NEWTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Minutes of May 9, 2010
Merrimack Savings Bank
Members present: |
Bill Landry |
Mary Riordan |
John Meserve |
Kathy Meserve |
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Marilyn Landry |
Courtney Jason |
Sally Woodman |
Diane Morin |
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Cheryl Saunders |
Ron Saunders |
Ann Miles |
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Bill Landry called the meeting to order at 7:05 PM.
Secretary’s Report – Mary Riordan
Sally Woodman made a motion to accept the minutes of April 11, 2011. Cheryl Saunders seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
Treasurer’s Report – Bill Landry
The Checking income was from dues and a donation. Expenses were for the electric bill for the Primary Schoolhouse. The Money Market income was from interest. Expenses were for propane for the Schoolhouse work and lumber for the display case. Cheryl Saunders made a motion to accept the Treasurer’s Report. Marilyn Landry seconded the motion. The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Old Business:
2011 Dues – Bill Landry reminded the members dues were due. Several members gave their dues to Bill.
Primary Schoolhouse Renovation Update
Renovation Status – Bill Landry reported we have spent $4,814.14 on the renovations and noted that without the generous work of Rob Hayes, Nick Giorgi and John Neveau it would have been much higher. Rob Hayes has finished the floor and Bill finished the baseboard so the building is done. The Cemetery Trustees donated a flag to replace the torn one. Jan Bennet stopped at the Schoolhouse when Bill was there Sunday. She commented on how good the building looks. She also mentioned she might know someone who might donate their effort to glaze the windows. She offered to look into it and get back to Bill. She also pointed out the afghan that Bill had received an inquiry on was on the shelf in the back room. Bill noted the manufacturer was on the afghan so if we wanted to get more we
could try to contact them.
Bill, Ron and John believe the porch and stairs need to be replaced. Bill suggested we replace it with Trex composite.
Bill reported the shutters that were stored at the Marshall House were in disrepair and should be replaced. He suggested we replace them with vinyl shutters. He believes the shutters are approximately 18” wide. John Meserve suggested that shutters can be found in many places. Cheryl Saunders knows of a place up north that has items from building demolitions. Kidder Wrecking was mentioned as a place to check.
Bill noted that the building is in need of being painted. It was suggested the painting should be done before putting up the shutters. Cheryl suggested getting a quote from Nick Giorgio. Bill will check with him.
Granite State Poker – Bill Landry had nothing to report.
Reports of Curator & Committee Chairpersons
Curators (Ron / Cheryl Saunders) – Cheryl Saunders reported mice have infested the Marshall House and it needs to be cleaned. There has been significant mice damage on many clothing items. She took the clothing home and cleaned what she could. She disposed of several dresses that had been destroyed. Courtney Jason said she has been interning at a textile restoration company and if Cheryl would send her pictures of the items and she would see if her boss could determine if they are salvageable. Cheryl suggested we have a cleaning party at the Marshall House. Irene Nally noted there are companies the clean places with in this state. Cheryl offered to talk to Pest-End and the company that cleans the Town Hall. Diane Morin asked how we are going to store things that Cheryl
cleaned. There was discussion on whether to store them in plastic bags. Cheryl noted the cotton and muslin items were OK. Irene asked Cheryl to make a list of items that were disposed of because if they have already been accessioned we need to remove them.
Historian (Courtney Jason) – Courtney has not gone to the Marshall House yet. She has been researching the Electric Railroad that ran from Haverhill through Plaistow, Newton and Amesbury to Hampton. This was set up by the Hampton Casino. It was part of a larger system called the Northeast Electric System. Zoe Lane was the rail bed during the early 1900s. The tracks ran across Peaslee Crossing down by the puzzle factory. Bill asked if this is something we could do a presentation on. Courtney said since it was part of a larger system, finding information on our segment is not easy. Irene Nally suggested the library has information on this.
Archivist (Lisa Fortin) – No report.
Scanning (Karen O’Malley) – Bill read an update from Mary Marshall on the scanning project:
She and Karen finished taking photos and completing the accession forms for items in the upstairs bedroom and closets. She asked that Cheryl make a list of items disposed of so she can remove the accession forms for them. She noted that plastic bags may not be the best way to store items. The living room, hallway and back entry are the only areas left to be accessioned.
