Monday, January 31, 2011

State of Lovecraft Studies

    OK, finally Chrispy gets controversial.

    What is the state of Lovecraft studies?

    Not where you think it is.

    It has always been fueled by amateur hobbyists, and that has not changed.

    In generation 0, HPL's friends carried his life's work and story onwards from 1937 through the advent and evolution of the scientifiction age. However, those first-hand disciples (apostles?) only knew mostly what HPL knew and what he told them. And wow, was HPL ever cagey. He was classic Victorian (even though he was more of an Edwardian): He preserved the dignity of the Phillips clan - which meant no dirt, no juicy gossip, avoid newspapers like a plague. Some stuff was hid from him, and others was filtered through what I cann "the Phillips family mythology". So those heroes of the faith, Long, Wandrei, Bloch, Barlow, Smith, Derleth, and so forth built their literary career and preserved the weird tales and legend of Lovecraft.

    In generations 1 and 2 through the late 1960's, Lovecraft became a cultish figure and a cottage industry. Collectors preserved lots of godies at ever increasing price tags. Indie presses sprang up and made a few dollars, al least enough to keep the doors open. In a few cases, as with Arkham Books and maybe Necronomicon and Hippocampus, the owners were able to have a minimal salary and were full time. Otherwise, hobbyists came and went trying to preserve the weird tale, print cutting edge horror, and existed mostly in magazine and chapbook formats. They were small press runs and pretty hard to find once they wnet out of print. Finding these became easier with Ebay, but it is kind of pricey to get them. Be prepared to shell out a few thousand dollars just to collect a solid, but minimal collection. (Take it from Chrispy who has tried.)

    There are still lots of small press avenues to get Lovecraft stories, but fewer places to get historical information. Name authors, whom I certainly respect, publish maybe a hundred or so articles a year - usually in Hippocampus sponsored venues. A lot of these were referreed in the Esoteric Order of Dagon circulars. Of that total, maybe a dozen are historically revelatory and will eventually end up digetsed in a new mass paperback of Lovecraft stories as footnotes, or a decade or two from now in some new updated biography.

    Chrispy has done his best to accellerate that process with the HPL blog.

    Not only have I taken full advantage of new rapid search algorithms to do archaeology on Lovecraft and his era, but I post it. I suppose if I counted, among the 2700 posts todate at least 500 posts have absolutely new, previosuly unknown, and startling items about HPL and his family.

  • Lovecraft's school mates and neighbors were far more influential than expected.
  • Whipple Phillips business career was very robust from timber, coal, zinc, gold, granite, and iron, to gas interests, inventions, electric mail systems, irrigation, banking, real estate, and even Cuban land speculation.
  • Some names of acquaintances, birthdates and at least one marriage date was wrong in popular circulated references.
  • Expanded backgounds and biographies of many Lovecraft acquaintances.

    In addition, I receive emails that speak of other research that will soon bring new revelations.
  • New information about the lost years of Lovecraft.
  • New information on the life of Chester Munroe.
  • The location and exploration of the Great Swamp of Chepatchet.
  • Scandals involving members of the amateur journalism movement.
  • New information on John Dunn.
  • New letters from Lovecraft in 1905 and 1906.
  • New exegesis on Lovecraft's stories.

    Sadly, there is almost no means for this information to get to other fans, since there is no easy medium to disseminate it.


  • I hope that soon there will be more electronic media that will adapt to getting historical research out to Lovecraft fans. A flood of new resources is coming at scholars, and they need to take advantage of it.

    If I had my dream, it would be a collaborative encyclopeia with thousnads of researched articles on every year, and even every week of Lovecraft's life, and on every individual he ever met.

    Maybe one day!

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Holy Jumbalaya! Giant Crayfish Crawls Out of Tennessee !

How in the world a 5" crawfish can hide for 250 years without being noticed is beyond me. Here is the story ...


A new species of giant crayfish, named Barbicambarus simmonsi, found in Tennessee, is pictured here in this image released to Reuters Jan. 20. The new crayfish at about 5 inches long, is huge -- twice the size of other species, the team at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Eastern Kentucky University said.

"You would have recognized it as something really, really different and you would have saved it,'' Taylor added in a statement.

Taylor and Guenter Schuster of Eastern Kentucky University found their first specimen of the new species under one of the biggest rocks in the deepest part of a commonly explored Tennessee creek.

The new species, called Barbicambarus simmonsi, is about 5 inches long and has antennae covered with a sensitive fringe of tiny, hair-like bristles, called setae.

more

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Gorilla Walks Like A Man!

it is ..."unwise to rave of the living things that might haunt such a place; of creatures half of the jungle and half of the impiously aged city — fabulous creatures ... that might have sprung up after the great apes had overrun the dying city with the walls and the pillars, the vaults and the weird carvings."
Facts Concerning the Late Arthur Jermyn and His Family

Social Media: Broken?

Chrispy thinks so.

I've been working an 8 year experiment of my own.

In the ancient days of the 1990's, Internet 0.0 was essentially text forums on specific topics. Alt Cthulhu dot com I stumbled on just as it began to slow down. It was a treasure trove of information to someone like me, a lurker, who barely knew what a Lovecraft was.

Then Internet 1.0 hit with lots of forums with visuals and avatars and flame wars. Mostly tech savvy A personalities mixed it up with seemingly more heat than light.

Internet 1.5 hit with a storm. MySpace, essentially a means to promote music groups, quickly became besieged with spam and noise. I hear it will die by June this year. Few people will notice if it does. It killed itself.

My greatest excitement was experimenting with the T-12, and learning how to write and garner reads by building whuffie. (IF you don't know what that is, sorry. Maybe later I can explain.) The end of the T-12 was painful for me and others, but you can't contain that many A personalities in one corral. Since then, most everyone has went on to capture awards, fame, and almost no fortune. That certainly applies to moi, sans an award. I don't think I shall ever win a Lovecraft award, but then I could care less about such things.

Then came Horror Mall, and Shane Staley's grand experiment. It seemed it was almost going to work. I met dozens, or maybe hundreds of people interested in horror. People were promoting themselves like crazy, and it seemed it was working - but not for Shane, sadly. He pulled the plug after he - I assume - hemorrhaged hundreds of dollars and thousands of programming hours. R.I.P.

It was killed by a little something called Internet 2.0 and Facebook. And Twitter. What's the verdict?

Twitter spawned a TV show. And it has become another techie thing. If anyone has figured out a way to make money, I don't know. I love Ray Garton's dry sense of humor in his tweets, and follow a few people, but I can't live 24/7 on tweets. It takes a special kind of person, and if that is you, then great! Many are calling for the death of Twitter by the end of the decade.

