Edward A. Morley of East Lee was a self-proclaimed psychologist, botanist, metallurgist and mystic, but his greatest success was in the field of photography. In 1886, E.A. Morley published Lenox, a photo album containing 48 plates of Lenox cottages and other landmarks published by Morley in 1886.
Ten cottages were owned by women at the time of publication. Throughout March, these places were featured for an exhibit in the Welles Gallery to celebrate Women’s History Month. Storyboards, designed by Local History Librarian Amy Lafave and printed at Your Color Connection, display Morley’s photos, juxtaposed with a present day photo and accompanied with quotes from The Book of Berkshire, by Clark W. Bryan, which was published at the same time as the Morley photo album.
To accompany the exhibit (which has been extended though April), Lafave presented The Ladies of Morley’s “Lenox” on Saturday, March 23, 2024. The slide-show presentation drew from published works on the cottages, newspaper articles, and material from the Lenox Library’s archives. In her research, Lafave found common ties among the women, in gardening pursuits, outdoor activities, and memorial gifts to various churches. She included tidbits about Miss Furniss’s fireworks, where to find Mrs. Woolsey’s Woodcliff, and the connection from Miss Parish to Mrs. Astor’s ballroom. She also shared the discovery that the M in Mrs. M.E. Rogers stands for…Montezuma.
This is just the first installment to be mined from Morley’s photographs. The next installment, on the numerous ties of these cottagers to the Civil War, will be presented in the fall.
News notice for Morley’s “Lenox” in the Valley Gleaner. Search online at https://leepl.advantage-preservation.com/
The program was recorded for Community Television of the Southern Berkshires, thanks to the efforts of Leo Mahoney and Rose Fitzgerald Casey. You may view the rotation schedule for CTSB or watch the program on CTSB’s YouTube channel.