Free
stencils, charms and stickers for schools, non-profits and church
groups. Call Brenda at Momenta, Rte. 4, in Northwood, NH, at 942-8100,
ext. 306.
School is back
in session. Please drive carefully, especially near bus stops.
The results of the Draft Horse Obstacle Course held on Old Home Day
are as follows. Forecart Class: 1) Tim Riel, Sr. of Epsom, 2) Durwin
Clark of Surry, 3) Tim Riel, Jr. of Epsom, 4) Evelyn Pike of
Chichester, 5) Cliff McGinnis of Pembroke, 6) Liz Clark of Surry, 7)
Emily Pike of Chichester, 8) Geoff Hodges. Single Horse Twitch: 1)
Emily Pike, 2) Durwin Clark, 3) Tim Riel, Sr., 4) Evelyn Pike, 5)
Liz Clark, 6) Cliff McGinnis, 7) Tim Riel, Jr., 8) Stephen Stock of
Chichester. Scoot Class: 1) Tim Riel, Sr., 2) Evelyn Pike, 3) David
Heisler, 4) Durwin Clark, 5) Geoff Hodges, 6) Cliff McGinnis, 7) Tim
Riel, Jr., 8) Liz Clark. Champion of the Day: 1) Tim Riel, Sr., 2)
Durwin Clark, 3) Evelyn Pike.
Chichester
Town Library
During the
month of September the Chichester Town Library will be hosting an art
show by Ray Monguea, (The same person who just presented the hydrogen
cell workshop). Ray, who is a photographer for the Laconia Citizen, will
be exhibiting photos from his regional journalism collection, as well as
his fine art work. Ray is a very skilled and talented artist. Drop in
and see his beautiful work.
We will have a Meet the Artist Night on Wed. Sept 10th from 6:30 - 8:30.
Cider and donuts will be served.
Archery
Hunting In New Hampshire
New Hampshire
offers excellent opportunities for hunting wild turkey. This is possible
only because turkeys have made an amazing comeback with 36,000 birds
through a wildlife management restoration program. The Fall Archery
Season starts September 15. One wild turkey of either sex may be taken ½
hour before sunrise to ½ hour after sunset. A hunter can take only one
turkey during the fall with a bow and arrow during the season or with a
shotgun during shotgun season. The fully feathered and intact, but maybe
gutted turkey must be registered and sealed within 24 hours of the time
of taking. It is unlawful to take a turkey with a rifle, dogs,
electronic calling devices, live decoys or while it is perched in a
tree. All applicants for a turkey license must present a current NH
Hunting, Hunting and Fishing License or an Archery License.
License fees for 2008: Residents are $16 and nonresidents are $31. The
Fall Shotgun Turkey License has been eliminated as this privilege is now
included with the regular Turkey License.
The Deer Archery Season starts September 15. Any deer regardless of sex
or age may be taken in Wildlife Management Units B-M. Antlerless and
Antlered Deer can be taken in Unit A only. Antlerless Deer is a deer
without antlers or with antlers less than 3 inches long. Antlered deer
is a deer with at least one antler 3 inches long.
Residents must show a prior Archery Hunting License or Bow Safety
Certificate.
License fees for 2008: Residents, $22 and Non-Residents, $73. Purchasing
the Archery License allows a person to hunt deer during the Archery
Season and Wildlife during the Open Season with bow and arrow. A special
Deer Archery License is available and allows a person to take a second
deer during archery season. This license must be purchased at the same
time as the Archery License.
For full hunting laws, please contact Fish and Game at 271-2743.
Your 2008 Licenses for Turkey or Deer can be purchased at the Chichester
Town Clerk’s Office.
Chichester
Historical Society
The next
meeting of the Chichester Historical Society will be held Thursday,
September 11th at 7 p.m. in the Chichester Historical Society Museum at
49 Main Street. The guest speaker will be Garry Kalajian, owner and
operator of the Ararat Forge in Bradford, NH. Garry, talented blacksmith
and metalworker, will talk about the process of turning raw material
into functional and beautiful objects based on historic and original
designs. The Society’s own “Blacksmith Shop” will be on display. This
collection of blacksmithing tools, forge, anvil, and other related items
is the gift of Alnora Warren and family. The exhibit is set up as it
might have been viewed in an old blacksmith shop. We are very
appreciative of this gift to the museum.
If you have not seen our Old and Vintage Shoe display, please stop by.
Time is running out to catch a glimpse of this interesting collection.
Learn about old time “shoe shops” that existed in our town. This display
will continue through September.
