Carleton Watkins Aurora Borealis
The next year when Carleton was six-going-on seven years old the Fourth of July celebration was greatly expanded with four hundred guests and twenty-five toasts. Even though this celebration took place more than a decade before his own birth, Willard Huntington, in keeping with his skill at writing poetry, described July 4, 1835, as though he was an actual participant:
"Among other features of the menu, [John Watkins] desired to include green peas -- to secure a sufficient quantity of which, making it necessary for him to scour the country, far and near. The banquet was spread on a table placed in a temporary arbor, or bower, erected in the front yard; this structure, long and narrow, being built of two lines of crotched sticks, cut in the near-by woods for the purpose, with the sharpened ends driven into the ground; while running lengthwise, on each series of crotches, were placed poles supporting numerous short cross-pieces, the whole fabric being covered with green boughs to complete the roof, while the sides of the structure were left open. In connection with public banquets, the bower feature had been repeatedly made use of in Otsego County. . .as protection from the fierce rays of a midsummer sun."[40]
The gala 1835 Fourth of July celebration attracted guests from towns all over Otsego County including one George Reynolds, who left home at dawn for Oneonta and who recalled:
"Went to J. M. Watkins's hotel and played about there nearly an hour and then went up on the hill near by to see them fire a cannon. By eleven o'clock a large multitude were assembled at Watkins's. A paper balloon about eight feet in diameter was sent up by Mr. McNamee, of Cooperstown, which was announced by firing a gun on the hill. The people then formed into a procession under the command of Gen. P. P. Grant and marched to the Presbyterian church, where an oration was delivered by Henry Brown, Esq., of Cooperstown. They then returned to Watkins's where a dinner was prepared of which about four hundred partook. After the cloth was removed twenty-five standing toasts were drank [including the first one given by Ira Emmons]. . ."[41]
When they were between the ages of five and ten years old, young Carleton and his two sisters led a story-book book life worthy of Tom Sawyer.