Edward Rowe Snow

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Permalink Reply by Jim Avery on August 11, 2009 at 5:37am

He was a school teacher in Winthrop MA and would spend his summers exploring New England and writing about his experiences. I think he got started writing when in Army Hospital in North Africa during WWII. I was intrroduced to Mr. Snow on WBZ in Boston when he appeared on a talk show about once every 2 weeks. This is when I lived in Harrisburg PA and could get WBZ at night. When I lived in Vermont, some of my neighbors actually knew him. He used to do story hours for children in evenings. He passed away in the mid 1980's. An interesting person. My favorite of his books is A Pilgrim Returns to Cape Cod. Mr. Snow's mother Alice Rowe wrote a book about her experiences as a Lighthouse Keepers Daughter.

Permalink Reply by Bette Pye Wing on December 27, 2009 at 2:48pm

Not directly related to him, but I am a descendant of Nicholas Snow, 1621, Plymouth and so was he. We share a common ancestor. I grew up in Winthrop MA, where ER Snow grew up. I know the street he lived on as a boy and my cousin had him as a history teacher, before he left teaching to go into radio. My sister was in the same classes as his nephew. I personally know many of the places he names in his books. By tracing the family line to Nicholas Snow, we are Mayflower descendants. In the 1760's, King George opened the Acadian lands to the colonists for settlement. Many left for NB and NS for free land. Nickerson, Snow, Smith, Phinney, Tower, Cole and many more moved north. Another group of Snow families in NFLD seem not to be connected to the colonists. Possibly they came directly to NFLD from England. There may be a connection, but further back in England. Glad to have found this site on the Snows.

Permalink Reply by Jim Avery on December 27, 2009 at 6:22pm

Good to see someone else remembered Mr. Snow. I remember listening to him on WBZ when I was in high school in Pennsylvania. I also collect his books. In the part year and a half I moved from New England to Pennsylvania so not many collectors down here. Maybe when I get back to Vermont next spring I can check out some book stores. Do you know someone named Fred Wood? They lived inhis area of Winthrop and lived down the street when I lived in Vermont. Good to keep his memory alive.

Permalink Reply by Bette Pye Wing on December 27, 2009 at 9:55pm

No, I didn't know Fred Wood. Winthrop was a big town, 20K population and surrounded by water. The toruists flocked in as summer people to live at the beach, so the dynamics were always changing. I lived at the opposite end of town from where Mr. Snow grew up. He no longer lived in Winthrop when I was growing up. My mother remembered him well, as they were in the same age category. Winthrop was a great place to grow up. It's great fun to read the things he wrote about the New England coast. Winthrop had other celebrities too. Sylvia Plath lived there for a while and my oldest sister went to school with her. Her mother taught school in the Jr, High I believe. President John Kenndy's grandparents had a summer home there when the Kennedy kids were small. The actress, Carol Lynley, came to visit her grandmother every year and spent time with her cousin, across the street from me. We all played together. I have great memories of the place and Mr. Snow's accounts just bring them all back.

Permalink Reply by Peter Dorr on February 10, 2010 at 5:20am

Looking for a story written by Edward Rowe Snow. It was on one Henry Haggerman. He met a hermit on the Is de Haunt in Maine. He told him of a treasure of the hermit in Acton MA. Looking for the particulars or copy of the story. What book was it in'

Thanks
Peter Dorr
Westbrough MA

Permalink Reply by Jim Avery on February 10, 2010 at 8:23am

Peter - thanks for writing. I remember the story of that hermit. Didn't he burn his house down after he died thru use of lenses? Or am I confusing this with another story. I will look through my collection, but have to deal with another snow first. The white and fluffy variety. The kind you shovel. We had 22 inches over the weekend and are expecting 18 more today. I left Vermont for this!!. Jim Avery, Dover, York Co PA Seems more like York Maine!

Permalink Reply by Jim Avery on February 10, 2010 at 10:03am

Peter - Success - The title of the chapter is "Is It Lost Forever?" Pages 178-194 in Fantastic Folklore and Fact published 1968 by Dodd, Mead. I sat here and re-read the story. I was thinking the hermit was also a giant, but had forgotten about the treasure. The cistern where the treasure was hidden appears to be in Bolton. May I ask what your interest in this is? If you want a photocopy of the story let me know and once the snow leaves I can make some copies. You can email me at localhistorynut@aol.com .

Permalink Reply by marshall rowe on June 19, 2011 at 10:21pm

My surname is obviously Rowe. Born to A USAF Bostonian father and grandparents, my adolescence was spent in NH with visits to Roslindale(Boston suburb)all the time. I grew up with ERS and listened to many the tale of piracy, and sea stories. We used to seem him several times a month and enjoyed many the clambakes, lobsterbakes on the beaches. I have always wondered the relation to him(if any). I do know our Rowe family has surnames of Bates, Morgan, and not sure about Snow. I do know that we have Wesley(s), Edward(s), and John(s) as first names. It's been a family rumor that my 6-8 times grandmother(Rebekah Rowe Morgan)was either a mistress or wife of the buccaneer pirate Henry Morgan. I also know that we have ties to Newfoundland, Scotland, England, and possibly Spain. Interested in finding out more of my genealogy, yet just never ventured into it. Times creepin' up on me, so I figure I best get started. Which brings me here. Interesred in any replies.

Permalink Reply by marshall rowe on June 25, 2011 at 6:50pm

Can anyone tell me of the Rowe-Snow connection?