Gore Place

08/11/2021

A ‘Super Fantastic’ tomato, fresh from the vine and grown by Farmer Scott!

Did you buy plants from Farmer Scott's Heirloom Tomato Plant Sale in the spring? If so, will you share photos of your harvest with us? We'd love to use your pictures of your tomatoes and peppers in next year's Plant Sale catalog.

Share your photos by tagging us on Facebook or Instagram, and tell us which plants you grew! Thank you from all of us at Gore Place.

#AltText: A red beefsteak tomato cut in half on a wooden cutting board.

A ‘Super Fantastic’ tomato, fresh from the vine and grown by Farmer Scott!

Did you buy plants from Farmer Scott's Heirloom Tomato Plant Sale in the spring? If so, will you share photos of your harvest with us? We'd love to use your pictures of your tomatoes and peppers in next year's Plant Sale catalog.

Share your photos by tagging us on Facebook or Instagram, and tell us which plants you grew! Thank you from all of us at Gore Place.

#AltText: A red beefsteak tomato cut in half on a wooden cutting board.

08/08/2021

Seen a lot of fungi growing in your yard? We have too! Join us at our brand-new FREE Nature Identification Workshop at Gore Place on Saturday, August 21 to help us identify and observe the living things around us. See link in profile for details.

#AltText: Two photos of a fungus with a white stem and a large tan cap growing in the lawn near a tree.

08/06/2021

Do you have phlox growing in your garden?

#AltText: A group of phlox plants with lots of bright pink flowers on long green stems.

Do you have phlox growing in your garden?

#AltText: A group of phlox plants with lots of bright pink flowers on long green stems.

08/05/2021

Happy #NationalUnderwearDay!

Much like today, undergarments were essential components to any outfit for men and women alike in the 19th century. Alongside underwear, another article of clothing a lady could be expected to wear were petticoats. Petticoats have been a part of women’s fashion for centuries; by the early 1800s petticoats could either be visible to others as part of a cohesive outfit, or worn more discreetly as an undergarment, or “under-petticoat.“

This longer white cotton petticoat from 1810 was probably not donned as an under-petticoat, but rather would have been worn under a short gown for “undress,” or while at home. Working women would have also worn this style of petticoat.

The other images show up-close details of a white cotton petticoat with white eyelet embroidery along its scalloped bottom. The back closure consists of a single button from bone. This petticoat dates back to sometime between 1870-1880.

It is interesting to consider that while fashion styles and norms evolve over time, society continues to uphold and transform ideas of what we consider to be undergarments, casual styles, and more formal wear for our time. Like much of what we highlight at Gore Place, we learn that “then versus now” may not be so inherently different as we like to think! Undergarments remain a staple part to any ensemble today.

#AltText: Four images of a close-up of eyelet embroidery, a short white cotton petticoat with eyelet embroidery along its scalloped bottom, a long white cotton petticoat, and a close-up of the back closure to a white cotton petticoat with a single white button made from bone.

08/05/2021

Bringing you some lovely weather on this overcast day in Waltham! We love this photo of our sweeping lawn, lush trees, and bright blue skies.
Photo by Maureen Cotton Photography. #WeddingWednesday

#AltText: Outdoor summer wedding ceremony surrounded by trees on the Gore Place lawn.

Bringing you some lovely weather on this overcast day in Waltham! We love this photo of our sweeping lawn, lush trees, and bright blue skies.
Photo by Maureen Cotton Photography. #WeddingWednesday

#AltText: Outdoor summer wedding ceremony surrounded by trees on the Gore Place lawn.

08/01/2021

#EmancipationDay #OnThisDay in 1834

800,000 human beings saved! announced Boston’s Liberator newspaper. The town’s free Black community held special services at its Meeting House on Beacon Hill. It was August 1, 1834, the day slavery ended in the British West Indies.

