China’s garden project aims to unite the community

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Hsiang shows off some of the parsnips grown this past summer. (contributed photo)

by Eric W. Austin

In an era where community spirit is more important than ever, China’s new garden project aims to bring people together by fostering a sense of connection and collaboration through a shared love of gardening.

Organizer Jim Hsiang, begins assembly of the raised beds. (contributed photo)

Managed by the China for a Lifetime committee, and advised by Jim and Jude Hsiang, this initiative builds on their successful experience with similar projects in Connecticut to ensure its success here. The garden will be centrally located on the south side of the Town Office, by the Red Barn, making it accessible and convenient to all community members.

The project will feature 36 garden beds available for rent, providing ample space for participants to cultivate their own plants. Any surplus produce will be donated to the China Community Food Pantry, further benefiting those in need. Additionally, a spring workshop will introduce participants to the basics of gardening, equipping them with the knowledge to make the most of their plots. A nominal fee of $25/year, or $15/year for seniors, will be required to participate.

While the project has received several generous donations already, they still need to raise about $1,500 from local businesses and individuals to fully fund the effort before spring. Volunteers are also essential for building the fenced-in area, constructing a storage shed, and preparing the garden beds.

James Hsiang and Tom Michaud will be putting the garden beds together on Saturday, February 8, and they could use additional volunteers to help with the effort.

Those interested in signing up for a garden plot or seeking more information should contact the committee by email at ChinaForALifetime@gmail.com. Follow “China Community Garden Project” on Facebook for future updates and announcements.

Community members can also support the project by donating recyclables (bottles and cans) designated for the garden project at China Variety and Redemption in China Village on Rt. 202 just north of the lake.

The Garden Committee is excited to see our community come together through this initiative and looks forward to the growth and connections it will inspire. Join us in bringing this vision to life!

Up and Down the Kennebec Valley: China high schools – part 2

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Erskine Academy

by Mary Grow

Note: part of this article, like part of last week’s, was first written in September 2021.

Yet another private high school in China, Erskine Academy, opened in September 1883 and is thriving today. The China bicentennial history gives a detailed account of its origins: it became a private academy because China voters at the beginning of the 1880s refused to accept donated money for a public high school.

As the history tells the story, Mary Erskine inherited her husband Sullivan’s considerable wealth when he died in 1880. She consulted John K. Erskine, Sullivan’s nephew and executor, about ways to use the money. (The history says she had no children; on-line sources say Mary and Sullivan had a son, born in 1832 – perhaps died or estranged by 1880? – and a daughter, by 1880 married with three children.)

John Erskine, who regretted his own lack of educational opportunity, suggested endowing a high school in the Chadwick Hill school district, south of South China Village. Mary Erskine agreed, and at a Nov. 13, 1880, special town meeting, voters accepted a $1,500 trust fund for a free high school.

At the annual meeting in March, 1881, voters reversed the decision and told the town treasurer to return the money. In March 1882, school supporters presented an article again offering the $1,500 and “specifying that the town would not pay for providing the school building.” Voters passed over it (did not act).

A month later, a group of supporters asked the Erskines to let them establish a private high school. Mary Erskine approved and helped organize a board of trustees headed by renowned Quaker, Eli Jones.

John K. Erskine was the trustees’ vice-president, Dana C. Hanson secretary and Samuel C. Starrett treasurer. Hanson and Starrett were China selectmen in 1876 and 1877 and again, significantly, in 1881 and 1882.

The trustees “bought the seven-acre Chadwick common from A. F. Trask for $100.” (Wikipedia says the campus is now about 25 acres.) Mary Erskine donated $500 for a building.

Starrett encouraged the owners of a disused Methodist church on the common to sell it at auction. They did, and he bought it for $50.

The trustees had the building moved to the center of the lot and turned into a schoolhouse. “A bell tower and other necessary buildings” were added, and Mary Erskine donated a bell and furnishings in the spring of 1883.

The trustees organized a “tree-planting picnic:” area residents were invited to bring a picnic dinner and a tree. The China history says the grounds gained about 250 trees. A “very happy” Mary Erskine attended Erskine High School’s opening day in September 1883.

Erskine started with two teachers, one also the principal, and “more than 50 students.” The teachers were Colby College graduate, Julia E. Winslow, and Castine Normal School graduate, William J. Thompson.

As Henry Kingsbury finished his Kennebec County history in 1892, he wrote that at “the Erskine School” “under the principalship of William J. Thompson, many young people are receiving a serviceable article of real learning.”

