Stillmeadow Album

by Gladys Taber

Of all Gladys Taber's books, Stillmeadow Album is the one that ma be most cherished. This is an irresistible big book with 60 pages of Stillmeadow photographs and facing pages of description and reminiscence that will be read and reread with intimate pleasure.

Genres: Nonfiction

127 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1969

About the author

A prolific author whose output includes plays, essays, memoirs and fiction, Gladys Taber (1899 – 1980) is perhaps best recalled for a series of books and columns about her life at Stillmeadow, a 17th-century farmhouse in Southbury, Connecticut.

Born Gladys Bagg on April 12, 1899 in Colorado Springs, Colorado, she was the middle child and only one to survive to adulthood. Her parents were Rufus Mather Bagg, who could trace his ancestry back to Cotton Mather, and the former Grace Sibyl Raybold. An older sister, Majel, had died at the age of six months while a younger brother Walter died at 15 months. During her childhood, she moved frequently as her father accepted various teaching posts until they finally settled in Appleton, Wisconsin. Gladys graduated from Appleton High School and enrolled at Wellesley College, receiving her bachelor’s degree in 1920. She returned to her hometown and earned a master’s in 1921 from Lawrence College, where her father was on faculty. The following year, she married Frank Albion Taber, Jr., giving birth to their daughter on July 7, 1923.

Mrs. Taber taught English at Lawrence College, Randolph Macon Women’s College in Lynchburg, Virginia, and at Columbia University, where she did postgraduate studies. She began her literary career with a play, Lady of the Moon (Penn), in 1928, and followed with a book of verse, Lyonesse (Bozart) in 1929. Taber won attention for her first humorous novel, Late Climbs the Sun (Coward, 1934). She went on to write several other novels and short story collections, including Tomorrow May Be Fair ( Coward, 1935), A Star to Steer By (Macrae, 1938) and This Is for Always (Macrae, 1938). In the late 1930s, Taber joined the staff of the Ladies’ Home Journal and began to contribute the column “Diary of Domesticity.”

By this time, she had separated from her husband and was living at Stillmeadow, a farmhouse built in 1690 in Southbury, Connecticut, sharing the house with Eleanor Sanford Mayer, a childhood friend who was often mistakenly identified as her sister. Beginning with Harvest at Stillmeadow (Little, Brown, 1940), Taber wrote a series of books about her simple life in New England that possessed homespun wisdom dolled out with earthy humor and an appreciation for the small things. She published more than 20 books related to Stillmeadow, including several cookbooks.

In 1959, she moved from Ladies’ Home Journal to Family Circle, contributing the “Butternut Wisdom” column until her retirement in 1967. In 1960, her companion, Eleanor, died and Taber decided to abandon life at Stillmeadow. Having spent some summers on Cape Cod in Massachusetts, she decided to relocate to the town of Orleans where she would live out the remainder of her days. While a resident of Orleans, Taber contributed “Still Cove Sketches” to the Cape Cod Oracle . Her final book, published posthumously, was Still Cove Journal (Lippincott, 1981).

Gladys Taber had divorced her husband in 1946 and he later passed away in October 1964. She died on March 11, 1980 in Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis, Massachusetts at the age of 80.

Reviews

[Karen Floyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was inspired by readers who wanted to be able to "see" Stillmeadow for themselves. Black and white photographs by Jacques Chepard are accompanied by Taber's descriptions and stories. The wrting is classic Taber, sharing tales of family, dogs and friends, but I found many of the photos disappointing. They were lacking in contrast, clarity and crispness, I thought.

[Gina House · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book! It's such a joy to read any book from Gladys Taber's Stillmeadow series. Even though the black and white photographs are hard to see and have too much contrast, it was still wonderful to see different parts of Stillmeadow, both inside and outside.

The descriptions and anecdotes were lovely and amusing. Definitely a book that I will return to over and over again. Hopefully, one day, I'll be able to visit GT's home in person one day!

Many thanks to my thoughtful friend, Christine, for gifting me this beautiful book!

[Alyssa DeLeon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Taber captures the magical essence of something as simple as a lamp. She sees how people move and what they do and explains it so vividly that you feel like you are hearing it right outside the Stillmeadow kitchen door. Taber had an incredible gift for description, vision, and proving that the small moments in our lives can be the most important in hindsight.

[Autumn · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was nice to be able to see pictures of Stillmeadow. Of course, the photographs are a part of their time- we have come a long way since the late 1960s- but they are interesting nevertheless. Almost like looking at old family photos.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friend sent this book to me for my Taber collection. I LOVED it! Having read so much about Stillmeadow, I enjoyed all the photographs accompanied by the descriptions Gladys wrote about each. Some authors (sadly, not many) just have the incredible ability to soothe, entertain, and inform the reader. I find that I frequently stroll down memory lane when I read Taber. Her writings encourage me to reflect on my own life and to count my blessings. Sometimes the small moments in our lives are actually huge.

[Janie O · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed seeing pictures of Stillmeadow and some of the people in the book!

[Sharon Buxton · Rating 3 out of 5]

B. nonfiction, memoir, illustrated, from stash, keep for Charity

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read. A picture with one paragraph to explain it. I loved seeing the actual house and property. I would have liked to visit.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been special to me since I was a child. My grandmother gave my mother a copy of the book and I spent many childhood hours looking at the photos. A very sweet view of a time long ago before cell phones and computers. A very inviting book.

[Judy Iliff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love anything Gladys. This is a simple book of pictures of Stillmeadow with descriptions written by Gladys Taber. These are such gentle reads - even this album!

[Dottie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Snippets of Taber's writing -- a bit repetitive in spots but related to photos of Stillmeadow and a good one to simply pick up and dip into now and again.