George Nye & His Diaries
Exhibit Dates: September 1998-October 1999
Laurel, Maryland....A Presidential assassination, Temperance, the Civil War and a new music hall were only a few of the topics covered in George Nye & His Diaries. The exhibit was based diaries and select papers of General George H. Nye, Superintendent of the Laurel Mills from 1877-1885.
George H Nye was born in Hallowell, Maine in 1828 of an old New England family. His early career in cotton manufacturing was interrupted by the Civil War, for which Nye volunteered only one month after its beginning in 1861. Nye spent Thanksgiving of 1861 at Camp Kelsey at Annapolis Junction, not far from where he would later live. Camp life was reflected by a photo of a print that showed the unique tents and camping style of the soldiers of that time.
Nye's post-war manufacturing career brought him to Laurel in 1877. He found a Mill that had been closed for months. August 13, 1877 his diary entry reads "went to Laurel on a 9 am train with [James] Gary (the Mill owner) and Stewart. Took account of stock in Mill and looked over things generally--found everything much better than I anticipated." And on August 15 he noted "started mill at 6 o'clock. 120 looms running."
Nye was an avid believer in Temperance-the anti-drinking movement that was growing in strength during this period. The "How Dry We Were" section of the exhibit used his papers, diaries and newspaper clipping to illustrate frequent meetings and a struggle to generate community interest and support for outlawing liquor.
As the largest employer in town, Nye, his wife Charlotte (Charlie) and children Clara, Grace, Gertie and George Junior had immediate entree into Laurel Society. His diary, and contemporary letters from Robert Sadler, the town's pharmacist, provided insights into the Nye families everyday life -and how they were viewed by others in the community. The Nyes were part of the Social Union, a gathering that regularly put on skits and sang songs. In one of Sadler's letters to his fiancée Margaret Jackson of Philadelphia, he wrote, "...the gem of the [Social Union] evening was a vocal selection by Mrs. McKenzie. She had a charming voice and quite put Grace Nye in the shade..."
Nye left Laurel in 1885 after the Mill again closed. He moved to S. Nattick Massachusetts and never worked in manufacturing again. He died in Roxbury, Massachusetts in 1908. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. His wife Charlotte, who died in 1883 while they lived in Laurel, is buried in Rome, Maine. Her gravesite includes two young Nye children, Georgiana and Catherine, and her gravestone mentions Shields Burr, husband of Nye's daughter Clara, who died while on an expedition to Mexico and was buried at sea.
Nye himself was virtually unknown in Laurel until Laurel Historical Society member Kenneth Skrivseth and 12 year old Brandan Gill did an Internet search of the name George Nye, known only as a name on a map and a listing in a directory. Their search ultimately lead to a treasure trove of information and the diaries, which the Museum purchased in 1997 from Nicholas Picerno, who owned almost all of Nye's papers. The Museum ultimately also purchased additional materials referenced in the exhibit.
Laurel, Maryland....A Presidential assassination, Temperance, the Civil War and a new music hall were only a few of the topics covered in George Nye & His Diaries. The exhibit was based diaries and select papers of General George H. Nye, Superintendent of the Laurel Mills from 1877-1885.
George H Nye was born in Hallowell, Maine in 1828 of an old New England family. His early career in cotton manufacturing was interrupted by the Civil War, for which Nye volunteered only one month after its beginning in 1861. Nye spent Thanksgiving of 1861 at Camp Kelsey at Annapolis Junction, not far from where he would later live. Camp life was reflected by a photo of a print that showed the unique tents and camping style of the soldiers of that time.
Nye's post-war manufacturing career brought him to Laurel in 1877. He found a Mill that had been closed for months. August 13, 1877 his diary entry reads "went to Laurel on a 9 am train with [James] Gary (the Mill owner) and Stewart. Took account of stock in Mill and looked over things generally--found everything much better than I anticipated." And on August 15 he noted "started mill at 6 o'clock. 120 looms running."
Nye was an avid believer in Temperance-the anti-drinking movement that was growing in strength during this period. The "How Dry We Were" section of the exhibit used his papers, diaries and newspaper clipping to illustrate frequent meetings and a struggle to generate community interest and support for outlawing liquor.
As the largest employer in town, Nye, his wife Charlotte (Charlie) and children Clara, Grace, Gertie and George Junior had immediate entree into Laurel Society. His diary, and contemporary letters from Robert Sadler, the town's pharmacist, provided insights into the Nye families everyday life -and how they were viewed by others in the community. The Nyes were part of the Social Union, a gathering that regularly put on skits and sang songs. In one of Sadler's letters to his fiancée Margaret Jackson of Philadelphia, he wrote, "...the gem of the [Social Union] evening was a vocal selection by Mrs. McKenzie. She had a charming voice and quite put Grace Nye in the shade..."
Nye left Laurel in 1885 after the Mill again closed. He moved to S. Nattick Massachusetts and never worked in manufacturing again. He died in Roxbury, Massachusetts in 1908. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. His wife Charlotte, who died in 1883 while they lived in Laurel, is buried in Rome, Maine. Her gravesite includes two young Nye children, Georgiana and Catherine, and her gravestone mentions Shields Burr, husband of Nye's daughter Clara, who died while on an expedition to Mexico and was buried at sea.
Nye himself was virtually unknown in Laurel until Laurel Historical Society member Kenneth Skrivseth and 12 year old Brandan Gill did an Internet search of the name George Nye, known only as a name on a map and a listing in a directory. Their search ultimately lead to a treasure trove of information and the diaries, which the Museum purchased in 1997 from Nicholas Picerno, who owned almost all of Nye's papers. The Museum ultimately also purchased additional materials referenced in the exhibit.
