polly s. cote

They Called Her Cate is the story of Hannah Catherine Loring Langdelll’s journey through life as told through the diaries she kept from 1863 when she was 22 years old until she died in 1930 at age 89. Cate, as she was called, writes about every day life on her father’s farm, her endless cooking, cleaning, making washing fluid, and toxic lye soap. Cate has complete charge of running the farm house after her mother died in 1861, and sometimes, seems overwhelmed with all the work, two little boys ages 2 and 3 to care for and the endless chores that needed to be done.

She writes about her husband Zaph’s travels through southwestern New Hampshire, buying and selling oxen, cattle, and anything else he could buy and then sell for a profit. He travels to Washington, Stoddard, Goffstown, Wilton, and many other towns, talking to farmers, looking for livestock they might have for sale.

We have all heard stories of how hard our grandmothers and great-grandmothers worked and how difficult life was for them in the late 1800s. After reading about Cate’s life, taken directly from her diaries, you will find that these statements were all too true. Cate has a strong belief in God that carries her through. She hates missing “Meeting” on Sundays as it is a time of spiritual renewal for her.

You will be intrigued, fascinated, awed, and maybe at times, a little overwhelmed yourself at how much one woman could accomplish in a day, a week, and throughout her life as she writes about daily life for a woman in the late 1800s.

We cannot re-create revivals from 50, 100, 150 years ago. What we need to ask ourselves is what are we doing for Christ today.