From Our Archives
Diaries of Francis (Fannie) Farnum Fuller
By Kathleen Szyska
In the fall of 2006, the Society received a wonderful and large collection of wills, books, maps, deeds, photos, photograph albums and diaries, all relating to the ancestors of the late Gayton Osgood, including the Osgoods, the Fullers and the Pages. While all of this archival material will help the Society to expand our overall knowledge of the history of our town, we were delighted that included in this material were fourteen diaries, spanning the years 1858 up to 1870, all written by Francis (Fannie) Farnum Fuller, great grandmother of Gayton Osgood. Diaries are a primary source of rich details that allow us to experience, through the written word, the rhythms of life, the people they socialized with, and how they celebrated special events in their lives. They are valuable because they knit together the web of relationships between neighbors, friends, relatives, church members and others in a way that “recorded” history cannot do. In this newsletter we will explore the years 1858 through 1861, the year Fannie Farnum married Abijah Page Fuller.
Francis (Fannie) A. Farnum was born in 1838, daughter of Jacob and Rebecca Farnum. In her first diary, dated 1858, Fannie was a young, 20 year old unmarried girl, singularly interested in Abijah P. Fuller. On the inside of the cover of the diary, written in neat block letters, is printed “Abijah P. Fuller”. Printed in capital letters, underneath his name, is the sentence, “HE OUGHT TO BE MY HUSBAND”. It seems that Fannie had set her cap for Abijah.
In between diary entries of “attending town meeting”, “braiding rags for rugs this afternoon”, and “going to Lawrence to get my bonnet fixed” there are mentions of Abijah sprinkled throughout the diary: “Abijah and I at church all day”, “Abijah here to tea”, “Abijah here to help Father and Jacob”, “Abijah carried [drove by horse and carriage] Eliza and I to the Social”, “Abijah stayed to supper”, “Abijah and I going to the Lyceum” [a concert or lecture]. On March 6th, she notes, “when I got home, Abijah was there. It seemed natural to see him”.
In the 1859 and 1860 diaries, Abijah continues to be a constant fixture in Fannie’s life. I wondered why Abijah and Fannie were not married. After all, in 1860 Fannie was 22 years old, and Abijah, at 31, was nine years older. Through research, I think I found the answer. It wasn’t until 1860 that Abijah bought out the interests of his mother, brothers and sisters of the two-family farm located at 844 Salem Street. The next year, on April 4, 1861, he married Francis (Fannie) A. Farnum. Abijah, I believe, wanted to have a house ready for his new bride. On her wedding day, Fannie writes, “This last day, the day of my wedding. O dear, I feel badly about leaving home. But I ought to brave it out. Geo[rge] Stevens came down to stand up with Eliza [Fannie’s sister]. I had my folks and Abijahs folks. Dr. Barrett performed the ceremony. We had quite a pleasant time”. The next day, (April 5th), she writes, “This is the first day of my married life. May all the days of this life be as pleasant. Geo[rge] left us this morning, quite pleased with the Honor of being with us. Sue, Mother, Sally and Ella all rode over today, made a pleasant call”. Married life had begun.
Fannie and Abijah were married for forty-nine years and raised eight children. Abijah died in 1912 at the age of 86, and Fannie died in 1925, at the age of 87. Their home, known as the Page-Fuller Farm, still stands today at 844 Salem Street, in beautiful condition. Fannie and Abijah would be proud.
Page Last Modified Fri 07-13-2007 22:42