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GLADYS B. HETHERINGTON [later Atwood] : 1922 - 1924 ORIGINAL PAIR [2] OF MANUSCRIPT DIARIES HANDWRITTEN BY A HARDWORKING RURAL MAINE WOMAN DETAILING A LIFE MORE OF THE TOILING TWENTIES NEVER MIND THE ROARING

16mo - over 5¾" - 6¾" tall. On offer are two [2] original manuscript diaries written in the early 20th Century in the very remote and rural countryside of Maine, USA. The first diary measures 6' x 3.5', the second - 7.0 x 4.25', both diaries have 365 pages, 100% complete and in good condition. The diaries were hand written by Gladys B Hetherington. She was born on April 25th, 1895. In 1914, she married Hurley Hetherington. That marriage would end in divorce in 1930. Subsequently, she married Henry Atwood, with whom she had a daughter. Maine has always been a state comprised of mostly small fishing and farming communities. The people were hard-working and independent. In 1922, when she was 27, Gladys was living on a farm with her husband Hurley. The farm was in Fairfield, near Norridgewock, ME, and her diary is full of the daily events of life in that very small community. "Lovely warm day. Hurley went down to help Jimmie. I done usual Sat work and set two more hens. Evelyn spent the afternoon with me. We rehearsed and sang. Arthur came up with Hurley to hear records. Hurley and I have been married eight years today. We can hear the frogs tonight. ..." [Apr. 8, 1922]; "Another windy day and cold too. I cleaned the dining room and made a dust cap. Hurley went to Malbrum's Mills to help Farleys pick up potatoes. Mama and I took [ ] down to the blacksmith's shop at Black's Mills and had his shoes set over. Done some trading and came home. Evelyn came up to get a [ ] for Louise for Sunday and I copied one off for her." [May 11, 1922]; "Dark day rained little did not have to hurry getting up. I made raisin brad cake and apple pie dressed chicken etc ..." [Nov 11, 1922]; "It was snowing when we got up and snowed until middle of P.M. a damp snow. John and Hurley took the horses over to blacksmith shop (Brads) A.M. and had them sharpened, then they came home got their dinner and done their chores and went back down to Leo's. I have a headache as well as a sore throat. I made cookies and a mince pie." [Jan 25, 1924]; "My 29th birthday. Mamma and I cleaned, papered and moved things in her bedroom I roasted rooster for supper. Guy had a spell with his heart this morning they thought he was dead and called Dr. Smith Received birthday card from [ ] and $1.20 from Hurley" [Apr 30, 1924]; "Hurley down to Charlies. Mamma and I done washing. I washed the floor. The meat man did not come. I cleaned out chicken coops. Mamma, Addie and I went raspberrying on the hill. Put up 3 pts and started little batch of R.R. Jam. Hurley started the bossey drinking tonight. Hurley brought mowing machine up tonight. Hurley shot at a skunk" [July 21, 1924]. The entries are focused on the immediate events and activities of their lives. There are no references to outside events, reflecting very much the constant hard work that they did to maintain themselves. None-the-less, there comes across a real sense of family as they work and socialized with themselves and their neighbors in this fairly harsh rural environment. A rural historian would find these diaries valuable as they paint a picture of what was involved in the continual effort to build a life in rural Maine. A researcher in women's or gender studies would see this as a very clear description of the life that many rural women led in the early 20th century.. Manuscript. Book Condition: Good

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