Mary loves the lamb, you know, the teacher replies, saying that kindness to animals will gain their loyalty. She helped with the founding of Vassar College, the restoration of Mount [], [] Inside the school house. New York: St. Martins Press, 2003. Perhaps she saw it in the 1857 McGuffeys Reader. And Roulstone tragically died while a freshman at Harvard, so he wasn't around to corroborate. Finally, for me, it is interesting to note that my mother, who cared for the bottle-fed lambs on her familys farm in Putney Vermont in the 1920s, was named Mary. It made the children laugh and play, Definition of mary-had-a-little-lamb in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Mary had a little lamb, the childhood nursery rhyme familiar to all, tells the story of a real Mary, a real lamb, and it really did follow her to school one day around 1816. But still it lingered near, It soon learned to drink milk; and from the time it would walk about, it would follow me anywhere if I only called it.. Then, when Mary was an old woman living in Somerville, Mass., preservationists started raising money to save theOld South Meeting House. Her prescence literally lights up a room. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. The lamb was sure to go. "The Surprising Controversy Behind 'Mary Had a Little Lamb'" Now it falls to me: This hand written copy of Sarah Hales verse is often used as support for Roulstones authorship, but it is meaningless. This took place at the Redstone Schoolhouse in District No. Privacy Statement Heres What You Need To Know, 4 Foods That Will Help Settle Your Dogs Upset Stomach, How To Clean Your Cats Ears: A Step-by-Step Guide, Make These 2 DIY Cat Toys as Early Christmas Gifts for Your Fur Baby, Is Your Cat Unamused by Catnip? Before leaving for school one morning, Sawyer whistled for the lamb and it came faithfully trotting over, at which point her brother Nat suggested, "Let's take the lamb to school with us." Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. But still it lingered near, They reject lambs (especially twins); they drop their lambs in unfortunate places and die, leaving the lambs orphaned. The Roulstone lamb poem was supposedly written in 1815 when Mary Sawyer was a student in a one-room school house and her sheep was still a lamb. They are ninety miles apart over the most direct route that would have been followed in 1815. But when Mary was called to the front of the class to recite her lessons, the lamb popped out of its hiding place and, much to Marys chagrin and to the merriment of her classmates, came loping up the aisle after her. After both of the women were long gone, automobile magnate Henry Ford stepped into the fray. The day the lamb went to school, I hadnt seen her before starting off; and not wanting to go without seeing her, I called. Birth-place of Mary Sawyer and the little lamb. The next year, 1831, the same poem was set to music by Lowell Mason in his book, Juvenile Lyre, and entitled Mary had a little lamb. The Meetinghouse was damaged in the Great Boston Fire of 1872, and was in the process of demolition when it became the first historically significant public building in the country to be preserved. Special Offer on Antivirus Software From HowStuffWorks and TotalAV Security. It is even known to happen today, and it must have been very common during the New England sheep boom of the early 1800s. Music video by Stevie Ray Vaughan performing Mary Had a Little Lamb. HEALTH. She named them and dressed them in clothes. For those who need to do further research. Your Privacy Rights In many types of music, chord progressions are used to create a sense of tension and release, by moving away from the tonic of . One had been forsaken by its mother, and through neglect, cold and lack of food was nearly dead. When they got to the schoolhouse, Mary tucked the lamb into a blanket at her feet and everything went swimmingly until it let out a bleat, alerting the teacher to its presence. As it is, the Marys Lamb Schoolhouse stands as a physical metaphor for the equally altered and promoted story of the lamb at the school. In 1830, poet Sarah Josepha Hale added a few stanzas with a moral lesson about treating others with kindness and love. Which was against the rule; Advertise here! It is no of importance to the question of the poem, but interesting to note that the original schoolhouse pictured in Fannie Dickersons publication does not at all resemble the vigorously promoted schoolhouse pictured in Henry Fords publication. We only know that Mary Sawyer wrote those words on a piece of paper decades later, long after everyone could easily recite Sarah Hales poem from memory. Here are some good places to start your own research of this story: Ruth E. Finley, 1931, The Lady of Godeys, Sarah Josepha Hale, Philadelphia, J.B. Lippincott & Co., 318pp. January, 1844. It did. