Combined Board Meeting and General Meeting Marlow Historical Society June 19, 2008, Chapel

These people were present for the barbecue and meeting: Al and Mary Blank, Gen Ells, Loisanne Foster, Johanna Kent, Pam Little, Emile Piterak, Richard Rock, John and Sandra Salo, Art and Susan Schmid, Richard Rock, and Candy Wiggum.

Loisanne gave the Secretary's Report which was accepted as amended. Mary gave the Treasurer's Report as a handout which was discussed and accepted as read. We have $1,828.43 in our account with a little over $800.00 of this dedicated to specific sub-accounts such as Quilt Preservation, Murray Hall account, Liberty Elm Project, and Hearse House.

Information:

The Cemetery Trustees have selected John Clegg to repair and preserve the gravestones in the Village Cemetery. Work will begin this year.

Old Business:

Small Projects Nearing Completion: The Town Pound sign, the Murray Hall sign, and the bench for The Quiet Place will be completed this month.

The Hearse House: 

Edward White has been engaged to paint the Hearse House. Art has purchased the proper paint which has the property of flexibility useful for older buildings and which he is donating. Research is being done as to the proper hinges for the house. When that is determined, we will purchase new door hinges.

MHS Directorship and Adam Plum:

Presumably he will be going away to school this year. Susan suggested that we ask him if he would like to continue as an honorary member. We agreed.

Elm Trees in Pots:

The trees are still in good condition and have been watered. Mary will arrange with the Highway Department to plant them.

Jones Hall Painting: 

Mark Lanier says that the Selectmen plan to get the discussed lead analysis and then send the paint job out for bid again.

Burnap House:

We are still negotiating with Audio Accessories about saving the Burnap House on Mill Street. Audio Accessories had offered to give us the building if we moved it and the Aldrich house as well to the Pockett property which would then be donated to us by Pat Gallup. After studying the feasibility of the AA proposal, we found that it would not be possible to accept this offer. The costs of moving both buildings in addition to constructing new foundations and additional restoration and heating systems and such would be out of reach. Whether either building would survive the move is also in question, and the Pockett property could not legally accommodate the two buildings.

We have contacted Audio Accessories stating the above and reiterating our desire to preserve the Burnap building in place. We suggested that Pat Gallop could donate the Pockett property and the Aldrich house to Audio Accessories. In exchange, for the Aldrich house and property for locating it, AA could donate the Burnap house to MHS.

A reason that AA gave for wishing the Burnap House to be moved was that it is seen by them as a liability. We have assured them that MHS would be a good neighbor and restore the appearance of the house. We have assured them that we have a good track record for restoration with Jones Hall and Murray Hall as examples.

We had a brainstorming session as to what else we could offer or suggest. Since we are not interested in the Aldrich house, Candy suggested that we might ask that, if the Aldrich house were donated to MHS, we might sell it to whomever might move it away and use the proceeds for restoration of the Burnap house. We did not move on this suggestion. As to the Burnap house, Candy suggested that we provide Audio Accessories with guarantees such as we will not sell it without giving AA first right of refusal. She also suggested that we ask AA what guarantees they would like us to make in order for them to donate the Burnap house to MHS in its present location. We informally agreed to these suggestions, and Pam Little will write at letter to that effect to Audio Accessories.

Further thoughts on the Burnap House:

Although we have written and published an article about the historical importance of the Burnap house, perhaps further research may be done in this area and a more in-depth article produced to better convince Audio Accessories of its meaningfulness to the town.

1886 Album Quilt Conservation:

Loisanne reported that Kathy Harvey of Swanzey will have our album quilt ready for us by Monday, June 20 at the Moses Quilt House.

New Business:

The Monadnock Music Concert and MHS Dinner will take place on Friday, August 1 this year. Mary has received permission from Pat Gallup for our use of The Christmas Trees Inn. Maria Baril is the chairperson for this event. Mary and Maria will meet soon to review plans.

Dublin Archives:

Last month Mary visited the archives of the Dublin Historical Society to learn more about preservation of historical material and data. There she learned that Dublin Historical Society keeps files on its current citizens. They do this by making copies of newspaper clippings, articles, and documents on archival paper. Future historians will find this a gold mine. We agreed that this is a wonderful idea. Perhaps a volunteer will come forward to initiate this project.

Light on Adam Plumb's American Flag on the Marlow Profile:

We are proud of Adam and his successful Eagle Scout Project, providing a well-marked trail to the Marlow Profile. Art Schmid raised the question of light for the flag at night, suggesting that we might provide a solar cell for this purpose. He is going to look into the feasibility of this.

Museum Docents:

Loisanne will serve at the museum from 9:30 - noon on July 20, and Candy will serve on August 17,

Our next meeting will be on Thursday, July 10, 2008 at 6:30 at the Chapel.

Respectfully submitted,
Loisanne Foster

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