Facebook looked to have promise. It made a movie! Zynga, the their credit, figured out a way to take addictive psychology and make gaming a means of siphoning off money. By sheer will power they have not got a penny out of me. I think I am the rare person, though. Mrs. Chris has spent hundreds of hours locked up on Farmville. I've tinkered with Treasure Island, killed fish in Fishville (sorry Madame Scorpion!), and will probably get to level 2000 in Mafia Wars. Though I have no idea why I want to keep playing Mafia Wars, but ask Zynga's psychotherapy experts.

Facebook is user unfriendly. I have a page I set up, with no idea how I did it, and can't remove it. I want to set up the blog to autofeed, and after 30 or 40 tries I've essentially given up. There is almost no reason to post a real item because it is gone in 60 seconds buried by game feeds, and other traffic. No way to narrowcast that I can find.

Besides all that, Internet 2.5 is already here, and I can't fathom it. Since I don't use a $500 i-phone-droid-portatext-pad I am out of the loop. I don't have a YouTube TV channel. I don't have the time or equipment to do a podcast. How many of you do?

So, until someone invents a means for the common person to connect with people of like interests on a consistent and reliable consistency, social media remains broken.

And speaking of broken, if you are reading this (and I hope you are) I am not 100% sure that blogger isn't broken at this moment. I have set feeds on several levels that seemed to be working until recently. As soon as I noticed, I set a few new ways you can stay in touch in the margins. RSS feed me if you are interested.

I am still contemplating a move to a new platform. Don't worry, HPL and Blogger will always be here - if google allows. I also plan on going to 3000 posts which will take until at least December. That gives me plenty of time to decide something.

Friday, January 28, 2011

No Poe Show: Tradition Over?


BALTIMORE – Telltale hearts beat with anticipation during a rainy, midnight dreary and beyond, hoping the mysterious visitor to Edgar Allan Poe's grave would return after a one-year absence.
...
Sometime in the 1940s, it seems, an anonymous man began the annual tribute at Poe's grave. It was first referenced in print in 1949 by The Evening Sun of Baltimore.
...
In 1993, the visitor began leaving notes, starting with one that read: "The torch will be passed." A note in 1998 indicated the originator of the tradition had died and passed it on to his two sons.



more

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Kappa Alpha Tau Report: Woman in Cat's Ear?



Dark Haired Lady in Cat's Ear

I was goofing around one evening taking pics in my living room when my attention was called upon elsewhere. My cat, Pi, wanted some face time with the camera so I obliged her. I have a Sony Cybershot, 7.2 mega pixel camera. When we were done playing I was checking them out and when I got to this one, my attention was immediately drawn to her left ear (when looking at pic). A close-up of the ear is on the right.

--Jayna

[You have to look very hard, like one of those old "magic pictures" - CP]

PS: Coast to Coast AM rocks!

Kappa Alpha Tau Report: Cat Summoned For Jury Duty!


Boston resident Sal Esposito has been called to jury duty, but there's one thing standing in the way of his ability to serve: He's a cat.

Massachusetts couple Anna and Guy Esposito received a jury duty summons for their feline ... Anna told local TV station WHDH. "I read the whole thing and I said, 'Oh my God, how could he go, he's a cat?'"

"I was shocked," added Anna's husband Guy, though he said Sal - a fan of crime shows - "knows right and wrong."


Read more:

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Joe Pulver: Years Best Horror



Lovecraftians, tune into Joe Pulver's blog The Yellow Madness

Joe is in good company, as you can see below in an excerpt from his latest news:

Monday, January 24, 2011
Ellen Datlow's The BEST Horror of the Year #3CONGRATS to ALL! !!

-30-by Laird Barron
...
Transfiguration by Richard Christian Matheson
...
The Folding Man Joe R. Lansdale
...

Just Another Desert Night With Blood by Joseph S. Pulver, Sr.
...
Black and White Sky by Tanith Lee

...
That is an amazing array of talent and I'm am delighted and over the moon to be lucky enough to be in this book.

Thank you, Ellen! !!


more click here

Mass Octopus Death in Portugal




What is killing the octopus of Vila Nova de Gaia?

That question has obsessed the Portuguese city — located just across the Douro River from Porto — since Jan. 2, when 1,100 lb. (500 kg) of dead octopus were found on a 1.8-mile (3 km) stretch of local beach.

The following day, another 110 lb. (50 kg) appeared; later there was just one expired creature.

"It's very strange that so many should be killed, and in such a confined area," says Nuno Oliveira, director of the Gaia Biological Park, a nature refuge on the outskirts of Vila Nova de Gaia. "There's nothing in the scientific literature for this kind of mass mortality among octopus."



Read more: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1951644,00.html#ixzz1BTp1GzVe

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Two Bios of Addison P Munroe

Below are some significant pieces of information. The birthdates of Addison, Chester, and Harold Munroe are not widely available and rarely published. Their links to DAR are not widely mentioned. In addition, below, you will see why Harold's middle name was Bateman (grandmother's maiden), and their marriage dates, and locations at a specific time. It's also pretty apparent why the kids bicycled to Rehoboth - it is the somewhat old home terrain of the Munroes.

Their birthdates are essentially confirmed in the 1900 census, when Addison was still a grocer.

https://www.familysearch.org/s/image/show#uri=http%3A%2F%2Fpilot.familysearch.org%2Frecords%2Ftrk%3A%2Ffsrs%2Fidgs%3A004120509.004120509_00915&hash=HloWXpZgU9zB10k5M56iYku8TUc%253D

_____

A History of Rehoboth Massachusetts ITS HISTORY FOR 875 YEARS 1643 1918
Rev GEORGE H TILTON
PUBLISHED BY THE AUTHOR 1918

