Just who was Flora Little?

Mr. and Mrs. Little were major contributors to the Town of Bridgewater and to the establishment of the current library.

Flora T. Little (1875-1967) was educated in the Bridgewater school system. She graduated from the Normal School (now known as Bridgewater State University) in 1895, and the Massachusetts Normal School of Art in 1899. She was an art teacher and supervisor in several area schools including Bridgewater, and from 1902 to 1910 she was Art Assistant at the Normal School. She was also active in civic affairs, including the Ousamequin Club and the Massachusetts Federation of Women’s Clubs. She served on the Bridgewater Public Library Board of Trustees as Secretary.

Flora Townsend married Walter S. Little in 1902. He was born in Bridgewater but graduated from Comer’s Commercial School in Boston in 1896. Walter worked as a bookkeeper for the Bridgewater Box Co. from 1891 to 1896. In 1897, he founded the Eastern Grain Co. and served as its President until 1941.

The Littles traveled extensively throughout their marriage. Indeed, Mrs. Little kept detailed journals of their travels to the Far East, the West Indies, Europe, South America, the United States, and Mexico. They were avid photographers and took roll after roll of pictures to show family and friends upon their return home from their latest “tour”. Mrs. Little later recorded her reminiscences of these trips – plus life in Bridgewater – in an unpublished manuscript entitled A Wreath of Memories, which includes three supplements.

Mrs. Little began to write A Wreath of Memories (and its supplements) after the death of her husband in 1962. She dedicated the works to him. When Mrs. Little died in 1967, she bequeathed half a million dollars to the Town of Bridgewater specifically for library purposes. The Board of Library Trustees used these funds to erect a new building at 15 South Street, just north of the old library (the Memorial Building).

Mrs. Little left all of us quite a legacy, in the form of a beautiful library that we continue to enjoy in the next century. She also left us her written words which convey a simpler time – especially when she discusses Bridgewater and the changes that she saw for the town. Her travel experiences are a joy to read, simply because of the wonder that she was able to write about with such eloquence. She was a remarkable woman for her time; she would be considered “an original” by today’s