This “most glorious event” came through the efforts of many people. One man, William Wilberforce (1759-1833), chose politics to make a difference. As a member of British Parliament, this evangelical Christian from a wealthy Yorkshire family led the successful fight to end the British slave trade in 1807. Then, he took on abolishing slavery. After many years and many unsuccessful attempts, in poor health Wilberforce left Parliament in 1826 but continued to support anti-slavery and other reforms.

Years later, as Wilberforce lay seriously ill, he learned it had finally happened: The Slavery Abolition Act had passed the House and was expected to become law. Wilberforce said, “I am happy to have lived long enough to see it pass.” He died three days later, July 29, 1833.

Boston’s free Black community had closely followed the Act’s progress in Parliament. Ships arriving from London brought the hoped-for news that the Act would pass. Then came unwelcomed news: The Liberator announced, “The beloved and venerated Wilberforce is no more!”

A baby boy was born into a free Black Boston family on August 29,1833--the sixth son and the last of twelve children born to Sarah and Robert Roberts. The father, who had once worked as a domestic servant for elite Bostonians, including Governor Christopher Gore, was a deeply religious man, an author, and a devoted abolitionist. He named his new son William Wilberforce Roberts.

Photo credit: William Wilberforce by Sir Thomas Lawrence
oil on canvas, 1828
NPG 3
© National Portrait Gallery, London

#AltText An unfinished painting of William Wilberforce. He is looking toward the viewer. His face and shoulders are painted and the rest of his figure is an unfinished illustration.

#EmancipationDay #OnThisDay in 1834

800,000 human beings saved! announced Boston’s Liberator newspaper. The town’s free Black community held special services at its Meeting House on Beacon Hill. It was August 1, 1834, the day slavery ended in the British West Indies.

This “most glorious event” came through the efforts of many people. One man, William Wilberforce (1759-1833), chose politics to make a difference. As a member of British Parliament, this evangelical Christian from a wealthy Yorkshire family led the successful fight to end the British slave trade in 1807. Then, he took on abolishing slavery. After many years and many unsuccessful attempts, in poor health Wilberforce left Parliament in 1826 but continued to support anti-slavery and other reforms.

Years later, as Wilberforce lay seriously ill, he learned it had finally happened: The Slavery Abolition Act had passed the House and was expected to become law. Wilberforce said, “I am happy to have lived long enough to see it pass.” He died three days later, July 29, 1833.

Boston’s free Black community had closely followed the Act’s progress in Parliament. Ships arriving from London brought the hoped-for news that the Act would pass. Then came unwelcomed news: The Liberator announced, “The beloved and venerated Wilberforce is no more!”

A baby boy was born into a free Black Boston family on August 29,1833--the sixth son and the last of twelve children born to Sarah and Robert Roberts. The father, who had once worked as a domestic servant for elite Bostonians, including Governor Christopher Gore, was a deeply religious man, an author, and a devoted abolitionist. He named his new son William Wilberforce Roberts.

Photo credit: William Wilberforce by Sir Thomas Lawrence
oil on canvas, 1828
NPG 3
© National Portrait Gallery, London

#AltText An unfinished painting of William Wilberforce. He is looking toward the viewer. His face and shoulders are painted and the rest of his figure is an unfinished illustration.

07/28/2021

Did you know that Gore Place owns its Century Tent? The tent, situated in a grove of trees on the north side of our estate, is available for private event rentals from May to October. Photo by Amanda Marie Studio. #WeddingWednesday

#AltText: Inside the Century Tent with tables and chairs surrounding a dance floor.

Did you know that Gore Place owns its Century Tent? The tent, situated in a grove of trees on the north side of our estate, is available for private event rentals from May to October. Photo by Amanda Marie Studio. #WeddingWednesday

#AltText: Inside the Century Tent with tables and chairs surrounding a dance floor.