MUNROE HON ADDISON P son of Philip A and Delana Pierce Munroe was born in Providence RI Jan 2 1862 As a small lad he attended the Harris School in Rehoboth but completed his education in the public schools of his native city after which he engaged in the grocery business in Providence following that until 1909 when he retired Mr Munroe has taken a prominent part in public affairs and ranks among the foremost Democrats of his city and state He was a member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives from Providence in 1903 serving on the committee on accounts and claims From 1911 to 1914 inclusive he served as state senator from the City of Providence being a member of the judiciary and other important committees He was the Democratic leader in the Senate and took an active part in legislation introducing many important measures and participating in all important debates In 1898 1899 and 1900 he was president of the Young Men's Democratic Club at that time the largest political organization in the state In 1913 he was his party's candidate for United States Senator receiving the full party vote in both branches of the General Assembly In 1916 he was nominated for Governor by the Democratic State Convention but as a result of the Republican tidal wave which swept Rhode Island in that year he was defeated He is a member of the state commission having in charge the armory for mounted commands of the state militia He is greatly interested in historical and genealogical matters and is a member of the Rhode Island Society of Mayflower Descendants and served as governor of that society in 191 1 1912 and 1913 In 1912 he was elected deputy governor general of the National Society of Mayflower Descendants and still holds that office He is also a member of the Society of Colonial Wars Sons of the American Revolution and of the Rhode Island Historical Society Addison P Munroe married Dec 22 1885 Annie Burnside Hopkins daughter of Nelson and Emily Greene Bateman Hopkins she is descended from a line of distinguished colonial ancestors and is a member of the Colonial Dames of America and of Gaspee Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution She was born in Cranston RI Aug 12 1861 The children of Addison P and Annie Hopkins Munroe are

Chester Pierce born in Providence Sept 1 1889 married 1 June 24 1912 Gladys Avis Rich 2 June 3 1917 Mary Doris Davenport He is chief clerk at the Grove Park Inn Asheville NC

Harold Bateman born in Providence Sept 11 1891 married Esther Louise Whipple June 4 1913 He is a deputy sheriff of Providence County State of Rhode Island

http://books.google.com/books?id=hyjMIY-vxX8C&pg=PA366&dq=addison-p-munroe&hl=en&ei=HXgyTbHmGoG8lQfeucDPCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDEQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=false
_____

Distinguished successful Americans of our day -
CHICAGO ILL SUCCESSFUL AMERICANS 1912

ADDISON P MUNROE State Senator of Rhode Island Was born January 2 1862 in Providence RI He was educated in the public schools of his native city For many years he was engaged as a successful merchant of Providence but has now retired from active business He is identified with the democratic party in 1903 was a representative from Providence to the state legislature and was prominently mentioned as a candidate on the democratic ticket for governor for the coming November election of 1912 He is now serving his second term of 1912-13 as a member of the Rhode Island state senate and in his last election polled more votes than any other candidate of any party

Monday, January 24, 2011

Laird Barron and Larry Roberts: THE LIGHT IS THE DARKNESS



Laird Barron and Larry Roberts Team Up on THE LIGHT IS THE DARKNESS
Jan 23, 2011 06:13 am | Larry Roberts

Infernal House, owned by Larry L. Roberts is proud to announce our fourth title THE LIGHT IS THE DARKNESS, a 200 page 42,000 word short novel by Laird Barron. This will be Barron’s longest work to date and is greatly anticipated by his large fan base. Cover art and interior illustrations are by acclaimed artist David Ho.

This book will be an oversized 8.5 x 11, signed, bound in Moroccan (goat) leather, custom endpapers, acid neutral paper and hand sewn binding, with a bound in silk ribbon bookmark. Each book will also come with a custom traycase made especially to house this exotic title. Each copy will be signed by Laird Barron and the illustrator David Ho. This edition is limited to only 174 copies.

These are already over half sold out! Reserve your copy soon as we expect these to go very fast.

Addison P Munroe Worked With Ronald Upham !

If you have S T Joshi's Necronomicon Book H P Lovecraft: A Life, or any of its incarnations, you could turn to this passage, "Other friends were Ronald Upham, two years younger than Lovecraft, who lived at 21 Adelphi Avenue (about 3 blocks from 454 Angell Street) ..." Much more needs to be said than that.

We have seen in a previous blog entry that Upham actually lived at 51 Adelphi Avenue, and that 21 was some written error by Lovecraft all those years ago, or a misread of his youthful scribble. Researchers didn't have a chance, somehow, to double check this back in the day.

In any event, life did not suspend itself like an episode of the Twilight Zone for Ronald Upham. Howard went on to trials, triumphs, disease, and heartache. So, too, did Ronald Upham, but no one has grasped his ghost to tell his story.

Below is a tiny sliver of his life, including a sad moment in the history of Providence, R.I.
_____

We can determine from Mormon Genealogical postings that Ronald Kingsley Upham was born on 4 August 1892. In 1912 he lived with his father Clark/Clarke D Upham (b. 6 November 1864, Mass.) and grandfather Edwin Upham (b. 27 January 1827, Mass.), Mother Ada E H Upham (or Ada E A; nee Reynolds; immigrated England 1888) and brother David K Upham.(b. 30 April 1897). Other members of the family were: Adeline/Ada E Upham (b. circa 1900), Barbara D Upham (b. circa 1910), and an Irish servant Margaret E Kelley (age 26 in 1910). As late as 1920 (see article below) Ronald still lived with his father. (Margaret was still with the family). And as late as 1935, Ronald still resided at 51 Adelphi Ave, though in that Providence census his birth date slipped to 4 August 1893.

_____

For new readers, Lovecraft's best freinds were Chester and Harold Munroe, the children of democratic stalwart, legislator, and later State Senator Addison P. Munroe, a wealthy businessman, and civic minded man. In those early days, Providence was staunchly republican, and a democrat was hard to find. Yet, Munroe persevered and won many elections due to his strength of character. By the 1920's, everything had changed. The old guard had died off, or retired, and the minority old money democrats and immigrants combined to make Providence democratic - it still is now in the 2010's.

_____

Lovecraft once notably declared, "I am Providence".

Perhaps he was, in his mind, in his heart, and in his own way. However, it was not the same Providence of the roaring 20's with which Addison P. Munroe and Ronald Upham grappled. While Lovecraft sat in a quiet corner of College Hill, Providence had become an open city of vice of all sorts, and nothing seemingly could quell it.

In the Providence News of 18 September 1920, tucked back on page 15, the headline flashed,

Failure of City and Federal Authorities to Co-Operate Lets Profiteering Go Unchecked.

Only through vigorous co-operation between the city and the federal fair price committee, with the machinery of the legal department placed at the disposal of the City Council and the committee for the purpose, can the rent profiteering problem in Providence be solved. This was the belief of several officials who were asked concerning the situation in this city yesterday.

Failure of the City Council to take action of any kind, the fact that few ejectment cases have turned over to the city legal department this summer, and that the worst offenders are not deterred by publicity, are inscribed as the principal reasons for the alarming increase in the kind of twentieth century brigandage.

The absolute failure of the city or private individuals to take hold of the housing problem in a businesslike and progressive way during the four months since a public housing corporation was first proposed by Mayor Gainer has resulted in no help whatsoever being offered up to the present time.

