Our Emilie Loring Tea is just days away!
Our Emilie Loring Tea is this Thursday, September 5th. Send your photos and stories to:
contact@pattibender.com
I’ll begin posting at 4:00 p.m. EST and continue until everyone’s photos and stories are in.
I can’t wait to see what you come up with this year!
For that matter, I can’t wait to see what I come up with this year! 🙂
Hampton Beach, New Hampshire
Sometimes I think that I’ve been everywhere, done everything, related to Emilie Loring, and then I have a new experience, and my curiosity fires up again.
When Emilie was a girl, her family spent summers at grand hotels along the eastern shore. They stayed in New Hampshire so often that a local paper claimed them as near-residents.
Sometimes the Bakers stayed at Leavitt’s Hampton Beach Hotel, “a quiet spot with no style but plenty of attractions.”
A small chapel was built at Boar’s Head in 1877, and it’s hard to imagine the Bakers not attending services there.
Another time, they stayed at Leavitt’s Homestead whose former location at North Beach in Hampton is now occupied by the “935 Ocean” inn.
“Situated at the less popular—and less pretentious–North Beach, its view of the ocean was stupendous, its beach ‘broad, smooth and level as a ball-room floor,’ and ‘every sound of the sea, from the gentle swish of the summer wavelet to the thunder of the storm-beaten surf, [could] be heard in every room.'” ~ Happy Landings: Emilie Loring’s Life, Writing, and Wisdom
Reminders of earlier times can be seen all along Ocean Boulevard. “Fish houses” like these housed fishing gear and the day’s catch.
In 1848, Emilie’s maternal great-grandfather, John Boles, was part of a historic fish catch here. A party of men seined for bass for four hours and garnered 500 sea bass in one load of the seine–five tons in all!
Blue Hill, Maine
Once again, I arrived in time for the Blue Hill Fair.
It had everything you’d want a small, country fair to have: rides, garden entries, farm animals, lots of food, lots of crafts, and silly contests. In the spirit of things, I joined the Skillet Toss. I didn’t win, but I heaved that heavy, iron pan a good ways nevertheless!
Nostalgia
The Lorings went to the fair almost every year. Emilie’s son Robert won foot races, and Emilie herself won three blue ribbons for her nasturtiums.
Charlotte’s Web
This year’s Blue Hill Fair paid special homage to E. B. White’s Charlotte’s Web. After all, it was the fair that inspired much of the story.
Locals acted the parts, and across the midway, Zuckerman’s Farm displayed “Terrific!” “Radiant!” animals.
E. B. White lived a short distance away in Brooklin, Maine. I think he’d have been happy with the turnout to see his story brought to life.
Hmmm… I wonder what an Emilie Loring reenactment might look like. Maybe we’ll find out when we have our–yes, you guessed it–our tea! I’ll be waiting for your photos and stories to arrive this Thursday. (Yes, it’s okay to send yours to me early.) contact@pattibender.com
Until then, have a wonderful first few days of September!
Happy Landings, everyone!
The Emilie Loring Collection 
Dear Patti,
You gave me a walk through memory lane as you brought back the summer vacations Ed and I spent in Blue Hill with Tony and Nancy Butler.
I enjoyed reading through the passages from Emilie’s books and as I wrote you earlier, i won’t be able to join you at the Tea honoring her.
Hope you enjoyed the photos I sent you of our Brunch with Dr. Mel and Paula Levy. It was a lot of fun!
Love and enjoy and share,
Raqui
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Hi Patti,
Thank you for the update on your and Emilie’s New Hampshire and Maine travels! The Blue Hill Fair looks like such fun!
Have a great week:)
Kate
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