Maria Mitchell In Her Own Words
Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • April 6, 2020
Dr. E. P. Miller’s
37, 39 West 26th Street
New York, Ap. 16 {1881}
My dear Matthew {Barney},
I am glad you are getting along decently well. I am very much better than I was and begin to enjoy life again. Lydia Dame is with me for a few days. Anne you probably see; she left Thursday. I enjoyed her visit very much . . . .
Yesterday (Good Friday) the city was packed and crammed and I suppose it will be on Sunday . . . .
Tomorrow (Sunday) Lydia expects to go to Trinity {Church}; probably she will have to stand. After Easter has passed, I mean to buy Easter Eggs. I suspect they will be cheap. The streets are exceedingly pretty; some of the Easter cards are very pretty and the roses beautiful. You pass thousands of them on Broadway.
Matthew Barney was the husband of Maria’s older sister, Sally Mitchell Barney, who died in 1876. By this point, Matthew was remarried. He is buried on Nantucket with his second wife and her family. It is nice to see that they still remained close – he was, after all, her brother-in-law for thirty-eight years before Sally died – a death not unexpected as her health had been poorly much of her life. Lydia Dame, was a daughter of Maria’s youngest sister, Eliza Katherine (Kate) Mitchell Dame and Anne is of course a younger sister of Maria’s.
What I find funny is Maria’s frugal nature coming out in her note about buying Easter candy AFTER Easter. Such a Maria thing. She was not poor by any means, leaving a decent estate to her family when she died in 1889. But her Nantucket and Quaker-self shine through in this comment – as too does the over-crowding. In this date of COVID-19, it immediately makes me think of “social distancing.” Maria might find it amazing to see shots of what were once crowded areas of NYC and Boston – all now empty because of this virus pandemic.
Maria was in NYC for the Easter parade – this was at its beginnings – and went on for decades though it began to fizzle out in the last decade or so. If you have never seen “Easter Parade” with Fred Astaire and Judy Garland it really is a must no matter what your religious belief – it is not a religious-based movie and it has one of the best dance and song scenes in a musical – “A Couple of Swells” – (says this movie musical nut) and “Stepping Out With My Baby” is fantastic – can’t go wrong with Irving Berlin! And if you have never seen Anne Miller tap dance, this one is even more important to watch!
JNLF
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NANTUCKET, MA— The Maria Mitchell Association, in collaboration with the Nantucket Dreamland, invites the community to two unforgettable and entertaining performances featuring Doktor Kaboom: Under Pressure! on Friday, March 13 and Saturday, March 14. Doktor Kaboom’s interactive Science Comedy shows engage audiences of all ages. In Under Pressure!, Kaboom illustrates physical science concepts that are also metaphors for real-life mental and emotional pressures, validating what students may feel, while sharing tools for dealing with life’s challenges. Blending big ideas, explosive demonstrations, and humor, Kaboom keeps audiences riveted with interest and rolling with laughter. Hailed as, “part Mister Wizard, part Mr. Rogers,” Kaboom delights patrons with curiosity, creativity, and charm. Both performances are FREE to the public. This event is possible due to a grant from the Remain Nantucket Fund at the Community Foundation for Nantucket. Reflecting on both the impact of the performance and the partnerships that made it possible, MMA Executive Director, Joanna Roche, shared, “A heartfelt thank you to the Community Foundation for the generous grant that made it possible to bring Doktor Kaboom to Nantucket, and to the Nantucket Dreamland for hosting this extraordinary performance. I’ve known the good Doktor for nearly twenty years, and I have no doubt that his unique blend of humor, magic, and science will not only make you laugh, but also leave you with a renewed sense of wonder and a deeper connection to the world around you.” The Friday performance will be followed by an Ice Cream Bar, generously sponsored by Island Kitchen, and a photo opportunity with Doktor Kaboom in the Harborview Room. Event Details: • Dates and Times: Friday, March 13 at 7pm and Saturday, March 14 at 3pm • Location: Dreamland Theatre, 17 South Water Street • Special Offering: Friday, March 13 – Post-performance Ice Cream Bar in the Dreamland Theatre Harborview Room, generously sponsored by Island Kitchen, plus a photo opportunity with Doktor Kaboom • Tickets: Available at https://www.nantucketdreamland.org/events/doktor-kaboom-under-pressure • Cost: Free This community event kicks off another free collaborative event, the annual Nantucket STEAM Festival, taking place Saturday, March 14, 2026 at the Nantucket High School Gymnasium from 10am – 2pm. This event features hands-on activities celebrating science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics from over twenty community organizations. A sensory-friendly half house begins at 9:30am. Doktor Kaboom! was created, and is performed, by actor and comedian David Epley, who has discovered two passions in his life: science and mathematics. Epley first explored his love of hands-on learning, chemistry, and physics at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics and later studied at the university level, exploring a degree in Chemical Engineering. Epley, a performer for over twenty years, has reached over 2,000,000 students and families, and has performed over 2,000 live shows worldwide. Epley lives in Seattle, Washington. About the Nantucket Dreamland: The Nantucket Dreamland is a nonprofit organization dedicated to enriching the cultural and intellectual life of Nantucket by providing year-round films, educational programs, and a venue for community activities that engage Nantucket in the evolving world of entertainment and education. The Dreamland’s mission is to build community on Nantucket year-round by bringing people together to share experiences through film, art, culture, and learning. About the Maria Mitchell Association: The Maria Mitchell Association was founded in 1902 to preserve the legacy of Nantucket native astronomer, naturalist, librarian, and educator, Maria Mitchell. After she discovered a comet in 1847, Mitchell’s international fame led to many achievements and awards, including an appointment as the first professor of astronomy at Vassar College. Maria Mitchell believed in “learning by doing” and today that philosophy is reflected in the MMA’s mission statement, programs, research projects, and other activities. The Maria Mitchell Association operates two observatories, a natural science museum, an aquarium, a research center, and preserves the historic birthplace of Maria Mitchell. A wide variety of science and history-related programming is offered throughout the year for people of all ages. ######
1881, Feb. 26. Miss Whitney read Frances Power Cobbe’s “Lectures to Women” aloud to me. In the main they are excellent. I agree at almost every point. What she says about the duty of women in veracity, in cultivating both physical and moral courage, etc., in demanding not “favor but justice” . . . Mary Whitney would become the first president of the Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association. She was one of Maria’s first students and ultimately her replacement at Vassar College. She also took over for Maria when she left the College for a brief illness in 1880. On her second trip to Europe in 1873, Maria would seek Frances Power Cobbe out at her home. A suffragette, Power Cobbe was a philosopher and writer among other things, including an animal rights activist when it came to experimentation on animals. Born into a wealthy family in Ireland, Power Cobbe would travel in Europe about the same time as Maria did in 1857, meeting some of the same people Maria would meet such as Mary Somerville (Maria’s hero and an astronomer, mathematician, scientist, and polymath) and Harriet Hosmer (sculptor). I should not note this but Maria wrote about Power Cobbe’s large head –further stating that being a large woman, she would have a large head. Reviewing images of Power Cobbe, I hate to say it but I cannot disagree – with my apologies to Ms. Powers Cobbe. JNLF
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