $35.

Ellen Swett Clark and Aaron Augustus Sargent: Newburyport’s Suffrage Power Couple

On March 19, 1852, the “Marriages” column of the Newburyport Herald carried this news:



In this city on Monday evening, by Rev. Mr. Eells, A.A. Sargent, editor of the Nevada (California) Journal, to Miss Ellen S. Clark, daughter of Amos Clark.  

Ellen Swett Clark’s father owned a bakery in Joppa, at 110 Water Street, in which his large family lived. Aaron Augustus Sargent’s father was a shoemaker, laborer, and sexton of the Harris Street Presbyterian Church, where he was paid a small stipend to bury the indigent paupers of the town. 

The home and bakery where Ellen Clark grew up on Water St. between Franklin and Bromfield St. Courtesy of Leventhal Map Center, Boston Public Library.

Both families lived just above poverty in the scrum of Newburyport’s South End. It was not a particularly advantageous match. But Ellen and A.A., as he was known, had loved each other for a decade at the time of their marriage, since they were teenagers, and their partnership, based on the shared belief in their equality, would take them thousands of miles away and help them change the world.

A.A. had already travelled thousands of miles when he came back for Ellen from the gold-mining camp-turned-town of Nevada, California, where he had just purchased the town’s first newspaper. Sargent, born in 1827, had shaken the dust of Newburyport from his feet early on. He had attended Newburyport schools until he was apprenticed to a cabinetmaker at thirteen, then worked as a printer and journalist in Philadelphia before moving to Washington, D.C. in 1847 to become a Congressional secretary. He was 20 years old and determined to make his fortune and return home for Ellen. Two years later, as young men from Newburyport poured into California to hunt for gold, A.A. joined them, mining with modest success in a camp called Nevada.

As many ‘49ers discovered, prospecting did not always pan out, and A.A. quickly returned to journalism, reporting, editing, and eventually owning the Nevada Journal newspaper. Nevada, later incorporated as Nevada City, was a wild place, and Sargent’s newspaper was filled with stories of shoot-outs, brazen robberies, and clever swindlers. But such was his faith in the future of the place that he and a friend built a one-story, four-room house in the middle of the town. And then, in 1852, all of 24 years old, he sailed back to Newburyport, arriving on March 5. He and Ellen, one year his senior, were married at the Harris Street Presbyterian Church. just ten days after his return.

Never one to dally, A.A. was back in Nevada, California by July 3, having travelled via steamship, then overland by mule-train through Panama, then back to steamship, riverboat, and stagecoach. A.A. documented the journey in detail in a serialized column in his newspaper. Ellen followed later, arriving in Nevada, California on October 23. She recalled her first view of the town that her husband had helped to establish. “We had traveled by stage since the morning from Sacramento. Our road for the last eight or ten miles was through a forest of trees, mostly pines. The glory of the full moon was shining upon the beautiful hills and trees, and everything seemed so quiet and restful that it made a deep impression on me, sentimental if not poetical, never to be forgotten.”

Nevada, California in 1852. Image courtesy of California State Library.

Ellen found that her “good husband” had stocked the pantry of their small house, and she settled down to make a life for herself in California. A.A., already the secretary for the local Whig party and active in everything from the local New England Club to the fire prevention society, took up the study of law as he continued to run the newspaper. He was admitted to the bar in 1854, the same year that their first child was born, and he was elected district attorney for the county.



Back home in Newburyport, the Herald sang the praises of this hometown boy under the headline “Yankee Genius”. It gushed, “such a rapid rise to distinction shows how much can be accomplished by application and a determination to succeed. Within the comparatively short time spent in California, Mr. Sargent has not only attended to the editorial duties of his paper, but has completed his law studies, and gained a position at the bar, by a successful practice and the exhibition of talent that has resulted in the acquisition of a post of great importance and responsibility.”

In 1856, when Nevada City was established, this illustrated view of the town was posted in Newburyport so Ellen and A.A.’s family and friends could see where they lived. Note that another Newburyporter, Nathan Brown, had gone out to join the Sargents. 