Even should the corporation begin to function today, it would not be possible for it to materially aid in relieving the home shortage before winter sets in.

Profiteering landlords, mostly owners of apartment houses and the cheaper class of tenements have been having their own way disregarding the interference of the federal committee almost entirely, and writs of ejectment have been piling up in the Superior Court at an alarming rate in the last few weeks.

Today it was learned that even the feeble aid which the Federal Fair Price Committee has given may be withdrawn and that the office may be ordered closed by the Attorney General. The investigator of the local office, Ronald Upham, has been asked to resign because of the lack of more funds to employ agents for this branch of the Department of Justice. Federal Fair Price Commissioner Addison P Munroe, who is back on the job, said he had no definite information as to what would become of his office.

It has been suggested in the Providence News that the City Council has one strong remedy at hand by which rent profiteering might be curbed. That is by ordering the Board of Tax Accessors to increase the valuation of all property where rents have been increased excessively. Months ago it was pointed out that there is in the files of a City Council committee a resolution calling for a committee to investigate the advisability of doing just that thing. There is no need of even presenting a resolution of this kind, but only to report it out. Why it was so effectively killed no one knows.

It is the re-purchasing of houses for speculative purposes and the pyramiding of rent prices to increase artificial valuation, according to Commissioner Munroe, that has caused the excessive rent increases. Many of the complaints are against foreigners who have recently acquired property for the purpose.


- end

Sunday, January 23, 2011

34,000 Year-Old Organisms Found - - Buried Alive

"Looking back to our sensations, and recalling ... this monstrous survival from aeons ... I can only wonder ... In my case, ingrained scientific habit may have helped; for above all my bewilderment and sense of menace, there burned a dominant curiosity to fathom more of this age-old secret ... and what relation to the general world of its time or of other times so unique a concentration of life could have had."

At The Mountains of Madness - H P Lovecraft




"It was actually a very big surprise to me",said Brian Schubert, who discovered ancient bacteria living within tiny, fluid-filled chambers inside the salt crystals.

... "It's permanently sealed inside the salt, like little time capsules," said Tim Lowenstein, a professor in the geology department at Binghamton University and Schubert's advisor at the time.

... more ...

Friday, January 21, 2011

In Remembrance of JC Henneberger's Son


An article from Google Archives ...

The blank areas were portions of an ad and an article about bus workers complaints that bled over into the text. I removed them.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

In Search of ... J C Henneberger "John William Henneberger"

Was this a missed opportunity for historians?

He was so small and young when Houdini passed on (in 1926), but he may have recalled stories of exploits between his father, Houdini, Lovecraft, or any number of close friends in that weird tales community. It appears that JCH held onto a portion of his Pennsylvania heritage for many years.

Below, only months ago is recorded the passing of John William Henneberger, age 86.

_____

May 30, 1924 - June 24, 2010

John William Henneberger, 86, died June 24 in Corvallis.

John was born in Chicago, Ill., to Jacob Clark Henneberger and Alma Katherine Schneidewind. He grew up on the Depression-era streets of the Upper West Side of Manhattan, N.Y., and spent summers on the family farm in Pennsylvania. After earning degrees in forestry from the University of New Hampshire and Colorado Agricultural and Mechanical College, he went on to a 30-year career with the National Park Service.

He married Barbara Bodine in 1952 in Yosemite National Park, Calif. For the next two decades, they and their three children moved around the West while John worked in various national parks and administrative centers. John coordinated wilderness studies for the U.S. National Park Service under the Wilderness Act of 1964, and he was later manager of the Denver Service Center.

His last position was as superintendent of the newly created Chattahoochee National Recreation Area in Atlanta, Ga., where he lived with his second wife, Barbara Griffin. In 1987, he returned to the West, spending his retirement years in Corvallis.

Throughout his life, John had a deep appreciation and respect for the natural world, and he shared that love with his family and many others. He had an intellectual interest in man's relation to nature and parks, and he was an avid mountaineer.

He is survived by his sister, June Henneberger of New York; daughters Diane Henneberger of Corvallis and Sally H. Mervin of Calistoga, Calif.; son Roger Henneberger of El Cerrito, Calif.; grandchildren John, Grace, Violet and Lewis; and longtime companion Moll Brett of Corvallis.

No service is planned. Memorial contributions can be made to SafeHaven Humane Society, Albany.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

In Search of ... J C Henneberger Part Two

Chrispy has traced two children of J C Henneberger, but before we get there, let's look at a few other early facts of Jacob Clark Henneberger's life.

Note that Henneberger was the identical age of Lovecraft (though I am unsure of JCH's birthdate).

In 1910, it turns out that as early as February 1910 he was member of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity.

In 1913, Jacob Clark Henneberger received the bachelor of philosophy degree from Lancaster Franklin and Marshall College (PA). Notes at bottom of today's blog.

As I started the blog, I found two children.

In a public document I copy information about his wife, and his daughter from 1921.

Jacob Clark Henneberger (age 31, born Greencastle, PA) was married to Alma Schneidwind (age 24, Born Chicago) when their daughter Roma June (Jane, sic) Henneberger was born 22 May 1921.

Another son is a sad and missed opportunity. Tomorrow ... an obituary.

_____
History: Franklin and Marshall Academy was originally a preparatory department connected with Franklin College After the union of Marshall College with Franklin College this department was continued in immediate connection with Franklin and Marshall College and in 1872 was named Franklin and Marshall Academy when a new building was erected for its use and a separate faculty and management were appointed so as to make more ample provision for its efficiency and to enlarge its usefulness An additional building was recently erected at a cost of $100,000

Aim: The aim of the Academy is well expressed in the words used nearly forty years ago in the resolution of the trustees changing the preparatory department to Franklin and Marshall Academy It is to be in the best and highest sense a training school for boys who desire to go to college and also furnish a complete academical course for those who do not purpose taking a full collegiate course of study While seeking to develop right habits of study and accurate scholarship the school endeavors also to develop and mold the sound Christian character which is more important than scholastic efficiency

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

In Search of ... J C Henneberger Part One

Lots has been written of Mr. Henneberger. 90% is in contecxt of the start of Weird Tales and his association with Lovecraft.

This has been a pet mission of Chrispy's. Who is this guy? What are his roots?

Well, I spent a little time and discovered he was the son of a farmer living in Greencastle, Pa. I could only locate two public documents, but one was a 1910 census, just a bit before he went to college - or he may have already begun and was commuting. I don't know.

He was a middle child, the only listed son with three sisters. Of interest, he may have been a "fraternal" twin, as his sister is listed as the same age. This is certainly not a 100% thing, as the "sibling" may not have been a sibling.

