This month, the Wakefield Estate kicks-off its 2014 Stone Soup and Speakers Series, held in the early evening on the final Thursday of each month. The first takes place January 30th from 5:30 – 7:00pm. These warm and casual programs happen in the historic Isaac Davenport mansion house where guests can enjoy a bowl of tasty home-made soup while enjoying a short presentation by a featured speaker.

The theme for this year’s series is “the untold stories in attics and archives,” a line that comes from the dedication of our first speaker’s book, If Ever Two Were One: A Private Diary of Love Eternal. Brian Sullivan’s book is a deeply moving look into romance and tragedy in the life of a Victorian-era Harvard student and his beloved wife, through journal entries, letters, and images of the actual diary of Francis Ellingwood Abbot. Sullivan, a Milton resident and former senior reference archivist at the Harvard University Archives and archivist of Mount Auburn Cemetery, was moved to write his book while doing research in the Harvard Archives, when he found in Abbot’s diary a lock of hair, cluster of flowers and a handwritten poem of love and loss.

Sullivan will discuss how this discovery left him spellbound, and will share images from the scrapbooks and journals that inspired him to pursue the project.

You can find the New York Times article read more about Sullivan’s book here.

The following Stone Soup will highlight local history, featuring Maritta Cronin who will share engaging historical anecdotes and memorabilia relating to Milton’s Thacher Farm on February 27. Our March 27 Stone Soup will be a slide show of vintage photos of Milton Gardens. The April Stone Soup program will focus on the ongoing exploration of archives and collections at the Wakefield Estate.  While this event is free,space is limited and pre-registration is required. The estate is located at 1465 Brush Hill Road, Milton. To RSVP or for more information, please call the Wakefield Estate at 617-333-0924.