Issue for March 2, 2023

Celebrating 35 years of local news

Vassalboro Historical Society gets new Bookeye scanner

The Vassalboro Historical Society (VHS) has a new tool, and VHS president Jan Clowes is excited about using it and about sharing it. It’s called a Bookeye scanner, and it takes pictures of documents and transfers them to a computer, from which they can be read, downloaded, printed and otherwise used without risk to the irreplaceable, often-fragile originals… by Mary Grow

Town News

Select board calls special meeting to address board of appeals ordinance

CHINA – China select board members have scheduled a special meeting at 6:30 p.m. Monday, March 6, in the town office meeting room. They hope it will be a short one; the primary purposes are to finish – temporarily — talking about the Board of Appeals Ordinance and to make remaining preliminary recommendations on the 2023-24 municipal budget…

ICE OUT 2023? Take a guess. Win a prize!

CHINA — Write down your best guess (one per person) and send it to The Town Line, PO Box 89, South China, ME 04358, or email us at townline@townline.org with the subject “ICE OUT 2023“. If more than one person guesses the correct date, a drawing will be held to determine the winner. Get your guess to The Town Line office by noon, Friday, March 17, 2023…

Name that film!

Identify the film in which this famous line originated and qualify to win FREE passes to Railroad Square Cinema in Waterville: “Go ahead, make my day.” Email us at townline@townline.org with subject “Name that film!” Deadline for submission is March 9, 2023…

Local happenings

New Dimensions FCU awarded grant for ending hunger campaign

WATERVILLE – Elan, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, continuing the commitment to partners and their communities, has selected 25 new credit union partners to designate a charity in their community to receive a $15,000 donation on the credit union’s behalf, as part of the 2023 Elan Charitable Giving Program…

Palermo resident to celebrate professional pet sitters week March 5 – 11

PALERMO – Business owner Sandy Patrick will use the annual observance to celebrate industry growth and encourage local pet owners to learn more about the advantages of using a professional pet-sitting company…

EVENTS: Waterville Creates announces youth art month exhibition

WATERVILLE – Ticonic Gallery, a division of Waterville Creates, is delighted to partner with Greene Block + Studios to celebrate Youth Art Month (YAM) with a spectacular, multi-site exhibition of artwork by local students in grades K–12. The 9th annual YAM exhibition will be on view at both locations March 3 – 31, with an opening reception on March 3 from 4­­ – 7 p.m…

EVENTS: Gaslight Theater announces audition dates for Black Comedy

HALLOWELL – Gaslight Theater announces audition dates for their upcoming show, Peter Shaffer’s Black Comedy, directed by Lucille Rioux. Auditions will be held 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 12, and Tuesday, March 14, at Hallowell City Hall, located at 1 Winthrop Street, in Hallowell…

SCHOOL NEWS

Elmira College recognizes annual Key Award recipients

OAKLAND – Those receiving the award included Emma Fortie and Jonathan EccherMullally, both of Oakland…

Emerson College student Conway earns dean’s list

CENTRAL ME – Emerson College, in Boston, Massachusetts, has announced that student Ella Conway, of Skowhegan, earned dean’s list honors for the Fall 2022 Semester. Ella is majoring in Media Arts Production and is a member of the class of 2026…

Students enroll at St. Lawrence University

CENTRAL ME – The class of 2026 are leaders in and out of the classroom. They’re artists and performers, entrepreneurs, athletes, and advocates. Even before they matriculated on August 21, 2022, they set the bar high for future Laurentians. They came to St. Lawrence University, in Canton, New York, with a cumulative four-year GPA of 92.3 – a record for an incoming class. Among them are Emma Crosby, of Augusta, and Tanley Tibbetts, of Chelsea…

Jasmine Daly named to Clarkson University’s dean’s list

CHINA – Jasmine Marie Daly, of South China, a junior majoring in political science, was named to the dean’s list for the Fall 2022 semester at Clarkson University, in Potsdam, New York…

PHOTO: Lawrence girls basketball claims eastern title

FAIRFIELD – Photos of the winners of the Class A Northern championship, by Central Maine Photography…

PHOTO: Lawrence’s Hope Bouchard presented with award for outstanding play and sportsmanship

FAIRFIELD – Lawrence Senior Hope Bouchard received the 2023 Bob Whytock Award for outstanding play and sportsmanship at the Augusta Civic Center on Friday, Feb 24. Photo by Central Maine Photography…

FICTION: The House, part 6: There’s a chill in the air

“Would either of you two mind if Amy comes over this weekend?” asked David about his girlfriend, Amy Cookson. “I’ve been telling her about the house and the weird things we’ve been experiencing and she’d love to see the place”… by Peg Pellerin

