Hearing the word, “bee” what comes to mind? Honey…insects? I think of backyard hives I hope to have. Farmgirls also think of our beloved MaryJane and the Farmgirl Sisterhood. In my hometown of Newtown, Connecticut, “bee” has an additional meaning: “The Bee” is the local newspaper. I recently toured The Newtown Bee, discovering the paper’s name isn’t the only unique attribute of this historical gem.
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Debbie Bosworth
is a certified farmgirl at heart. She’s happily married to her beach bum Yankee husband of 20 years. She went from career gal to being a creative homeschooling mom for two of her biggest blessings and hasn’t looked back since. Debbie left her lifelong home in the high desert of Northern Nevada 10 years ago and washed up on the shore of America’s hometown, Plymouth, MA, where she and her family are now firmly planted. They spend part of each summer in a tiny, off–grid beach cottage named “The Sea Horse.”
“I found a piece of my farmgirl heart when I discovered MaryJanesFarm. Suddenly, everything I loved just made more sense! I enjoy unwinding at the beach, writing, gardening, and turning yard-sale furniture into ‘Painted Ladies’ I’m passionate about living a creative life and encouraging others to ‘make each day their masterpiece.’”
Rebekah Teal
is a “MaryJane Farmgirl” who lives in a large metropolitan area. She is a lawyer who has worked in both criminal defense and prosecution. She has been a judge, a business woman and a stay-at-home mom. In addition to her law degree, she has a Masters of Theological Studies.
“Mustering up the courage to do the things you dream about,” she says, “is the essence of being a MaryJane Farmgirl.” Learning to live more organically and closer to nature is Rebekah’s current pursuit. She finds strength and encouragement through MaryJane’s writings, life, and products. And MaryJane’s Farmgirl Connection provides her a wealth of knowledge from true-blue farmgirls.
Cathi Belcher
an old-fashioned farmgirl with a pioneer spirit, lives in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. As a “lifelong learner” in the “Live-Free-or-Die” state, she fiercely values self-reliance, independence, freedom, and fresh mountain air. Married to her childhood sweetheart of 40+ years (a few of them “uphill climbs”), she’s had plenty of time to reinvent herself. From museum curator, restaurant owner, homeschool mom/conference speaker, to post-and-beam house builder and entrepreneur, she’s also a multi-media artist, with an obsession for off-grid living and alternative housing. Cathi owns and operates a 32-room mountain lodge. Her specialty has evolved to include “hermit hospitality” at her rustic cabin in the mountains, where she offers weekend workshops of special interest to women.
“Mountains speak to my soul, and farming is an important part of my heritage. I want to pass on my love of these things to others through my writing. Living in the mountains has its own particular challenges, but I delight in turning them into opportunities from which we can all learn and grow.”
Dori Troutman
Dori Troutman is the daughter of second generation cattle ranchers in New Mexico. She grew up working and playing on the ranch that her grandparents homesteaded in 1928. That ranch, with the old adobe home, is still in the family today. Dori and her husband always yearned for a ranch of their own. That dream came true when they retired to the beautiful green rolling hills of Tennessee. Truly a cattleman’s paradise!
Dori loves all things farmgirl and actually has known no other life but that. She loves to cook, craft, garden, and help with any and all things on their cattle farm.
Mary Murray
describes herself as a goat charmer, chicken whisperer, bee maven, and farmers’ market baker renovating an 1864 farmhouse on an Ohio farm. With a degree in Design, Mary says small-town auctions and country road barn sales "always make my heart skip a beat thinking about what I could create or design out of what I’ve seen.”
Rooted in the countryside, she likes simple things and old ways … gardening, preserving the harvest, cooking, baking, and all things home. While you might find her selling baked goods from the farm’s milkhouse, teaching herself to play the fiddle, or sprucing up a vintage camper named Maizy, you will always find her in an apron!
Mary says, “I’m happiest with the simple country pleasures … an old farmhouse, too many animals, a crackling fire, books to read, and the sound of laughter … these make life just perfect.”
Alexandra Wilson
is a budding rural farmgirl living in Palmer, the agricultural seat of Alaska. Alex is a graduate student at Alaska Pacific University pursuing an M.S. in Outdoor and Environmental Education. She lives and works on the university’s 700 acre environmental education center, Spring Creek Farm. When Alex has time outside of school, she loves to rock climb, repurpose found objects, cross-country ski on the hay fields, travel, practice yoga, and cook with new-fangled ingredients.
Alex grew up near the Twin Cities and went to college in Madison, Wisconsin—both places where perfectly painted barns and rolling green farmland are just a short drive away. After college, she taught at a rural middle school in South Korea where she biked past verdant rice paddies and old women selling home-grown produce from sidewalk stoops. She was introduced to MaryJanesFarm after returning, and found in it what she’d been searching for—a group of incredible women living their lives in ways that benefit their families, their communities, and the greater environment. What an amazing group of farmgirls to be a part of!