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. Nothing indicates two authors. The stockings were picked apart and wool was attached to cards that said, knitted wool from the first fleece of Marys Little Lamb, the Society writes. Listen to it here. I dont see any evidence that Hale was exposed to sheep enough to know enough to write the initial stanzas. Mary still had some of her lambs wool because, she said, she had saved two pairs of socks knitted in 1818 from the wool. What makes the lamb love Mary so? her classmates ask. Meanwhile, in Newport, New Hampshire, the townsfolk celebrate hometown hero Sarah Josepha Hale, as the author of this beloved nursery rhyme. Sarah Hale in 1830 was a successful, prolific author and editor; she abhorred plagiarism. Joseph Kastner , The Tale Behind Marys Little Lamb, NY Times Magazine, 13 April 1980, 116-119. Urban Dictionary is written by you My brother Nat said, "Let's take the lamb to school with us.". And so the teacher turned it out, Mary and her brother Nat were on their way to the one-room schoolhouse they attended, but Mary hadn't seen her lamb yet that morning. It was in Boston that Hale met Lowell Mason, a young musician and composer intent on bringing music education into America's public schools. Do 3 Things To Keep Tweety Coming Back All Winter, Thinking of Volunteering at an Animal Shelter? Oh, how pleased I was! The hand-reared lamb had little affection for its fellow sheep, preferring horses and cows as companions. How about baby drama with little Abijean and the Wee Baby Seamus? These lambs may be adopted by other sheep, or may need to be bottle-fed. Animal songs, Traditional nursery rhymes. As a young poet and writer, Hale moved to Boston in 1828 to become the editor of the first women's magazine in the United States, later known as "Godey's Lady's Book." Hi can I use the rhyme in a ministry taping for the whole world do you know if its against the law? The next day, John Roulstone, a student a year or two older, handed Mary a piece of paper with a poem hed written about the previous days events. 1 Chris Hirst Science and technology enthusiast and supporter. But thats not the end. As documented by poet Sarah Josepha Hale, the story, published on this day in 1830, goes like this: Marys lamb, unnamed, follows her everywhere, and follows her to school one day. This is an example of a simple chord progression: a series of chords played in a particular order. Theres a statue of the famous lamb in town, and a restored version of Marys home (the original was destroyed by a pair of arsonists back in 2007). That book was published as part of a publicity campaign for Fords Wayside Inn. From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English Mary had a Little Lamb Mary had a Little Lamb a nursery rhyme (= an old song or poem for young children): Mary had a little lamb, Its fleece was white as snow; And everywhere that Mary went The lamb was sure to go. Off the two went. I agree the most logical explanation is that Hale simply added the additional stanzas to Roulstones original. But she did at some point tell family and friends the story. John Roulstone was a local boy preparing for college who happened to be visiting the old red schoolhouse that day and was "very much pleased with the incident of the lamb," Sawyer recalled in Henry Ford's book. Sometime after its publication, Mary Sawyer saw Sarah Hales poem, and thought it must be her lamb (after all, her name was Mary) and the poem must be Roulstones. His forty page book includes 25 pages embellishing Marys circumstantial story, (as described on page 12). She remembered: The day the lamb went to school, I hadn't seen her before starting off; and not wanting to go without seeing her, I called. In the 1920s, by which time both Mary Sawyer and Sarah Hale were dead, none other than Henry Ford, the man who revolutionized the auto industry, leapt into the fray. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Sheep are very poor mothers. The teacher gave out a laugh and simply put the lamb outside for Mary to take home at lunch. Heres What You Need To Know, Why Is My Dog Drooling So Much? Marys mother made some stockings out of the lambs wool for Mary, and she treasured them. The inventor sided with Marys version of events. In 1830, Sarah Josepha Hale, a renowned writer and influential editor (shes also known as the Mother of Thanksgiving for helping making the day a holiday), published Poems for Our Children, which included a version of the poem. Learn the lyrics of a classic nursery rhyme! Interestingly, the tune Mason wrote for Mary's Lamb, which was included in his 1831 book "Juvenile lyre," likely the first public school songbook, sounds nothing like the melody every schoolkid now knows by heart. Marys Little Lamb was inspired by a true happening. Method 2 Harmonizing the Melody 1 Identify