"The Craftsman's Tale" -- An Ancestor's Story In Poem and Song Created by Artificial Intelligence

 I've used FREE Artificial Intelligence tools to create biographies, poems and songs about my ancestors lives and family history in the recent past. Today, I want to share a poem and a song about one of my paternal 2nd great-grandfathers, Edward Hildreth (1831-1899) based on information from my genealogy research.

(image created by ChatGPT4)

I requested CoPilot, ChatGPT4, Grok, Gemini and Claude (all FREE AI tools) to create a poem about one of my paternal 2nd great-grandfathers, Edward Hildreth (1831-1899).  

1)  Here is the Prompt information I used for the poem and the song lyrics:

Please create a poem and song lyrics for Edward Hildfreth using this information:  Edward Hldreth was born 30 April 1831 in Townsend, Mass., the 8th of 9 children of Zachariah Hildreth and Hannah Sawtell.  In the 1850 US census, he was recorded as a clerk residfing in Berlin, Mass. Edward married Sophia Newton on 25 December 1852 in Northborough, Mass.  In the 1855 Mass. census, he was a combmaker residing in Northborough with Sophia. Edward lost both of his parents in January 1857. Their first child, Hattie Louisa Hildreth was born 28 November 1857 in Northborough. In the 1860 US census, Edward was a combmaker residing in Northborough with Sophia and Hattie. In the 1865 Mass. census, Edward was a combmaker residing in Northborough with Sophia and Hattie. Before 1870, Edward purchased the house at 149 Lancaster St in Leominster, Mass.  He lived there the rest of his life. In the 1870 US census, Edward was a machinist residing at 149 Lancester St in Leominster, Mass. with Sophia and Hattie.  Hattie Hildreth married Frank W. Seaver in December 1874.  They had three children. Their second child, Clarence Edward Hildreth was born 24 May 1874 in Leominster, and died on 21 February 1878 of accidental poisoning. In the 1880 US census, Edward was a machinist residing at 149 Lancaster St in Leominster, Mass with his wife Sophia and her mother Sophia Stone.  Frank and Hattie (Hildreth)  Seaver lived in the same house with their first son, Frederick W. Seaver. Hattie and Frank Seaver had two more children, Harry Seaver in 1885 and Howard Seaver in 1892 while they resided in the Hildreth home. Edward died 26 April 1899 at home in Leominster, Mass. of cerebral apoplexy.  His death record notes he was a machinist.

Edward was buried in Evergreen Cemetery in Leominster, Mass. with his wife and son. The real estate was valued at $1500.

 2)  I chose the poem created by Claude Sonnet 3.5 today.  Here are the stanzas:

 The Craftsman's Tale

In Townsend's spring of thirty-one,

To Zachariah and Hannah Sawtell's sun,
Young Edward Hildreth drew first breath,
The eighth of nine to challenge death.

From humble clerk in Berlin town,
To craftsman earning fair renown,
His skilled hands shaped the combs with care,
In Northborough's quiet morning air.

When Sophia Newton claimed his heart,
On Christmas Day they made their start,
Together built their dreams anew,
As winter into springtime grew.

When grief struck hard in fifty-seven,
Both parents called too soon to heaven,
Yet joy emerged through sorrow's haze—
Sweet Hattie Louisa blessed their days.

To Leominster then they moved at last,
Where machinist's trade would shape his path,
forty-nine on Lancaster Street,
Where generations came to meet.

Young Clarence Edward blessed their home,
Though brief his time beneath love's dome,
soon he slipped from earthly ties,
Leaving tears in parents' eyes.

Yet life flowed on through passing years,
Through grandchildren's laughter, joy, and tears,
Three generations shared one home,
Beneath the roof where love had grown.

Till April's end in ninety-nine,
When Edward's spirit did decline,
His legacy in steel and brass,
In hearts and homes would come to pass.

In Evergreen he rests today,
Where maple boughs in breezes sway,
A craftsman's tale of change and grace,
In Massachusetts' cherished space.

3) Here are the AI created song and lyrics for "The Craftsman's Tale" (with song lyrics created on Claude Sonnet 3.5 used as custom lyrics on Suno.com), using an Americana style in an upbeat tempo:  

The Craftsman's Tale 

Verse 1: 

Born to Zachariah Hildreth's name

 Hannah Sawtell shared that flame 

Number eight of nine to sing 

Edward started life a simple clerk 

Destiny had more at work

Verse 2: 

Christmas bells rang clear and bright 

When Sophia Newton that night 

Pledged her love and took his name 

Northborough saw their future grow 

As the workbench days would flow

Chorus: 

The craftsman of Lancaster Street 

Where three generations would meet 

From combs to machines, he made his way 

Building dreams day after day 

At one forty-nine, love took its stand 

Life shaped by a working man's hands

Verse 3: 

Hattie Louisa blessed their days 

Bringing joy in countless ways 

Then young Clarence Edward came 

Though his time was far too brief 

Love would help them through their grief

Chorus: 

The craftsman of Lancaster Street 

Where three generations would meet 

From combs to machines, he made his way 

Building dreams day after day 

At one forty-nine, love took its stand 

Life shaped by a working man's hands

Verse 4: 

Leominster called them all to stay 

Where his skills would make their way 

Three generations, one strong home 

Building memories day by day 

As the years would slip away

Bridge: 

Time flows like the river deep 

Through the promises we keep 

Three generations under one roof 

Weaving life upon time's woof 

Love endures beyond the years 

Through the laughter, through the tears

Chorus: 

The craftsman of Lancaster Street 

Where three generations would meet 

From combs to machines, he made his way 

Building dreams day after day 

At one forty-nine, love took its stand 

Life shaped by a working man's hands

Outro: 

Now he rests in Evergreen 

Where the stories flow between 

The craftsman's tale will always stay 

At one forty-nine, Lancaster way 

At one forty-nine, Lancaster way

The AI tools do this so much better than I could, and weaves the poem and song along a story theme that is true and heartfelt.  Each tool provides a different poem and song from the same prompt --I love fishing in all of the AI streams!!  Frankly, doing the poems and song are the most genealogy fun I have every week!

4)  These stories, told in verse and song, are part of my genealogy and family research.  My hope is that they will be passed down to my grandchildren and their descendants to highlight the importance of sharing stories, memories, admiration, and love of our ancestors.  I will add them to my Google Drive and to my YouTube channel and my FOREVER account.

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My blog posts with the AI-created poems and songs to date are on this Artificial Intelligence Posts page.

Copyright (c) 2024, Randall J. Seaver

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