Thompson, Kingsbury said, was born in Knox County and taught in South Thomaston and Searsport before becoming Erskine’s first principal in 1883. The school “has flourished under his management,” Kingsbury wrote.

The China history says in 1885, Carrie E. Hall, from East Madison, succeeded Winslow. In May 1887, Thompson and Hall married; both taught at Erskine until Carrie died “in the spring of 1900.”

Her widower stayed as principal until 1902, and lived until 1949. Find a Grave says both were born in 1860, and both are buried in Chadwick Hill cemetery, near Erskine Academy.

The school initially ran two 11-week terms a year, and in some years “a shorter summer term.” The history lists 16 courses: “reading, grammar, elocution, arithmetic, algebra, history, geography, natural philosophy, bookkeeping, ancient languages (Latin and Greek), botany, geology, astronomy, and anatomy and physiology.”

By 1887, increased enrollment required a third teacher, not named in the China history. The building “was raised ten feet to make room for more classrooms underneath.”

Students from Chadwick Hill and other school districts came and went by the term, not the year. Therefore, the history says, it was not until 1892 “that four students finished four years apiece so that the first formal graduation could be held.”

Trustees had a dormitory for girls built in 1900 and “later” (the history gives no date) one for boys. Students who roomed on campus “brought their own food and fuel from home and prepared their own meals,” the history says.

In 1901 the Maine legislature incorporated the school as Erskine Academy and approved an annual $300 appropriation.

The China history says after 1904, Erskine Academy and China Academy, in China Village (see last week’s article), became China’s town-supported high schools. Town Superintendent Gustavus J. Nelson (1896 and 1897, 1899 to 1901 and 1903 through 1907) came to a financial agreement with the Erskine trustees, and “the trustees accepted Dr. Nelson’s ideas about such matters as curriculum and entrance examinations.”

In the fall of 1904, the history says, “three local students passed the superintendent’s entrance examination, and ten more were admitted conditionally.”

China Academy closed in 1909, leaving Erskine China’s only high school. For reasons the bicentennial history does not explore, Erskine’s enrollment went down so dramatically in early 1913 that the State of Maine downgraded it to a Class B school (two instead of four years, a single teacher instead of two or more).

In the fall of 1913 Erskine had 16 students. The history says enrollment doubled to 32 by February 1914, “and the one teacher was overworked.” The state restored a Class A rating in 1915, and enrollment continued to climb: 46 students in the fall of 1916, 50 in 1919, with a record entering class of 26 and three teachers “for the first time in many years.”

More students needed more space; the history credits relatives of the Erskines, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Ford, from Whitefield, with buying a nearby house and turning it into a boys’ dormitory, named Ford Cottage. Another house became the Erskine Cottage Annex, housing “four girls and a teacher.”

A fire destroyed Erskine’s original school building on Nov. 5, 1926. Fortunately, Ford gymnasium had opened in November 1925; the bicentennial history says classes were held there until a new classroom building was ready in 1936.

The history also says Mary Erskine’s bell was saved from the fire and “mounted on campus.” In the fall of 1971, someone stole it.

Erskine Academy’s website says the school has been a nonprofit organization since 1974. It explains that tuition paid by the eight towns from which most of its students come does not cover costs, so tax-deductible donations are welcome.

The eight towns are listed as Chelsea, China, Jefferson, Palermo, Somerville, Vassalboro, Whitefield and Windsor. Erskine also accepts privately-paid students and, the website says, international students.

China school students who became college presidents

Kingsbury named two men who attended China schools (at least elementary schools) and later became college presidents: Stephen A. Jones and George F. Mosher.

Stephen A. Jones was the second president of what Kingsbury called Nevada State College (later University of Nevada at Reno, according to on-line information) from 1889 to 1894.

During his tenure, the “faculty increased to 15 members… and enrollment grew to 179 in his final year as president.” He oversaw the school’s first graduation, in 1891.

The Jones genealogy in the China bicentennial history includes Stephen Alfred Jones, oldest son of Alfred H. Jones and Mary Randall (Jones) Jones (they were second cousins), of China. Alfred Jones taught in freedmen’s schools in Virginia and North Carolina.

Stephen went to the Providence, Rhode Island, Friends School and then to Dartmouth, from which he graduated in 1872, “receiving both MA and PhD from that institution.”

Married to Louise Coffin, he taught Latin and Greek at William Penn College in Iowa, where their older son was born; and then studied in Bonn, Germany, where their younger son was born. After heading the University of Nevada, the genealogy says, he retired to San Jose, California, returning at intervals to visit China relatives.