harmonizing chords for each note. Cookie Settings, Kids Start Forgetting Early Childhood Around Age 7, Archaeologists Discover Wooden Spikes Described by Julius Caesar, 5,000-Year-Old Tavern With Food Still Inside Discovered in Iraq, Artificial Sweetener Tied to Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke, Study Finds, The Surprisingly Scientific Roots of Monkey Bars. You know the words: Mary had a little lamb; After nursing her unusual pet to good health, the lamb became Marys shadow and, indeed, everywhere that Mary went, the lamb was sure to go.. John Roulstone had just come to town to study with his uncle to prepare for college. Also her school, known as Redstone School (1798) has been removed, and can be found in Sudbury, MA on Longfellows Wayside Inn land. Use left and right arrow keys to navigate between menu items. These cards sold because she said she was the famous Mary and the yarn was the famous Marys lambs wool. True or false? It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide, Oxford Learner's Dictionaries Word of the Day, the title and first line of a traditional. Mary took the young animal under her careafter the poor thing was rejected by her sheep mother on the family's farm. $MMT = window.$MMT || {}; $MMT.cmd = $MMT.cmd || [];$MMT.cmd.push(function(){ $MMT.display.slots.push(["6e36601e-44cf-4f78-b804-bfbdde6ee2e3"]); }). Look for facts. "I got the lamb warm by wrapping it in an old garment and holding it in my arms beside the fireplace," an adult Sawyer recounted in the book. Today Marys Little Lamb statue can be found in Sterling, MA, after a fire destroyed Marys native house in August 2007. 1991 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainmenthttp://vevo.ly/CQoerK Mary had a little lamb; Its fleece was white as snow; And everywhere that Mary went, The lamb was sure to go. The implication. Then it followed her to school one day. Richard Walden Hale, Mary Had a Little Lamb and Its Author, Century Magazine, March 1904, 738-742. Find the answers with Practical English Usage online, your indispensable guide to problems in English. Squinty could look out, but the slats were as close together as those in a chicken coop, and the little pig could not get out. The inclusion of a moralistic ending to poems that begin sweetly was a device of the time; the change in tone does not indicate a different author. There has not been any new expert analysis since that time, just repeating of the anonymous article. Sixty years earlier she had been a Massachusetts farm girl whose little lamb followed her to school one day. Mary took the young animal under her care after the poor thing was rejected by her sheep mother on [], Mary Had a Little Lamb Yes, There Was a Mary and She Did Have a Little Lamb, Mary And Her Little Lamb | Katherine's Chronicle, Who Was The Real-Life 'Mary' From The Song 'Mary Had A Little Lamb'? but still it lingered near. There are only a few people that can legitimately make u excited for the day ahead, and she is one of them. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more. How could she have come across it? And, yes, the lamb would indeed follow her wherever she went and did have a fleece as white as snow. The story, as republished in the book Marys Little Lamb, started out on a cold, bleak March morning in Sterling, Mass. He ended up buying the old schoolhouse where the lamb incident took place and moved it to Sudbury, Mass., then published a book about Mary Sawyer and her lamb. till Mary did appear. 12 Photos of Young Elizabeth Taylor That Show Her Lifelong Love For Animals, How Did We Get Peggy From Margaret? The fact that expert author of the two-styles theory was unnamed, and the theory appeared in Henry Fords own magazine, raises significant questions about the validity of the analysis. In 1830, when Mary Sawyer was 24, Sarah Josepha Hales poem was published in Poems for Our Children. But above all, the sheep loved Mary. The original poem was penned by one of Marys schoolmates, John Roustone, who witnessed the whole thing. (We know this date from the facsimile of a letter Mary wrote in 1889, found on page 12 of The Story of Marys Little Lamb, published by Henry Ford in 1928.) She included it in a little book,book, Poems for Our Children. But the teacher caught on after it bleated. Quizzes. Though the poems origins are a bit murky, writes Elizabeth Periale for the Smithsonian Libraries blog, its generally accepted that the poem was based on an incident in the life of Mary Sawyer, of Sterling, Massachusetts.. The controversy over authorship arose because of a popular fundraising gimmick. The only established author of Marys Lamb is Sarah Josepha Hale, in 1830. Mary Had a Little Lamb is a beautiful rhyme for kids telling the story of a girl who one day is taking her lamb to school. But this question will not go away, and for some reason that poem is often all anyone knows of Sarah Josepha Hale, so it must be addressed again. Lambs and schools It worked and further secured Mary and her lambs impressive (and adorable) legacy. It appears that Mary did not save this slip of paper because a poem written in Roulstons hand has never been produced. With a new, original arrangement and gorgeous illustrations, this heartwarming version of Mary Had a Little Lamb is available only from The Good. Its fleece was white as snow; ROME What does it take for a Hollywood A-lister to get a private audience with Pope Francis? Or so goes the story in Sterling, Massachusetts. ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ. The nursery rhyme, which was was first published in 1830, is based on an actual incident involving Mary Elizabeth Sawyer, a woman born in 1806 on a farm in Sterling, Mass. The lyrics belong to American writer Sarah Josepha Hale (1788-1879) and the musical sheet was written by the composer Lowel Mason in the 1830s. Mason and Hale shared the belief that simple children's poems set to music could be used to teach good, Christian morals to kids that would help them grow them into productive and upright citizens. The Reasons Behind 5 Surprising Nicknames, 10 Wild and Wonderful Stories From Dolly Partons Legendary Life, Part of the a360media Women's Service Group.Copyright a360media 2023. Let's find out! Paul McCartney's love for Linda was the drug that addicted millions listening to Wings over the years. It soon learned to drink milk; and from the time it would walk about, it would follow me anywhere if only I called it.". In 1927, he took up the cause of Mary Sawyer, moving the wooden frame of Mary's original red schoolhouse from Sterling. Poetic style Illustration, Mary Had a Little Lamb Mary was Mary Sawyer, born in 1806, and she remembered her lamb all her life. Ford turned an admirable old womans fond memory into a vigorous promotional scheme, without a thought for any historical fact. CCCXXXIX. Conclusion. Against the odds, Mary managed to nurse the lamb back to health. It happened to a 14 year old girl whose name was Mary Sawyer who, encouraged by her brother, is taking her lamb with her to school. Her teacher, Polly Kimball, "laughed outright," which caused Sawyer some embarrassment, so she took the lamb out to a shed until school was out. In less than ten minutes, the bivouac was broken up, and our little army on the march. My mother grew up on a sheep farm in Putney, Vermont and talked all her life about the bottle-fed lambs. Mary Had A Little Lamb was by then a well-known poem. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. A Sho'em ProductionRobert Kayanja Ministries.Proclaim Music - Mary Had A Little Lamb.Its a perfect gift of loveGod gave to the ones he lovesThere's no greate. Please note that this form cannot be used to reset your Google or Facebook password. At first the little creature could not swallow, and the catnip tea mother made it could not take for a long time. She was a member of a succeeding generation of Marys and their lambs. Across the pond in Wales, Mary Hughes, of Llangollen, Denbighshire, was credited with being the subject of the nursery rhyme supposedly penned by a woman from London by the name of Miss Burls. the lamb would indeed follow her wherever she went and did have a fleece as white as snow. Ideal pets until they abruptly grow into sheep, herd animals with no remaining interest in their human parents. As a child, Mary Sawyer rescued a lamb. Who wrote Mary Had a Little Lamb? Soon the residents of Sterling and those of Newport, New Hampshire, where Hale hailed from, were arguing about the poems provenance something they continued to do for years. Mary took the young animal under her care after the poor thing was rejected by her sheep mother on the familys farm. Everybody is trapped in an elevator together and tempers run a little hot. Mary was Mary Sawyer, born in 1806, and she remembered her lamb all her life. It is a simple poem, published with clear authorship. Thomas Edison recorded his own voice reciting the rhyme, around the year 1877. The nursery rhyme, which was was first published in 1830, is based on an actual incident involving Mary Elizabeth Sawyer, a woman born in 1806 on a farm in Sterling, Mass. Advertise here for $5/day. And everywhere that Mary went, It is most peculiar, and when he plays that way, the most bewitching little expression comes over his face. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. It soon learned to drink milk; and from the time it would walk about, it would follow me anywhere if I only called it, Mary would later write in the 1880s, many decades after the incident. Then I worked upon mothers sympathies. Try Silver Vine Instead, Are Cat Backpacks Better Than Traditional Cat Carriers? I don't think he's a good historian. Mary Elizabeths mother was Elizabeth (nee Houghton), but it is my wife who is related to her maternal grandfathers line, while I am related to Mary Elizabeths father Thomas Ezra Sawyer. Which was against the rule; Marys lamb followed her to school one day. Mason then wrote simple melodies to accompany each poem, including the six-verse poem then known as "Mary's Lamb. More and more distinctly I heard it, and I knew my pet was coming to greet me. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Both Sawyer and Hale signed letters and sworn statements in their old age (Hale just days before her death in 1889) professing that they were telling the truth of the origin of what had already become a classic nursery rhyme. Please read my essay. They were delightful and quite disruptive. Mary admitted she had no idea how Hale had gotten Roulstones poem. Look it up now! Please copy/paste the following text to properly cite this HowStuffWorks.com article: Dave Roos Tempo: 102 bpm. As the story goes, Mary did try to hide the lamb under her desk in a basket at her feet, but she was quickly discovered by the teacher who made the animal wait outside until class was over. And, regarding the Dearborn Independent: where Fords version of the lamb story first appeared: Mary went, Mary went. Advertising Notice [], [] Mary Sawyer Tyler, then living in Somerville, sold bits of wool for the cause. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Are There Really Kids' Authors Who Hate Kids? True, the first twelve lines are more well-known and more appealing to children. Authorship At Mason's request, Hale wrote a short book of 15 poems called "Poems For Our Children," which was published in 1830. Volunteers picked apart the stockings and attached the wool to cards that said, Knitted wool from the first fleece of Marys Little Lamb. They sold like hotcakes. | READ MORE. "The story of Mary Sawyer implies that somehow Sarah Hale came across this never published schoolhouse poem and plagiarized it. Fourteen years after that, Hale added three stanzas incorporating the moral lesson, the Society writes, and published the poem in her book. But I couldnt bear to see the poor little thing suffer, so I teased until I got it into the house. McLoughlin Bros./Getty Images/HowStuffWorks. Marys teacher, who might have recalled John Roulstones poem, was long gone, as was John Roulstone. When you first meet her she seems innocent but she really isn't! How could she have come across it?" It begins: But Babylon asks us to do a little more: It wants us to empathize. Hales version ofMary Had a Little Lambhad three additional stanzas that added a moral lesson to the tale. In every major scale on the piano, each note has a corresponding harmonizing chord. It followed her to school one day, According to Mary herself, Roulstones original contained only the three stanzas, while Hales version had an additional three stanzas at the end. And waited patiently about, Copyright 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Head bitch in charge, everyone else follows. It must be noted that no printed copy of a pre-1830 poem about a lamb at school has ever surfaced in the United States. Copyright law, Reading this story is quite a coincidence for me, this school house is only a few miles from my house, and Ive been there many times, especially when I was little, my father was an avid/professional photographer and we have a million photos of the School House, the Gristmill, and the Martha Mary Chapel, in fact I was in a wedding at that Chapel, what I didnt know, was that Henry Ford had moved that School house to Sudbury. And everywhere that Mary went, After a lot of pleading, Mary was allowed to keep the animal, although her father didnt hold out much hope for its survival. The siblings apparently werent trying very hard to prevent the lamb from tagging along, even hauling it over a large stone fence they had to cross to get to Redstone School, the one-room schoolhouse they attended. Mary donated the wool from her stockings to the fundraising efforts. (Hale is also famous for her role in creating the Thanksgiving celebration). Why do all these interesting stories have to end horrifically? The song "Mary Had a Little Lamb" is based on a true story of a 14-year-old American girl who took her pet lamb to school with her one day in the late 1700s. Mom described them as following her everywhere. In each of the men's earliest recordings, they recited what else? This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. Now you can share this fascinating backstory with the little ones in your life the next time you enjoy the nursery rhyme together! Mary had a little lamb. If you visit the town of Sterling, Massachusetts today, you'll find a small copper statue of a woolly little creature meant to be a replica of the original lamb that followed 9-year-old Mary Sawyer to school in 1815. More random definitions