We need your help with our next planned exhibit. Do you have a favorite
old-time family recipe that you would be willing to share? Favorite
food, recipes, food preservation and family food stories will be
featured along with treasured cookbooks and assorted cookware. If you’re
willing to share, please contact Ruth Hammen at 798-5825 or Lucille Noel
at 798-5709. The title of the exhibit is “Green - The way It Used To
Be.”
We are pleased to announce another publication authored by our town
historian, Walter L. Sanborn. Many of you know Walter and read his
articles that are published in the Sun. Walter’s latest book, “History
of the Chichester Fire Department 1936-1996” is available from the
Historical Society for $10 per copy. At 108 pages, it is full of
interesting information about small town fire departments. Also new this
year are the Thunder Bridge tote bags made of heavy natural color
canvas, generously sized, with shoulder strap handles. Thunder Bridge is
printed across the front of the bag in a beautiful shade of blue. The
bag is perfect for books or groceries. Please contact Lucille or Ruth
for your copy of Walter’s book and/or the useful tote bag.
Remember that all Chichester Historical Society Programs are free and
all are welcome. Refreshments are always served. Please join us on
September 11th to hear Garry Kalajian from Ararat Forge in Bradford, NH.
Program begins at 7 p.m.
Chichester Historical Society
Kelley’s
Corner Road
By Walter
Sanborn
One tenth of
a mile where the northerly end of Swiggey Brook rejoins the new Route
28, at the junction of Websters’ Mill Road, the new road follows a new
course northerly to Pittsfield. This left about one mile of the Old
Suncook Valley Highway running west the new highway through Kelley’s
Corner then crossing Sanborn Brook and rejoining the new road at the top
of Severence Hill where the new Blueberry Hill Mall is today.
I have previously written the history of Kelley’s Corner and Ring Road
and Kaime Road which can be found in the book, Chichester Articles,
available at the Chichester Historical Society.
This old section of the Suncook Valley Road has now been named Kelley’s
Corner Road by by the town.
One other road running off of Kelley’s Corner is Pleasant Street which I
will record in another article as I need to so some research on its
history.
In 1768 Ruben Sanborn was hired to lay out two bridges, one over
Gilmanton also called Sanborn Brook and one over Swiggey Brook near the
Hilliard Road.
In later years the state replaced the bridge over Gilmanton Brook at
Kelley’s Corner and again widened it so when it was replaced in 1981
there were two different style bridges side by side under the road.
In 1980 the NH Timber Association was starting to promote the use of
wood in bridge construction. Through the efforts of Jack Sargent, who
was head of the NH Dept. of Forests and Lands and Ansel Sanborn, of the
NH State Highway Department, both from Chichester, influenced the State
of NH to construct the new bridge over Gilmanton Brook of wood timber,
rather than steel. This also attributed to a big saving in cost to the
Town of Chichester.
When the bridge was being built, the construction crew uncovered a large
flat stone from the brook with the following inscription cut into it:
“Bridge builders 1906 Winslow.”
Because the rock had lain in the water many years, the carvings upon
the face of the stone are worn and very hard to read. This was probably
the second bridge built over the Gilmanton Brook.
Until the advent of the automobile, people did not travel any distance
by horse and wagon as traveling was slow. Most travel was local or maybe
into the next town occasionally for business or to visit friends.
Sometimes road signs were placed at a junction or fork in the road
giving a direction to where the road led to.
When the travel by automobile came along, the use of road signs became
more prevalent and signs were placed at most intersections with arrows
or fingers pointing to the next town. The signs with a hand and finger
pointing a direction were called finger signs.
Maybe the sign on the picture accompanying this article had aroused your
curiosity a little, so I will give you a clue to find it.
Some of you older people may remember the old cartoons that used to
appear in the newspapers and we called them the funny papers. One of
these cartoons was Mutt and Jeff, which first appeared in 1907. Mutt was
a short character and is the one pointing to Concord. Jeff was a tall
character and is the one pointing to Pittsfield. They always appeared
together in the cartoon in the funny paper.
The picture accompanying this article was taken about three years ago
and still exists as it shows here.
Now, I will tell you where it is and where it can be seen today. This
sign is on the Kelley’s Corner Road on the north side of the road,
opposite the driveway to the home of Paul Adams.
Paul Adams’ farm is the second house from Route 28 south and the next
house to the Old Baptist Church.
Paul and Chester Adams’ uncle, Blake Adams used to live on the farm and
I suspect he is the one who originally painted the sign years ago and
kept it painted over the years.
Today, it is partially covered by the bushes beside the road. It is a
real piece of folk art, well preserved and I hope it is maintained over
the years to come, by someone, as this is now a Chichester Town Road.