The Town Line Vacation Week

The Town Line office will be closed the week of December 21 for our annual year-end vacation. There will be no issue on December 24. The office will re-open on Monday, December 28, at 9 a.m. The next issue will be published on Thursday, December 31, 2020.

Week of December 17, 2020

Celebrating 32 years of local news

China TIF committee looks to re-allocate funds among projects

China’s Tax Increment Finance (TIF) Committee members met virtually Dec. 1 and Dec. 8 to begin discussion of a proposed Amendment 2 to China’s TIF document. Progress was so slow that they scheduled another meeting for Dec. 15… by Mary Grow

Your Local News

Planners approve two site review applications

VASSALBORO — In a four-hour all-remote meeting Dec. 8, four Vassalboro Planning Board members reviewed and unanimously approved two major site review applications…

Resident seeks to change marijuana ordinance

VASSALBORO — Vassalboro selectmen entertained three requests from residents of the Sherwood Lane subdivision at their Dec. 10 YouTube meeting, moving two forward without any final action…

Light up the Season 2020 (updated!)

VASSALBORO — Here is an updated map of local sites participating in Vassalboro’s Light up the Season 2020 event…

Interactive nativity scene at St. Bridget

VASSALBORO — The St. Bridget Community Center, in North Vassalboro, has created an outdoor display of which people can become a part. The faces of the shepherds, angel and kings have been cut out so that individuals can take their picture(s)…

$2 a bag book sale in Vassalboro

VASSALBORO — The Vassalboro Public Library will hold a $2 Holiday Book Sale for the entire month of December. There will be a great selection of books, media, and puzzles: fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books…

Popular St. Michael School Christmas Fair goes virtual in 2020

AUGUSTA — Through December 21, all are encouraged to check gifts off their Christmas shopping list by visiting the St. Michael School Christmas Fair, being presented virtually due to the pandemic…

No one knows for sure the exact date of the birth of Jesus, but it’s still Christmas

by Gary Kennedy — No one knows for sure the exact date and time that Christ was born. However, there are several interesting things I have run across during my research of Christmas and the birth of Christ. I will share some with you in case you might have more definitive interaction to share with us…

Wreaths Across America

WINSLOW — Warren Poulin, trustee of the Central Maine Veterans Memorial Park, on the Roderick Rd., in Winslow, places a wreath at the MIA/POW flag (photo)…

Vassalboro sestercentennial calendars available

VASSALBORO — In preparation for Vassalboro’s Sestercentennial (250 years) celebration next year, Donald Breton, Vassalboro resident, has created a calendar that contains 47 copies of postcards from Vassalboro’s past. The cover and reverse side of the calendar contain a map of Vassalboro from 1879…

The Remembrance Tree

Remembering those we’ve lost in years past with the “Remembrance Tree”…

Maine Supreme Court Chief Justices from Kennebec Valley – Part 1

MAINE HISTORY — Of the 26 chief justices of the Maine Supreme Court, Augusta has provided six – perhaps not surprising for the state capital. Portland is second, with five chief justices including Leigh Saufly, who was appointed Dec. 6, 2001, and retired April 14, 2020… by Mary Grow [1616 words]

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Newspapers of Central Maine – Conclusion

MAINE HISTORY — Several of the small towns in the central Kennebec Valley have had local newspapers, and one – China – still does as of 2020. This writer has found no record of a newspaper published in Sidney, Winslow, Benton, Palermo or Windsor… by Mary Grow [1473 words]

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Newspapers of Central Maine, Part 1

MAINE HISTORY — In previous pieces there have been references to local newspapers, especially the Augusta-based Kennebec Journal. Both it and its sister publication in Waterville, the “Morning Sentinel”, have had long lives; but they are not and never have been the only newspapers in the central Kennebec Valley… by Mary Grow [1957 words]

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Notable women

MAINE HISTORY — As background for this piece on a small selection of women of importance from the central Kennebec Valley, some historical notes might establish a useful timeline… by Mary Grow [1825 words]

Webber’s Pond

Webber’s Pond is a comic drawn by an anonymous central Maine resident…

2020-’21 Real Estate Tax Due Dates

Real Estate tax due dates for the following towns: CHINA, VASSALBORO, WATERVILLE and WINDSOR…

Obituaries

OAKLAND – Ian William Ladd, 28, passed away on Tuesday, December 1, 2020. Ian was born in Waterville, on December 16, 1991, to parents Jonathan and Catherine (Kivlin) Ladd… and remembering 6 others.

The Town Line only weekly newspaper in central Maine

The first issue of The Town Line was published on March 15, 1989. The brain child of Gary and Trish Newcomb, of China, the newspaper’s goal was to bring neighbors and their respective towns closer together through better communications… by Roland D. Hallee

Common Ground: Win a $10 gift certificate!

DEADLINE: Friday, December 18, 2020

Identify the people in these three photos, and tell us what they have in common. You could win a $10 gift certificate to Retail Therapy Boutique in Waterville! 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: Ardra Poulin, Winslow.

Town Line Original Columnists

Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates | In 1942, Columbia Masterworks released a set of three 12-inch 78s, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, starring Basil Rathbone (1892-1967) as Ebenezer Scrooge and several other more minor actors and actresses from Hollywood’s truly Golden Age of the ‘30s and ‘40s…

I’M JUST CURIOUS

by Debbie Walker | I found an interesting calendar at Nana Dee’s (Wandering Nana’s). You just never know what can be found there. This calendar is for no particular year, it’s more a desk entertainment, I am sure…

Marilyn Rogers-Bull & PercySOLON & BEYOND

by Marilyn Rogers-Bull | Am very happy to have some recent news to share with you as I sit here at this computer early this morning. As always, my many thanks go out to Carol Dolan for faithfully keeping us informed…