1851
April 9th Wednesday This day has been a busy one but I can
scarcely tell what I have done but have been about
many things. Lavinia came this afternoon with her
father He was going to North Bridgewater and
came this way to bring her. They were here […]
to tea They have all gone to the assembly to
night at Lothrops Hall I believe it is the last
dance for the present A[u]gustus gone to Boston. Pleasant
We all have days that zoom by unaccountably; we get to the end of them and wonder what we did. Evelina had one of those days today; she could “scarcely tell” how she passed the time. She probably dealt with various household chores: mending, sweeping, overseeing Jane McHanna, perhaps stirring something on the stove or straightening up a clutter of periodicals in the sitting room. With three sons and a daughter under her roof, she certainly passed part of the day tending to their needs and conversing with them over small matters. She saw her husband out the door and perhaps urged him not to forget to come home for tea. She may have popped next door to check on Sarah Lothrop Ames, who remained ill in bed.
Her niece Lavinia Gilmore stopped over, having been carried from the Gilmore farm to the village by her father, Alson Gilmore. Did they travel in a farm wagon or a carriage? After tea, Lavinia and her male cousins went to the dance at Lothrop Hall, the last of the season. Formal socializing for the young set would have to wait until next fall.
evelinaames 