With Bated Breath

Website Editor • May 09, 2022

Each year about this time, I look to the grape arbor at the rear of the Mitchell House. This grape arbor is the plant – or at least the descendant – of one of many grape vines that Peleg and Mary Mitchell had at the rear of 1 Vestal Street when they occupied the House from about 1836 until Mary’s death in 1902. William and Lydia Mitchell, Maria Mitchell’s father and mother, sold the house to Peleg and Mary when they moved to the Pacific Bank for William’s new position there. 


Thus, this grape vine is precious. For over thirty years, our landscaper cut it back each fall (late fall once all the leaves are off) until he retired. Then, I took it over and it keeps me up a night! But I figure, if anyone is going to kill the poor thing then it should be me. The curator can be to blame – it should not be someone else. 


So, I have read A LOT about grapevine pruning to say the least. And each spring I begin to give it a hard stare – and it’s hard not to as I walk beneath it to get into and out of my office space in the cottage at the rear of the House. Now that it’s been warming and there is more daylight, my staring has grown more intense until today (April 27) when I was rewarded and drew a DEEP sigh of relief to see the little leaf buds on the vine. Whew!

It’s a lovely vine – I’m worried it will die though. It has some rot in one of the trunks. I have been successful at rooting pieces (I have blogged about that before) but alas, my nemesis – the bunny – has eaten those no matter how I protect them. Even netting and recycled netted flower bulb bags have not worked! But the vine, once the grapes are out and particularly as they get a bit old and long-in-the-tooth attract all sorts of birds – I have seen some nice warblers on it – including a Black and White Warbler and a Black-throated Blue Warbler.


I will continue to care for it as long as I am here at Mitchell House and hope that it continues to thrive.


JNLF

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Shards

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I have written of my love for sea glass and pottery shards in the past and the recent replacement of the sewer and water lines on Vestal Street created a small shard collection over the last month. Since the work required the asphalt to be completely removed (all twelve inches of it!) and the road to be dug up multiple times as they worked to remove pipe, relay new pipe, hook up the water meters, and install drainage and manhole covers, this resulted in the earth in the street being tossed about quite a bit. And, with that, came the shards! Some of these likely came from the sewer line (yes, yuck) but others came from being simply in the dirt of the road – which was not paved until 1946/1948. Pieces were likely tossed out at times, made to act as filler in holes, or simply tossed. So I found all sorts of pieces I will keep here at the Mitchell House. They included: a lovely piece with a red floral, many pieces of plates, glass, the top of a late nineteenth or early twentieth century (medicine) bottle, glass shards, a flattened spoon, a brass knob (found by a neighbor) some nails, a spike, pieces of a larger container or two based on the size and curve and coloring of the shards, and possibly a Wampanoag stone tool. One person’s trash is another one’s treasures! JNLF

Is That A Wrap?

22 Apr, 2024
Yes. Well, almost. After about a month of working – and some living (staff and or neighbors) – on Vestal Street with all the sewer and water replacement work, the paving happened today (April 17, 2024). This is the first “layer” – a three-inch binder coat. In the fall, once time has passed, they will return for the final one inch of the finish layer. Some of the other things along Vestal Street will also be repaired and updated between now and the final coat – and a bit after that. But we are very happy, after all these years to have a modern system of piping – and all new drainage we never had before! While the curator in me loved the old clay pipes, they were riddled with roots from the trees, holes, and in some places, collapsed, and the twelve inches of asphalt had to go. Vestal Street was only paved in about 1946/1948 – and has not been paved in maybe twenty years so that is a lot of asphalt in about fifty years! And with climate change and the increase in how much rain we get in these heavy rain events, all that water rushed down Vestal Street with nowhere to go – except our cellars. I am sure the neighbors are happy too! A thank you to the Town of Nantucket’s Sewer Department, especially David Gray (who may regret giving me his cellphone number forever), N&M Excavating and Utilities (Dean, we appreciate you being so nice when we had too many questions), Victor-Brandon Corp for paving, and numerous others. We are looking forward to great flushing, powerful hose lines, and rainwater being whisked away via the new, never-before-had storm drains! JNLF And to all the N&M workers who wondered why I was constantly looking down as I walked along Vestal Street, you should see the trove of porcelain shards, glass, old nails, a bottle neck, 19 th century spoon, and even possibly a Wampanoag stone tool I found!
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