Notes |
- Many published records exist which detail the life of Dr. Humphrey Bradstreet, but perhaps the most interesting is described by Sarah Anna Emery, in her book "Reminiscences of a Nonagenarian." She writes of the home Humphrey had provided to his youngest daughter, who married Rev. William Johnson:
"Madame Johnson's father, Dr. Humphrey Bradstreet, had furnished his daughter's new house in a style not frequent in those days. the principal entrance opened into a spacious hall, handsomely furnished in dark wood, from which a highly ornamented staircase led to the story above. The white wall was decorated with the portraits of Lieut. governor Dummer and his wife, and a view of Harvard College. Under the pictures stood a large, massive dining table. the parlor, a square, pleasant room, was to the left of the entrance. Its three windows commanded a lovely view of the surrounding country and the river, bounded by the rolling hills of its farther shore. This room displayed an unusual embellishment; the walls were hung with a velvet paper, a purple figure on a buff ground.
"Paper walls had not yet become common, no paste was used; four polished hard wood convex slats running round the room held the hanglings in place. Small, slender brass andirons, and a tiny brass shovel and tongs adorned the tiled firplace, an antique table, its legs curiously carved and ornamented, stood between the frong windows; over it hung a mirror in a black and gilt frame; the chairs were cane seated and a strip of cane was inserted into the high, carved backs. An armchair occupied one corner; opposite stood the buffet, lustrous with rich silver, brightly pained china and glasses of various shapes and graceful device." (page 24)
Upon Humphrey's death, his own mansion was left to his son Moses. Moses' daughter Betty remained unmarried. Upon the death of her parents, Betty continued to live in the Bradstreet manion, which Emery describes as follows:
"The Bradstreet mansion had been a pretentious house at the period of its erection, and with its extensive and well kept garden was then a model of neatness and elegance. The windows commanded as exquisite a view as can be found.... over the mantel, which was decorated with tall brass candlesticks, hung the portrait of Dr. Humphrey Bradstreet, in a red coat, buff vest, white wig, ruffled shirt, and delicate ruffles at the wrist, the right hand grasping a lancet."
Of interest to note: all of the children born to Humphrey and his wife, Sarah Pierce, are listed in the Vital Records of Newbury, Massachusets, except for Humphrey, Anna and Benjamin. Based on the Essex Antiquarian's history of the Bradstreet family, as well as the Vital Records of Newbury, it is thought that Humphrey was born c1698, Anna would have been born sometime around 1702, and Benjamin about 1705. Since the family had ties in New Hampshire (see Patents and Deeds and Other Early Records of New Jersey 1664-1703. William Nelson. 1899. Page 197) and was listed in a real estate transaction in 1693, one may wonder if these two children may have been born in New Hampshire, or if their births were simply never recorded in Newbury.
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