07/26/2021

Special sheep delivery! Thank you to @EnglishmanBayHandmade for the adorable miniature sheep wrapped in sheep wool roving and needle-felted. A favorite in our gift shop! Love local handmade items? Join us at Handmade for the Holidays craft fair on September 18. Details at link in bio/comments.

Special sheep delivery! Thank you to @EnglishmanBayHandmade for the adorable miniature sheep wrapped in sheep wool roving and needle-felted. A favorite in our gift shop! Love local handmade items? Join us at Handmade for the Holidays craft fair on September 18. Details at link in bio/comments.

07/21/2021

Our Carriage House dressed up for a wonderful shower. Photo by Johnson Photography. #WeddingWednesday

Image description: Inside the Carriage House, string lights hang above tables and chairs set with red linens and decorations. A small white frosted cake is in the right corner.

Our Carriage House dressed up for a wonderful shower. Photo by Johnson Photography. #WeddingWednesday

Image description: Inside the Carriage House, string lights hang above tables and chairs set with red linens and decorations. A small white frosted cake is in the right corner.

07/20/2021

Our bee balm this summer is spectacular! This plant is a favorite with pollinators like birds, butterflies, and bees. Can you find the pollinator in the second and third image?

Image descriptions: There are three images of the bee balm plants growing at Gore Place. The plants have tall green stems, lots of green leaves, and delicate light purple flowers.

07/18/2021

#OnThisDay in 1776

July 4 is Independence Day—the day we celebrate the ratification of the Declaration of Independence. It took until August 2 for all members of the Continental Congress to sign the document. Copies of the Declaration were distributed throughout the Colonies to be read aloud in public squares. In Boston, the honor went to sheriff Daniel Greenleaf, with the assistance of Christopher Gore’s brother-in-law Thomas Crafts.

Thomas Crafts married Christopher’s sister Mary on July 30, 1763. Like his father-in-law, John Gore, Thomas was an artisan. Both men specialized in painting carriages with decorative designs. Like his brother-in-law Samuel Gore, Thomas was a Patriot, a member of the Sons of Liberty and a participant in the Boston Tea Party.
During the war, Crafts served in an artillery company, distinguishing himself in action and rising to the rank of colonel. Christopher Gore served as a clerk in that same regiment.

On the night of July 18, 1776, Sheriff William Greenleaf was to read aloud the Declaration of Independence from the balcony of the Old State House—then known as the Town House—a symbol of British power in Massachusetts. A large crowd had gathered, among them Colonel Thomas Crafts and his artillery regiment. Apparently, Greenleaf didn’t feel his voice was strong enough to carry to the crowd, so he asked Thomas Crafts to assist. Many years later, William’s son Daniel described the occasion.

He wrote, “As his voice was rather weak, he requested Colonel Crafts to act as his herald;...my father read a sentence, which was immediately repeated by Crafts, and so continued to the end, when was the huzza. . .“

It was not a solemn occasion, to say the least. After the reading, the crowd, having been whipped into a frenzy by the stirring words, proceeded to destroy all symbols of the Crown. The iconic Lion and Unicorn were ripped from the Town House pediment and burned on a bonfire in front of the Bunch of Grapes tavern. (The current emblems are reproductions which went up when the Old State House was restored in 1882.)

The reading of the Declaration would long be remembered by those who witnessed that fateful event and who lived through the ensuing war years. According to his son, Greenleaf had the paper from which he read framed. It took “pride of place” over his mantle for the rest of his days.

After the war, Thomas Crafts returned to his family, entering a life of public service as a selectman and a Justice of the Peace.

Image description: Illustrated postcard depicting a crowd gathered to hear the reading of the Declaration of Independence in Boston in 1776. Text on the borders of the postcard reads: Reading of the Declaration of Independence from the Old State House, July 18, 1776. From the collection of the Boston Public Library.