The genealogy calls Stephen “a good teacher,” with “excellent literary qualifications” who had “excellent results” when he taught in Branch Mills in 1865. It quotes a biographical cyclopedia saying his “large stature and commanding presence, pleasant but firm,…won the respect and confidence of his students and had a strong influence over them.”

 * * * * *

George F. Mosher was the seventh president of Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan, from September 1886 to 1901. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Bowdoin, he was a nurse during the Civil War, and served “in a German consulate” before coming to Hillsdale.

An on-line list of Hillsdale presidents says “Mosher’s years as president were a period of particularly high academic achievement. Hillsdale was widely known as one of the strongest small colleges in the Midwest.”

*****

A digression: Hillsdale’s first president, Daniel McBride Graham (1817-1888), was an Oberlin College graduate who served Hillsdale, then Michigan Central College in Spring Arbor, from its opening in 1844 to 1848. It started with “only five students in a small, deserted, two-room store.”

In 1848, Graham resigned “to become a pastor in Saco, Maine.” In 1855, the school moved about 25 miles to Hillsdale and changed its name.

Graham returned to become the school’s fourth president from 1871–1874. The list of presidents says: “Facing almost total destruction of the campus by fire, Graham led the rebuilding of the campus during the 1873 financial panic.”

Spring Arbor is now home to a private Free Methodist university described on line as “the second-largest evangelical Christian university in Michigan.”

Main sources

Grow, Mary M., China Maine Bicentennial History including 1984 revisions (1984)
Kingsbury, Henry D., ed., Illustrated History of Kennebec County Maine 1625-1892 (1892)

Websites, miscellaneous.

EVENTS: Erskine Academy to host 8th grade open house

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Erskine Academy invites all eighth-grade students and their parents from the surrounding communities to attend the 8th Grade Open House, on Wednesday, February 26, at 6:30 p.m., in the gym. All incoming freshmen and their parents are highly encouraged to participate in this event, as registration materials will be available and information about the course selection process will be provided. In the event of inclement weather, a snow date has been scheduled for Thursday, February 27.

Parents who are unable to attend are asked to contact the Guidance Office at 445-2964 to request registration materials.

PHOTO: Success on the ice

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James Owens, son of Anne Owens, of Vassalboro, caught this beautiful brown trout, in China Lake, on Saturday, January 18. The trout was 19 inches long and weighed 3 pounds.

China select board OKs kayak, paddleboat rental station

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by Mary Grow

The three main issues at the Jan. 27 China select board meeting were town trucks; a proposed kayak and paddleboard rental station; and recreation programs. Board members postponed decision on a new truck for two weeks and, on a split vote, authorized the rental station.

Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood and Director of Public Services Shawn Reed described expensive problems with some of China’s older plow trucks. Two are 10 years old; Reed recommends replacing one this year.

Reed reminded select board members he proposed buying a new truck a year ago. They did not include the purchase in the 2024-25 budget; but they recommended, and voters approved, a $200,000 increase in the public works equipment reserve, bringing it to about $305,000.

Since last spring, Reed said, the price of the Western Star he recommends has increased by $13,000, to close to $300,000 with plow gear. When he suggested the delay had wasted $13,000 of taxpayers’ money, board chairman Wayne Chadwick replied that it also resulted in a newer truck that hadn’t started depreciating. But, Hapgood countered, during the year there had been repair expenses.

“As these trucks age, nothing with them is getting better, and the cost to replace them is going up,” Reed said. He favors a replacement schedule, so town officials won’t find they need several trucks all at once.

As a China taxpayer, he agreed with select board member Blane Casey that raising taxes isn’t desirable. But neither is having too few trucks to keep roads clear and residents safe, he said.

During the most recent storm, he said, one truck quit in the middle of Route 3; another had to be sent to haul it off the road.

After 20 minutes’ discussion, board members postponed a decision to their Feb. 10 meeting.

Sheriff alerts residents of power scams

Kennebec County Sheriff’s Deputy Ivano Steffanizzi shared the department’s message for county residents at the Jan. 27 China select board meeting: if someone shows up at your door offering to lower your electric bill, send him away: it’s a scam.

Official-looking imposters have been collecting electricity bill numbers and credit card numbers or other payment information on the pretext of representing Central Maine Power Company, Stefanizzi said.

He also urged residents to keep an eye on their elderly, live-alone neighbors in winter weather, if possible helping them feel less isolated.

Recreation Committee Chairman Martha Wentworth first presented the rental idea in January 2024. She recommended the town contract with a Michigan company named Rent.Fun.

