There are times in life when the distance between you and the one you love simply does not matter. It can be the house next door or across the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Such is the case with Martin and Mary Ellen, a love born of innocence that concluded in a simple promise that was kept: to grow old together. And they did live happily ever after.
Martin was a strapping young man born in the north end of Concord to two Irish immigrants who fled the potato famine in Ireland years before. He worked hard and knew the discipline of his Irish Catholic roots. He attended church and obeyed the commandments, attended school and lived the life his parents desired for him, with more opportunities than they themselves ever had.
Young Martin was as rambunctious as any other boy and spent his summers along the banks of the Merrimack River, swimming and fishing as he dreamed of what would be. His teen years ushered in even more thoughts as he drifted along the river, thinking of completing his education, working in his very own quarry on Rattlesnake Hill and finally meeting a special young lady from Galway Bay.
Her name was Mary Ellen, and her parents knew Martin’s parents well back in Ireland before they left in search of a better life. Old friends and old memories do not tend to die a natural death. The letters back and forth across the Atlantic, from Ireland to Concord, New Hampshire, were free-flowing and included old photographs of the children from each side of the world.
As the years progressed, so did the people in the photographs, until one day Martin took particular interest in a young lady a year his junior. Soon the family letters developed into personal letters between Martin and Mary Ellen. A sweet love blossomed across the sea, and their intimate thoughts further developed. The days led to months and the months to years, but Martin and Mary Ellen held feelings that only grew stronger without faltering.
It was in the year 1877 that a steamship bound for Boston Harbor held something other than freight or routine passengers. It held a beautiful young Irish woman with hair as black as the blackest night. Her light complexion and sparkling blue eyes further complemented her beautiful green Victorian dress.
A natural beauty celebrating her 18th birthday in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, Mary Ellen traveled alone on the high seas in the old steamer with a trunk full of her worldly possessions and her mind full of hope and desire. Mary Ellen was en route to Boston and then destined to travel north to a little town called Concord. It was in Concord that she was to be married to young Martin, her beloved future husband, whom she knew only from his photographs and frequent letters. She deeply desired to finally hear his voice speaking gently as they embraced for the very first time.
Mary Ellen did arrive safely and was greeted by Martin; their embrace would last a lifetime. As they traveled north to Concord, they settled with Martin’s parents and learned about the recent happenings in the old country, enjoying the strong Irish brogue and the natural beauty portrayed so remarkably by Mary Ellen.
Plans were made, and the marriage was a simple occasion at the church down on Main Street. A house was purchased, and the newlyweds settled into a safe routine in the north end of Concord. Martin walked to Rattlesnake Hill each morn to work in his little quarry while Mary Ellen tended house and supplemented the family income as a seamstress.
It was a simple relationship born of the love that grew with each letter and photograph over the years. Always cautious, Mary Ellen made Martin promise to return home safely from his dangerous job, for she often stated, “Mary Ellen will never sleep a widow.”
Martin Spain always kept his promise to his beloved Mary Ellen Cooley. He always told her, “I just want to grow old with you.” Yes, life does happen, and there are many love stories.
Though I never knew them personally, I did hear the stories about the strength and commitment they held for each other during their many years of marriage. My great-grandfather finally made his own granite gravestone while working on the hill at Spain Quarry. The stone reflects the rising sun each morning at Blossom Hill, and it is here that Martin and Mary Ellen remain together for eternity.
They simply grew old together, and Mary Ellen never did sleep a widow.