Cole Success Stories
Margaret Edmondson Olson's
Cole Success Stories


About Sarah Jenckes Shaw's Journals
Extracted by Margaret Olson and Ed Olson

Sarah Jenckes (1785-1863), daughter of Caleb Jenckes (1750-1803) and Abigail Brown (1758-1837), was wife of Oliver Shaw (1779-1848), blind composer and music teacher. She kept journals for many years recording the events in her life. I have five journals and have no indication that there were others. She wrote on birthdays and anniversaries, described her mother's final day, and recorded the names of students who studied with her husband. This is not a diary. It is a journal of notable events. She writes of books being read and sometimes quotes scripture. She calls her husband "Dear husband"; does not call him Oliver; and does not mention his blindness.

Oliver and Sarah lived in Providence, Rhode Island. Her great-great grandfather, Joseph Jenckes, was a Colonial Governor of Rhode Island. Roger Williams and Mayflower passenger  Richard Warren are also in her ancestral line. Sarah tells her journal that she hopes that her children may someday be interested in reading the details of her life. I wonder what she would think about her great-great-great granddaughter reading them. I can only wish that more of my ancestors had left such wonderful material for me.

The journals are written in ink in 8x10 bound books on lined paper (one is 8x13) Sarah's handwriting is consistently good, although some words are difficult to decipher. She does not always capitalize the initial word of a sentence and some spelling is creative. She is obviously well educated and well-read and obviously loves her family dearly.


  Sarah Jenckes Shaw

Sarah Jenks Shaw 1785-1863
portrait in the possession of Margaret Russell Edmondson's heirs

Extracted From Sarah's Journals
White Mountains Adventure
An 1850 Trip Washington DC and Philadelphia

Snippets from first journal


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