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[Music]

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so

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to the state of new hampshire that was

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the price of some new hampshire history

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a record price

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paid by the state for a lovely 18th

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century high boy which once belonged to

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josiah bartlett

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by the close of the auction state

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officials had spent more than one

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hundred and fifty thousand dollars

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thirty seven five bid forty thousand

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the only one in the world thirty seven

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five bid

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forty thousand anywhere forty thousand

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we sold at thirty seven thousand five

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hundred forty eight number four new

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hampshire historical society pitched in

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also

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to stave off the loss of furnishings and

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paper to out-of-state buyers

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society officials spent seven thousand

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dollars for britches

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josiah wore horseback to philadelphia

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society director john frisbie told

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reporters

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every time things go out of state it

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makes me concerned i think

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i think we all all share a common

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feeling that we would like to keep

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things like this and things like

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those items sold at the bachelor sale in

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in the state and

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where we can get them in public hands

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who was josiah bartlett

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that when his descendants decided to

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sell his papers his tables and more

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even the vesty war when signing the

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declaration of independence

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the state silently set aside money to

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keep as much as possible of that special

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history out of the hands of private

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collectors and dealers from elsewhere

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state archivist frank meavers explains i

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think josiah was an extraordinary man

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who

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gave of himself greatly for the state of

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new hampshire

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he served us in almost every capacity in

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public office there was during

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the american revolution and during the

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years afterwards last president

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first governor of the state under the

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current constitution

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under which we lived he was the

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president pro tem of the ratification

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convention

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for the u.s constitution in 1988

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bartlett's most direct new hampshire

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descendant ruth reddy who lives in

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bartlett's kingston home

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and a new york aunt felt financially

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pushed to go forward with the auction

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now imagine growing up in the midst of

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all this history

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there's a wonderful musty aroma about

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the place

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this room makes you want to touch all

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the items and read every

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letter and paper and then imagine

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for most of us this is state and

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national history

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but for ruth ready it's personal

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family history now i asked her

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what did she think that her great great

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great great grandfather

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was really like when you read the

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letters it's almost like you're right

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there

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listening to them talk you know and just

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asking about the children being

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concerned with them

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a real caring caring father

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in may the legislature led by senate

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president bill bartlett

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also of kingston but not a direct

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descendant quietly appropriated one

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million dollars to bid on josiah's

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possessions and buy and restore other

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historic items

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some lawmakers argued it was done too

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quietly the problem that arises in my

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mind is why it wasn't brought before the

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legislature i think that

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the people of new hampshire being

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conservative respecting history and

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respecting the state would have been

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more than willing to

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consider it and probably vote in the

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affirmative if it had been brought

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before

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us rather than being hidden as i feel

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in this special section of the budget

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but you can't

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expect the badland family to retain

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history all their lives

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for the rest of us and i think that

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they're justified in doing what they're

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doing

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and if the new hampshire wants to retain

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its history i think it's important

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that they put their money up and retain

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the history for the generations to come

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even governor judd greg got involved

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asking a noted appraiser and auctioneer

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ron bourgeois to help the state out in

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its bidding

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it's almost like a field of dreams it's

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it's

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you know the the items here today

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as an appraiser it's very difficult to

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appraise them

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at the prices that they're bringing but

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but you know there's magic

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it was like magic at the bartlett home

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auctioneer martin willis

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chose the site here intentionally for

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his auction one of the things

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when i first came here uh they were

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considering sotheby's in new york

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and that would have meant that

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everything would have gone down to new

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york

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and when i took a walk through the house

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and looked at everything

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i convinced them that they would

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probably get the most money

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for their items coming right straight

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out of the house

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this is apple cider and if i'd been here

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200 years ago

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i'd be sipping it with josiah bartlett

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and george washington who came up here

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in 1789

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to visit him there's so much history

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associated with this property

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this house and this tree josiah bartlett

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brought this tree back from philadelphia

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as a sapling

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just after he'd signed the declaration

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of independence

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and speaking of declarations

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proclamations and the like

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those bartlett papers also sold well 275

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300 three and a quarter three and a half

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three and a half

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375 375 man 400. the historical society

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had to spend

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55 000 to get the papers it wanted

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josiah's school book 567

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607 800 809

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9 8 900 1

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000. 5 900 standing

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notification department of the surrender

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of the british sold

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for around three thousand dollars and

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as for the prices generally i think

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they're all extraordinarily high

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but i think one has to anticipate that

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with the kind of hype that this has had

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you know i think it's great for the

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family but let's face it i mean it's a

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circus

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a josiah bartlett infant's playpen sold

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for thirty four hundred dollars

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a lot of little bartlett pots were right

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considering there were so many children

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that's a very good condition

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what's also interesting is the state has

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eight hundred and fifty thousand dollars

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left to spend on other auctions in

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history for sale in new hampshire