Dick Everett

Michael Peck

Harthaven History of Mary Gifford Everett and Richard W. Everett

In the  1930 ‘s my grandmother, Mary Booth  Peck, would  rent a  cottage  for  my  parents, Walter S. Gifford  and  Katherine  Peck  Gifford.  I  particularly  remember  being  in  the ”flea  bag”  and  playing  out  front   with  Tootsie  toy  cars  and  trucks  in  the  sand/dirt  for  hours.

My  mother’s  father  was  Edward  Folger  Peck  and  was  deceased  in 1929.  His father was Charles Peck, brother to Martha Peck Hart. Next  door  to  the  Abbe  cottage,  the Boardman’s built  their  cottage  so  now  sister’s- in-law  are living  side by side  Carolyn Peck  Boardman  and  Mary  Booth  Peck. Now  all the cousins John and Bob Boardman, Bill  and  Ed  Abbe and   the Gifford  children—Ginnie, Walt,  Folger  and  Mary  would  have  great  times  together—sailing,  rowing boats  in  Farm Pond and having  picnics, etc.    

We Gifford kids were lucky to come every summer for a month from our birth thru the 2nd world war. Our grandmother bought us a Manuel Swartz 14 ft. cat boat for $100. By the late 4o’s, my brothers and sister were all beginning to work at various summer jobs and I got the cat boat somewhat as my own. Every day after bailing it out for an hour or two, I had a great time sailing it. By this time, I got to stay at the Abbe cottage with my Aunt Elsie---Bill and Ed Abbe’s mother. In 1945 Ed Abbe married Gladys and this put a new addition to our life there at the Vineyard—musical evenings. Gladys being more outgoing than my Peck side of the family invited kids over and thus Judy Hart and Lee Everett became my good friends. Pretty soon Lee and Walt were dating and married in 1953. I knew of Dick Everett but he was off in the military service those years. But after about 1955 we were seeing each other and married in 1957. We have 3 children—Jennifer Everett Benefit married to Donald M. Benefit, Rebecca Swift Everett, Katrina Everett Ballek married to George F. Ballek. Jennifer has 1 daughter, Michaela, and Katrina has 2 daughters Allison and Hillary. What is confusing to a lot of people is that Lee and Walt Gifford’s children and Mary and Dick Everett’s children are double cousins, having the same grandparents.

In 1963, my parents up in Schenectady got a phone call from Bill Abbe that our present cottage was up for sale and they bought it. They enjoyed it for several years until their death and then we 4 Gifford siblings inherited it. Between us we decided to have only one owner. ‘Old’ Stan Hart suggested thru a lawyer put in bids and the one with the highest bid would win which are how Dick and Mary Everett became the new owners. We have had many good times owning many different types of sailboats  --from a  8 ft. sailing dinghy to our 34 ft. Vernon Langille.