In return for an upfront fee from the town, the company would provide four kayaks and four paddle boards, with paddles and lifejackets, in a secure cage. People could rent the equipment, using a phone app and a credit card.

Revenue would be split evenly between Rent.Fun and the town. The company would pay for repairs and maintenance, using local labor if the town requested, and for liability insurance.

In October 2024, Wentworth applied for TIF (Tax Increment Financing) money for the town’s share. She said the project was deemed ineligible.

This year, Wentworth said, the town’s fee had increased, from $29,000 to $35,000; she had talked with a Rent.Fun official and negotiated it down to $33,500. Rent.Fun had made other contract changes she thought undesirable, but the official agreed to honor China’s 2024 understanding.

Select board members talked another 40 minutes about all aspects of the plan before voting 3-1, with Edwin Bailey, Casey and Jeanne Marquis in favor, Chadwick opposed and Thomas Rumpf absent, to approve it. In addition to money appropriated last year, they authorized $14,000 from the recreation reserve and $5,000 from the select board’s contingency fund.

Chadwick said he believes the enterprise should be privately, not municipally, funded.

Hapgood said the exact location of the approximately eight-by-eight-foot structure near the China Lake boat launch by the causeway will be determined, considering convenience and safety, minimal interference with already-inadequate parking and winter plowing around it.

In addition to the China Recreation Committee that Wentworth heads, there is a China Recreation Sports Committee, headed by Mike Sullivan. Sullivan attended the Jan. 27 select board to ask for the select board’s support in what he described as a competitive situation with out-of-town interests.

Sullivan and Wentworth disagreed over aspects of the programs. Chadwick recommended investigation before the select board considered any action.

In other business, board members awarded the 2025 mowing bid to the low bidder, Littlefield Lawn Care, of China, for $26,500.

They unanimously authorized Hapgood to sign a 2025-26 State of Maine dispatch contract for emergency services dispatching, for $51,199.

Hapgood issued a reminder that nominations for Spirit of America awards are due by Feb. 1. The agenda says there is an on-line nomination form at https://chinamaine.org/images/PDFs/Spirit_of_America_Award_nomination_form.pdf.

Hapgood suggested people call the town office before submitting a nomination, to find out whether the person previously received the award.

The manager announced a budget workshop at 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 3, in the town office meeting room. She intends to present a draft 2025-26 budget.

The next regular China select board meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 10.

Applications for 2025 TIF (Tax Increment Financing) funds are due by Feb. 28.

EVENTS: 6th annual China Lake ice fishing derby slated for February 16, 2025

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Local angler enjoys setting up ice fishing traps at the China Lake Ice Fishing Derby. This year’s derby will be held on February 16 on China Lake benefiting the China Four Seasons Club and the China Village Fire Department. (photo courtesy of Sandy Isaac)

by Sandy Isaac

The China Four Seasons Club and the China Village Fire Department are co-hosting the the 6th Annual China Lake Ice Fishing Derby, scheduled for Sunday, February 16, during Maine’s Free Fishing Weekend.

Building on the success of previous years, the weekend will feature the town-wide “China Ice Days” activities beginning Friday evening. Highlights include a “Bean Suppah” at the China Village Mason’s Lodge followed by a guided snowmobile ride, weather permitting. Additional Friday events include a Silent Disco, at the Middle School, and an Owl Prowl, at Thurston Park.

Saturday’s lineup offers something for everyone: a Pancake Breakfast, at the Dirigo Mason’s Lodge, in Weeks Mills, a Cornhole Tournament, sponsored by Central Maine Power Sports, sledding, at Thurston Park (snow dependent), and snowshoeing, at the School Forest. The China Lake Association will sponsor ice skating at the China Rink by the Town Office, complete with s’mores and a warming fire pit.

Sunday remains dedicated to the main event – the ice fishing derby, with all fishing restricted to China Lake. The derby will conclude with an awards ceremony followed by a spectacular fireworks display by Central Maine Pyrotechnics. All weekend activities are open to the public.

“There is no lack of ice this year,” said China Four Seasons Club President Tom Rumpf. “We just need a little more snow to enhance some of the other activities. We encourage everyone to check our website and the Ice Derby’s Facebook page for updates.”

Reservations are required for the Silent Disco and Cornhole Tournament, both of which have participation fees. The “Bean Suppah” and Pancake Breakfast also have associated costs: $10 for the suppah and $8 for breakfast.

