An old book of history has a new look in the second edition of “A Nice Life Back Then: Georgetown Island — 1900-1920.”

Don Ludgin, chairman of the Georgetown Historical Society’s Research and Publications Committee, said in a phone interview that the new edition “ looks more like a book of reminiscences should look,” with close attention paid to typography, layout and a new index of the people and places contained in 126 pages of one woman’s story about island life at the turn of the 20th century in Georgetown.

The book began as the story of Frances “Babe” Gunnell (née Williams) as told to local historians Tom Brown and Ben Burr, who began recording interviews with Georgetown residents in 1981 to produce a book of those recollections in 1993, called “ The Voices of Georgetown.”

Starting in 1989, Margaret M. Mates continued those interviews with Gunnell until 1994. The first edition of the book was issued in 1996, just after Babe passed away at the age of 96.

In addition to setting type and layout, Ludgin added details and information to make Gunnell’s memory of Georgetown’s geography in the early 20th century translatable to today.

“Babe would refer to someone’s house as ‘that’s where so-and-so lives,’” Ludgin said. “And in most cases, so-and-so no longer lives in Georgetown, but the connection is still there.”

In those instances, Ludgin said, the most recent version of the book includes street addresses that align with the current layout of the town. Ludgin said the addition gives a better sense of life in Georgetown at that time, especially as walking was then the primary mode of transportation.

While much has changed — like transportation — Ludgin said today’s Georgetown residents will recognize much about the geography and lifestyle that endure from Gunnell’s time.

“The farm that Babe grew up on gave its name to the Williams Road — named for her family — and some of the places she mentions are still very active parts of town,” Ludgin said.

The book also offers insights into less prominent features of the town’s history. Ludgin said that there are still remains of fish weirs — stakes of hardwood 10 to 15 feet tall driven into the river bottom — built into the Back River. Gunnell’s history tells of how her father collected smelt from those weirs to be shipped to New York or Boston from wharves in West Georgetown.

Ludgin said today’s residents would recognize other stories Gunnell relates in the book, such as stories of clamming on the Little River.

The new edition also includes an essay from Gunnell’s son, John G. Gunnell, about his memories of the family farm in Georgetown. Ludgin said copies of the book can be picked up at the Georgetown Historical Society and through mail order.

For more information, call 371-9200 between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Wednesdays or from 10 a.m. to noon Saturdays, or visit georgetownhistoricalsociety.org.