Minutes of the Princeton Historical Commission
August 16, 2012
Town Hall Annex, 7 PM
Attendees: Joyce Anderson, Sheila Dubman, Alex Fiandaca, Joe Lee, Matt Lindberg and Mickey Splaine.
Members approved minutes from June 21, 2012 with one correction: Rotando
20 Allen Hill Road
Charlie and Charlotte Steele sent a letter in July thanking the Commission for supporting their plan to build a garage on their property. They also indicated that they would be seeking a variance soon. The issue has not appeared in the zoning variance schedule and Sheila has not heard from the Steeles since receiving the letter.
Four Corners
Anne Forbes has submitted a draft of the Four Corners nomination and Joyce will send it to members for comment via email.
Schoolhouse at 96 Ball Hill Road
Joe confirmed that the schoolhouse is still standing. There has been no news regarding the owner’s plan to demolition it.
Redemption Rock Historic Marker
Mickey spoke with Phyllis regarding the Redemption Rock marker which is being restored by students atWorcester Technical High School. An article should appear in this week’s Landmark.
Entering Princeton
Mickey will obtain stickers to correct the inconsistent dates on the Town’s road signs. At the last meeting, members settled on the date in which Princeton became a district and so the stickers will indicate “Est. 1759”
Meetinghouse Cemetery Conservation Project
Sheila spoke with John Lebeaux who sent a letter today to Sheriff Evangelidis, requesting inmate help for Meetinghouse Cemetery. Alex will confirm Ta Mara’s availability for the proposed dates of Monday, Sept 24 and Tuesday, Sept 25. Alex discussed the possibility of moving the Bagg gravestones to Woodlawn Cemetery with the Cemetery Commission as part of the inmate worksession. Alex will discuss the feasibility of this with Ta Mara and will follow-up with the Cemetery Commission.
Joyce reported two gravestones in South Cemetery appear to be broken or partially uprooted. Mickey suggested that the Cemetery Commission review the UTAC report for a list of the Town’s available space. Alex will relay both items to the Cemetery Commission.
Mechanics Hall
Alex inquired about remaining copies of Princeton, A History of Its Villages and if the book could be sold at upcoming events for the Friends of Mechanics Hall (with proceeds going to the PHC). The only remaining copies are in the library basement in their display box. Members agreed to having the book (which captures Mechanics Hall) available for sale at Friends of MH events
Historic Documents
A collection of old documents appeared in the Commission’s mailbox, presumably from the Lancaster Assessor’s office. The collection includes transcriptions of probate records dating to 1804, personal histories, a program from a July 4th, 1944 service and a program from the East Princeton Chapel which contains an extensive history of the building’s origins. Members agreed to have Alex review the documents which should ultimately be given to the Historical Society.
Alex is also in the process of reviewing old tax records received from Bonnie Schmohl. Some are very old tax records that should be given to the Historical Society once reviewed. Most of the records date to the 1950s.
Everettville
Sheila is awaiting an estimate from Anne Forbes for preparing a nomination for Everettville. Everettville was deemed eligible for National Register listing by MHC.
House Plaques
Sheila reported that the profit from the house plaque program, which began in 2006, is $689. Harvey Schmidt, whom the Commission contracted for the second phase of the program (in 2008) has retired. The Commission has continued to accommodate plaque requests, though there have been very few in the last few years. Members discussed at length whether or not to continue the house plaque program, whether or not to raise the price and/or base the price on the amount of research involved, how to minimize the Commission’s role in the research aspect, how accurate the dates should be and how aggressively the Commission should advertise the program going forward. The Commission strives to establish a house’s date within a year or two, which requires an extensive amount of time and effort. The only decision
made by the Commission at this time was to bring any new plaque requests to the group for discussion before committing to the order. The only pending plaque request at this time is that of 34 Goodnow Road which Alex offered to start researching in the fall.
Next Meeting:
Thursday, September 20th, 7 PM in the Annex
Respectfully submitted,
Alex Fiandaca
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