I list it below.

1910
Name: J{acob} Clark Henneberger
Birthplace: Pennsylvania
Relationship to Head of Household: Son
Residence: Antrim, Franklin, Pennsylvania
Marital Status: Single
Race : White
Gender: Male
Father's Birthplace: Pennsylvania
Mother's Birthplace: Pennsylvania
Family Number: 126
Page Number: 13

Household // Gender // Age
Parent Jacob O Henneberger M 58y (farmer, cows)
Parent Susan Alice Henneberger F 58y

Minnie B Henneberger F 24y
Elsie Grace Henneberger F 20y
Buela Pearl Henneberger F 18y
J Clark Henneberger M 20y


more tomorrow

Monday, January 17, 2011

Green Blob In Space

This image is so eerie, and I feel Lovecraftian. The perspective makes it feel like a green batrachian thing is out to eat a galaxy.



This image by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, an unusual, ghostly green blob of gas appears to float near a normal-looking spiral galaxy. The bizarre object, dubbed Hanny's Voorwerp (Hanny's Object in Dutch), is the only visible part of a 300,000-light-year-long streamer of gas stretching around the galaxy, called IC 2497. NASA, ESA, W. Keel (University of Alabama), and the Galaxy Zoo Team

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is helping to demystify one of the strangest objects in space — a huge, glowing, green blob of gas floating near a spiral galaxy.

Hubble has uncovered delicate filaments of gas and a pocket of young star clusters in the giant object, which is known as Hanny's Voorwerp ("Hanny's Object" in Dutch). Hubble's new photos provide the sharpest view yet of Hanny's Voorwerp, researchers said, and reveal a star-birthing region in the object.

...more ...

Sunday, January 16, 2011

To Wordpress or not to Wordpress?

I think a web log is supposed to be a stream of conscious thing, at least in its original conception. So I'm just going to turn loose today.

Chrispy is thinking of finishing off his 3000th post this year, and in 2010 moving to Wordpress. Pros and Cons!

First, Blogger is speedy and easy. Wordpress is css, and I barely know html.

However, I am easily bored. A new challenge may be what I need.

On the other hand, I hate to slow down on the blogger established crew. You guys have come to depend on this.

But, I could simultaneously post on both for a while. Fran Friel did this for a long time.

Yet, the times are a changin'. Things need to be facebooked easier. Blogger is a little slow about this. Probably because Google competes with Facebook.

So, here's what I'm probably goin' to do. As you can see, above, I'm working a little with Larry and Esteban on their sites. I did some with Dark Recesses and learned quite a bit doing that gig with pals Bailey Hunter and Boyd Harris.

In mid-2010, I thought the world was going to explode with cutting edge Lovecraft sites like mine. However, it turns out, no one is as rusty and musty as Chrispy, and so onward I go blogging about Antiquarian Lovecraft stuff. Others are doing comics, movies, videos, and radio shows, but not on HPL's history. So I guess I is unique.

I do want to revive the fun of the Antiquarian Thread, and with the demise of the Horror Mall vast forum enterprise, I miss it. So, I'm talking with folks, and emailing friends, and I hope that HPLblog 1.0 will morph into HPLblog 2.0 with a vaster scope of antiquarian horror.

Most people don't know about my other interests, so I have added back the connectives at the top of the page. I actually have a Houdini blog but it does not post publicly yet. It focuses on what Houdini did between 1922 and his death in 1926, specifically timed to the interactions of Houdini, CM Eddy, Jr, and HPL. I did this because it was another planned book I never wrote.

I don't feel too bad being behind on writing books. The amount of work I do in articles and blog work probably equals three or four novels a year, and I get much more instant happiness doing the blogs and articles than I would trying to find a publisher, and sweating that I could not promote a book like I should, since I really don't travel much. Just too tied down.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Lovecraftian?



I love this new Mafia Wars icon. It is quite eerie.

Our museum was a blasphemous, unthinkable place, where with the satanic taste of neurotic virtuosi we had assembled an universe of terror and decay to excite our jaded sensibilities. ... There one might find the rotting, bald pates of famous noblemen ... The Hound, H P Lovecraft

Friday, January 14, 2011

Hairless Raccoon Confirmed!

Chrispy is pleased to see that his internet speculation is confirmed.

Legendary chupacabra? Nope — mysterious critter was hairless raccoon
By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette

Monday, Jan. 3, 2011, 11: 45 p.m. — The “mysterious” hairless animal that was shot and killed on a Nelson County farm was not so mysterious after all.

WAVE TV-3 reported Monday evening that the state Department of Fish & Wildlife had confirmed the animal was a raccoon. The report said wildlife biologists made the connection by matching biological features. They did not know why the raccoon lost its fur.

_____

From other research, it looks like a unique species of mange - a mite-arachnid - is pandemic in the raccoon populations, and a small number (small %) of raccoons seem to be affected. Some biologist should research why this small sub-population of raccoons has a genetic presupposition to this affect. It most likely is responsible in other species, and the mite may have the capability of jumping species. This may explain a few of the hairless coyotes near Austin, TX and other hairless mammals.

This should be serious research.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Fungi From ... C2CAM



Mushroom Cluster

Columbus, GA-- Discovered this funky cluster of mushrooms while raking leaves on 12/31/10. It was huge -- about 13 inches across and more than 6 inches high!

--Roomus Igloomus
piggyjee@hotmail.com

Kolchak" The Night Stalker

When I was a lad, I watched a startling made for TV movie. I vaguely knew Richard Matheson as a science fiction writer of The Last Man on Earth (Vincent Price, I believe), and later a remake with Charlton Heston. I didn't know Jeff Rice, or make a connection of Dan Curtis (Dark Shadows). I knew Darren McGavin probably from some 1960's TV shows when he guested.

I was mesmerized by the fast pace (thank you Richard Matheson), the novel concept of a hard bitten reporter uncovering a modern day vampire story.

History tells us that was Tuesday 11 January 1972, and I was a sophomore in High School just after the Winter break. I'm sure I went to school the next day - I never missed with many years of perfect attendance - but doubt if I was able to discuss it with anyone.

Still, you had to be there.

Wow.

The next movie, in 1973, I waited in anticipation, and it was equally wonderful.

I try to watch these on Halloween as often as I can.

I've heard there was a third show that Matheson scripted of Kolchak in Hawaii. It was not filmed as the characters was picked up as a series.

