drug stores. Leavitt was aided in some of the almanac's calculations geared towards agriculture by his nephew, astronomer William B. Leavitt. The almanac's entry of September 6, 1881, for instance, published after the founder's death, demonstrated the detailed observation of natural phenomena which marked the publication. "Tuesday, September 6, 1881, was remarkable over the whole of New England and may be known as Yellow Day. It was so dark in many places that artificial light was needed for the common acts of indoor life. Without, the dense curtains of smoke or dry fog that shut out the sun, gave a peculiar yellow hue to the atmosphere, changing the color of the trees and grass, perplexing the birds and other animals and seriously frightening the superstitious. It will long be remembered." Despite his descent from Puritan John Leavitt, founding deacon of Old Ship Church, America's oldest in continuous use, Dudley Leavitt was a skeptic. Perhaps it was his academic and scientific nature, but Leavitt was known throughout the Meredith area for his scoffing at religion. At one session of evening prayer, for instance, Leavitt's wife offered up a fervent prayer that her husband scholar be saved. When she was done, Leavitt got up, put on his hat and said "We read in God's word, that the unbelieving husband shall be justified by the prayers of the believing wife," and marched out of the church. Leavitt's death and legacy Leavitt died at his farm in Meredith on September 20, 1851. At the time of his death, Leavitt had the upcoming issue of his almanac at the press, and another five years' worth of issues of his almanac written, calculated and ready for the printer. The feat was so impressive to fellow writers and printers that one contemporary journal was moved to declare: "This is a degree of punctuality, of which there are few examples, especially in the editorship of a periodical work." The New York Times carried news of the death of the man who had become something of a quiet sensation, known for the paper almanacs which hung by cords in family kitchens across New England. "Dudley Leavitt, the veteran almanac maker, died this morning", noted The Times. "His age was 80." Leavitt was buried in the Leavitt private burial ground on the family farm near his home. His beloved almanac, for which he did all the calculations and writing, outlived