Anna Elizabeth White
Much of the history of Rochester that we have access to today is due to the efforts of local historian Anna Elizabeth White (1927-2017).
Elizabeth Leonard
Philanthropist Elizabeth Leonard (1823-1901) left an insightful legacy to the town of Rochester. In 1876, she donated money for the first Rochester Free Public Library.
Mary Hall Leonard
Rochester’s Mary Hall Leonard (1847-1921) graduated from Bridgewater Normal School in 1867 and was soon hired as an instructor there, where she trained students to be teachers.
Lena Britto
Born and raised in Rochester, entrepreneur and activist Lena Britto (1921-2007) owned and operated Van-Lee Beauty Salon in East Wareham for over 18 years.
Sarah R. Delano
“If you bulldoze your heritage, you become just anywhere,” have become the most repeated words of Sarah R. Delano (1904-1994).
Rosetta Douglass
Abolitionist and social reformer Rosetta Douglass (1839-1906) continued a family legacy of activism that began in New Bedford with her father, Frederick Douglass.
Caroline Leonard Goodenough
Rochester’s Caroline Leonard Goodenough (1856-1946) and her husband spent 35 years as missionaries to the Zulus in Africa.