Executive Board Meeting / Marlow Historical Society / Thursday, March 4, 2010 / Chapel

Maria Baril, Mary Blank, Gen Ells, Loisanne Foster, and Pam Little were present.

The Secretary’s Report was read and accepted as read. Mary answered our question tabled from the February meeting. Our PSNH electrical bill is entirely for Murray Hall and does not involve the Chapel. The small amount of electricity used at the Chapel is covered in the rent. February’s report was accepted. The current Treasurer’s Report was accepted as presented as well.

Old Business:

Our April program with be Eric Bye on “American Popular Music of the 19th Century,” at 7:00, Friday, April 9 at Jones Hall. Mary will make posters. Loisanne will take care of newspaper publicity. For refreshments, we will each bring finger food.

Loisanne will arrange with Phyllis Peterson of Perkins School for our spring historical tour for the children in grades 4 - 6.

New Business:

The tentative date for the 2010 Monadnock Music Concert is July 9th. We will endeavor to hold our annual fund-raising MMC Dinner. Monadnock Music is requesting additional fund raising this year. In addition to the $600.00 we raise, MM is requesting that we find a donor to match the funds which are collected in the donation jar kept at ticket sales.
Pam will ask if her law firm will match it.

We discussed having a new fence along the pond to replace the disintegrating one. We believe it should resemble the old one and be sturdy enough to last. The fence is 225 feet long with fourteen 116 foot sections. Each picket is 1 1/2 inches square. The back posts which hold the fence are placed at every five or six feet behind it and are 4 x 4 inches. A galvanized pipe comes into each 4 x 4. The item is so large an expenditure that it cannot come out of the regular maintenance budget, but requires a warrant article. Mary has collected estimates from several firms and has talked to the Selectmen about the project. The Selectmen did not want an warrant article for it and asked for more estimates. The estimates so far range from $6,900 for white pine and 8,965.00 for Douglas fir from Cheshire Fence to $19,175.00 for white cedar from Monadnock Fence. Tony Davis has suggested that to save money, we might use brackets instead of encased pipes for support. We discussed whether to wait another year and try for a warrant article or raise the funds. Maria asked if we could do half of it this year and half later. The issue was tabled.

We decided not to sell snacks and lunch at the Town Meeting this year. The concession is much of work for many people and the profits are small. Since the situation is so unpredictable, there is no way to plan adequately.

Mary reported on the HSCC Round Table that she and Maria had attended. The Round Table is a sharing of activities and projects by Cheshire County historical societies. Chesterfield is working to preserve the old arched bridge (1937) over the Connecticut River. Dave Allen of Chesterfield is working to preserve old maps. In Nelson the historical society is pouring over old obituaries and gathering information of past residents. They are planning to revise the script of the play, “Hotel Nelson.” In Marlboro, Steven Blunt will be doing a program, “Songs and Stories of the Hutchinson Family Singers” and in the school, they will be placing six 2 x 4 panels depicting Marlboro town history. Alstead has been given thousands of slides, over a hundred of which are of Marlow. They need to sort, categorize, and catalog these. Jaffrey is using Lexan to make unbreakable storm windows for its historical society building. Harrisville is creating a data base for historic buildings in six districts. The Colony Museum is displaying miniatures and doll houses. Sullivan is attending two seminars, “NHHS Collection Policy” (Concord) and Disaster Planning (Laconia). Stoddard will be learning about “Conscientious Objectors Camp,” and Fan Tchunpi, Chinese artist and picnicking at Shin Bone Shack. Troy will be learning about WW II submariners and planning Finnish Fun weekend. Fitzwilliam will be exhibiting dollhouses and miniatures. Swanzey is planning Old Home Days. Winchester is sponsoring surveying with middle school students. Friends of Pisgah State Park are sponsoring story circles in their barn.

The Historical Society of Cheshire County’s winter/spring exhibit is “The Nursery of Liberty: Schools and Education in the Monadnock Region. It’s on exhibit through July 2 during regular museum hours. It will also take over “The Way we Were” feature of the Keene Sentinel. Each historical society should submit two articles and photos to Tom Haynes at the Society to be used throughout the year.

Respectfully submitted,
Loisanne Foster