The TV show was pretty thrilling, but quickly degenerated into a monster of the week. Not dissimilar to Lost in Space or even Star Trek as story lines quickly grew thin with the pace of churning shows out. When it was cancelled, I mourned, but I suppose it was for the best.

About a year ago I got some of the Kolchak paperbacks (though I haven't yet read Kolchak Meets Cthulhu, so to speak). They were every interesting take son the character. Some were better written, in my opinion, than others, but I enjoyed them all.

A few weeks ago I found at Half Price Book Store a DVD of the 2005 series. I never watched it, fearing it would tarnish the original. I've been watching them, scheduled to finish this weekend. My take on it, is not bad. The commentaries are spectacular, as the producers exposited what they intended. I can't give a spoiler, but I don't agree with a certain plot line they planned on taking. It would have warped the character, and I think they would have gotten themselves into trouble with the plot and continuity. They didn't have to worry, it was yanked pretty quickly. After the fifth show aired - not in sequence of filming.

This Kolchak is youthful and less cynical than McGavin's portrayal. But McGavin's portrayal was a product of the Nixon administration reporter style. Woodward and Bernstein. Cynicism was "in". I remember that year, and that summer very well.

Kolchak is one of the most original characters to come along in the history of horror. Jeff Rice seemed to have captured lightning in a bottle, and Matheson's powerful touch sure elevated Kolchak to iconic status.

I'm not sure how future incarnations will hold up.

_____

P.S. A few folks have contacted me by email and on Facebook. Comments are active only if you are a member of the group. Sadly, I can't even activate that function as spammers are merciless. I've had to cut almost everything out. But email me. chrisperridas@yahoo.com. The email is plastered all over the blog. Yes, I get a ton of email spam, but I can live with that. Or see me at facebook.

I really am trying to figure out the next incarnation of HPL & His Legacy 2.0. It isn't going to be easy, though. I'm talking with some folks, and something will come up later this year.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

The Best Card Trick Ever

Absolutely nothing to do with Lovecraft - but too good not to post.

Lon Chaney Tribute (C2CAM)



Man of a Thousand Faces

A pen and ink tribute drawing of great silent actor Lon Chaney also inspired by Famous
Monsters Magazine's Forrest Ackerman. I hope Lon Chaney is not forgotten by the current generation.

--Terry Wilson
bebopalula56@yahoo.com


From C2CAM post:
http://www.coasttocoastam.com/

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Wilum Featured on New Blog



Miskatonic Books !!

Arcane Wisdom to Publish SOME UNKNOWN GULF OF NIGHT by Wilum Hopfrog Pugmire
Arcane Wisdom will be publishing SOME UNKNOWN GULF OF NIGHT by Wilum Hopfrog Pugmire in April of 2011. Including cover and interior illustrations by renowned artist Matthew Jaffe. ... more click !!

Edward H. Cole in Early 1911



Edward H. Cole (1892-1966)

Cole was established in the NAPA, and in 1914 reached out to both the north end of Providence to form a new amateur journalism club, and to Lovecraft to assist.

A few years before, Cole was a youthful novice, as this article shows. (circa age 19) His name is at the very bottom of the article. He was publishing The Bema out of Sommerville, Mass.

Monday, January 10, 2011

The Wizard of Oz (1905) Lewiston Maine



This is just too good not to post. I can't tell if this was a professional or amateur production, but it dates about 34 years before the classic MGM movie. Despite that, the scarecrow - as best I can tell - looks uncannily like the movie version. If you click on the images, they should expand.

Sunday, January 09, 2011

Mystery of Kentucky Chupacabra Solved?



I was proud that Kentucky finally got a chupacabra sighting. It was sad that the animal was shot, but the mystery was pretty interesting.

The TV image is pretty good, for a change, and when I looked at it I thought it looked familiar. Very different than a lot of the Texas sightings, I started to think about it.

It did not seem to be made of ectoplasm or holographic energy, so it must be a natural animal. What? We have armadillos now, but it wasn't that. The paws and teeth did seem very familar, and very unlike the chupacabras found in Texas near my pal Boyd Harris.

The ears were a little bit of a mystery, so I went off to the internet and checked out a few images. The virtual same animal has appeared in:

Dry Gulch chupacabra on KOTV in Oklahoma on 5 March 2010
Golf Course in Wise County, Texas chupacabra on 21 January 2010

In both cases, analysis showed this was a hairless raccoon. The paws (nearly human-like fingers on the paws), and distinctive lower tusk seemed to be tell-tale signs. And the black shiny nose. Big ears are camouflaged with racoon hair, but they have astounding hearing.

The most careful response seems to be this posted as a comment to the Oklahom case:

My name is Annette Tucker. I own and operate Wild Heart Ranch Wildlife Rescue. I have cared for nearly 15,000 injured and orphaned wild animals and I have saved and released almost all of them. ... I work 80 hours plus per week caring for these animals ... This is a raccoon with sarcoptic mange who is doing very well, responding to treatment and will regrow her hair and be released. She is not suffering and she is getting the best of nutritional and medical care. Thank you to those who are concerned for her welfare. www.wildheartranch.org


Chrispy is very familar with raccoon raids on bird feeders, and I've had my share of cute raccoon pictures, and run ins with them as they masacred and desecrated my koi pond a few times - despite electric wire and webbing.

A co-worker tells a story that I believe to be true. He is a scout master, and on a camping trip, someone came and said that someone went through all their items in the tent, but the tent was zipped up. No one admitted to anything. Then, later, they came back on a different day, and watched in amazement, as a raccoon slipped it's paw uder the tent from the inside, unzipped it, walked outside after a fll meal of goodies, and rezipped the tent flap. Innocent as a new born babe, as it walked away. Who? Me?

So it seesm that there is an epidemic in the USA of a specific variety of mange (sarcoptes scabei mite) caused by an arachnid or pseudo-arachnid-mite that is eradicating the fur from raccoons and maybe other animals. It is certainly a shocking sight to see a fur-less animal.




Links:
http://www.wzzm13.com/news/news_story.aspx?storyid=119184&catid=14

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/01/21/82769/biologist-texas-chupacabra-a-hairless.html

http://www.kens5.com/home/Chupacabra-like-82001007.html

Saturday, January 08, 2011

The Living Legend of Literary Mayhem

Thus sayeth Richard Laymon of Edward Lee. And Laymon is no wallflower of twisted and demented.

I was about ready to leave Half-Price Bookstores (TM) when I thought, OK, one more pass down the horror aisle. There, wonders of wonders, were TWO volumes from Deadite Press (division of Eraserhead Press, a bizarro outfit). The titles might make you squeamish, but one was Brain Cheese Buffet, and the other Bullet Through Your Face.

