Wife, mother, music-lover, theatre-goer and Christian Scientist, Jessie Parker like so many the self-appointed archivist of her family. Her scrapbooks lovingly reveal a devout preoccupation with recollecting the many aspects of day-to-day life on her s behalf. School activities, family vacations, even synopses of books and plays are all included in these albums, revealing a woman who was intelligent, compassionate and well read. Rebecca Johnson, curator at the University of Delaware, also notes the degree of introspection evident in these scrapbooks, noting that Mrs. spiritual reflections express a desire to live with a stronger practice and a greater awareness of efforts to improve her Curiously, while news of many world events feature prominently throughout these pages, there are equally startling omissions, leading one to consider the possibility that Jessie Parker elected a more cheerful version of history for her future descendents. Whether intentional or accidental, her accounts of daily life in a quiet enclave of suburban Boston cast a fascinating lens on the customary habits of affluent families at the turn of the century.

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