Ten years have rapidly gone by since a consciousness of Family began to be perceived. This decade is a legacy from Cousin Walter Cluff of inestimable value to scores of our members.
For the Tenth Reunion we are to assemble at Plymouth, New Hampshire. There are several reasons why this town has been selected. First, we are continuing the custom of recent years, by following the trails that our ancestors blazed into the wilderness from Salisbury, Massachusetts. In 1947 we enjoyed meeting for our picnic and afternoon session at Salem, N. H., with Erskine Lord and Family at the homestead of Isaac Clough, the grandson of John-1. You are advised to reread Chapter IV of the Clough Book that Cousin Vivian Lord wrote about the Cloughs in New Hampshire, and plan your routes so that you drive where the ancestors settled.
Should you enter the State from Maine, you may come through Kingston, N. H. Note the story on page 66 about Sarah Clough, then turn to page 101 for the tale about her daughter, Elizabeth Clough Webster and the Indians. Many of you have become acquainted with Mrs. Hard Pease, Cousin Bess, who has accompanied our singing at Salem and Kennebunk-port. Mrs. Pease is a descendant of Elizabeth, and she will be a hostess for the reunion. Mr. Pease, selectman of Plymouth, will be your host.
The way through Durham will pass the site of the homestead of William Clough, grandfather of Cousin Walter Cluff. This house was demolished to provide the site for the new gmynasium of the University of New Hampshire several years ago. Continue north through Canterbury and you will pass where two lines of the family cleared their farms. An ancient cemetery — page 111 — near the church at Canterbury Center is the resting place of many of these pioneers. The memorial tablet to Capt. Jeremiah, Jr.,—page 108—may he seen near the highway that leads from Canterbury toward Tilton.
If you drive north of Concord, N. H., as you enter Boscawen, you will pass the house of the Gerrish Family, a collateral through Martha Clough—page 108. This is a white, saltbox homestead, on the right going north. It sets back from the highway and is shaded by a large elm. You can easily identify the place.
Arriving at Plymouth, you will be met by descendants of Sarah Clough-2, third daughter of John-1 who married Daniel Merrill in 1667. Her grandson, Moses Merrill, was a grantee of Plymouth and many descendants are living in this vicinity today.
A second reason for selecting Plymouth is the Clough Family of Haverhill and Plymouth, brothers and sisters–William, Samuel now deceased, John, Martha, Kate, Anna, and Nell— who have been constant attendants at reunions and both John and William have spoken on our programs. On pages )2 and 97 in the Clough Book you will find the lineage of these cousins, and you will note that when you visit them you are continuing the trail from Salem, N. H. to Haverhill.
On Sunday, you are invited to have the annual picnic at the home of William in Haverhill, to visit the historical Ox Bow Farm of Martha Clough Chamberlain and the original homestead where these cousins were born. Of one fact we are certain, those men who ate doughnuts at Salisbury from the picnic basket that Martha filled will not be absent at Haverhill. “West View Dairy Farm” overlooks the Connecticut. Valley, a place of beauty and historical lore back to the days of the Coos Indians.
The third reason for you to come to Plymouth is that the home of your President is there. She is planning a program that she hopes will please both young and old. The formal programs of former reunions will be discarded; instead, a snore recreational idea will be substituted, for Plymouth ‘is situated in the very center of the State and vacation land is surrounding it among the lakes to the south and the mountains and trout streams to the north. Come prepared to stay several days in New Hampshire.
The village of Plymouth is one of the most attractive in the State. Tall elms and maples line the streets, and shade the Village Green in the very center of the business section, an historical site that offers a place of rest to weary shoppers. Near by on the next terrace is the Plymouth Teachers College, one of the oldest institutions of the teaching profession in the country.
The afternoon session is to be held in the Congregational Church, because a musical program on the fine organ can be offered by Mrs. Pease and Robert Lord, our famous boy organist of Marblehead. This session will be brief. After the program, many recreational features may be enjoyed. Should the day prove warm, the young people may enjoy a swim at Campton Pond, six miles north. The older members can stroll about the Green and up the street to the Pemigewasset Motel, our headquarters. There the spacious porches will prove ideal for visiting and the comfortable lobby a restful spot also. Across the Pemigewasset River is the oldest Episcopal church in New Hampshire near Holderness School. Possibly Mr. Herridge may fill his car for a sight-seeing trip to this shrine, since we learned at Kennebunkport that he is a devout Episcopalian.
The Family Dinner will be at the Pemigewasset Hotel, in the spacious dining-room, followed by a short program. Cousin William Clough will prepare us for the trip to his home in Haverhill on the following day. At present, he is chairman of an important committee in the legislature at Concord where he will be gaining practice- which he does not need- to give us a clever talk, about Coos Indians, Tory Road and the Farm.
Cousin Clarence was doubtful about coming East for this reunion when he last talked with the President at Tilton last September. However, we are looking for him and his films to complete the evening. Mrs. Herridge will tell us about her childhood on Bridgewater Hill. If you have a copy of Robert Frost’s poems in his book “Mountain Interval,” read Brown’s Descent, a poem about Bridgewater Hill in winter.
Sunday morning will be free for conferences, a leisurely breakfast and then the drive to Haverhill where the picnic will be at noon. This will permit time to explore the homesteads and to enjoy a real picnic. Should any become so fascinated with the view, Mrs. William Clough can accommodate you in her cabins on the river bank where she entertains hundreds of tourists every summer.