In late June, 86 members of the extended Crocker family gathered at Crocker House at Applewild School in Fitchburg to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the development and construction of the "Applewild" estate. The estate was begun by C.T. and Fay Crocker in 1910 and construction of the estate was completed in 1911.

Family members covered four generations and ranged in age from 92 years to two months old. Members came from as far away as California, Montana, Arizona, and New Jersey. The "elders" in the family shared remembrances of Fay and C.T. Crocker in their home. Former Crocker Burbank Inc. foreman and present Applewild employee Joe Marabello led a bus tour of the mills and various sites in Fitchburg. Professor William Kemp of Montreal and formerly of 91 View Street, Fitchburg, provided a history of “Crocker Hill” and the houses that several members present knew of or had lived in at one time.

Meriwether Schmid, daughter of Darthea Crocker Cowgill and one of the donors of the estate to create the Applewild School, provided genealogies to all participants. She read a moving letter from Fay to her future son-in-law William Cowgill, written May 18, 1918, five days after William proposed to Fay’s daughter Darthea. Fay explained why she and her husband C.T. were so devoted to their children – both had lost their mothers on the same day, June 15, 1878. Fay was eight and C.T. eleven at the death of their mothers. Meriwether also explained her DNA project to find the possible link between the Crockers of the United States, through Sea Captain John Crocker, born in England in 1692 and who died in Boston in 1763, and Crocker cousins in England. John was the grandfather of Deacon Samuel Crocker, born in Newburyport in 1772, who later moved to Fitchburg and died here in 1836 – the first Fitchburg Crocker and father of Alvah (senior).

Bill Kemp was the catalyst for the reunion. He provided several photographs, a history of the development of "Crocker Hill," and organized the event with the help of Applewild School staff. His wife Lise was videographer for the weekend. He presented Applewild Head Chris Williamson with a scrimshaw whale’s tooth that had originally been presented to Alvah Crocker by a whaling captain in the early 1800’s. The tooth is described in a note from C.T. Crocker dated February 15, 1952.

Several members of the family enjoyed Sunday service at Christ Church, where they saw the stained glass windows provided by Alvah Crocker. After brunch at the school, Fitchburg resident, former Applewild teacher and longtime Stratton Players performer and director Janet Cragin, joined by colleague Bob Blake as a laconic C.T., portrayed Fay Bigelow Crocker talking about the origins of the Stratton Players and other activities Fay was involved in creating.

David Crocker read from a letter to one of Fay’s ancestors, Paul Bigelow, from his father Albert in c. 1900, describing an evening with Professor Calvin and Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1875 or 1876. Calvin and Albert shared a great-grandfather, Josiah Bigelow. Josiah’s son Converse was, according to family lore, the first to carry the news of the “Red Coats” advance to Lexington. He and a friend arrived at the Green in Lexington to warn the families, broke into a powder house, and loaded an old-fashioned cannon on the green. “Not skilled in the artillery business, they overloaded it and the recoil kicked the cannon about 20 feet and smashed the gun carriage. They had no time to waste anyway but this hastened their departure, and they raced back as fast as they had come.” The letter concluded “Prof. Stowe said my grandfather was a good raconteur and his account was [far more] entertaining [than Longfellow’s later version]. Prof. Stowe had heard about it not only from grandfather but from others at Sherborn and Weston long before the story of Paul Revere’s ride was written by Longfellow.”