The Nahant Historical Society mourns the passing of our beloved Curator Emerita Calantha Ruth Doane Sears. A third generation Nahanter, she was 103, and known informally as “the First Lady of Nahant,” for countless reasons.
Calantha Sears inspired people to work as hard as she did for Nahant. While working to organize the town’s 1976 Bicentennial Parade, Sears, neighbor Irene Cullinan, and others founded the Nahant Historical Society, whose mission is “to acquire, preserve and interpret artifacts of Nahant, Massachusetts, illustrating its history, prehistory and that of people associated with it, for the enjoyment, education and enrichment of the public.”
Sears served as Children's Librarian at Nahant Public Library for 17 years. Because there was no library at the elementary school, she would deliver a selection of books for each class on a regular basis.
Additionally, Calantha served on the Town’s Historical Commission and the Greenlawn Cemetery Committee. She enjoyed being a member of the Nahant Village Church, and assisting in various community organizations, such as the Nahant Garden Club and Women’s Club, plus numerous others with husband Winthrop E. Sears.
Her life of service encouraged the creation of the Town’s annual Citizen of the Year Award which is given by the Town Moderator for outstanding service to our town. She was the first recipient so honored.
On May 7, 2023, Calantha enjoyed receiving the Boston Post Cane as Nahant’s oldest resident, surrounded by family, co-workers, and town officials. When Lynn Item reporter, Anthony Cammalleri, asked her “what advice she would give others, especially younger people,” Mrs. Sears replied: “I would like people to get along with each other and solve their problems peacefully without violence or cruelty.”
May Calantha’s shining example continue to inspire us all.
By Bonnie Ayers D’Orlando, Acting Interim President