Photographers Archives - Page 112 of 160

New Hotel Weirs, Weirs Beach, NH (1)

July 23, 2015July 10, 2015 by Derek Strahan

The New Hotel Weirs on Lakeside Avenue in the Laconia village of Weirs Beach, around 1905. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The location in 2015:

The late 1800s was a period of great economic growth throughout much of the United States, allowing greater numbers of people the luxury of traveling and vacationing. The era saw the construction of many large, resort-like hotels, and for the wealthy in the northeast, New Hampshire was a popular destination. The Laconia village known as “The Weirs” was one such place. It is the place where the waters of Lake Winnipesaukee flow into Paugus Bay on their way to the Merrimack River, and its convenient location on the railroad line led to the construction of the Hotel Weirs in 1880, right across the street from the railroad station.

It was an age of great prosperity in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, and as other hotels continued to open, the Hotel Weirs expanded several times. The original building was the far-left section, consisting of just the tower and several window bays on either side. By the time the first photo was taken around 1905, the building had already seen two major additions in 1896 and 1899, and had been renamed the New Hotel Weirs. It was a popular destination, and its guests included Theodore Roosevelt, who stayed at the hotel during a 1902 visit.

Over the winter of 1905-1906, probably the winter after the photo was taken, it was expanded even more, with another addition to the left of the original section. However, like so many other grand hotels of its age, the New Hotel Weirs was destroyed in a fire, on November 9, 1924. The same fire also destroyed a number of nearby buildings, and the hotel was not rebuilt. The property was later redeveloped, and today it is the site of the Half Moon, which includes a motel, cottages, and arcades.

Gaylord Library, South Hadley Mass

June 25, 2015 by Derek Strahan

The Gaylord Library on College Street in South Hadley, around 1904-1910. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The library in 2015:

The epitaph on William Shakespeare’s grave warns that, “cursed be he that moves my bones,” so I suppose it is a good thing that he was never buried here in South Hadley, where the old town cemetery was moved back in 1902 to build a library. Perhaps Shakespeare would’ve approved in the name of literature, but either way the first photograph shows the site of the former cemetery, soon after it was redeveloped as the Gaylord Memorial Library.

This site was originally home to the First Congregational Church of South Hadley as well as the adjoining cemetery, but in 1894 the church burned, along with a small library that was housed inside the church. Local philanthropist William H. Gaylord offered to donate money to build a library if the graves were moved, and the plan was approved. The library opened in 1904, and later in the year both William Gaylord and his wife Betsey died, on the same day. They left an endowment to maintain the library, which operated independently until 1968, when it became a branch of the South Hadley Public Library. Because of costs, however, it reverted to an independent library in 1995, and is open to the public on a limited schedule, Thursdays through Saturdays.

Pearsons Hall, South Hadley, Mass

June 25, 2015 by Derek Strahan

Pearsons Hall on the campus of Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, around 1900-1910. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

Pearsons Hall in 2015:

Mount Holyoke College was established in 1837 as the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, and for most of the 19th century a single building, known as the Seminary Building, housed most of the classrooms and dorm rooms, as well as the library and gymnasium. However, it burned in 1896, and the following year the school built four new dormitories, one of which was Pearsons Hall. It is named for Dr. D.K. Pearsons, who donated money to the school to help rebuild following the fire. Today, the building is still there, and it continues to be used as a dormitory for the college.

Civil War Monument, South Hadley, Mass

August 23, 2023June 23, 2015 by Derek Strahan

The Civil War monument on the town common in South Hadley, around 1900-1910. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The monument in 2023:

There are several things that almost every New England town center has: some sort of a town common, and a Civil War monument on that common. South Hadley is no exception, with its granite statue honoring “the loyalty and patriotism of our citizen soldiers who fought for liberty and the Union in the great rebellion of 1861-1865,” as the inscription on the front reads. South Hadley had 224 of its citizens fighting in the war, many of whom were probably still living here when the monument was dedicated in 1896.

Northampton from Mount Holyoke, Hadley Mass

June 23, 2015 by Derek Strahan

Looking west from the summit of Mount Holyoke toward Northampton, around 1900. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The scene in 2015:

Not a whole lot has changed in this scene in the past 115 years. From this distance, there aren’t too many noticeable changes in the city of Northampton, which has grown in population by more than 50% since 1900. The area near the river has hardly changed at all; this floodplain continues to be used as farmland. Even Interstate 91, which passes through between the farms and the city, isn’t noticeable in the present-day scene. In fact, the only really obvious difference here is something that is entirely natural – the island that has formed in the middle of the Connecticut River.

Connecticut River from Mount Holyoke, Hadley Mass

June 23, 2015June 22, 2015 by Derek Strahan

Looking north toward the Connecticut River from the summit of Mount Holyoke around 1900. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

The scene in 2015:

One of the things that amazes me about then and now landscapes of New England is the difference in trees. It seems counterintutitive, but in most cases the present-day scenes are substantially more forested than they were in the past. In part, this is because of agricultural changes over the past century. This section of the Connecticut River Valley has some of the best farmland in New England, and there are still plenty of active farms today, but New England’s short growing season and limited land has prevented the area from being used for large-scale farming. Today, some of the former farms have been developed into residential neighborhoods, but much of the land, especially in the floodplains along the river, has reverted to forest over the course of the past century.