The Hummingbird Lady

by Nancy Webster Grady

Nancy Webster Grady’s paternal grandparents, Laurence (Laurie) Jackson Webster and May Rogers Webster, moved to Holderness when tuberculosis forced Laurie (an engineer) into early retirement. In those days, exposure to the open air was thought to be a sure cure for TB.

The Websters left behind a busy and culturally rich life in Boston, and turned their inquiring minds to the world of nature. Laurie was particularly interested in trees, and spent much time grafting various types of apple trees and importing exotic species from California. May (like her mother-in-law, Fidie), had a deep interest in and love of flowers. Their love of nature converged with another form of wildlife altogether. The following ‘recollection’ is excerpted from “The Annals of Burleigh Farm,” written and edited by Nancy Webster Grady. The title character refers to May Rogers Webster, Nancy’s grandmother.

“. . . Laurie and May shared a deep love of birds which eventually led them to become famous for their knowledge of hummingbirds in particular. They concocted a recipe for syrup to attract the little hummers, and Laurie designed glass feeders which they held in their hands so they could hand feed the birds which came at May’s call when she lifted the screen of her bedroom window. The unusual talent attracted the notice of Dr. Harold Edgerton, the world-famous photographer from MIT, who used the Webster’s’ hummingbirds to experiment with his first high-speed film. Then followed articles in the London Illustrated News and National Geographic which brought international fame to the couple. May formed the New Hampshire Wildflower Society and gave lectures throughout the state to ensure the protection of wildflowers. The fees she earned from these talks were turned over to a Nature Camp she established at Lost River in North Woodstock where public school teachers could learn to teach “conservation.” A little museum building stands there today in her name, as testimony to “the Hummingbird Lady” whose actions toward preserving the environment were far ahead of her time.”

Dick Harte (Nancy’s second cousin) has a singularly interesting memory of May Rogers Webster. “. . . and then there was Uncle Laurie, who was Pa’s brother, and Aunt May, his wife, and she loved birds and hummingbirds particularly. I think she was known as the “Hummingbird Lady,” and she had all kinds of bird feeders. And we’d go over there and the hummingbirds would eat whatever they eat out of her mouth which I’d never seen before or since!”