Rumpf added, “The China Ice Days and Annual Fishing Derby offer individuals and families a fantastic opportunity to embrace the outdoors while participating in a cherished local tradition. Each year, we build on the fun and enthusiasm. This year’s event coincides with Maine’s Free Fishing Weekend, which is an added bonus. We will follow all State of Maine ice fishing laws and regulations.”

Fishing derby weigh-ins will take place at 4 p.m., on Sunday. All entries must be in line at the Fire Station, on Causeway Road, by 4 p.m. to qualify for prizes. Awards will be presented in the following fish categories: largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, brown trout, brook trout, and pickerel. In the children’s category, prizes will be awarded to the top five participants who catch the most perch. The derby’s top honor sponsored by Diesel Dan, the “lunker of the day,” will go to the angler with the largest fish overall.

The first 100 children to visit the China Village Fire Station will receive complimentary ice fishing bait buckets filled with goodies, courtesy of Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, The Maine Audubon Society, and other generous donors. The buckets will be available, starting at 5 a.m., on derby day. Additionally, Central Church will be set up on the ice near the Fire Station to assist children new to fishing, and Traps for Kids of Maine will provide free traps to children, while supplies last.

“We’ll also be giving away over 50 door prizes,” Rumpf noted. “These include a double portable Nordic Legend Aurora Ice Shack from Central Maine Camper Rentals, a StrikeMaster Electric Ice Auger from Wings Tree Service, 100 gallons of heating fuel from Augusta Fuel Company, pumping services from B&B Septic, an Amphibious Cooler from Hannaford Supermarket, $500 cash from Vacationland Rentals, and Lakeview Lumber donated five separate prizes for the raffle. Many other fantastic prizes and gift certificates have been donated by local businesses. Our door prizes have really created quiet a following of their own.”

Tickets prices have not changed; $5 each or three for $10 and are available at local retailers, including China Variety & Redemption, Greg’s Restaurant, Harvest Time Bait, Lakeview Lumber, and the China Town Office. Members of the China Four Seasons Club and the China Village Fire Department also have tickets available for purchase.

For more information on door prizes, sponsors, and ticket details, visit the China Lake Ice Fishing Derby’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/China-Lake-Ice-Fishing-Derby or the official website at www.chinalakeicefishingderby.com.

New librarian at ACB Library

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Alexis Burbank

by Birdie

The new librarian at the Albert Church Brown Memorial Librarian, in China Village, is Alexis Burbank. She initiated her tenure in October 2024 and is devoted to fostering the library’s growth and development. She has been working diligently on introducing family-friendly activities, including the ongoing 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten challenge.

Furthermore, she hosts multiple craft nights and is developing a summer reading program. Her favorite literary genre is folklore. Additionally, she is a talented artist.

Alexis graduated from the University of Maine Machias in 2014 with a degree in Interdisciplinary Fine Arts. She has been actively engaged in artistic pursuits since childhood. Alexis collaborates with fellow artists to create illustrated books, which are subsequently published. She also designs leather masquerade masks, which are shipped globally through her online business, Faylander Studios. Her artwork has been featured in Downeast magazine, and she won the poster contest at the Windsor Fair last year for her poster of pulling horses.

If you haven’t had the chance to meet her yet, I highly recommend visiting our exceptional library and introducing yourself to her!

CHINA: Most residents agree with $2 stickers at transfer station

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by Mary Grow

China transfer station staff and Palermo representatives on China’s Transfer Station Committee agree that the majority of residents of both towns are cooperative about paying $2 for their 2025 transfer station windshield stickers.

As usual, some complain, they reported at the committee’s Jan 14 meeting.

The point of requiring the stickers on the windshields of vehicles registered in China or Palermo is to prevent China taxpayers from paying to dispose of out-of-town trash. Palermo and China have an agreement under which Palermo contributes money annually to the China facility and Palermo residents use special trash bags that they pay for.

China Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood explained that the sticker requirement sometimes gets complicated. A not uncommon case, she said, is when an older China resident (and taxpayer) has an out-of-town family member – whose vehicle is ineligible for a China sticker – transport the resident’s trash.

Committee member Benjamin Weymouth asked how often these sorts of issues arise.

“More than you’d expect,” Hapgood replied.

Transfer station manager Thomas Maraggio agreed, estimating irregular situations several times a week.

Before vehicle stickers were reinstated, transfer station users had placards to hang on their rearview mirrors, which could be removed and shared. Maraggio said trash volume went down after the change to stickers.

Stickers are available at both town offices and at the transfer station. Town office staff can look up vehicle registrations; transfer station staff cannot, and need to see the document.

