The Greenwood Board of Selectmen have scheduled a Public Hearing on Tuesday, October 27, at 6:00 p.m. at the American Legion Hall, 595 Gore Road, to discuss three possible future highway projects. They welcome the public’s input on these projects to help them plan how to proceed in preparation for the Annual Town Meeting on May 22, 2027.
Project 1: Greenwood Road repair from Rowe Hill Road heading towards Locke’s Mills to 384 Greenwood Road. (Phase 1)
Project 2: Locke’s Mills Bridge/ aka Cubby’s Dam on Howe Hill Road – replace concrete bridge. Undermined and scoured concrete below road surface.
Project 3: Johnnie’s Bridge, Johnnie’s Bridge Road – abutment failure on the Woodstock side of the bridge. Bridge is currently closed to vehicular traffic.
Discussion: Rob Prue, PE from Pine Tree Engineering, will be present to answer questions.
A reminder that the Board of Selectmen, which usually meets on the first and third Tuesdays of the month at 5 p.m., will be altering their meeting schedule for the next few months. The board will meet on the second and fourth Tuesdays in October (the 13th and 27th), November (the 10th and 24th), and December (the 8th and 22nd).
There’s another busy fall weekend ahead, with lots going on in our area, and the pace continues throughout the month! Here are some of the many events and activities you can choose from:
Saturday, October 10, at 1:00 p.m.: The Woodstock Conservation Commission will celebrate the 5th Annual Buck’s Ledge Community Forest Day with reflections on progress made last year and a look forward to the next phase. Karen Rosenberg and Melissa Watkins, Woodstock Elementary physical education teacher, will discuss the important connection between the school and Buck’s Ledge. The celebration will take place at the Scenic Overlook. There will be cider and doughnuts and an opportunity to walk on the Trail for All. Those attending may park at the trailhead on Route 26 and walk up to the overlook (about 0.4 mile) or, if unable to walk up, may drive to the upper parking lot above the overlook.
Saturday, October 10, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Gardner Roberts Memorial Library, Ferry Road, Hanover: 17th Annual Celebration of Fall, with fun, food, and, starting at noon, live music with the Cobblestones.
Saturday, October 10, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Methodist Church, Main Street, Bethel: Loggers Supper. Open to the public—see more information on the flyer below.
Sunday, October 11, at 2:00 p.m.: Cemetery Tour of Riverside Cemetery, on the North Road in Bethel. This is the second of four October Sunday afternoon cemetery tours. Every Sunday in October, join Museums of the Bethel Historical Society Executive Director Will Chapman at one of Bethel’s historic cemeteries to learn about some of the town’s permanent residents. In keeping with the Independence 250 theme, special attention will be given to Revolutionary War veterans. The remaining cemeteries on the schedule are Pine Grove (West Bethel) on October 18; and Middle Intervale Cemetery on October 25.
Monday, October 12, at 9:00 a.m.: Geology hike at Buck’s Ledge Community Forest with Myles Felch. Meet at the Route 26 trailhead parking lot.
Wednesday, October 14, at 4:00 p.m. at the Bethel Library (6 Broad Street): “Ghosts of Mount Washington,” a presentation by author Marianne O’Connor. She will discuss the memorials on Mount Washington. Several of these memorials are associated with mysterious events, and there are a total of eight, each representing a tragic story of immense loss. The program will document the “death markers” on Mount Washington and their current status. It will recount each notable event and explore other significant losses, examining how the installation of memorials has evolved over the last 200 years. Due to “Leave No Trace” principles, physical markers are no longer permitted. The goal of the program is to share individual incidents, raise awareness about these events, and provide strategies to help the public prevent future fatalities. Sponsored by the Bethel Library Association and the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society.
Saturday, October 17, at 3:00 p.m. in the Howe Exhibit Hall of the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society (Mason House, 14 Broad Street): “What Revolution?” Just how revolutionary was the American Revolution? Two historians, David Jones and William Andrews, will take up this question in a spirited discussion of the events of 1776 and their place in history. If you know William from his popular Western Mountains Senior College courses or David from his Bethel Village walking tours, you’ll know that both men are deeply passionate and wide-ranging in their knowledge of American history. This is sure to be one for the history books! (Note the change of time for this program to 3:00 p.m. to allow people to attend after the open house/send-off gathering for Bethel Library Director Kelcy Arciga next door!)
Friday, October 23, from 6 to 9 p.m. and Saturday, October 24, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Gould Academy fieldhouse: 46th Annual Bethel Outing Club Ski and Snowboard Sale. Get that unused gear ready to sell! As well as the opportunity to buy from multiple shops in the same place, you have the opportunity to sell winter/outdoor gear and clothing you no longer use or have outgrown (gear should be in safe and good condition). The club takes a 20% commission on sales. More information can be found at bethelouting.org
Thursday, October 29, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at the Telstar Library: “Family Caregiving: Challenges, Resources, and Hope,” a free program presented by “To Your Health.” See details in the flyer below.
Saturday, October 31, from 5 to 7 p.m.: Trick-or-Treat Broad Street. Round out a busy month with some family fun! Be sure to stop by the Bethel Library and the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society for our fifth annual Trick-or-Treat Broad Street. We will be distributing candy to trick-or-treaters at the Bethel Library, Robinson House, and Mason House. We’ll also have a mini haunted house full of creeptastic historical oddities in the Twitchell Education Center!
Thursday, November 5, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the Telstar Library: Mary Morton Cowan will give a presentation on the history of logging in New England. She is the author of Timberrr! A History of Logging in New England, written for middle-grade readers. Spanning four centuries, the book explores the true story of how logging shaped the economy, culture, and forests of New England—from colonial mast cutting to the rise of sawmills and modern sustainable forestry. This program is presented by the Western Mountains Senior College, and is free and open to the public.
Saturday, November 21, 2:00 p.m. at the Mason House of the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society: Book discussion. Join us for a discussion of the book, The Founding Foodies: American Meals that Wouldn’t Exist Today If Not For Washington, Jefferson, and Franklin by Dave DeWitt. Food writer DeWitt entertainingly describes how some of America’s most famous colonial leaders—like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin—not only established America’s political destiny, but also revolutionized the very foods we eat. Copies of the book are available at the Museum Shop for $10. Call 207-824-2908 or email info@bethelhistorical.org for more information.
Lena continues to be a hiking machine, with seven more hikes in the past week, plus a walk on the CATS trail with her buddy Puck that was more of a stroll for the humans and an all-out romp for the canines.
Lena also completed the sixth and final session of her leash manners class on Monday. The class, which was through MSAD #44 Adult and Community Education, was held outside at Telstar, but for the last class we spent the hour walking up and down lower Main Street in Bethel, learning how to greet other dogs and humans appropriately. She did surprisingly well!
Happy birthday (October 7) to my oldest brother Steve, who turned 83 this year. We had a small family gathering at the Red House and enjoyed a fall meal of soup, bread, and salad followed, of course, by cake and ice cream.
I’m excited that the Maine State Museum, which has been closed for several years, will reopen to the public on October 24. Will got a sneak peek last week when he attended the Maine Archives and Museums’ annual conference. He especially enjoyed seeing the Maine Labor Mural, with a panel featuring Frances Perkins, secretary of labor under FDR and a distant cousin of ours, as well as the new exhibit featuring the switchboard of the Bryant Pond Telephone Company.
This online newsletter is intended to keep our communities informed, so if you have news, events, or photos you’d like to have included here, I hope you’ll share them with me! You can reach me by email at amy.w.chapman@gmail.com or by phone or text at 207-890-4812.