JAM Podcasts & Audiobooks

PRELUDE

JAM Audiobook

Read by the author

Helen Taylor Davidson

Based on the 1854 Diary of Adeline Elizabeth Hoe

Edited by Richard Davidson and Helen Taylor Davidson

About the novel

In the spring of 1854 seventeen-year-old Adeline Elizabeth Hoe began to keep a daily diary.  Filled with six months of the details of a young girl’s life, the diary offers a wonderful window into the mind of an educated young woman from a well-to-do family living in Lower Manhattan in the turbulent decade before the Civil War.  Her meticulous record of the elegant music, dances and literature she and her sister enjoyed is juxtaposed with her matter-of-fact relation of epidemics and sudden deaths, conveying a vivid picture of mid-nineteenth-century life.  Author Helen Davidson, a descendent of Adeline, transcribed the diary with her husband, Richard Davidson.  Helen wrote the novel Prelude, while transcribing the diary, re-imagining the life of this spirited young girl.

The novel commences in the spring before Adeline’s eighteenth birthday when she and her older sister Emilie travel to summer destinations in the countryside.  Addies was the second daughter of the famed inventor and manufacturer Richard March Hoe, whose “Lightning” printing press had become widely used in the US and beyond.  One of the visitors to the March household noted in the diary, abolitionist Joe Stewart, takes a central role in the novel.  As his confidante, Adeline becomes aware of the atmosphere of antebellum opposition to slavery and begins herself to espouse Abolitionist sentiment, the closer she gets to the mysterious Joe.

About the author

A lifelong music teacher, choral director, dramatist and writer, Helen Taylor Davidson is the custodian of many heirlooms in a family whose American roots stem from the early 1600s.  These include her ancestor’s diary.  The Davidsons live in Plainfield, NH in the home where Helen was raised.

PRELUDE

JAM Audiobook

Read by the author

Helen Taylor Davidson

Based on the 1854 Diary of Adeline Elizabeth Hoe

Edited by Richard Davidson and Helen Taylor Davidson

About the novel

In the spring of 1854 seventeen-year-old Adeline Elizabeth Hoe began to keep a daily diary.  Filled with six months of the details of a young girl’s life, the diary offers a wonderful window into the mind of an educated young woman from a well-to-do family living in Lower Manhattan in the turbulent decade before the Civil War.  Her meticulous record of the elegant music, dances and literature she and her sister enjoyed is juxtaposed with her matter-of-fact relation of epidemics and sudden deaths, conveying a vivid picture of mid-nineteenth-century life.  Author Helen Davidson, a descendent of Adeline, transcribed the diary with her husband, Richard Davidson.  Helen wrote the novel Prelude, while transcribing the diary, re-imagining the life of this spirited young girl.

The novel commences in the spring before Adeline’s eighteenth birthday when she and her older sister Emilie travel to summer destinations in the countryside.  Addies was the second daughter of the famed inventor and manufacturer Richard March Hoe, whose “Lightning” printing press had become widely used in the US and beyond.  One of the visitors to the March household noted in the diary, abolitionist Joe Stewart, takes a central role in the novel.  As his confidante, Adeline becomes aware of the atmosphere of antebellum opposition to slavery and begins herself to espouse Abolitionist sentiment, the closer she gets to the mysterious Joe.

About the author

A lifelong music teacher, choral director, dramatist and writer, Helen Taylor Davidson is the custodian of many heirlooms in a family whose American roots stem from the early 1600s.  These include her ancestor’s diary.  The Davidsons live in Plainfield, NH in the home where Helen was raised.

Looking for a loyal, pint-sized partner who'll fill your days with love and laughter? Meet the perfect little companion who's ready to steal your heart (and your couch)!

Brian recently went on a sleepover and did great, met some cats and slept in a human bed and loved it all!!

Meet our next eligible bachelor, Brian! He has been waiting for his forever home for quite some time. He is looking for a special home where he can soak up all the love for himself, and he deserves it!

Brian’s the type that needs a lot of stimulation mentally and physically. If he doesn't get it, he goes stir crazy. There have been times where he would guard his toys and times when he has swallowed things whole and needed surgery. Brian does not like to share, and he is quite the ladies man.

He is very loyal to his person, because of this he needs to go to a one person household. He is an easy going guy who likes to spend his days going on walks, doing some sunbathing outside, then coming in to enjoy some cuddles on the couch. If you're looking for a sweet boy who will be your most loyal sidekick your search is over!

Interested in adopting this podcast?

In this episode, I invited some VIPs from outside the Upper Valley up to Junction Arts Media's (Formerly CATV) podcast recording studio in White River Junction. (Which by the way, JAM is a partner on this podcast and that podcast recording studio can be used by anyone! There are some links in the show notes with more info if you're interested in that.)

