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"Our Town" by James W. Tucker

James W
Tucker

From August 31, 1950 until his death in 1961, James W. Tucker wrote a column in The Hampton Union entitled "Our Town", covering both historical and contemporary events. As Peter Randall states in the preface to his Hampton: A Century of Town and Beach, "From 1915, when he came to town, until his death in 1961, Tucker was an active participant in, and observer of, town affairs. He wrote about the first half of this century from firsthand knowledge, giving us all facts about our past that many people knew but only he wrote about in detail. He often devoted several columns to a single subject, producing a wealth of information that has saved hundreds of hours of research. That Tucker was given the freedom to write more than 500 columns is a tribute to Edward Seavey, editor of the Union, who realized the value of Tucker's research and viewpoint even if he, Seavey, didn't always agree with the columnist."

Following are a sampling of some of his columns:
[In some cases illustrations have been added
that don't appear in the original newspaper articles.]

Old Timers Of Trolley Era
The 1915 Carnival Committee:
Left to right, back row:
J. Frank James, J. A. McAdams,
Frank Callahan and James W. Tucker.
Front row, left to right:
Edmund Langley, Byron Redman
and J. S. Dudley.

  1. Improvement Company Fitted In To
    Calendar Of Events
    [Date unknown at this time]
  2. A brief biography of James W. Tucker
    August 31, 1950
  3. The Sanitary Sewer System
    September 7, 1950
  4. Hampton Is Growing
    September 14, 1950
  5. Hampton's Police Department
    c. 1950-51
  6. Hampton Beach Carnival -- 1915
    July 19, 1951
  7. The Vikings in Hampton
    July 26, 1951
  8. William Brown, A Good Public Servant
    August 9, 1951
  9. The Witch of Hampton
    August 30, 1951
  10. Town Makes Restitution to "Goody"
    September 6, 1951
  11. Shipwrecks Off Our Town
    September 29, 1951
  12. The Trolley Era in Hampton, a 7-part series
    September 27 - November 8, 1951
  13. The Big Tornado of 1898
    November 15, 1951
  14. The "Mile-Long" Wooden Bridge
    January 3, 1952
  15. On Getting Together
    January 10, 1952
  16. Notebook Miscellanea
    January 24, 1952
  17. Great Fires of 1915 and 1921
    January 31, 1952
  18. Reminiscences Of Conflagrations
    February 7, 1952
  19. Golden Anniversary
    February 14, 1952
  20. The Hampton Beach Band
    February 21, 1952
  21. Bandmasters At Hampton
    February 28, 1952
  22. The Ashworth Story
    March 6, 1952
  23. Band Brevities
    March 13, 1952
  24. The Meeting House Green
    April 10, 1952
  25. Mr. Jones And The Meeting House Green Memorial
    April 17, 1952
  26. Presidential Candidates at Hampton Beach
    August 21, 1952
  27. Good Public Relations
    August 28, 1952
  28. Old Timers of Trolley Era
    April 16, 1953
  29. Community Projects For 1953
    August 6, 1953
  30. Signs Of Our Time, Compared With Signs Of The Past
    July 5, 1956
  31. Value Of Lobster
    July 26, 1956
  32. Hampton Elms In Serious Danger
    August 2, 1956
  33. Trio of Municipal Problems: "Rivermouth." Library & Proposed High School
    February 7, 1957
  34. August Happenings -- Important and Otherwise
    August 8, 1957
  35. The Hampton of Seventy Years Ago
    January 9, 1958
  36. First Homes in Hampton Were Not Log Cabins
    January 30, 1958
  37. Surprising Development Of Our Public Library
    February 6, 1958
  38. Temperance More Practical Than Prohibition
    July 10, 1958
  39. Religious Birthright Big Help To Local Methodists
    December 4, 1958
  40. Methodist Church Building Project Nears Completion
    December 11, 1958
  41. Parties, Archaeology And Show Business
    May 14, 1959
  42. Themes For Memorial Day Soliloquies
    May 28, 1959
  43. History of the Town Clock
    June 25, 1959
  44. The Indians of Winnacunnet
    September 10, 1959
  45. A Memento From Mansion Of Last Royal Governor
    September 17, 1959
  46. Tribute to Luigi Marelli
    November 19, 1959
  47. Letter From Dr. Grosvenor, Tide-Mill Is Found
    December 17, 1959
  48. The Strange Tale of Ye Olde Tide Mill
    December 31, 1959
  49. The Poet, John Greenleaf Whittier And Hampton - Part 1
    September 22, 1960
  50. The Poet, John Greenleaf Whittier And Hampton - Part 2
    September 29, 1960
  51. The Poet, John Greenleaf Whittier And Hampton - Part 3
    October 6, 1960
  52. Winter Birds, Storms And A Word To Postal Officials
    January 5, 1961
  53. Fred Batchelder Belonged With Beach Pioneers
    January 12, 1961
  54. Batchelder Park Skating Rink -- Put Trucks On Pike
    January 19, 1961
  55. The Good Citizens And Pretty Homes of Surfside Park
    May 18, 1961
  56. When Main Street Was Moved From Exeter Road
    (also news of the Dutch Elm Disease in Hampton)
    August 10, 1961
  57. Citizens' Tribute Paid Jim Tucker, and Jim's final column
    November 9, 1961