As A.A.’s star continued to rise – he was a state senator in 1856 and a Republican Congressman by 1861 – Ellen raised three young children and oversaw dramatic improvements to their home. Both she and A.A. believed that political rights should not be determined by gender, but, like many of her peers, she was spurred to action after the Civil War. Women’s rights advocates joined the push to give women the vote at the same time as Black men in the 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Ellen jumped in with both feet in 1869, founding the Nevada County Women's Suffrage Organization and then becoming president of the California Woman’s Suffrage Association. When women were excluded from the 15^th Amendment, she joined Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s National Woman Suffrage Association, advocating for a Constitutional amendment that would give women the vote. 

A.A. Sargent was a congressman in 1871 when he and Ellen shared a snow-bound train from California to Washington, D.C. with Susan B. Anthony, strategizing all the way. The three of them remained close friends for the rest of their lives. When A.A. became a Senator in 1873, and the family moved primarily to Washington, D.C., Ellen threw her considerable energy into leading the National Women’s Suffrage Association, serving as secretary and treasurer.

In 1878, Ellen drafted the language that would ultimately be ratified as the 19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, and her husband brought it to the Senate floor.

“The right of the citizens of The United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex,” it read.

For more than four decades, women’s suffrage would annually fail to pass in Congress. Ellen and A.A. fought tirelessly for its passage, but neither would live to see it. Aaron Augustus Sargent died in 1887 from the lingering effects of malaria, courtesy of one of his trips across Panama. Ellen was bereft, writing to Susan B. Anthony, “It seems to me like a fearful dream all the time. I don’t know that I want any more of life for myself, but my family and friends still hold me, and I am always hoping that I may still do a little for the world that it may be some better for my having lived in it.” 

Susan B. Anthony is at the center of this 1896 image, with her dear friend Ellen Clark Sargent next to her on the right.

Ellen Clark Sargent died in 1911, having continued to work tirelessly for women’s political rights. The 19th Amendment was finally ratified in 1920, using the language that the Sargents had crafted together all those years before.

Newburyport carried the news of Ellen Clark Sargent’s death under the headline “Was Native of This City” and pointed out her continuing ties. Her brother-in-law had a well-known store on State Street, it said, and her niece lived in Newburyport. However long she had been away, Newburyport still claimed ground-breaking suffragist Ellen Swett (Clark) Sargent as its own.

*A.A. Sargent’s legacy is tarnished by his support of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, and the deep racism it revealed. Ellen Clark Sargent went so far in support of this policy that she helped to establish a silkworm club, so domestic silk could replace Chinese imports. It is worthy of consideration that a couple who did so much to forward the work of equality could be so blind to this injustice.  

Museum Tours Begin June 1!

Come visit the museum and learn about the history of Old Newbury! Free for members and residents of "Old Newbury" (Newburyport, Newbury, West Newbury and Byfield). Open Thursday - Sunday, 11am - 5pm (last tour at 4pm).

The 44th Annual Newburyport Garden Tour

June 10 & 11, 10am -4pm

Enjoy exclusive access over two days to a selection of 12 gardens in Newburyport, Amesbury, Newbury, and Rowley. (Above is a sneak peak from a Newburyport garden with an incredible view!) Early bird pricing through May 31: $20 members, $35 non-members. Regular pricing is $25 for members, $40 for non-members. Tickets also available during that Garden Tour at 98 High Street. One ticket is good both days. Get your tickets today.

Antique Tin-Type Portrait Session: Members Only!

Sunday June 11

Join wet plate collodion photographer Corey Prince for an exclusive, fun, and educational antique portrait experience . Using his traditional wood tailboard camera and portable darkroom, Corey will photograph your family in the garden of the Museum of Old Newbury using the same process introduced in 1851 by Fredrick Scott Archer. The wet plate collodion process was the foundation for all of the early, and numerous, photographers that practiced their profession here in Newburyport on glass and tin. You are more than welcome to capture images during your immersion in this unique craft and will receive 1 traditionally sized ½ plate or 4x6” (if desired) tintype and digital copy (and, of course, a wealth of fun facts and engaging conversation). Due to the final step of lavender varnishing to protect your image after it has dried – your plate will not be ready for pick up or dispatch until Wednesday June 7th.



