Play Days

Hidden within the diverse body of Sarah Orne Jewett’s published work is a lesser-known collection of stories written for a younger audience. First published 150 years ago, Jewett’s children’s stories explore themes of imagination, friendship, family, connections to nature, and empathy—ideas that continue to resonate with readers today. While some of these themes also appear in her novels for adult audiences, her children’s stories are especially attuned to the curiosity and wonder of young people discovering the world beyond their familiar surroundings.

Although Jewett wrote these stories as an adult, she drew inspiration from her own childhood experiences. Her writing offers readers a glimpse into the nineteenth century while capturing the emotional landscape of childhood and the journey toward adolescence. In keeping with publishing trends of the time, many of these stories were originally printed with few or no illustrations, leaving young readers to imagine the scenes and characters for themselves.

Play Days asks how contemporary audiences might interpret these stories through a twenty-first-century lens. In partnership with illustration students from the University of New Hampshire, Historic New England invited a new generation of artists to revisit Jewett’s stories and bring them to life with contemporary imagery. Using a range of illustration techniques, students drew inspiration from these enduring themes to create new visual interpretations for today’s audiences.

Illustrations

The Pepper-Owl

The Pepper-Owl

Mikaela Hart- BS Zoology Major, Fine Art Minor, 2027

Archival printed digital illustration

“’Dear Patty,’ said the Fluffy-owl, ‘we both like you dearly, and we have come to play with you. Don't you think it would be nicer if you were about as tall as we are?’

‘If you will make me grow tall again when you go away,’ said Patty; ‘for you know none of my clothes would fit me, though I could borrow from the dolls.’

‘That will be all right,’ said the owls; and each took hold of one of her hands and pulled, and in a few minutes Patty was only three or four inches tall.”

The Desert Islanders

The Desert Islanders

Bree Boyington- BFA 2026

Pen and ink illustration

“’Roger! Roger! Polly! where are you?’ shouted someone, and they all answered at once and felt as if they had been saved from something very horrible.

'O Alex! how did you find us?’ Roger ran toward his tall brother, who was looking around almost as frightened as our friends themselves. And in another minute he was standing by the little playhouse, which was too low for him to enter, but his light shone in upon the two pale little faces of Tip and Polly, who rushed out and hugged and kissed him until he shouldered Miss Tip—rag dolly and all—in self‑defense, and marched away in the rain, followed by Roger, who carried the lantern, and Polly, who cried for joy.”

The Desert Islanders

The Desert Islanders

Alaina Tilton- BFA 2026

Oil on panel illustration

“‘Roger! Roger! Polly! where are you?’ shouted someone, and they all answered at once… In another minute he was standing by the little playhouse… Tip and Polly rushed out and hugged and kissed him until he shouldered Miss Tip, rag dolly and all, and marched away in the rain, followed by Roger carrying the lantern.”

Beyond the Toll-Gate

Beyond the Toll-Gate

Kate Knox – Faculty, Art and Art History Dept., University of New Hampshire, Durham

Watercolor, gouache and ink illustration

"’Why, you're just alike!’ said she, while they both laughed.

‘We are twin sisters,’ said the first one she had seen, ‘and this is Miss Rhody Brown and I am Miss Ruthy.’

Barbara looked at them very hard, and saw that one had a black bow on her cap and the other a green one, and one had a rounder face. This was Miss Rhody, and she told her sister to fetch the kittens while she briskly went into the next room and came back with a little chair just large enough for Barbara. The kittens and the old cat played together with some spools, and the old sisters and their little visitor watched them, and laughed a good deal at their frolics.”

Beyond the Toll-Gate

Beyond the Toll-Gate

Sarah Oppenheimer- UNH Learn for Life

Watercolor, pencil and goldleaf illustration

“Barbara's flowers had wilted, but she had them still, and the old ladies had picked some bright red roses for her, and she kept taking a sniff of these every little while, because they were so sweet. The man was very kind; he told her that he had a little girl at home who went to ride with him in that very wagon almost every day. He stopped just before they came to the tollgate, and he took Barbara out carefully and gave her two cents, so she could come that way again someday, which was certainly very kind.”

Half-done Polly

Half-done Polly

Hannah Gamache – BFA 2028

Materials

“Miss Polly was of course a shocking housekeeper; and yet sometimes of a rainy morning she would begin to have a grand house-cleaning, and would put all the doll's furniture in a heap on the floor, pull all the family's winter clothes out of the little trunks and boxes, and lay out so much work for herself that it made you tired to look at it. And then, instead of putting things back in their places, she would find some plaything that had been lost for a while, and away she would go with it to the garden or to her mother's room.”

The Kitten's Ghost

The Kitten’s Ghost

Luc Beaulieu – BFA 2026

Archival printed digital illustration

“’We are afraid you will make fun of us,’ said Jack, ‘but it's true. It's her ghost, and it walked right over my bed last night, and sat down where the moon shone on the quilt, and stared at me with it’s horrid shiny eyes. Kitty saw it run along the hall, and oh! mamma wouldn't make us stay alone all night, or go to bed early and lie awake thinking every minute it will come.’”

The Kitten's Ghost

The Kitten’s Ghost

Luc Beaulieu – BFA 2026

Archival printed digital illustration

“So then I took her in my arms and marched bravely out through the house to Elsie's room. ‘Do you know where this kitten came from?’ said I. ‘I thought she was at the bottom of the river.’

Elsie rubbed her sleepy eyes. ‘Oh, I know she are not drowned. I so sorry. I should tell long ago she come home to me, but I think I keep her hiding in my closet till some Swede folks come I know, and I give her to them. I was scared when I see she. I think she eat herself a door in the bag, and yoomp out to the land.’”

Beyond the Toll-Gate

Beyond the Toll-Gate

Gwendolyn Hanrahan- BFA 2026

Watercolor and ink illustration

“Barbara hurried, she was so anxious to get to the gate, and the old toll-keeper looked surprised and pleased when she came up to his window and reached up her hand with the three-cent piece. ‘I'm going through to-day, sir,’ said she, and the old man nodded as he gave her the two cents in change.

‘I hope you will have a good time, my dear,’ said he kindly; then Barbara took two or three of her short steps, and was fairly on the other side of the gate.”

Beyond the Toll-Gate

Beyond the Toll-Gate

Gwendolyn Hanrahan- BFA 2026

Watercolor and ink illustration

"’Why, you're just alike!’ said she, while they both laughed.

‘We are twin sisters,’ said the first one she had seen, ‘and this is Miss Rhody Brown and I am Miss Ruthy.’

Barbara looked at them very hard, and saw that one had a black bow on her cap and the other a green one, and one had a rounder face. This was Miss Rhody, and she told her sister to fetch the kittens while she briskly went into the next room and came back with a little chair just large enough for Barbara. The kittens and the old cat played together with some spools, and the old sisters and their little visitor watched them, and laughed a good deal at their frolics.”