Hapgood and Maraggio mentioned pending projects, possible grants to help fund some of them and preliminary suggestions for the 2025-26 budget request.

Maraggio said the station’s scales, used to weigh demolition debris and brush, are 20 years old and have an expected lifetime of 20 years. He has no cost estimate for new ones.

Hapgood said the transfer station staff consists of three full-time employees and one part-time employee. Public works staffers help when needed.

She and committee chairman J. Christopher Baumann emphatically rejected the apparently-overheard comment that employees “stand around” doing nothing. Baumann said he stops by frequently, and always finds them busy.

Director of Public Services Shawn Reed praised employees for keeping the transfer station clean and saving taxpayers money, for example by taking furniture apart to salvage recyclable metal parts.

“They do an amazing job,” Reed said.

Palermo representative Chris Diesch suggested the committee review the transfer station mission statement, last updated in the fall of 2021. After a brief discussion, the issue was postponed to a future meeting.

On Baumann’s recommendation, the China town office later sent committee members a list of half dozen ordinances, policies and other relevant documents that are on the town website, chinamaine.org.

The next China Transfer Station Committee meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11, in the town office meeting room.

Up and Down the Kennebec Valley: China High Schools – part 1

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Japheth Washburn grave in China Village Cemetery

by Mary Grow

The Town of China had five high schools at various times in the 19th century. The one in China Village lasted into the 20th century; Erskine Academy in South China (next week’s topic) was founded in 1883 and is thriving in 2025.

Your writer summarized histories of these schools in a Sept. 23, 2021, article in this series. Much of the following is reprinted from that issue of “The Town Line,” with additions.

* * * * * *

The earliest high school was China Academy in China Village, in the north end of town, chartered by the Massachusetts legislature in June 1818. Charter language quoted in the China bicentennial history says the school’s purposes were to promote “piety, and virtue,” and to provide instruction “in such languages and in such of the liberal arts and sciences” as the trustees prescribed.

The school initially had five trustees, four China Village residents and Rev. Daniel Lovejoy, from Albion.

(Daniel Lovejoy, one of Albion’s earliest settlers, was the father of abolitionists Elijah Parish Lovejoy, killed by a mob in Alton, Illinois, on Nov. 7, 1837, and Owen Lovejoy, member of the house of Representatives from Illinois from 1857 until his death in March 1864. Elijah and Owen attended China Academy, and Elijah taught there in 1827, after he graduated from Waterville [later Colby] College.)

In 1819, the Academy charter was changed to allow 15 trustees.

The first China Academy building was on the shore of China Lake, in what is now Church Park, across from the China Baptist Church (built in 1814, relocated in 1822). John Brackett donated the land, “in consideration of the love and good will” he had for the trustees; the only condition was that they keep the fence around the lot in repair.

Henry Kingsbury, in his Kennebec County history, credited Japheth C. Washburn, a member of the Massachusetts legislature, with getting China Academy chartered. He added that Washburn “with his own hands felled and prepared for hewing the first stick of timber for the building” that the trustees approved.

The bicentennial history says classes began in or before September 1823. The first two principals were Colby graduates.

In 1825 the Maine legislature approved a land grant for China Academy; Kingsbury valued it at $10,000. In November 1829, the trustees sold the lot in what is now Carroll Plantation (on Route 6, in Penobscot County, east of Lincoln and Lee) for $3,400 (about 30 cents an acre, the bicentennial history says).

With legislative support and “an encouraging student enrollment,” the trustees put up what Kingsbury called a “new and spacious” two-story brick building on the east side of Main Street, in China Village. (Neither the bicentennial history nor the county history dates either the first or second Academy building.)

This building stood across from the Federal-style house, dating from around 1827, that has housed the Albert Church Brown Memorial Library since 1941. The first classes there were in November 1828, with 89 students, the bicentennial history says.

The trustees gave the wooden building by the lake to the Town of China, to be used as a district school.

From 1835 to 1844 China Academy did well, under “able and experienced” Principal Henry Paine. There were 221 students in 1835 and again in 1844, most from China but some from other Maine towns. Teachers, in addition to Paine, included a Colby senior, a Colby graduate and at least one woman, Sarah A. Shearman, in charge of “instruction in the ornamental branches.”

School was held for four 12-week terms, beginning “the first Mondays of March, June, September, and December.” The history quotes advertisements in the weekly China Orb newspaper that said quarterly tuition was $3 for basic English reading and writing; $4 for advanced English courses; and $5 for “Latin, Greek, and French.”

