Harriet Caroline Reed Strout (1861 – 1943)

Did you miss the earlier generations of the Reed family? Check out the posts about the first generation and the second generation.

It was James Oliver Reed’s daughter, Harriet, who brought the Reed House back to life.

Harriet married George Strout, an architect, in 1883 at age 22. Their elaborate marriage certificate hangs in the upstairs bedroom of the Reed House. They were married at the Congregational Church in Greenville, New Hampshire on January 21,1883 but later moved to Waltham, MA where their names appear in the 1910 Federal Census with George working as an architect. Their marriage later ended in divorce and this led Harriet in 1910 at age 49 to purchase the Reed House, at auction, from her aunt Harriet’s estate. Harriet bought back much of the furniture that was auctioned, and she moved them from the lawn back into the house.  Neighbors reported seeing Harriet running back into the house carrying precious family furniture. 

Harriet moved in and lived at the Reed House full time. She immediately began to make many changes and improvements to the house. Harriet added a side porch and a bay window to the kitchen. She placed pots of herbs on the window ledge.  She moved her bedroom downstairs to the room that had been the Borning Room. She could now avoid climbing the steep stairs to the upstairs rooms and perhaps avoid memories as well.  She added gardens, and flowers now graced the Reed House. The house, after a long dormant period, was now alive with energy and excitement,  

Around 1918-1920  a fire destroyed the outbuildings just beyond the summer kitchen.  The singed door in the Summer Kitchen is still visible today. It is believed that a spark from a passing train caused the fire due to the close proximity of the tracks to the outbuildings of the house.   Fortunately, the Reed House itself survived and Harriet was able to rebuild. She added a one horse stall and a privy. She installed a new shed that would accommodate a two-car garage and she bought herself a Model T car although she would not drive it herself. She asked various neighbor friends to be her ‘Uber driver’. Every spring, according to her neighbors, the Model T would take her on visits to  the local greenhouses where she selected plantings for her garden. 

Harriet was determined to update the Reed House. Rooms were wallpapered and painted. In 1921 electricity came to the Reed House. What an immediate change to life. There would now be no need to tend to candles or oil lamps and have to fear the risk of fires. Harriet embraced this modern era. 

1928 saw the addition of a new bath, installed in the former pantry off the Keeping Room.  Harriet’s grandson, E. Hildreth Proctor, did the work.  A new pantry was built into a corner of the summer kitchen to compensate for the lost pantry space. The new bath was complete with an indoor toilet (how very nice), a very small sink and a claw foot bath. Life would now be much more comfortable for Harriet.

Harriet had an active social life. The front Parlor was alive with song and music and visitors. The 1906-1907 piano, still in the Reed House parlor and recently tuned, provided music. There was singing, and parlor games. Harriet hosted a group of women from around the Harbor neighborhood to gather for book discussions. They called themselves the “As You Like It Club.” They had teas, and dressed in fancy dress clothing from the past. They played cards, discussed books, current affairs, gardening, and probably shared a bit of gossip from around the harbor too.

In the 1930s and still very active, Harriet went to work on planning the gardens. Harriet tended her gardens, her beautiful peonies, and herbs.  She was known around the Harbor for her love of flowers and the care she gave to her beautiful gardens. This was a golden age for the Reed House.

Harriet Reed Strout died 24 February 1943 at age 82. Her obituary reported: 

On last Wednesday, Mrs. Harriet Strout passed away at Sunnyside Rest Home in Whalom, where she had been since Christmas, having suffered a shock  just before Christmas at her home here. Mrs. Strout would have been eighty-two years old  if she had lived until March 5.

She was born in Highbridge, N.H. , a daughter of Mr and Mrs. James Reed.  When quite young her parents moved to a farm in Mason, N.H.  She attended the Mason district school and later was graduated from Appleton academy. She taught school for a few years and was married to George Strout, who passed away some years ago. About thirty years ago she came to this village to live in her grandparents’ the Reed’s old home, where she had visited many times. She has renewed old acquaintances and made many new friends. Her lovely gardens and her generosity with her flowers have brightened many occasions and brought cheer to many people. She was a member of Townsend Grange.  Funeral services will be held when her son-in-law and daughter return from Florida. 

(Clipping dated March 24, 1943. Name of newspaper not given, but probably Townsend Tocain.)