Their Maine cabin had a lot of charm, kept in what appears to be an informal, rustic state,
with a view out over Naskeag Bay from the upper balcony.
A large fireplace, books, comfortable chairs, an ocean breeze--must have been a peaceful respite from academic life.
Much like the corridor between the Veblen House and cottage in Princeton, there was a verdant corridor between their Maine cottage and boathouse.
The boathouse opened out to the bay.
And the bay opened out to the ocean.
Veblen grew up in the midwest, but his career took him to Europe many times. He must have been comfortable spending his summers on the edge of America, looking out towards Europe, occupying the borderlands between Old World and New--a recurrent theme in his career and marriage.
Thanks to the IAS for these photos: Oswald Veblen photographer. Oswald and Elizabeth Veblen Papers and Photographs. From the Shelby White and Leon Levy Archives Center, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, NJ, USA.
The gentleman in the first photo (with pipe on the right) appears to be Clinton Davisson, Veblen's brother-in-law (and a Nobel Laureate in Physics). Davisson built a cottage nearby that is very similar to Veblen's and also still stands today.
ReplyDeleteYes, I believe the Davissons already had their cottage when the Veblens acquired theirs. It would be interesting to know if the Davisson cottage stayed in the family. The Veblen cottage was finally sold by the niece and winterized by the new owners.
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