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Abbott Museum Opens
Dexter- The Abbott Museum opened on August 23, 2005, nearly three years after the former Abbott Mill office building was acquired by the Society from Interface Fabrics Group of Guilford. Much hard work by Society members, contractors, local volunteers and the Home Building Class at the Tri-County Technical Center made the opening possible. The rooms on the top floor that were ready included; the Doyon Room (Gift Shop), the Wells Room (Information Room), the handicapped public restroom, the Holsapple Genealogy Room, the Crawford Conference Room and a break room. The Society had been holding meetings at the new building since April 2004 and the goal of the Society was to open the building to the public by the summer of 2004. At this writing the Steller Room (Office) has also been completed and the Lancaster Room (Reading & Research Room) is nearly completed. The Dexter Historical Society is maintaining the building with volunteers and was open daily through January 1st. Winter hours are now 12:00 – 4:00 Wednesday – Friday and 10:00 – 4:00 Saturdays until spring, when the building will be back to full days Monday – Saturday and afternoons Sunday.
The Museum Gift Shop features a wide variety of Maine made gifts including many by local artisans. The shop also includes Dexter Historical Society items including; published books, the 2005 historical calendar, the newly revamped Dexter Afghan, the 1878 Bird's Eye View, and a limited number of 2001 Bi-Centennial Dexter tokens. The shop also includes a nice line of Maine made cards that can be used for all occasions, balsam pillows, post cards, Maine Mountain candles and soaps, tole painted items, baskets, sea glass jewelry, birch products, embroidered products, knitted items, stained glass and a host of other Maine made products by over twenty consignors. Stop in for a visit and browse the shop. The gift shop also has a corner dedicated to Dexter's French-Canadian population, which will be a permanent exhibit that will rotate items periodically. The genealogy room is in full swing and available during our open hours for research. For more information please call 924-5721.
Grist Mill Museum Completes Successful Season
Dexter – The Grist Mill Museum completed its thirty-seventh season on October 2, 2004, with 1529 registered visitors. The museum opened June 14th and was open Monday – Friday 10:00 – 4:00 and Saturdays 1:00 – 4:00 through Labor Day and 1:00 – 4:00 PM Monday-Saturday during September. A new display featuring Small's Grist Mill was installed for the season to commemorate the 150th birthday of the grist mill building. Helen Wilkins, the last miller to run the grist mill with her husband Clair, was honored during Wild West Weekend with an honorary lifetime membership to the Society and a cake was cut for the occasion. New acquisitions were also featured throughout the summer in a special display case and the parlor and bedroom displays were redesigned.
Museum sales amounted to $1,437. 74 and the donation box brought in $626.72. The museum was open for extended hours over the Wild West Weekend with over five hundred visitors over the two days. Amanda Pullen, the museum intern for the summer, helped with displays, cleaning and staffing the museum. She is a sophomore at the University of Maine at Farmington and is a Dexter High School graduate and the daughter of Judy and Mark Pullen of Dexter. Amanda received a scholarship from the historical society for her help over the summer and the Society looks forward to having her back next year. The museum will be opening again in mid-June 2005 and although a date has not been officially fixed it will probably be around June 13th.
Acquisitions and Queries
We acquired 111 collections in 2004. Anything donated by one person is called a collection, some collections are only one item, some have many items. One of the largest collections had many photos and other items from the Puffer/Thurston/Burton family that belonged to Gertrude Burton Field, donated by her son Walter.
Photos of things we only knew about but have never seen are a real treat. A photo of Zibba Howard Jose (1808-1896) was placed in the Millers House to watch over a set of dishes that belonged to her that have been on display there for some time. A photo of the sawmill at North Dexter was a welcome addition as well as a set of negatives of the welcome home celebration in 1919 for the WW I veterans. We had other photos of this event, but these were all new views.
Some items require research, such as a pair of wooden skis marked NH Fay. Fortunately Rick mentioned them at the Alumni banquet and Ron Lancaster, member of a short lived ski team (1951) was there to identify them.
The favorite nostalgia item, on display during Wild West Days, was the scales from Ben Franklin, used to weigh peanuts and candy.
We also answered 77 recorded queries, many are answered more informally, especially by Rick. We assisted several authors of upcoming books and many high school and college students with class projects. Many queries, by email or in person, concern genealogy and often we receive as much information as we give. We learned about siblings of Walter Scott, co-founder of Fay & Scott, and about a house that belonged to Paschal Abbott, one of the five Abbott brothers who came to Dexter, after he returned to Andover, MA. Descendants of the Sturtevant family and of the Dustin family (including a dog named Dexter) came to visit and learn.
Dexter Historical Society Receives $10,000 Grant
Dexter – The Dexter Historical Society has received a $10,000 grant from the Cultural Affairs Council of Maine for construction of a fire-proof and climate controlled room at the Abbott Museum building. The 25' by 7' room will be used to house the Society's archive, such as: photographs, town records, scrapbooks, and business, organizational and personal collections. The steel studded and sheet rocked room will have a two hour fire rating and the temperature and humidity will be controlled year round. The Cultural Affairs Council contacted the Dexter Historical Society last fall and toured the facilities. Dexter was one of three communities the Council was looking at to award a total of $100,000. Wayside Theatre in North Dexter also received money from this grant. The room is presently under construction and should be completed in the near future.
Abbott Museum Individual Donor Program
Work continues on the Abbott Museum building as the Society works on completing the lower level for museum display. The worked needed will probably run another $20, 000 to finish the nine rooms downstairs.
To date the Society has raised nearly $110,000 towards the building project with expenditure exceeding $101,000 in three years. The Society has donor plaques mounted in the Doyon Room at the museum listing individual donors that have made contributions to the building, with some being in memory of loved ones. The Society offers four levels of giving for individual donors, businesses and organizations, which are; $1,000., $500., $250., and $100. If you are interested in making a donation or a memorial gift please contact the museum at 924-5721 or you can make your tax-deductible donation to The Dexter Historical Society, P.O. Box 481, Dexter, Maine 04930.
Director's Message
The last year has been a very busy one for the Dexter Historical Society and the museums, especially with the readying of the Abbott Museum building. The next year also promises to by very busy with work continuing on the lower level of the Abbott Museum and creation of exhibits in the Abbott Museum and Grist Mill Museum. It has been about a year and a half since the Society's last fund drive and additional expenses have been incurred in maintaining the Dexter Historical Society. The addition of the Abbott Museum has created another fuel bill and thus far the Society has been able to keep on top of the expenses. However, continued help from your financial support through memberships and donations is greatly appreciated. The fund drive is one of our major fundraisers during the year that helps to fund the museum services, fuel, utilities, cleaning supplies, scholarships for the summer intern and a graduating senior, office supplies, mailing, etc., and the list goes on. If you are able to help, your support will be very much appreciated. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Richard Whitney
Director
Dexter Historical Society Seeking Grant Help
Dexter – The Dexter Historical Society is looking for help in searching for grants for completion of the Abbott Museum building and for seed funding for a full-time position at the Society's museums.
The Society would be interested in applying to the Charles D. and Catherine T. McArthur Foundation in Chicago for a fellowship grant to fund a full-time position at the Society. The McArthur Foundation offers this program, but an individual has to be nominated by a nominator affiliated with the McArthur Foundation; application cannot be made directly to them. The nominators change every several months and are not known publicly. If anyone out there knows of this program and could help, the Society is ready and in need of this assistance.
The Society also needs some help to finish the Abbott Museum. Funds are needed for physical improvements and construction to finish the museum display space on the lower level. If anyone knows of any foundation or grant program that can be applied to please let us know. Thank you!
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