The purpose of the Annisquam Sewing Circle, a standing committee of the Annisquam Village Hall Association, is to promote the furtherance of friendship and congeniality and the performance of acts of benevolence.
The Origins of the Annisquam Sewing CircleMiss Charlotte Lane’s booklet The History of the Annisquam Female Benevolent Society is available to read online at:
https://www.digitalcommonwealth.org/book_viewer/commonwealth:3r077d610
Not for the Members of the Annisquam Sewing Circle!Members have been working on projects to be offered at the Annual ASC Christmas Fair, December 3, 2022, 8:00 – 12:30, in the newly renovated Village Hall, 32 Leonard Street, 01930, in the center of the Village.
The proceeds from the ASC funding raising events are donated to the Cape Ann community and to Annisquam graduating seniors going on to further educational opportunities.
The Sale was a great success!The Annisquam Sewing Circle was invited to participate in the Annisquam Farmers’ Market again this year. We are grateful to Bud Ris of the AFM, and his crew for making that possible.
We are also very grateful for all of you who purchased the wonderful baked goods and the many beautiful bouquets created by the members of the ASC for you.
The Annisquam Sewing Circle will be back Friday, August 12, 9:00 – noon with another Gourmet Food Sale. Mark your calendar. See you there!
The Annisquam Sewing Circle has been reaching out to the community since its inception. Bags of groceries were left on the doorsteps of families in need. Hats and mittens were knit for soldiers during the Civil War and nippers for the Gloucester fishermen. Items were made for the ASC Christmas Fair which included little men out of toothpicks and raisins for children to buy as gifts for family and friends. The money raised went back to the community.
Times have changed but the needs of the community remain the same. The funds raised by the ASC are donated to Cape Ann Community organizations like Wellspring, Open Door, Backyard Growers, and Animal Aid as well as scholarships for Gloucester High School graduating seniors who are going on to college or other post-graduate training.
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Send an email to FriendsOfASC@gmail.com to receive information about upcoming events and news of the ASC. Your email will not be shared with anyone. We value you as a Friend of the ASC and your interest in our activities. As a thank you for your interest and support of the Annisquam Sewing Circle, we will send you an ASC favorite recipe.
Members of the Circle and their husbands answer this question.
To celebrate the Annisquam Sewing Circle on its 175th Anniversary a delightful evening was held in the Village Hall with delicious food and this entertaining skit.
1837 – 2012 The longest, continuously meeting Sewing Circle on Cape Ann
Earlier members of the Annisquam Sewing Circle knit nippers like this pair.
Fishermen working trawl lines in the 19th century often suffered cuts and rope burns on their hands. They typically wore mittens or gloves to protect themselves when hauling the long lines aboard and removing the fish. These sturdy but soft rings, called nippers, are knitted of woolen yarn and stuffed with more wool. They would have fit around a fisherman’s palms, protecting his hands while his fingers remained free for tasks requiring dexterity.
These nippers were probably made in Gloucester, Mass., for use by local fishermen working on offshore schooners. The shallow, fertile banks stretching from Georges Bank east of Nantucket to the Grand Bank off Newfoundland, Canada, were prime fishing areas for Gloucestermen. Cod, haddock, and halibut were the principal species caught by fishermen working aboard schooners in these waters in the late 19th century.
These nippers were among the fishermen’s clothing, tools, and apparatus featured by the United States in the 1883 International Fisheries Exhibition in London.
The ladies of the Sewing Circle use to prepare and serve a dinner to the men of the Leonard Club.
At a meeting of the ASC Grace Tomlinson Murray, a long-time member shared her memories of an unforgettable evening.
7th 
Century A.D. – The earliest cookie-style cakes are thought to date back to 7th century Persia A.D. (now Iran), one of the first countries to cultivate sugar (luxurious cakes and pastries in large and small versions were well known in the Persian empire). According to historians, sugar originated either in the lowlands of Bengal or elsewhere in Southeast Asia. Sugar spread to Persia and then to the Eastern Mediterranean. With the Muslim invasion of Spain, then the Crusades and the developing spice trade, the cooking techniques and ingredients of Arabia spread into Northern Europe.
Cookies as we know them in America were originally brought to the United States by our English, Scottish, and Dutch immigrants. Earlier names for cookies such as Snickerdoodles and Cry Babies originated with the New England states. Even with its early history, cookies did not become popular until about a hundred years ago.
From: What’s Cooking America- History of Cookies
Cry Baby Cookies
epicurious.com – recipes – /cry-babies
These molasses cookies are a family tradition. Frost with buttercream frosting in the color of your choice when just warm enough to melt the frosting; if you frost them too soon the frosting will run.