The Academy had no dormitory. The history says it (trustees, teachers or both?) helped students find nearby places to board, at rates ranging from $1.33 to $1.50 a week.

After Waterville Academy was chartered in 1842 and organized successfully by James Hanson (graduate of China Academy and Colby College, profiled in the Nov. 21, 2024, issue of “The Town Line”) and Paine left China in 1844, China Academy’s enrollment dropped. By 1850, average enrollment was around 50 students. The Civil War caused a temporary closure.

After the war, the Academy reopened and, the history says, in 1872, “had a staff of five who were teaching 40 to 60 students a term.” Terms were “shortened to ten weeks,” and tuition increased to $3.50 a term for basic English, $4.50 for advanced English and $5.50 for foreign languages or bookkeeping. Music was added, 20 lessons for $10; the history does not specify vocal, instrumental or both.

The history says that students’ records “included the number of words misspelled, the number of times tardy, and the number of days they were caught whispering in class.”

As previously mentioned, in 1873 the Maine legislature required towns to provide high schools. According to the bicentennial history, after 1880 amendments to the law China Academy apparently became a hybrid – the brick Academy building was used to teach free high school classes, but “This institution still called itself China Academy and was supervised by a board of trustees.”

Kingsbury wrote that the group he called “stockholders” “held their annual elections and meetings until 1887.”

Enrollment rose – “54 students in the spring of 1883, 70 in the fall of 1884, and 88 in the spring of 1885,” the history says. More girls than boys enrolled in each of those terms, after years when male students had been more numerous.

The history lists courses offered, in a “four-year course sequence” in 1884-85: “English, math, geography, history, bookkeeping, sciences, and philosophy,” plus Greek and Latin “if requested.” There were two or three terms a year, and financial support came from the local school district, other nearby China districts and one district in Albion.

In 1887 the brick building was deemed unsafe and was blown up, scattering fragments of brick onto adjoining properties. The trustees sold the lot to the local school district.

The history says that “Willis R. Ward built a wooden schoolhouse at a cost of $1,000 which served as both high school and elementary school from 1888 to 1909.”

In 1897, China voters appropriated no money for high schools. The history says China Village residents funded one anyway, with state aid. By 1899 village residents also relied on “contributions and subscriptions” to keep high school classes going.

Courses included “advanced English, mathematics,…science… and a five-student Latin class.”

The China Village free high school gradually lost students early in the 20th century and closed in 1908. Many students transferred to China’s other private high school, Erskine Academy.

The wooden building remained an elementary school until the consolidated China Elementary School opened in 1949. It was sold and became a two-story chicken house. The building was demolished in 1969 and replaced by a house.

A China Village high school was re-established from the fall of 1914 through the spring of 1916 – the bicentennial history gives no reason. Classes met in the second floor of a no-longer-existing wooden building (later the American Legion Hall) on the southeast corner of the intersection of Main Street, Neck Road.

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The China bicentennial history provides partial information on three other nineteenth-century China high schools, in Branch Mills Village, in South China Village and at Dirigo.

The earliest, the East China high school in Branch Mills, “was established about 1851 in a building constructed for that purpose by Mr. Barzillai Harrington.” The building was on the south side of the village main street, west of the bridge across the West Branch of the Sheepscot River. It appears as a large rectangle on the town map in the 1856 Maine atlas, labeled “B. H. Academy.”

In 1852, the history says, elementary classes met in “Mr. Harrington’s high school building” because the district schoolhouse was “in such poor condition.”

An 1856 advertisement for the school listed Claudius B. Grant as the principal for an 11-week term beginning Sept. 1. Tuition was $3 per term for basic English, $3.50 for advanced English and $4 for “languages,” unspecified.

The bicentennial history cites China town reports saying high school classes were provided in Branch Mills in 1857 for one term; in 1865 for one term, taught by Stephen A. Jones, of China; in 1882, for two terms, taught by Thomas W. Bridgham, of Palermo; and in 1883 for one term, taught by J. A. Jones. The writer found no evidence of continuous classes, and locations were not specified.

Though classes were listed in 1882 and 1883, the Branch Mills map in the 1879 Maine atlas identifies the building by a name, indicating it was a private home. The China history says the Academy building was sold in the 1880s. Kingsbury’s history says it was in 1892 the Good Templars Hall.

A footnote in the bicentennial history adds: “In 1894 the school committee recommended a term of high school at Branch Mills, but the town records provide no evidence that it was held.”

