NEWTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Minutes of December 10, 2012
Merrimac Savings Bank
Members present: |
Bill Landry |
Mary Riordan |
Karen O’Malley |
Ron Saunders 7:07PM |
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Diane Morin |
John Meserve |
Kathy Meserve |
Barb DiBartolomeo 7:07PM |
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Jacki Manock (New Member) |
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Bill Landry called the meeting to order at 7:03 PM.
Secretary’s Report – Mary Riordan
John Meserve made a motion to accept the minutes of November 8, 2012. Diane Morin seconded the motion. The motion passed 6 yeas, 1 abstention.
Treasurer’s Report – Bill Landry
The Checking income was from Festival tickets. Expenses were for annual Postal Box rental, Electric bill, archiving supplies and Preservation Workshop Courtney Jason attended. The Money Market income was from interest. Expenses were annual Schoolhouse insurance and tree lighting supplies. Kathy Meserve made a motion to accept the Treasurers’ Reports. Karen O’Malley seconded the motion. The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Old Business:
Curtains without Borders:
Bill Landry reported he went before the Board of Selectmen about turning over ownership to the Historical Society. The Board agreed to transfer ownership of the curtains to the Society. Bill received a Notice of Property Conveyance from the Board. Bill met with Chris Hadsell reviewed the information we have for the grant. We will be applying for a grant of $7,000. Chris thinks we have a good chance to get the grant because there are only 2 towns applying for a grant and we have a lot on information on our curtains. Bill will be working on the grant this winter. We will know in April 2013 if we get the grant. Bill will get an estimate from Nick Giorgio to paint the trim around the stage in the Town Hall to add to the grant application. Ron Saunders will check with someone in the Grange on
the status of their curtain. There was discussion on the two lions on our curtain and their connection to Amesbury. Jacki Manock offered to take a picture of the lions at Woodson’s farm in Amesbury.
Repair to Schoolhouse roof:
Bill Landry reported Rob Hayes donated his time to repair the roof. Kathy Meserve made a motion to give a $50 gift card to Rob for his work. Barb DiBartolomeo seconded the motion. The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Christmas Tree lighting ceremony:
Ron Saunders reported the tree lighting was a success. Twenty-one kids went in to see Santa. Ron suggested next we shorten the time next year. Some people came early, saw Santa and left before the tree was lit. Diane Morin suggested asking people to bring a non-perishable food for the food pantry. The CD would not work in the cold. Jacki suggested having more elves next year and getting the kid’s names to Santa.
Put VCR tapes on DVD’s (~15): Diane Morin reported she is copying the VCR tapes to DVD.
New Business:
Ann Miles artifacts donation: Bill Landry reported Ann Miles brought him 3 pictures of Hayford Carriages and a note to the bank from Ella and John Hayford in 1894 directing the bank to make a payment to the bearer that she thought John Meserve would be interested in them. John Meserve took the pictures and note to display in the bank.
Donation to NH Humanities Council: Sally Woodman gave Bill a letter from the New Hampshire Humanities Council asking for a donation. The council provides grants for the presentations we’ve had. John Meserve made a motion to donate $100 to the New Hampshire Humanities Council. Kathy Meserve seconded the motion. The motion passed on a unanimous vote.
Election of 2013 Officers: The slate of officers nominated for 2013:
President – Bill Landry, Vice President – Kathy Meserve, Secretary – Mary Riordan, Treasurer – Bill Landry. John Meserve made a motion authorizing the Secretary to cast one vote for the slate of officers. Diane Morin seconded the motion. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. Secretary Mary Riordan cast one vote in favor of the slate of officers.
Other:
Reports of Curators & Committee Chairpersons:
Curators: Ron Saunders found a pair of jack stands for the carriages costs $35. We need 6 pair, 2 pair for each of the 3 carriages. Ron indicated we need 24” jack stands. Mary Riordan offered to check Harbor Freight Tools in Danvers.
Historian: Courtney Jason sent Bill Landry an update. She took clothes from the case because they need more work than she originally thought. She attended the Preservation Workshop in Concord and received lots of useful information from it.
Archivist: Karen O’Malley asked about the lantern bracket Ann Miles had given Bill. We can’t mount the lantern on the bracket so Bill will check with Ann on what to do with it.
Karen went through the pictures and documents that Bill Ingalls had donated. There were pictures of Haverhill, MA in the donation. Ron Saunders will return those pictures to Bill Ingalls. Karen will put the rest of the pictures in binders. She would like to ask Bill Ingalls if he knows the name of the people in the pictures. There was a driver’s license and document from Chigstron Farm/Lumberyard
The accessioning of Tables 2 & 3 has been completed. Jacki Manock offered to help Karen and Barb with the archiving next year.
Programs: Diane Morin reported the Two Old Friends presentation in the Spring and the Lizzie Borden presentation in the Fall are scheduled. The presenter of the Covered Bridge presentation in the Summer hasn’t gotten back with to them with dates. They will look for another presentation topic for the Summer. Jackee Manock suggested sending out postcards with information on the 3 presentations to our mailing list. She offered to help with the mailing. Karen O’Malley suggested timing our presentations with the schools.
Correspondence: Bill Landry received a Thank You note from Welfare Agent Tina O’Rourke for our donation to the Newton Food Pantry.
Next Meeting: Monday April 8, 2013, 7:00 PM at the Merrimac Savings Bank.
Ron Saunders made a motion to adjourn. Diane Morin seconded the motion. The motion passed on a unanimous vote. Bill Landry adjourned the meeting at 8:10PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Riordan, Secretary
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