Anyway, if you live in Raymond New Hampshire you have an easier time getting informed about what's happening at Town Meeting than people do in many towns. Why? This is because of the dedicated work of a dozen or so volunteers who constitute the Raymond Voter Information Project who are my guests this episode.

These community members and volunteers have been compiling a detailed voter guide for 15 years that gets mailed to every household in Raymond prior to Town Meeting. They compile information, perform editorial reviews to ensure the information is as neutral and objective as possible, and even include things like further research and reasons why someone might vote yes and reasons why someone might vote no, and a voter guide you can fill out and take with you on election day.

It's really interesting to have this much work being done by an independent, nonpartisan organization of individuals who are working to educate and inform their neighbors. Raymond VIP's annual voter guide has become a relied upon resource in town, especially as local media and papers have dropped off over the last two decades. I invited them up here to share a bit about what they do, how they got started, how this relates to local newspapers, lessons they have learned over the years, and maybe some inspiration and ideas for anyone out there who wants to see their community more informed and engaged at Town meeting.

We all met last year after they heard about the Town Meeting handbook I created with a dozen other town managers and officials in New Hampshire, they reached out, and we all really hit it off, as we all believe that helping ensure a well attended and representative town meeting is one of the most important things we can do in our communities. So I'll stop there and get right to the conversation with Susan, Dana and Deb. Enjoy!

• Raymond VIP online: https://www.raymondvip.org/
• Reach out to Susan, Dana or Debra with any questions or ideas if you're interested in starting this in your town: https://www.raymondvip.org/contact.html
• The NH Town Meeting handbook with a bunch of best practices from NH and VT officials that I created this past year: https://rethinklocal.us/resources-town-meeting-turnout-and-engagement/
• NHPR's coverage of our Town Meeting Handbook https://www.nhpr.org/nh-news/2024-03-11/call-to-order-this-nh-town-manager-created-a-practical-guide-to-town-meeting
• Related Town Meeting type links:
  • Susan Clark's book Slow Democracy: http://slowdemocracy.org/
  • Register to vote in Vermont: https://sos.vermont.gov/elections/voters/registration/
  • Register to vote in New Hampshire: https://www.sos.nh.gov/elections/register-vote
• More information about JAM and their podcast studio which is open to the community: uvjam.org/listen

Hi Alex Torpey here, your host of Upper Valley Vibes.

In this episode, I take a walk on the rail trail in Lebanon with Josh Crane of Norwich, Vermont. Josh is the Senior Producer and Managing Editor of the really great podcast Brave Little State that many of you have probably heard of, produced by Vermont Public. Before joining Brave Little State and moving to the Upper Valley in 2021, Josh spent years reporting and producing podcasts at WBUR in Boston.

I asked him to talk in large part because of a great episode he did for Brave Little State about the Upper Valley where he talked to some local legends like Steve Taylor in Plainfield and Rob Gurwitt of Daybreak and many more.  We actually don't end up getting too far down that rabbit hole about the history of the Upper Valley in this episode, but  if you're interested in the history of the phrase "Upper Valley," the newspaper wars, who thinks what boundaries are where and a lot more about what makes the Upper Valley unique, that Brave Little State episode is definitely worth checking out and is linked below.

In this episode on Upper Valley Vibes, Josh and I talk a bit about the Upper Valley, important dynamics about small, trusting communities and how that might influence politics and policy, the role of journalism in local civics, the value of local ownership and accountability, what he hears from meeting people around Vermont through Brave Little State, and importantly, who has the best town fair in the Upper Valley.

Thanks for engaging in what's happening in your community. If you enjoy what you hear please share with a friend.

Show notes:

• Brave Little state episode on the Upper Valley: https://www.vermontpublic.org/podcast/brave-little-state/2024-02-23/the-newspaper-war-that-shaped-the-upper-valley
• Ask a question to Brave little State: https://www.vermontpublic.org/podcast/brave-little-state
• Daybreak Newsletter:

https://daybreak.news

• Interview on Hanover Happenings with Rob Gurwitt: https://hanoverhappenings.castos.com/episodes/a-conversation-with-rob-gurwitt-of-daybreak-about-news-trust-new-england-democracy-community-and-more
• Interview on Hanover Happenings with NH and VT Secretaries of State: https://hanoverhappenings.castos.com/episodes/nh-and-vt-secretaries-of-state-visit-hanover-to-talk-civics-elections-and-public-trust

Hi everyone my name is Alex Torpey, your host of the new Upper Valley Vibes podcast.