The high school in South China Village started in the 1860s and ran at least intermittently through the spring of 1881, according to the bicentennial history.

In 1865, former primary school teacher T. W. Bridgham taught a spring high school term. In 1877-78, A. W. Warren was teacher for a seven-week term. F. E. Jones taught 51 students in the fall of 1880. The next spring, J. E. Jones taught what was apparently the final term, “with the expenses being borne by three adjacent school districts.”

The writer of the bicentennial history found only a single reference to the high school at Dirigo (or Dirigo Corner), where Alder Park Road and Dirigo Road intersect what is now Route 3 (Belfast Road). In 1877 and 1878, the town report described two China free high schools, South China “and a 20-week term at Dirigo.”

Fred D. Jones was the teacher at Dirigo, “and the supervisor of schools commended the residents of this quite small school district for supporting so long a term.”

(Attentive readers will have noticed numerous teachers named Jones. They were probably related, at least distantly, and were probably members of the Society of Friends. The genealogical section of the China history has 25 pages of Joneses, several identified as teachers. One of them will receive more attention next week.)

Main sources

Grow, Mary M., China Maine Bicentennial History including 1984 revisions (1984)
Kingsbury, Henry D., ed., Illustrated History of Kennebec County Maine 1625-1892 (1892)

Websites, miscellaneous

Vassalboro school board discusses major work at school

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Vassalboro Community School (contributed photo)

by Mary Grow

The Jan. 14 Vassalboro School Board workshop and meeting included more discussion of plans for major work on the Vassalboro Community School (VCS) building, a presentation on the Gifted and Talented Program and a discussion of board members’ stipends.

The official meeting was preceded by a workshop presentation by engineer Erik Rodstrom, of Portland-based Energy Management Consultants (EMC). EMC representatives have attended prior meetings to talk about updating the building, which opened in 1990.

Rodstrom shared a spreadsheet that helps board members establish priorities, consider what projects might be combined and estimate costs.

He discussed criteria for selecting items to be done first. One is obsolescence: if an operating unit is so old neither replacement parts nor skilled technicians are available if it breaks down, it should be high on the list.

The amount of a project’s energy savings is another consideration; work that saves more money should be prioritized when practical. And the importance of the unit is a consideration: for example, Rodstrom said the VCS boiler is only about 12 years old, but if it should break down, the school would have to close.

Board members intend to review EMC’s multi-page report and make priority recommendations to be discussed at their February meeting.

When the school board meeting convened after Rodstrom’s presentation, Gifted and Talented (GT) teacher Rod Robilliard talked about his program, which has 40 VCS students enrolled. The purpose, he said, is to provide individualized learning that emphasizes each student’s talents and strengths.

“They want to stretch. They feel proud when they take on a challenge and succeed,” Robilliard said of his students.

When board member Jessica Clark asked if Robilliard needed anything, he said he might need minor funding, for example for transportation – but perhaps parents or the Parent-Teacher Organization will step up.

Robilliard’s half-time position is new and has expanded the GT program. Principal Ira Michaud praised Robilliard’s work, calling him a “phenomenal asset” to VCS.

A survey of GT students brought two main responses, Michaud reported: some said the program is perfect, others wanted longer and/or more frequent G/T classes.

Board chairman Jolene Gamage proposed discussion of board members’ stipends, for the first time in the dozen years she has been on the board. Given the lack of people willing to run for this and other town boards, she wondered if more money would help.

Probably not, she and other board members concluded; people serve on the school board because they want Vassalboro to have an excellent school, not for $400 a year. Several members did not know there was a stipend until the first check arrived.

Gamage did recommend that the board chairman – starting with her successor – be given extra money for extra time. Superintendent Alan Pfeiffer agreed; he communicates with the board through the chairman, he said, and frequently calls Gamage.

The issue was tabled for more information, including about other Maine school boards: how many members do they have, and how much are members paid?

In other business, Pfeiffer reported several pieces of good news, like ongoing cooperation with the town’s public works department under new director Brian Lajoie and a sound financial report from Director of Finance Paula Pooler.

Pooler was too busy preparing 2025-26 budgets for Vassalboro, Waterville and Winslow schools to attend the meeting, Pfeiffer said. He plans to present some parts of Vassalboro’s proposed budget at the board’s February meeting.

Board members accepted the resignation of special education teacher Kathleen Cole, effective at the end of the school year. Pfeiffer said Cole is retiring, after teaching at VCS since 2000.

The next Vassalboro school board meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11, preceded by another 4:30 p.m. workshop discussion of building work.