by Mary Grow Vassalboro Planning Board members discussed two proposed projects at their Sept. 5 meeting, but lacked information to act on either one. They had an incomplete application from Ronald Weeks to add what the agenda called “an Amish building” on a lot on Dam Road, on the southeast side of Webber Pond. Weeks […]
by Mary Grow Early days Families who settled the central Kennebec Valley in the 1700s were, of necessity, farmers: one of the first actions was to clear enough land to raise food crops, for both people and livestock. Alice Hammond wrote in her history of Sidney, “In the late 18th century, almost every Sidney home […]
by Mary Grow Before the Aug. 29 Vassalboro school board meeting, Steven Bailey, executive director of the Maine School Management Association (MSMA), led a workshop on board members’ responsibilities, including reminders of what they should not do. Although school board members are elected by town voters, their roles and responsibilities are defined by state law, […]
by Mary Grow Vassalboro School Board members began their fall/winter meetings on Aug. 29 with the usual updates on summer improvements; approval of new staff and other appointments for the coming school year; and financial report. Superintendent Alan Pfeiffer summarized the work done on the exterior of Vassalboro Community School (VCS) by Standard Waterproofing, of […]
by Mary Grow Two musical Hallowell families In the course of reading about the history of music in the central Kennebec Valley, specifically George Thornton Edwards’ 1928 Music and Musicians of Maine, your writer came across two intertwined musical families who lived in Hallowell, before and after Augusta became a separate town in 1897. Both […]
by Mary Grow At their Aug. 28 meeting, China select board members, in their capacity as assessors, set the town’s 2023-24 tax rate: 12.26 mils, or $12.26 for each $1,000 of valuation. The current rate is 12.05 mils, or $12.05 per $1,000, Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood said. Kelly Grotton, assistant to the assessor’s agent, said […]
by Mary Grow R. B. Hall Band & Cecilia Club Kennebec County historian Henry Kingsbury provided a minor exception to the general lack of interest in music in local histories when he included a section headed “MUSIC” in his history of Waterville and wrote two whole paragraphs. The first was about “the earliest instrumental or […]
by Mary Grow At their Aug. 17 meeting, Vassalboro select board members set the 2023-24 tax rate, discussed pending changes and distributed a bit of praise. The new tax rate will be 12.72 mils, or $12.72 for each $1,000 of property valuation. The figure is slightly below the range assessor Ellery Bane recommended, and will […]
by Mary Grow The story of Ebenezer Farwell Maine, including to some extent small inland towns like Vassalboro, was more heavily involved in the international slave trade than many residents realize, both before and after slave-trading was made illegal in the United States in 1808. Dr. Kate McMahon, Museum Specialist at the Center for the […]
by Mary Grow China’s municipal elections for members of the select board, planning board and budget committee will be held Tuesday, Nov. 7. Nomination papers are now available at the town office; Friday, Sept. 8, is the deadline for returning signed papers to be on the local ballot. Select board members are elected from the […]