Groom of the Bedchamber
300 words. Letter to the editor.
Note: This is a highly specialized letter, tailored for the Conway Daily Sun newspaper in Conway, New Hampshire. It references an article appearing on the front page of this edition (click the link).
I read with interest your article of February 26, 2021 regarding the potential placement of public restrooms in the Shops at Norcross Place. I would like to correct the oversight which led to Board of Selectmen Vice Chair Mary Carey Seavey being identified only as “Seavey” throughout an otherwise-excellent piece which took pains to give the full names and titles of everyone else mentioned in the article. We locals know it was Mary, but she deserves the full treatment. I assume she received that honor in an early draft, and it was inadvertently lost during editing.
Locals also know, I am sure, that our town was named for then Commander in Chief of the British Army, Henry Seymour Conway. Conway is justly celebrated for his military and political attainments. But how many people know that he served not just one King George, but two Kings Georges (II and III, to be specific) as a Groom of the Bedchamber? While the stature of the job of bathroom attendant has come down a few pegs since the 1700’s, back then being involved in the king’s most privy business was a much-sought-after posting. Conway must have been good at it, for he served ably for seven years. It is fitting that the city named for him is striving to honor his legacy by accommodating the privy business of all who pass through, king and commoner alike.
I hope the new restrooms will include an appropriate plaque trumpeting the lesser-known achievements of Field Marshal Conway.
On a practical note, let’s make the parking fee that supports these restrooms adjustable. Fryeburg is already talking about raising their fees to bounce the less desirable cost-conscious tourists back our way. This is a bidding war that Conway can win, if we use flexible, electronic signage.
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