Those who read the online version of my Locke’s Mills column have already heard this sad news, but for readers who only see it in print, I’ll repeat it here.
This week’s print edition of the Bethel Citizen, dated Dec. 12, will be the last issue to include local columns from town correspondents.
As we were informed in an email from the lead editor of the Western Maine weekly papers, as the publishers face changes in the industry, they are trimming freelance budgets, and will, for the most part, no longer be accepting freelance writing.
To say that I was dismayed by this news would be an understatement. I believe that for many readers, the local columns are the heart and soul of the local paper, and even more so in a time when much of what we find in print is aggregated content that does little to establish a newspaper’s unique voice.
When I told my son, Will, the executive director of the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society, about the upcoming change, he pointed out another important reason to mourn the loss of town columns: because the local weekly papers have featured town columns for more than 100 years, they have become a valuable source of information for researchers.
Chris Dunham, writing on the “Greenwood as It Was” Facebook page, said that as a historian, he agreed, and offered as an example an excerpt from a 1916 Greenwood City column in the Bethel Citizen that described more than a dozen “changes in residence that have occurred here during the past few months.”
“Some of these moves involved the signing of deeds duly recorded,” Chris wrote, “but others did not and would be lost to history if not for the efforts of one diligent correspondent.”
Knowing that I have been writing this column weekly and posting it to my Substack (an online platform that functions as a personal website and also allows writers to send newsletters or articles directly to subscribers’ email) since last spring, Will suggested that I contact the other current town columnists to see if they would be interested in continuing to write their columns, which could be posted to a Substack as a project of the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society.
The response from both columnists and readers has been very positive, and we are excited to say that “Western Maine Neighborhood News” is up and running, and set to begin publishing town columns next week!
I hope you’ll support this new effort of ours! You’ll find us online at wmnn.org, where you can read the first post now to learn more about the long history of town news columns—and their value to historians and genealogical researchers. Scroll to the bottom of the post to the “Subscribe” button and click to sign up for either a free (every other column) or paid (every column) subscription, to be delivered right to your email inbox. While you may not be able to hold this “newspaper” in your hands, or use it to start a fire or line a birdcage, you’ll still have access to all the news, events, and personal musings provided by your local town correspondents.
On Saturday morning, I stopped in at the open house that was held at the Toe-Tappin’ Jazz Dance Studio in Bethel in celebration of Bellmont “Bunker” House’s 95th birthday. I could only stay for a few minutes, but it was great to catch up with Bunk, and to see how many friends and family had come out to celebrate him. Bunk’s last “big birthday,” when he turned 90 in 2020, came in the middle of the pandemic, and was celebrated with a ride through Bryant Pond village in a horse-drawn wagon, past well-wishers gathered along the route.
For his 95th, I was glad to be one of many who were able to gather indoors and give him a birthday hug! Back in 1989, when Tony and I got married, Bunk was a justice of the peace and performed the ceremony, which makes him very special to us. He tells me that ours was the last marriage ceremony he ever performed, which I hope makes us special to him, too.
Early December seems to have been prime time for holiday events, with the calendar easing up a bit as we get closer to the actual holidays. Here are the events still upcoming that I’ve been told about:
Friday, Dec. 12, from 4-8 p.m.; Saturday, Dec. 13, from 8 a.m.-8 p.m.; Sunday, Dec. 14, from 8 a.m.-noon at Jackson-Silver American Legion Post #68, 595 Gore Road in Locke’s Mills: Oxford County Shriners FEZtival of Trees. This popular annual event is fun for the whole family, with a children’s activity area and story time with Santa and Mrs. Claus on Saturday, starting at 9 a.m. Winners of the decorated trees will be drawn after the end of the event on Sunday at noon.
Friday, Dec. 19, from 4-6 p.m.: Greenwood Farmers’ Market and Holiday Wonderland at the old Town Hall on Main Street in Locke’s Mills. Shop for all your favorite local goods, including maple syrup, granola, eggs, delicious baked goods, fresh greens, and Icelandic wool yarn, then go “free-shopping” for donated holiday décor to round out your seasonal decorating. Donations for the Bethel Food Pantry will be collected at both December markets.
Saturday, Dec. 20, from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Jackson-Silver Post #68, 595 Gore Road in Locke’s Mills: Legion Cookie Walk. Purchase a festive holiday cookie box for $8, then fill it to the brim with homemade cookies for a perfect last-minute gift.
Tuesdays from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Whitman Library in Bryant Pond: The Village Makers meet, year-round, to enjoy crafting and community. Organizer Liz Hatch calls herself “an obsessed knitter,” but crafters of all kinds are welcome.
The Museums of the Bethel Historical Society’s Christmas at the Mason House event, held last Saturday, was a great success, as was the open house and bake sale held next door in the Robinson House. The Museum Shop was busy all afternoon, and baked goods were flying out the door. In case you haven’t finished your holiday shopping (I’ve barely started mine), the Museum Shop is open Thursday, Friday, and Saturday afternoons from noon until 3 p.m. until Christmas. Although we won’t have homemade pies, bread, and cookies for sale as we did on Saturday, you’ll find plenty of unique gift ideas for everyone on your list.
I’ve been so busy baking, cleaning, and otherwise preparing for Saturday’s event that I haven’t had time for a hike in over a week, and have had to settle for a lot of time on the exercise bike after dark. I did get some outside exercise for more practical purposes a few times, though. The day before the first snow, I finally finished cleaning up the big pile of leaves that had accumulated next to the side door at the Robinson House. Then it was a return to the “snow gym” on Monday and Wednesday mornings, clearing the walks at the library and historical society, which is great aerobic exercise and a good upper-body workout.
Speaking of workouts, this Sunday, Dec. 14, will mark my 5000th consecutive day of at least 30 minutes of exercise. (Note: I got the date wrong in the print edition—it’s Sunday, not Saturday, that will be Day 5000!) I can hardly believe that the little six-week exercise streak I started in April of 2012 is still going, and now approaching 14 years! I’ve managed to keep it going through a few mild colds, a moderate bout with Covid, and two knee replacements, and I credit my obsession with daily exercise for my quick recoveries from both surgeries.
On that note, I think I’m going to head out for a hike right now, my first of the year with Microspikes. I’m optimistically assuming that some other kind souls will have already packed down the trails in the Buck’s Ledge Community Forest on snowshoes for me, as I think I need to give my new knee a few more weeks before I can snowshoe.
Don’t forget to go to wmnn.org and sign up to receive the town columns by email! If you have news or events you’d like included in the online newsletter, email them to me at amy.w.chapman@gmail.com or call 207-890-4812. As a bonus, we’ll be able to include photos with our online columns, so if you have a poster for an event, or a fun local photo, send it along by email. Here are the email addresses for the other town correspondents: Andover, Diana Nadeau: diananadeau@ymail.com; Bethel, Linda Howe: lhowe7273@gmail.com; Newry, Amy Henley: newrynews24@gmail.com; Woodstock, Linda Stowell: lstowell@roadrunner.com. Also, I believe Wally Ritz will be writing a column for East Bethel on the new platform, and her email is: heinrichcracker@gmail.com.
“The last time always seems sad, but it isn’t really. The end of one thing is only the beginning of another.” – Laura Ingalls Wilder, These Happy Golden Years
That 5000 consecutive days of exercising is aspirational. I think I will start today!