Nicole Christensen
Suburban Farmgirl Nicole Christensen calls herself a “vintage enthusiast”. Born and raised in Texas, she has lived most of her life in the picturesque New England suburbs of Connecticut, just a stone’s throw from New York State. An Advanced Master Gardener, she has gardened since childhood, in several states and across numerous planting zones. In addition, she teaches knitting classes, loves to preserve, and raises backyard chickens.
Married over thirty years to her Danish-born sweetheart, Nicole has worked in various fields, been a world-traveler, an entrepreneur and a homemaker, but considers being mom to her now-adult daughter her greatest accomplishment. Loving all things creative, Nicole considers her life’s motto to be “Bloom where you are planted”.
This is such an interesting information about your small town newspaper. I like the history and the idea of decorating a Christmas tree all year for each special holiday!
Love you,
Mother
Hi Mom, Isn’t that tree an awesome idea? I especially love how it was decorated patriotically when visited. Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
I love the antiques and especially the honey pots. Mine looks like the third from the left on the top row. It meshes beautifully with the dishes and accompanying serving pieces that came from a Goodwill store in Antioch, CA. As for work space, I used to have a desk set up in my RV for the laptop and printer where I worked every day online. The view changed constantly, even though I may have been parked in the same space for a few months. Most of the time, I was working in the woods or near a lake, river or other body of water. No matter where I was, I was always “home.”
Adrienne, aren’t those honey pots neat? I have a few myself. How cool to be working from an RV! I love how you say that you were “always home”. Thanks for reading and commenting! Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
Love the whole idea of the hometown paper that truly is a disappearing treasure, and I love that you wrote about it so well! But I give up on trying to guess what is the ornate wooden circular piece hanging in one of the offices there. What is it?? A repurposed Lazy Susan? A clock face without the clock? A victorian puzzle? A gypsy wagon hubcap? ??? Do tell!
Hi Sippie! Good guesses! No one at the newspaper seems to know what it is for sure, either! It does seem to be some sort of wheel. It is huge! I thought it was such a conversation piece. Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
I am so pleased my cousin sent me the link to this. No wonder she loves working for “The Bee”! (I think I’ll see if I can get a subscription mailed to Oregon!! 😀 ) Thank you, Nicole, for this wonderful post.
Hi Barbara! It was an interesting place to visit. I first visited with my daughter’s Girl Scout troop last May. (They were wonderful to our troop, taking time out of their busy day to show the girls around and discuss what they do). I also think it speaks volumes in this day and age that they have staff that work there for so many years. Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed the post. Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
The piece looks like gingerbread decoration located on a gable to provide ventilation to an attic or barn. Just guessing though, is very interesting! Each time I read your posts I want to move into the area or at least north of Florida where I live now!!! Thank you for the pictures and words!
Marcia
Hi Marcia! Thank you so very much…I am so glad you enjoy my posts! (Come January, though, I often wish I was living where you are)! 😉
Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
Loved the story of your hometown newspaper. It is so neat that it has remained it’s own “person” and not a member of the larger publications.
I often wonder if you have visited Stillmeadow, home of Gladys Taber. She mentions Newtown in her writings. Are you familiar with her? I bet you would enjoy her books.
Hi Bonnie, I had not heard of Gladys Taber, but I just “Googled” her. I bet I would like her books! I will have to see if I can find them. Thank you for telling me about her. Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
Thank you for sharing this very interesting story.Sounds like a fun place to visit.I think the large wooden piece is a ceiling medallion for a light fixture.
Hi Holly, Good guess, as well. Could be? It would have to be a huge light fixture, like maybe some I’ve seen in old buildings with super high ceilings like some old ones in NYC. Thanks for “stopping by”! Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
My sweetheart, whose job history includes working as a slot machine mechanic and in security in casinos in Las Vegas years ago) seems to think the ’round thing’ is a Big Six wheel from a game of chance at a carnival or casino, and someone has possibly painted it.
Aha! Thanks, Barbara! I bet he’s right. -Nicole
its a finial
Hi Kay! I bet you are right…it’s a huge piece, and looks stunning on their wall. -Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
Your information on John T. Pearce, founder of the Newtown Bee is not up to date, I am a descendant of his family, his sister was my gr., gr., gr., grandmother, she lived to 109 and if she’d lived another year would’ve seen me born and 6 generations in the family, she married Charles J. Rockwell, a blacksmith/carriage maker for P.T. Barnum. Her brother John served with the 15th Virginia Infantry from 1861 to 1862. He regularly published his paper and they’re on microfilm at the state library in Hartford. He also started another paper in Bethel, left the Bee for a short while then returned to bring it back, I have articles dosumenting this history that I’ve researched. The Bee did a stroy on him when I had a veteran’s headstone placed at his unmarked grave in Center Cemetery in Bethel where his father, son and others are residing. Sarah F. (Pearce) Rockwell was living in Sandy Hook when her daughters were born and later moved to Danbury. John T. Pearce ran the Union Blockade in Norfolk, VA to come to Bethel and the family was in the hatting business in Richmond, VA where he and his siblings were born.
Sincerely,
C. Michael Anderson
Thank you for taking the time to provide this additional information. What an interesting man Mr. Pierce must have been! Thanks for reading and commenting. ~Nicole