There was discussion on putting them in plastic would be better than leaving them uncovered.
Programs (Sally Woodman) –Underground RR Presentation – The event will be held on Wednesday May 25th at 7:00 PM at the Town Hall. Bill asked for people to arrive at 6PM to setup the room. The presenter Eleanor Strang will not be charging us for the event.
Mary Riordan made a motion to offer Eleanor Strang $50 compensation for her presentation. Cheryl Saunders seconded the motion. The motion passes on a unanimous vote.
Courtney, Cheryl, Irene, Sally and Marilyn volunteered to make refreshments for the event. Kathy will get water and soda. The event will be televised and rebroadcast on the local cable channel.
Sally sent a notice to the Eagle Tribune and the Carriage Town News. Diane put it on Cable Channel 20. Bill sent the notice to Mary Winglass and posted it in the Town Hall, Post Offices, Library, and 108 General Store. Courtney will post it in Acios and the Junction Store. Sally will post it at Rowe’s Corner. Kathy will post it at Duke’s and Northland Mall. Ron will post it at Common Grounds.
New Business:
Historic Resource Section of Newton Master Plan – Ann Miles explained this is the 25th anniversary celebration of historic preservation in NH and that many towns are trying to preserve their history by including it in a chapter of their Master Plan. Our Planning Board would like to have a chapter in our Master Plan. She asked if we would be willing to contribute to the chapter. This would be a way to retain the historical information we’ve gathered in a public document for the future. She mentioned Stratham and Lee have historic chapters in their Master Plan that we can look at as examples. She spoke with someone from the Preservation part of the state who indicated there may be some money available for doing an inventory and categorizing it for the Master Plan. Bill asked
how detailed the information had to be. Ann replied information on homes and businesses in town would be good. She noted that the Merrimac Bank is on the site of the Paint Shop of the Hayford Carriage Company. This is the type of information she’s looking for – anything that tells about the way we used to live. Bill asked what the timing was for this chapter. Ann replied that parts of the Master Plan are reviewed every year with the whole Plan updated approximately every ten years. She does not have a deadline but is looking for some commitment to begin the Chapter. Bill added that he had a copy of the historic chapter from the town of Sutton. He will email the information he has to Courtney. Bill suggested we have Pat Wonson’s binder of homes in town and we’ll know better what we have once we set up the schoolhouse. Bill indicated we will take a look at it.
Other:
Myrtle Rogers Documents – No update from Barb DiBartolomeo.
Thank you card from Gale Library – Theresa Caswell, Director of the Library sent a Thank You note for our donation of the Steve Closs Civil War Book.
Memorial Day Flag Placement – Bill Landry will contact Mary Marshall about again placing flags on Veteran’s graves at the Highland, Town Hall and Currierville Cemeteries.
Correspondence:
None
Other:
Ron Saunders asked for volunteers to move items from the Marshall House to the Schoolhouse. Irene Nally asked if there was going to be “school house” section in the Schoolhouse. Ron and Bill will move the display cases. Ron would like to move items on May 21st. Courtney was the only one available. Mary Riordan suggested identifying what they want to take on the 21st and have the move on another day. Bill said the items we displayed at the Fall Festival were in boxes in the front room of the Marshall House. Ron and Cheryl said they only saw a couple of boxes there. Diane Morin suggested we check the back room of the schoolhouse to see what’s there before moving things from the Marshall House. Bill noted there are some zippered bags and plastic
containers in the back room of the schoolhouse with items. Ron, Cheryl and Courtney will start on May 21st at 9AM at the Schoolhouse.
Mary Riordan asked Irene if Karen had contacted her about binders of accession forms. Mary recalled that Karen was not sure where the items were and whether they had been photographed.
Courtney Jason made a motion to adjourn. Marilyn Landry seconded the motion. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. Bill Landry adjourned the meeting at 8:20 PM.
Next meeting is Monday June 13, 2011, 7:00 PM at the Merrimack Savings Bank.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Riordan
Mary Riordan, Secretary
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