With the waning of horror, and Leisure Books' demise, I wondered where Mr. Lee would head. These are reprints, and I had collected several in previous incarnations, but some are new.

Ed Lee has a way of challenging me to see what I am made of. Much as Robert Bloch used humor in twisted ways, so does Lee. He just ramps up the ecch. However, in many of his stories he finds a way to bring nobility to a character in the midst of the most heinous evils.

This is very different than Brian Keene (another favorite) where EVERYONE dies horribly at the end, but the question is whether they will die with nobility, or in humiliated, abject, quivering terror.

Sexuality is also a current in Lee's work, and what is offensive to some, is erotic to others. Mostly, though, Lee's explosions of sexuality are extensions of gore. More I can't say since I don't use that language on the HPL blog. It's not for the squeamish.

I also like that from time to time, Ed Lee injects ufology into his fantasy fiction.

Oh, and I got each book for $4.98 - and we had a $5 off coupon, too. If one day there is no blog entry, it's because a stack of books fell upon me and crushed me. I am sitting, typing this, surrounded by horror, ghost, ufology, weird beast, cryptozoological, and Lovecraft books.

_____

As I type this (Sunday, 2 January 2011) yesterday on the way to the bookstore I got a call with a most intriguing offer. Always one to over commit, I have half-promised to engage in a new endeavor. Stay tuned in the weeks ahead to see what comes of this.

My resolution is to start whipping my Lovecraft notes into shape, and get some published. I also have a desire to write more horror fiction, and since there is mostly no place to publish it, some will end up here!

Friday, January 07, 2011

Dracula: The UnDead

Well I got a copy of this a few weeks ago, and was excited at the prospect. I am sucker for Dracula, hmm, no pun intended, and enjoyed The Historian immensely.

The prospect of Dacre Stoker pairing with a fan of the genre, Ian Holt, captivated me. I read the preface and drooled.

I should have known.

Years ago I picked up a book that was a sequel of Dickens, and it had Tiny Tim as an adult. After a few pages, I decided not to buy the book. It just didn't do anything for me.

I had high hopes for this one, but as good as I'm sure it is, I can't do it. I read the first few chapters, and the characters went a direction that made me sad, and it ached to see them lose their nobility. I saw that they bickered a lot. I had no problem with what they did with Dracula, or his key vampiric protagonist, but again, not for me. I could only scan the rest of the book, and read the last few chapters, too.

I guess what really did it, was - as a horror writer myself - I saw a key story plot telegraphed for me. That vanquished a good portion of the mystery element.

If you read this, or have read it, I hope that you enjoyed it. Kudos for the courage to write it, and many salutes to the Stoker family. But, it wasn't meant to be for me.

Thursday, January 06, 2011

The Marriage Book with Winfield and Susan

You should be able to click and expand the image.
The link is:

https://www.familysearch.org/s/image/show#uri=http%3A%2F%2Fpilot.familysearch.org%2Frecords%2Ftrk%3A%2Ffsrs%2Fidgs%3A004279727.004279727_00143&hash=HloWXpZgU9zB10k5M56iYku8TUc%253D

In any event, once again WSL is listed as a salesman out of New York at the time of their marriage. This continues to be consistent, and seems to again lead to him being associated in some way with his relative Fred Lovecraft.

Wednesday, January 05, 2011

An Odd listing for Whipple V Phillips in 1870

Note that WVP has two "Valentines" living with him.
I am adding information of the census but not listed in text at the site.

The nearest post office is Summmit, RI. The town is Coventry.
A few pages over, the Tillinghasts are listed. Many of those aroun Phillips had children not in school, and were farmers of much less wealth by far.

Value of Real Estate was at 15,600, and 28,200 in personal wealth.

Whipple (36 y) is listed as a dealer in lumber and coal,an accurate statement
Robie (spelled Robie) (43 y) is listed as keeping home
Lillian D. (14 y) is listed as attending school
Sarah S. (12 y)is listed as attending school
Edwin E. (6 y) is listed as attending school,
................though there is a stray cross mark over this
Edward Valentine (24 y) is listed as a farmer and teamster
Charles Valentine (19 y) is listed as working in the lumberyard/mill

The Valentines are from CT.
_____



Name: Whipple V Phillips
Estimated Birth Year: 1834
Gender: Male
Age in 1870: 36y
Color (white, black, mulatto, chinese, Indian): White
Birthplace: Rhode Island
Home in 1870: Rhode Island, United States
Household Gender Age
Whipple V Phillips M 36y
Robie Phillips F 43y
Lillie D Phillips F 14y
Sarah S Phillips F 12y
Edwin E Phillips M 6y
Annie E Phillips F 4y
Edward C Valentine M 24y
Charles C Valentine M 19y

Tuesday, January 04, 2011

Susan Lovecraft: 1900

Census notes often had minor errors. I've added a few notes in {}'s

United States Census, 1900 for Sarah F Lovecraft {obviosuly Sarah Susan Lovecraft}

Name: Sarah F Lovecraft
Residence: Providence city, Providence, Rhode Island
Birth Date: Oct 1857 {17 October 1857}
Birthplace: Rhode Island
Relationship to Head-of-Household: Daughter
Spouse Name: {Winfield Scott Lovecraft}
Father Name: Whipple V Phillips
Father Birthplace: Rhode Island
Mother Name: {Robie died January 1896}
Mother Birthplace: Rhode Island
Race or Color (expanded): White
Head-of-household Name: Whipple V Phillips
Gender: Female
Marital Status: Widowed
Years Married: 10

{not quite true just close. Married June 12, 1889; WSL died 19 July 1898}

Estimated Marriage Year: 1890
Mother How Many Children: 1
Number Living Children: 1
Enumeration District: 0013
Sheet Number and Letter: 14A
Household ID: 263
Reference Number: 35
GSU Film Number: 1241506
Image Number: 00257
Household Gender Age
Parent Whipple V Phillips M
Lillian D Phillips F
Sarah F Lovecraft F
Howard P Lovecraft M

Maggie Corcoran F

Dickinson {This is a separate entry, and thus a different person}

Monday, January 03, 2011

An Oddity in Susan Lovecraft's Documentation

All of this data alligns, except that somehow the State of Rhode Island declared her parents French-Canadian. Certainly not true.

