- New Hampshire Troubadour -


I received an email recently from a reader questioning a photo that I'd posted recently concerning a little known magazine called TROUBADOUR. 

"Rand, I remember seeing this little magazine around our home as a kid. What can you tell me about them?"

Here's my stack of TROUBADOUR MAGAZINES, about 70 or so, that I've acquired over the years. Their popularity seems to be increasing and normally sell for between $3 to $4 a piece in off the beaten track antique shops. If you resort to Amazon or Ebay, they can be as expensive as $18 each plus shipping. I bought a stack of 45 at Homestead Bookstore in Marlboro, NH for $25 six months or so ago and then stashed them away in a cubby hole in my slant lid desk. They looked neat, but I failed to recognize their value at first glance.

Four issues from 1948, '49 and '50.

The covers are beautiful and did much to attract the attention of those seeking a slower pace.

At the time I was only mildly interested in this publication that spanned from 1931 until 1951 that was published and sold by the state of New Hampshire by subscription only. More specifically by the State Planning and Development Commission, charged with attracting new residents and businesses. When publication began in 1931 the population of the NH was merely 465,000 vs 1.3 million today. To accomplish its mission, the magazine published articles concerning New Hampshire's White Mountains, the seacoast region, the Lakes Region, covered bridges, maple syrup, autumn leaves, hunting, antiques, the Mt Washington Cog Railway and other bucolic interests to stir the imagination of those from away. Each issue was only 16 pages or so and really was hardly more than a brochure that served to sing the praises of the Granite State.

Earlier issues from 1931 and 1934 before color photos were introduced.

The issue to the far right highlights Mt. Washington's summit, Tuckermans Ravine and its famous Headwall. 

I have to admit, the little magazine did little to excite me and I went several years before even opening an issue. But then on a winter day, stuck inside due to heavy snow and with nothing to read, I reluctantly dragged them out and opened an issue concerning old houses and their restorations. I was hooked and have read every one in my collection. How could I have been so blind I thought. The writing and photography are very good, it revolves around New England and even published poetry in every issue. 

I'm missing a few issues and I carry that list with me so when out visiting antique or old bookstores I can fill in those holes as I discover them hidden under other books or behind old tools. I may have to succumb to Ebay, but will continue my search to try to avoid this easy, but rather expensive alternative.

1934 and 1935 issues

These two issues leaned heavily upon the draw of 6,288' foot Mt. Washington, the highest peak east of the Rockies and north of the Carolinas that experiences its own weather systems. Winds on Mt Washington exceed hurricane force  nearly 100 days each year, the summit temperature has never exceeded 71 degrees and more hikers have died on this mountain than on any other in the world. Until 2010, the worlds highest recorded windspeed was measured atop Mt Washington at 231 mph in 1934. It may have exceeded that but we'll never know because the anemometer blew away. Headlined here on these pages are Tuckermans Ravine and the Headwall, treacherous skiing available only to hearty hikers as no lifts lead to them. 

From the Appalachian Mountain Clubs base lodge at Pinkham Notch, a skier straps his/her skies to a backpack and hikes for a couple hours to reach the Tuckerman Ravine Hut. After a short rest you'll depart on a strenuous climb (note I said climb, not hike) over rocky terrain that will take nearly another hour just to get to the base of the headwall. From there, put your skis over your shoulder and join the congo-line to start the straight up climb on the headwall. The headwall varies from between 40 to 60 degrees angle and when you need a rest, just put out your arm and lean against the wall. There are no services up here, you might get two or three runs in before having to pack up your skis and journey back down to Pinkham Notch. See what I mean about hearty?

Grandmother sitting on her porch preparing the bounty from her harvest. Fall must be closing in because she's wearing a heavy sweater and the mountains in the background will soon be covered in snow. And if Editor Heath has done his job... skiers too. Interestingly, each issue started with a poem on page one. This poem is titled, WHEN AUTUMN TURNS THE LEAVES and corresponds to the associated picture on the fly leaf.

This little magazine terminated in 1951 when the state started publishing NEW HAMPSHIRE PROFILES MAGAZINE. To give you a better sense of Troubadours size, I've placed two issues next to a Profiles. Profiles itself survived into the middle 1980s before they too terminated publication. 

Here's a funny quip or piece of New England humor I read in the July 1943 edition.

At a largely attended auction in a NH town the local physician put up a squawk that he had made a higher bid than a woman further back in the crowd. The auctioneer, who was also the town undertaker, insisted that he didn't hear his bid. Finally the doctor lost his temper and yelled, "Trouble with you is, you made a mistake and now you're trying to cover it up." Pretending to be hurt the auctioneer turned sadly to his old friend and inquired, "Why Doc, don't you believe in reciprocity? I've been covering up your mistakes for more'n forty years and never told a soul."

This is the photo that I'd used a while back that caught Steve from Michigan's attention and caused him to remember TROUBADOUR MAGAZINE. Thanks for writing Steve and enticing me to research this wonderful little antique magazine. I plan to write about Wallace Nutting too.

Now that I've been hooked and am seriously interested in collecting Troubadours, I've created this spread sheet to keep track of my progress. The X indicates I'm still searching for that issue, so if you have any that fall into this category and you'd consider disposing of them, drop me a line.

But before I go, I wanted to leave you with a more contemporary photo of the Headwall and Tuckermans Ravine.  We're standing on the Lions Head Trail on the east side of the ravine, the summit is up to your right.  This photo better illustrates just how steep this glacial cirque, formed 10,000 years ago as the last ice sheet retreated from North America, really is. Now, envision yourself skiing over the top of the headwall and down into the bowl. GERONIMO!!!

And lastly. Frederick W. Branch was a noted poet who wrote during the 1940's and much of his work appeared in TROUBADOUR. My favorite, probably because I've lived in two antique homes (1840 and 1790) he titled FULFILLMENT. I've added it here for you to enjoy.

FULFILLMENT The man who built this house of mine A hundred years ago, With Christian doors of smooth, clear pine And chestnut timbers, row on row, Whose oxen hauled the bricks and lime, Who squared the hearth’s broad stone, Could not foresee that Fate and Time Would someday make it all my own. He must have known that it would stay, Here, on its sturdy sills, Long after his last Spring should lay Her fragrant mornings on the hills: So, even if he didn’t know Just who its owners were to be, I’ll still maintain that, years ago, He planned and built this house for me.