#OnThisDay in 1776

July 4 is Independence Day—the day we celebrate the ratification of the Declaration of Independence. It took until August 2 for all members of the Continental Congress to sign the document. Copies of the Declaration were distributed throughout the Colonies to be read aloud in public squares. In Boston, the honor went to sheriff Daniel Greenleaf, with the assistance of Christopher Gore’s brother-in-law Thomas Crafts.

Thomas Crafts married Christopher’s sister Mary on July 30, 1763. Like his father-in-law, John Gore, Thomas was an artisan. Both men specialized in painting carriages with decorative designs. Like his brother-in-law Samuel Gore, Thomas was a Patriot, a member of the Sons of Liberty and a participant in the Boston Tea Party.
During the war, Crafts served in an artillery company, distinguishing himself in action and rising to the rank of colonel. Christopher Gore served as a clerk in that same regiment.

On the night of July 18, 1776, Sheriff William Greenleaf was to read aloud the Declaration of Independence from the balcony of the Old State House—then known as the Town House—a symbol of British power in Massachusetts. A large crowd had gathered, among them Colonel Thomas Crafts and his artillery regiment. Apparently, Greenleaf didn’t feel his voice was strong enough to carry to the crowd, so he asked Thomas Crafts to assist. Many years later, William’s son Daniel described the occasion.

He wrote, “As his voice was rather weak, he requested Colonel Crafts to act as his herald;...my father read a sentence, which was immediately repeated by Crafts, and so continued to the end, when was the huzza. . .“

It was not a solemn occasion, to say the least. After the reading, the crowd, having been whipped into a frenzy by the stirring words, proceeded to destroy all symbols of the Crown. The iconic Lion and Unicorn were ripped from the Town House pediment and burned on a bonfire in front of the Bunch of Grapes tavern. (The current emblems are reproductions which went up when the Old State House was restored in 1882.)

The reading of the Declaration would long be remembered by those who witnessed that fateful event and who lived through the ensuing war years. According to his son, Greenleaf had the paper from which he read framed. It took “pride of place” over his mantle for the rest of his days.

After the war, Thomas Crafts returned to his family, entering a life of public service as a selectman and a Justice of the Peace.

Image description: Illustrated postcard depicting a crowd gathered to hear the reading of the Declaration of Independence in Boston in 1776. Text on the borders of the postcard reads: Reading of the Declaration of Independence from the Old State House, July 18, 1776. From the collection of the Boston Public Library.

07/14/2021

Such gorgeous light! Photo by Hourglass Photography. #weddingwednesday

Image description: A wedding couple walks up the hill near the brick Mansion, illuminated by the glow of a beautiful sunset.

Such gorgeous light! Photo by Hourglass Photography. #weddingwednesday

Image description: A wedding couple walks up the hill near the brick Mansion, illuminated by the glow of a beautiful sunset.

07/12/2021

Thanks to all our guests at Sunday’s Jane Austen Garden Party! We loved seeing all the incredible Regency attire. Thank you also to @charltonbeckercatering for delicious refreshments and to @onthemarkarchery for fun archery instruction.

Want more Austen? Join us for Summer Fashion in the Austen Era on Sunday, July 25 at 2 pm. Link in bio/comments.

Image descriptions: Scenes from the party include guests dressed in Regency attire touring the red brick Gore Mansion, guests learning archery, the Century Tent where the party took place, and boxes of desserts and appetizers.

07/09/2021

We hope everyone is staying safe today as Tropical Storm Elsa passes through the region. We look forward to sunnier days, like this one taken at the estate by our rain garden. Photo by Eric Workman | TMP Images.

Image description:
The rain garden has a small pond with many green plants and a wooden fence. The red brick mansion appears in the background.

We hope everyone is staying safe today as Tropical Storm Elsa passes through the region. We look forward to sunnier days, like this one taken at the estate by our rain garden. Photo by Eric Workman | TMP Images.

Image description:
The rain garden has a small pond with many green plants and a wooden fence. The red brick mansion appears in the background.