Sessions are 30 minutes long and are $100 and are for members only. An additional $9.95 shipping charge (if needed) will apply. Sessions are available from 10-2 on June 11th with potential of additional sessions being scheduled based on demand.

How to Photograph a Garden

... a guest blog by Bob Watts, MOON Board member

I was my Mother’s first born…. born in early June when summer was approaching full swing. She always remarked how much she loved her red rose bush, climbing up the screened-in porch. The beautiful fragrance always reminded her of my first days. We have this one photograph and I treasure it…. made 60 years ago in New City, NY (a hamlet of Clarkstown, Rockland County). 

I’ve been asked to share my best tricks for how to photograph a garden. You can use your camera phones or digital cameras - both can make for beautiful images. 

Start with a general view - the entrance, a gate, a path. Think about the view the gardener hoped you would first see. This is an inviting garden gate from the 2022 Garden Tour with the roses at peak bloom!

Next you may be offered a full, sweeping view of the garden - this might be a nice horizontal view. Look for something of interest (flowers) to fill the bottom half of the image. This is where a wide angle setting on your lens choice could work well. Phones have a wonderful shooting mode called “Panorama”. Make it with your phone in vertical position and it’s not necessary to create it to be a full 180°, just swoop enough to get the full expanse of the garden.

Look for where the gardener means for you to spend some time. We at the Museum know that Margaret Cushing would sit and gaze upon her garden from the "summer house," which is still in place. This view should fill your frame and remember that vertical can work well, all dependent on the subject. (Filling the frame is a good general tip on almost all images.)

Next you can explore views from this spot.

Take a look at this bird bath. A straight-on image works but I prefer the one where I stood on my toes to look down from above. It gives a better view of the water plants and their beauty.

There will be the ever-changing palette of the various plants and flowers. Some tips:

• Get low to be at the level of the bloom
• Try a zoom/telephoto setting - you might need to step back (remember “fill the frame”)
• If you can control the lens opening, use a wider open aperture so that your depth of field is low and flowers in the background go out of focus. On your phone, you can get this effect in the “Portrait” setting.
• Get above and in tight to fill the frame

I love to look for special objects in the garden. Mirror balls or gazing balls go back to 13^th century Venice and were used in royal gardens throughout Europe. I love the fun of them and this became a favorite “selfie” image with my daughters.

Just remember…. you are creating a historical record for the generations to come. It is a lovely gift to the future. Here is a favorite from the 2022 Garden Tour - the gardener and his view of his creation.

Come for a garden walk with me…. 

Cheers,  

Bob Watts

Fresh Lilac Lemonade

This was served at the John Forti talk last week! The lilacs planted over a century ago by Mary Noyes Poore at her West Newbury farm are exuberant and fleeting. During the brief period when they are in heady bloom, this refreshing, light lemonade makes a delicious, and beautiful, punch.

-Bethany Groff Dorau

4-6 bunches of fresh lilacs – stems and leaves removed

1 gallon room-temperature water

1 cup hot water

2 cups fresh lemon juice

1.5 cups sugar

1 liter seltzer

1 sliced lemon

Handful of frozen wild blueberries

Rinse lilac flowers and soak for 30 minutes to ensure cleanliness. Rinse again and add to 1 gallon of cold water and let sit overnight. Mix sugar with 1 cup of hot water and add it, and lemon juice, to the lilac water.

Thaw wild blueberries overnight and use the juice to color the lilac water the desired shade of pink/purple. Thawed blueberries can be rinsed and added to an ice ring or to the punch bowl. Do not remove lilacs. Serve in a bowl or pitcher with seltzer added last for added zing.   

Click the image to do the puzzle

Image of Nevada, California from 1856, when the town was incorported. This is how it would have looked to the Sargents of Newburyport, four years after their marriage. Today, it is among the better-preserved Gold Rush towns in the California foothills of the Sierra Nevada.