Lydia Stories was published to honor the 200th anniversary of the Carroll family in Southwest Harbor, ME, and their 1825 Homestead, now owned by Acadia National Park, that still stands as originally constructed. Drawing from letters, diaries, documents and recorded memories compiled by Nell Carroll Thornton in 1933, Lydia Stories invites us to hear the Carroll family history as told in a creative narrative by a unique storytelling cloth doll named Lydia Carroll. Lydia tells us of the Carroll family roots in Ireland, the plight of young John Carroll charged with treason, his escape to the New World, his settling on Mt. Desert Island, and of his inheritance of courage, wisdom, and courtesy given to each Carroll descendant.  

Joan Jordan Grant is a native of Bar Harbor, Maine, daughter of Evelyn Kittredge, grandniece to Nell Carroll Thornton, and a 4th generation descendant of John Carroll. She is a year-round resident of Mount Desert Island, pastor, teacher, and spiritual director. As a volunteer for Acadia National Park, she has helped Lydia tell her stories at the Carroll Homestead in Southwest Harbor since 2002.