William Mitchell and Lydia Coleman Mitchell

Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • May 13, 2019

My whole life has been a struggle, subjecting thy patient mother to much endurance.


– William Mitchell in his autobiography, 1868


Born to longtime Nantucket Quaker families, William Mitchell (1791 – 1869) and Lydia Coleman (1792 – 1861) first met as young teenagers. William was sent by his father to Lydia’s home to retrieve pumpkin seeds brought back from Patagonia by Lydia’s father, Captain Coleman who would be lost at sea soon after this meeting. In the words of William Mitchell in his autobiography – written at the insistence of daughter Phebe Mitchell Kendall – it was love at first sight and it was his love for Lydia – starting when he was 14 and she was 13 – that kept him from attending Harvard College. The paths were prepared for his application but he could not follow through and leave Lydia behind. Instead, he would join his father in his whale oil and soap business which, with the War of 1812, quickly put the island into an economic freeze, especially with the halt that came to whaling.

The two married in December 1812, and like many newlyweds and islanders confronted with the war at their shores, they struggled financially. The newlyweds eked out a living in Siasconset, where William farmed and Lydia ran a small library in this fishing village at the eastern end of the island.


In his autobiography, William compiled a list of all his occupations, which included: schoolteacher, state senator, soap boiler, cooper, schoolmaster, farmer, surveyor, chronometer rater, and astronomical observer for the United States Coast Survey. William appeared to be most fond of teaching and astronomy – perhaps not just because he was from a sea-going family and community that relied on celestial navigation to travel – but also because he was close to his much older cousin, Walter Folger Jr., the renowned scientist and island clock and telescope maker. William would also serve as the Pacific National Bank’s cashier – essentially being in charge of the entire bank – from 1836 until 1861.


Of her mother, Maria Mitchell once wrote that she never saw her sit with a book when the children were young. With ten in all, she likely had no time. But it was Lydia who examined every book they brought into the house, looked out for their educations, and knew, as one daughter wrote, their “every fault and every merit.” Quite, dignified, and a woman of strong character, she played the foil to William’s gregarious and fun-loving behavior. According to the same daughter, Lydia was, “honest almost to an extreme, and perfectly self-controlled.”


JNLF

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Heat and Humidity

By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • July 20, 2026
Being Nantucket, we tend to stay cooler than the mainland in the summer though the humidity is often over the top. It often makes me think about people in the nineteenth century and earlier – heck, even well into the mid 1900s, and how they handled the weather. With climate change, we have warmed and our weather is more severe and volatile at times. Instead of a nice gentle rain, we get a deluge and the ground has trouble absorbing that sort of onslaught. But they did did still have heat and humidity – and think of a fire in the hearth all day and the bake oven – if it was a baking day. And now, think of the women standing in front of the firebox and bake oven, or even a cook stove later on. I am sure if the confines of their home, alone, les could be worn but for the most part, those women still had a lot of layers on. I am sure that a cloth dipped into or run under the mouth of the pump and wrung out gently – to keep as much as the cool, moisture as possible – was tied around a neck or stuffed down a dress front (or even in addition to the wet neckerchief).  At the Mitchell House, we get a little of the feeling for this. We have no HVAC in the House so we rely on doors being open – with screens to keep the bugs out – and the roofwalk opened (also with a screen) so that air circulates throughout the House. Air can move nicely through – the heat rises, the air moves up and out of the roofwalk hatch very much as it might have in Maria Mitchell’s day. While we do not have the added (somewhat) drying benefit of the heat of the fire in the kitchen, we do have all of the original horsehair plaster, so the House does remain somewhat cooler and drier overall. But some days, the relative humidity does get up into the 90s in the House – that’s when I say, “Get out your umbrellas!” JNLF

Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association Nantucket Harbor Water-Quality Monitoring Buoy Joins Regional Coastal Observing Network

July 17, 2026
NANTUCKET, MA— The Maria Mitchell Association’s (MMA’s) Nantucket Harbor water-quality monitoring buoy is now part of the Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems, known as NERACOOS. NERACOOS is one of eleven regional associations that make up the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System, or IOOS, NOAA’s national ocean-observing network for gathering and sharing ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes data. This connection means that real-time data from Nantucket Harbor are no longer held only within a local monitoring program. They are now available through the NERACOOS Mariners Dashboard, where scientists, resource managers, educators, mariners, and the public can view Nantucket Harbor conditions alongside other coastal observing sites from Long Island Sound through the Gulf of Maine. The monitoring buoy carries a suite of sensors that track changing conditions such as temperature, oxygen, acidity, nutrients, and underwater light. These measurements show what eelgrass, bay scallops, and other marine organisms are actually experiencing over time. “This is an important step because Nantucket Harbor is now part of a larger coastal observing system,” said Dr. Betsy Sherman, the Maria Mitchell Association’s Senior Marine Science Advisor. “Our data can be compared with data from other sites, used in regional analyses, and placed in a broader environmental context. We are not just looking at Nantucket Harbor in isolation.” The Nantucket Harbor buoy project has been supported by the Great Harbor Yacht Club Foundation, whose early investment helped make continuous water-quality monitoring in Nantucket Harbor possible. Additional support has been provided by the Remain Nantucket Fund at the Community Foundation for Nantucket, the Osceola Foundation, the Sociable Weaver Foundation, and through collaboration with the Town of Nantucket Harbormaster. The timing is especially relevant for coastal communities because NERACOOS is also leading the newly funded NSF Seafood Engine in New England, a regional effort focused on strengthening fisheries, aquaculture, seafood technology, and coastal economies. For an island community facing changes in water quality, habitat, fisheries, and climate, joining this regional network strengthens the scientific foundation for understanding and protecting Nantucket Harbor. 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.  ####

Walk Accompli!

By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • July 13, 2026
Finished. Finis. Completed. Done. Accomplished. The Mitchell House roofwalk is now done. Back to looking a bit more normal up on the ridgeline. But as I may have noted in the other post about the roofwalk, the one that was removed due to its condition and how it sat on the roof’s ridge was far from the original – or even a nineteenth century one. I am including an image from about 1908 or so in order for you to see the Mitchell House without a walk – even then. Now, an interesting fact is that I am able to date the undated photo because in the west image – where you see the open year – you can actually see the shadow of the Maria Mitchell Vestal Street Observatory – at the backside of the 1825 Kitchen. And given that shadow you also know its late afternoon since that side of the House, as noted, faces West. Another interesting feature is the long downspout – more like a side spout – that takes water from the front gutter, along the upper West façade of the House and across a window and then over the 1825 Kitchen roof where it terminated in a cistern – still in existence under the ground today. JNLF
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