Webber’s Pond

Webber’s Pond is a comic drawn by an anonymous central Maine resident (click thumbnail to enlarge)…

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Augusta families – Part 4 (new)

AUGUSTA HISTORY – The fourth early Augusta settler, prominent citizen and diarist your writer promised to introduce was Henry Sewall (Oct. 24, 1752 – Sept. 4, 1845). His diary poses a puzzle. James North, whose history of Augusta was published in 1870, relied heavily on it from the 1780s through the late 1790s, and mentioned it in footnotes to events in 1820 and 1828, but not thereafter… by Mary Grow [2042 words]

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Augusta families – Part 3

AUGUSTA HISTORY – Daniel Cony (Aug. 3, 1752 – Jan. 21, 1842) has been mentioned in previous articles in this series in various contexts, including as the founder of Augusta’s Cony Female Academy and the man after whom Cony High School is named… by Mary Grow [2162 words]

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Early Augusta Families – Part 2

AUGUSTA HISTORY – Last week readers met James Howard, one of the first settlers at Cushnoc (which became Hallowell, which divided into Hallowell and Augusta) and some of his family members; and your writer promised information on other pre-Augusta settlers, Ephraim Ballard, Daniel Cony and Henry Sewall… by Mary Grow [1758 words]

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Early Augusta Families – Part 1

AUGUSTA HISTORY – The three people whose diaries Charles Nash excerpted in his 1904 Augusta history, and who provided old weather records for last week’s article, were members of some of the first families to settle in the area. Martha Ballard came to Hallowell in October 1777, two years after her husband Ephraim brought his surveying business to the area. Henry Sewall came “after the Revolution,” Daniel Cony in 1778… by Mary Grow [1985 words]

Listing of local town meetings

CENTRAL ME — Listing of 2023 local town meetings in central Maine. To have your town listed, please email us at townline@townline.org…

2022-’23 Real Estate Tax Due Dates

Real estate tax due dates for the towns of Albion, China, Fairfield, Oakland, Palermo, Sidney, Vassalboro, Waterville, Windsor and Winslow…

CALENDAR OF EVENTS: Upcoming Sew for a Cause dates

VASSALBORO — Here are the upcoming Sew for a Cause dates: Thursdays, March 2, March 16, April 6 and April 20. Meet from 10 a.m. -3 p.m., at St Bridget Center, 864 Main St., Vassalboro. All sewing skill levels are welcome to join… and many other local events!

Obituaries

VASSALBORO – Beverly A. Perry, 86, died Monday, February 20, 2023, at the Oak Grove Center, in Waterville, following a long illness. She was born in Waterville, on December 24, 1936, a daughter of the late Cecil and Ruth (Vaughn) Fitch… and remembering 7 others.

Common Ground: Win a $10 gift certificate!

DEADLINE: Wednesday, March 8, 2023

Identify the people in these three photos, and tell us what they have in common. You could win a $10 gift certificate to Hannaford Supermarket! Email your answer to townline@townline.org or through our Contact page. Include your name and address with your answer. Use “Common Ground” in the subject!

Previous winner: Ann Budris, Winslow

Town Line Original Columnists

Roland D. HalleeSCORES & OUTDOORS

by Roland D. Hallee | While in the early stages of my seventh decade, like everyone else of my generation, we have aches and pains that appear from time to time. I happen to have one in my neck (no, not my wife). I’ve tried various things, but my oldest brother put me on to a product called Blue Emu…

GROWING YOUR BUSINESS

by Dan Beaulieu | The tide has changed when it comes to employers and employees. Certainly, there is a shortage of the latter which is causing significant problems for all businesses, especially smaller ones. We are seeing restaurants both large and small including take out places, closed on Monday and Tuesday for lack of people to work those days and also to give their very hard working employees a break from the many hours they are putting on the days they do work…

SMALL SPACE GARDENING

by Melinda Myers | Start this year’s tree pest management with a stroll through the landscape. As you enjoy the scenery, be sure to look for any unwelcome pests that may be overwintering on the twigs of trees…

Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates | The 22nd/24th former President Stephen Grover Cleveland achieved distinction in three ways during his years in the White House…

LIFE ON THE PLAINS

by Roland D. Hallee | This photo revisits the layout of the southern end of the Plains in the 1950s…

FOR YOUR HEALTH

You might think that seasonal allergies are just a spring thing. Not true. Autumn brings pollen from the ragweed plant to many parts of the U.S. And if you’re allergic to it, you may find yourself dealing with watery eyes, a runny or stuffy nose and an itchy throat…