As we get this thing going I wanted to share a little bit about my goals for the podcast, and first, share a little of my background so you all can get to know where I’m coming from and the perspective that will be part of this podcast. I think it's important to know about the context of people who we listen to, read, etc, and hope you'll join me to hear a bit about what informs my mindset.

Do you know someone who is up to some interesting things around the Upper Valley? Reach out to me at [email protected]!

I can't wait to bring you interesting stories of people doing amazing things in their communities around the Upper Valley.

Show links: 

• The free nonpartisan guide we created (Featured on NHPR!) for increasing engagement at Town Meeting: https://rethinklocal.us/resources-town-meeting-turnout-and-engagement/
• Find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alextorpey/
• Find me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alextorpey/
• Hanover Happenings podcast: Hanoverhappenings.com.

PRELUDE

JAM Audiobook

Read by the author

Helen Taylor Davidson

Based on the 1854 Diary of Adeline Elizabeth Hoe

Edited by Richard Davidson and Helen Taylor Davidson

About the novel

In the spring of 1854 seventeen-year-old Adeline Elizabeth Hoe began to keep a daily diary.  Filled with six months of the details of a young girl’s life, the diary offers a wonderful window into the mind of an educated young woman from a well-to-do family living in Lower Manhattan in the turbulent decade before the Civil War.  Her meticulous record of the elegant music, dances and literature she and her sister enjoyed is juxtaposed with her matter-of-fact relation of epidemics and sudden deaths, conveying a vivid picture of mid-nineteenth-century life.  Author Helen Davidson, a descendent of Adeline, transcribed the diary with her husband, Richard Davidson.  Helen wrote the novel Prelude, while transcribing the diary, re-imagining the life of this spirited young girl.

The novel commences in the spring before Adeline’s eighteenth birthday when she and her older sister Emilie travel to summer destinations in the countryside.  Addies was the second daughter of the famed inventor and manufacturer Richard March Hoe, whose “Lightning” printing press had become widely used in the US and beyond.  One of the visitors to the March household noted in the diary, abolitionist Joe Stewart, takes a central role in the novel.  As his confidante, Adeline becomes aware of the atmosphere of antebellum opposition to slavery and begins herself to espouse Abolitionist sentiment, the closer she gets to the mysterious Joe.

About the author

A lifelong music teacher, choral director, dramatist and writer, Helen Taylor Davidson is the custodian of many heirlooms in a family whose American roots stem from the early 1600s.  These include her ancestor’s diary.  The Davidsons live in Plainfield, NH in the home where Helen was raised.

Episode 3 - Oops! All Interns - Maeve interviews the JAM Interns about their summer working at JAM. Tune in while they reflect on their time working at JAM’s summer camp, their favorite memories, what they’ve learned, and the new religion taking the upper Valley by storm: Drewism. 

From Tunbridge to Claremont, unbound by space/time, voters and non voters face down their national politics.

In this series, Frances Mize vibe checks the Upper Valley in advance of the national election. The project is less interested in who you’re voting for than how you feel about the country today and how you feel about its future.

PRELUDE

JAM Audiobook

Read by the author

Helen Taylor Davidson

Based on the 1854 Diary of Adeline Elizabeth Hoe

Edited by Richard Davidson and Helen Taylor Davidson

About the novel

In the spring of 1854 seventeen-year-old Adeline Elizabeth Hoe began to keep a daily diary.  Filled with six months of the details of a young girl’s life, the diary offers a wonderful window into the mind of an educated young woman from a well-to-do family living in Lower Manhattan in the turbulent decade before the Civil War.  Her meticulous record of the elegant music, dances and literature she and her sister enjoyed is juxtaposed with her matter-of-fact relation of epidemics and sudden deaths, conveying a vivid picture of mid-nineteenth-century life.  Author Helen Davidson, a descendent of Adeline, transcribed the diary with her husband, Richard Davidson.  Helen wrote the novel Prelude, while transcribing the diary, re-imagining the life of this spirited young girl.

The novel commences in the spring before Adeline’s eighteenth birthday when she and her older sister Emilie travel to summer destinations in the countryside.  Addies was the second daughter of the famed inventor and manufacturer Richard March Hoe, whose “Lightning” printing press had become widely used in the US and beyond.  One of the visitors to the March household noted in the diary, abolitionist Joe Stewart, takes a central role in the novel.  As his confidante, Adeline becomes aware of the atmosphere of antebellum opposition to slavery and begins herself to espouse Abolitionist sentiment, the closer she gets to the mysterious Joe.

About the author

A lifelong music teacher, choral director, dramatist and writer, Helen Taylor Davidson is the custodian of many heirlooms in a family whose American roots stem from the early 1600s.  These include her ancestor’s diary.  The Davidsons live in Plainfield, NH in the home where Helen was raised.