So she unraveled them, cut them into short pieces, attached them to cards with her autograph on them and sold them. Then in 1928, he published the aforementioned book titled "The Story of Mary and Her Little Lamb," which gives Roulstone full credit for the original verses and asked why a respected local woman who served as a matron of the local hospital would make up such a wild story and repeat it her entire life. In Rural America, Right-to-Repair Laws are the Leading Edge of a Pushback Meet the Modern Graziers Who Broke Into Regenerative Agriculture, No Farmland Required, 7 Smokable Plants You Can Grow That Arent Marijuana, Sustainable Farmers See Promise in New Financing Options, The Buzzy Edible Insect Trend is Gaining Traction in the West. None the less, there are at least three published accounts of Mary Sawyers lamb story, all of them published after her death: 2 in Sterling, Massachusetts. In 1815 a nine year-old child named Mary Sawyer (1806-1889) was caring for, like many farm children, an orphaned lamb that was born in March of 1814. The lamb story became even more dramatic when Henry Ford, who owned the Wayside Inn in Sudbury, Massachusetts, became involved. My wife (on her mothers side) is 7th cousin six times removed, and I (on my maternal grandfathers side) am 8th cousin six times removed to Mary Elizabeth Sawyer. I got the lamb warm by wrapping it in an old garment and holding it in my arms beside the fireplace. They were a popular item. My brother Nat said, Lets take the lamb to school with us.. [], [] 1830: Mary Had a Little Lamb by Sarah Josepha Hale is published (Read more). "Henry Ford's book explains that the two towns [where Sawyer and Hale lived] were close to each other. Kat Eschner is a freelance science and culture journalist based in Toronto. The lyrics of "Mary Had a Little Lamb" were inspired by Mary Sawyer, who lived in Sterling, Massachusetts, in the 1800s, reports the New England Historical Society. My younger sisters name is also Mary Elizabeth (nee Houghton). Much has been made of the perceived difference in style between the first twelve lines of the poem and the remaining twelve lines. Now, Theyre Spurring Tourism. So she hid the lamb in a basket at her feet. They are sweet, wooly things that follow their adopted parents everywhere until they are weaned. A little boy of four was moved to passionate grief at the sight of a dead dog taken from a pond. As Mary later remembered it, a new arrival wrote the poem/nursery rhymeMary Had a Little Lamb. Mary had a little lamb, The story of Mary Had a Little Lamb originates from a true story. The next day he is said to have handed Mary a slip of paper upon which he had written a poem about her lamb. All Rights Reserved. There was no avenue for Sarah Hale to have seen or heard of Roulstones schoolhouse poem. When Hale's version was included in school readers nationwide in the 1850s, Sawyer assumed that the author had simply expanded on Roulstone's original three verses. Roulstones written poem, if it ever existed, was lost. She called to the lamb, who came running to greet her. As each new generation discovers these romantic texts about Mary Sawyer they raise, once again, the question of authorship. That same year Marys Lamb was published in the September-October issue of the Juvenile Miscellany magazine (vol. I bet some of those lambs followed her to the one-room school house near her familys farm in Putney, Vermont. "Let's take the lamb to school," Nat suggested. Mary still had two pairs of stockings knit from the lambs fleece. Henry Fords book explains that the two towns were close to each other. Kat Eschner She is often, She is the best person you will ever meet. The texts are taken to be discoveries of a first person narrative. [], [] many other accomplishments include the poemMary Had a Little Lamband dozens of books. Mary had a little lamb. Sawyer claimed that the first three verses of Hale's poem were identical to the one written by young John Roulstone, although the piece of paper gifted to Sawyer had long since disappeared. Advertise here for $5/day More random definitions They are ninety miles apart over the most direct route that would have been followed in 1815. A group of locals was raising money to restore the Old South Meeting House, a historic building in Boston, the Society writes. To support his claim he erected a bronze commemorative plaque at the site, which infers that, OK, maybe this isnt the original schoolhouse, but it is a schoolhouse made from lumber from Sterling, Massachusetts. "In the morning, much to my girlish delight, it could stand; and from that time it improved rapidly. Terms of Use Use left arrow key to move back to the parent list. The Henry Ford version is driven by his promotion of the schoolhouse and so expands on the simple story, adding much argument about the poems heroine and its author.