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Former owner of map of Potsdam from 1838 provides more background

Posted 5/31/19

Not to be awkward or anything, but I donated the map of Potsdam from 1838 to the museum last year. It was given to me by the town historian of Hermon, Mary Smallmen. I kept it for years, but grew …

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Former owner of map of Potsdam from 1838 provides more background

Posted

Not to be awkward or anything, but I donated the map of Potsdam from 1838 to the museum last year.

It was given to me by the town historian of Hermon, Mary Smallmen.

I kept it for years, but grew worried now that I have small children and decided to donate it to the museum to keep it safe.

Mary was a very dear friend and I used to clean her house and organize her historical files. I was around 15 years old when she discovered the map in her basement in Hermon and gave it me.

Told me it was to start my own collection. After she passed away I treasured that map like it was gold and hoped to display it in a glass case eventually.

Fast forward, married, and 4 kids later, I realized if I wanted to keep it safe, I needed to donate it to someone who could do what I couldn’t.

I was so happy to see how excited they were over it, but I’m not going to lie, I cried a little, out of relief they liked it and that I had to give away a piece of a sweet reminder of my friend.

Mary Smallmen was a historian to a couple different towns throughout her lifetime, including Hopkinton, which she wrote a book about. I’m assuming that is where she might have originally enquired it. She believed it to be a firefighter map, but that I was never sure on that.

Lizzy Parson

Hermon