Rhode Island, State Census, 1905 for Sarah S Lovecraft

Name: Sarah S Lovecraft
Residence: Providence, Ward 002, E.D. 0022, Providence, Rhode Island
Age: 47
Gender: Female
Race or Color: White
Marital Status: Widowed
Birth Date: 12 Oct 1857
Birthplace: Foster Rhode Island
Father's Birthplace: Canada French
Mother's Birthplace: Canada French
Relationship to Head of Household: Self
Number of Family in the Order of Visitation: 202
Number in this Family: 2
Mother of how many children: 1
Number of these children living June 1, 1905: 1
Digital Folder Number: 4479189
Image Number: 00491
Film Number: 2111138

Another oddity is her age in the next state census.

Rhode Island State Census, 1915 for Sarah S Lovecroft


Name: Sarah S Lovecroft
Residence: Providence Ward 02, E.D. 248, Providence, Rhode Island
Age: 50
Estimated Birth Date: 1865
Place of Birth: U S
Relationship to Head of Household: Self
Gender: Female
Race: White
Place of Birth: Father: U S
Place of Birth: Mother: U S
Page Number: V
Line Number: 39
GSU Film Number: 1763988

Sunday, January 02, 2011

Homeopathic Medicine and the Phillips

Some significane may be made of the alleged fact that Dr. George D Wilcox was the Phillips family physician. A few things need to be expalained.

Wilcox, Chrispy has uncovered, was born 28 August 1825 in West Greenwich, but later associated with Coventry - the Phillips family teritory. As discussed, he died at about age 72 on 23 July 1897. His obituaries are frequent, and visible in Google books documents.

Here is one, save the error about his age, that gives a lengthy discusion.

DR GEORGE D WILCOX Dr George D Wilcox of Providence RI died suddenly of angina pectoris July 22 The doctor had apparently been in his usual health up to the morning of his death when he was attacked immediately after breakfast by severe abdominal pain nausea and asphyxia He was attended by his associate Dr Annie W Hunt but all efforts to relieve him proved unavailing and within an hour Dr Wilcox passed away The doctor was nearly eighty two years old {sic ?? probably a typo for 72} He graduated from the University of New York in 1849 and located in Providence in 1856 At one time he served as Medical Intern at the London Homoeopathic Hospital Great Ormond Street In May 1862 he was commissioned Surgeon of the Tenth Regiment Rhode Island Volunteers and served with the regiment in the field In July 1884 he was appointed by Governor Bourn one of the two medical examiners for the city of Providence for six years and was reappointed at the end of that time and resigned after serving a year He was a member of the Rhode Island Homoeopathic Medical Society honorary member of the Medical Legal Society of Rhode Island and the British Homoeopathic Medical Society of London and Corresponding Mitglied des Homceopathischen Central Vereins of Leipsic In 1854 he married Miss Mary Fry who died September 17 1857 They had one son Frank Howard His second wife was Miss Mary Caroline daughter of Rev Daniel Leach of Boston Mass By this union were two children Mary Lawton and Alice Palmer Wilcox
He was a long time figure at the Rhode Island Homeopathic Hospital, pictured here.

a5730

His office was as admitting physician. He ame to Providence in 1856, had studied in Europe for a few years, and returned in 1860. He was associated with another legend, Dr. Robert Hall.

I can't say why or how Professor McInnis came to the knowledge that Wilcox was the family physician - perhpas through the medical records of Winfield Lovecraft. There is no reason to doubt the statement, and in any event, it seems more important for the Phillips clan than for Howard Lovecraft himself, though it seems likely that the birth of HPL was attended to by Wilcox.

In many places in the United States in the mid-19th century, a raging controversy existed between allopathic medicine - the administration of medicine, drugs, or other externals. This is precisely the type of medical practice that we are very familair with today in the 21st century.

Homeopathy, however, arose in conflict with this through the German, Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843). In this early day, doctors often did as much harm as good, and Hahnemann objected to this and determined to make a wholistic approach. This was keenly latched onto in Rhode Island, and due to the tolerance, and perhaps enlightenment of Rhode Island, the practitioners of both styles of medicine rarely fought. Brown University, per se, had no conflict with homeopathy according to contemporary accounts.

A notable exception was that homeopathic medicine was rejected whole cloth in the south, and only in Baltimore and Louisville, Ky (my hometown) was it accepted. Louisville is notable, in that an Abraham Flexner (a local hero) advanced a new form of medicine that took medical schools by storm at the turn of the 20th century.

Another notable diference is that homeopathic medical schools welcomed women. About 21% of the attendance in 1893 were women, compared to no more than 5-7% in regualr shcools, and slightly more in so-called eclectic schools. (Link at bottom of page)

So what do we take from this? That Whipple Phillips typically associated with old western Rhode Island professionals -thus Wilcox who one notes originally married a Fry * - and that he tended to be "modern", and embraced change and technical advances. This is seen in all of his business practices, with his daughters being somewhat enlightened toward suffrage it would seem. One must understand that Brown University and Providence were beacons of enlightenment (with the exception of integration of black minorities for some time), often far ahead of New York and Boston.

For instance the school system was graded, socially integrated as long as the community was integrated, and co-educational. There was a class system in place, but it was beginning to weaken by the early 20th century just as the Rhode Island Republicans were losing en masse to the Democratic party.

To sum this up, the Phillips chose a physician that was apparently a western Rhode Island transplant, and a homeopathic physician.

_____
*The area that Phillips was born into, western Rhode Island, was filled by clans of Frys, Rathbones, Phillipses, Places, and Tylers. There were also Tillinghasts galore, but these were not as tight knit to them, apparently, as this intertwined clan was to each other. Much of this clan was tied by intermarriage through the Mount Vernon Bank, of which is worthy of a Masters Thesis is history, or at least a significant monograph. It became defunt late in the 19th century, but in its day it was a powerhouse and a siphon of Providence's new wealth to back home, and it seems pretty likely the source of WVP's growing power and personal wealth in the late 1850's.

http://books.google.com/books?id=qTMXAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA985&dq=brown+university+homeopathic+medicine&hl=en&ei=EXAVTYmeDIGBlAea5J2tDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CFsQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=brown%20university%20homeopathic%20medicine&f=false

Saturday, January 01, 2011

George D Wicox died



In all the mound of Lovecraft books I have, I found only one reference to George D Wilcox in Professor McInnis' article in Books at Brown. Apparently, this is the family physician of record until his death on 23 July 1897. He would have serviced all the Phillips including Howard and his father, Winfield, then institutionalized.

Here at least is the doctor's obituary.

Wilcox - in this city, very suddenly, 23d inst., Dr. George D. Wilcox,.
Services from his late residence, 18 Brown street, on Monday, 20th inst. at 12 o'clock. Relatives and friends are invited to attend. burial later, kindly omit flowers.

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