Holiday Concert December 16

The Manchester Historical Society is sponsoring a holiday concert called “The Bells of Christmas” on Wednesday, December 16, at 7 p.m. at the First Congregational Church on Main Street in Manchester. The concert will be presented by the Tall Spire Ringers, the resident handbell choir of the First Congregational Church, directed by Lynne Welsh. A beautiful and delightful variety of Christmas music will be played on handbells and choirchimes. This event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. Please join us to ring in the holidays and enjoy a festive holiday evening. For further information send us an e-mail: manchesterhistoricalsociety@gmail.com.

A Famous Manchester Gathering Place-McNaughton's- November 18

Mike McCooey will give a presentation on MacNaughtan's, his family’s hotel business, on Wednesday, November 18, at 7 pm at the First Congregational Church in Manchester. McCooey's parents owned the hotel during the years he was growing up in Manchester.

Manchester Journal editor D.K. Simonds wrote in his book History of Manchester, published in 1915: "So far one large first class hotel seems to accommodate about all of that class of custom but there are two or three smaller hotels. The Orvis Cottage kept by C. F. Orvis and MacNaughton's by Ramsey MacNaughton, also a larger house the Orchard Park Hotel by Mrs. C. H. Willard. All of these accommodate quite a large number of guests."

Refreshments will be served and all are welcome.

Green Mountain Club President Marge Fish on the Long Trail October 21

Green Mountain Club President Marge Fish will explore the Long Trail, its creators, its history, as well as its ups and downs (both figurative and literal), on Wednesday, October 21, at 7 pm in the Kiva at Long Trail School. Between 1910 and 1930, the Green Mountain Club built the Long Trail, the nation’s oldest long-distance hiking path, and continues to maintain it. The meeting is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served and new members are always welcome.

MHS Receives Vermont Centennial Nonprofit Award

Manchester Historical Society Curator Judy Harwood and MHS past president Bob Fowler traveled to Montpelier last week to receive a Centennial Nonprofit Award from Secretary of State Deb Markowitz. The State of Vermont annually honors nonprofits that have been continuously serving the community for more than a hundred years. The Manchester Historical Society was incorporated in 1898.

Annual Meeting September 30

The annual meeting of the Manchester Historical Society will be held Wednesday, September 30, at 5:30 pm, in the Hunter Seminar Room at Burr and Burton Academy. The annual election of officers will take place and we will have a short presentation on the Harmon house and our preliminary plans for renovation. If you would like to visit the house, we will be happy to show it that evening following the meeting or at another time.
For more information please contact us at manchesterhistoricalsociety@gmail.com

Antique Tool Expert Ted Hopkins September 16

Your Chance to See Stunning Historic Tools

Ted Hopkins, a longtime resident of Manchester and MHS’s vice president, is an authority on Stanley tools, which are among the world's finest. To see even a sampling of his collection is a special treat. Whatever your interest—in the aesthetics of the design, in the mechanics of it all, in the caliber of life in past times —come and learn an amazing amount of fascinating information from this top-ranked source on American tools on Wednesday, September 16, at Manchester’s First Congregational Church, Manchester at 7 pm Ted will display and discuss a select group of tools and answer your questions. The meeting is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

Annual Members Picnic August 19

Please plan to join us for the society’s annual picnic which this year will be held at Judy Harwood’s home on Wednesday, August 19, at 6 pm. Judy’s address is 211 Lathrop Lane and it’s the first house on the left after you turn off of Route 7A (coming south, turn right after the Northshire Motel; coming north, it’s the first left after the Skyline Drive entrance). Contributions should be brought as follows: A - H salads; I - O side dishes; P - Z desserts. Kindly let Judy know what you are planning to bring: 802.362.3708 or by e-mail: judyannh@together.net. Prospective members are most welcome to attend as well.

How Valuable Is It? John Marquis Appraisal on July 22

Returning to Manchester for one of his popular visits, well-known Vermont appraiser Jim Marquis will examine your family heirloom or flea market find (other than jewelry) and give you a well-informed opinion on what it's worth today. All sorts of things are subjects for the show: wooden toys, needlepoint, silver tea sets, china lamps, furniture, 19th-century books, framed art, knickknacks—you name it, whatever you've been wondering about, bring it to Jim Marquis on Wednesday, July 22, at 7 p.m., at the First Congregational Church in Manchester.

A third-generation antiques professional, Jim Marquis of Wallingford, Vermont, has been a dealer and appraiser for some thirty-five years. He has a raft of credentials in the field, having studied the relationship of valuation theory to market economics, along with statistics, and IRS standards. The Winterthur Museum in Wilmington, Delaware, was the locus of his graduate work in American Decorative Arts.

Attendees are invited to present as many as three pieces for appraisal. The nominal fee for the service ($5 per item or $10 for three) will benefit the Manchester Historical Society. All are welcome to attend and admission is free. Refreshments will be served. This event is generously underwritten by Manchester attorney and MHS board member Bradley Myerson.

Taconic Avenue Walk July 15

In October 1899 a brand new road opened in Manchester Village. It extended west from Main Street (across from the entrance to the Ekwanok Country Club) up to Prospect Street. Summer visitors, who over the previous five decades had been catered to for as much as a month at local hotels, suddenly had the opportunity to purchase a fine country home with ample space for the whole family, along with servants and guests.

Join Architect Bill Badger and MHS Curator Judy Harwood on Wednesday, July 15, for this walk into last century's history along Taconic Avenue. The tour leaders will reveal the character and tales of the titled “cottages” of this distinctive Village enclave -- among them Bide-a-Wee, The Gables, and Edgewood.

Please park behind the First Congregational Church and join the walk at the foot of Taconic Avenue at 7 p.m. For information, call Judy Harwood, 362-3708 or send an e-mail to manchesterhistoricalsociety@gmail.com.