Putney Historical Society Minutes
January 19, 2008
Present: Stuart Strothman, Barbara Taylor, Jane Rawley, Lyssa Papazian, Lindley Speers, Tim Ragle.
Meeting began at 9:30 a.m.
Secretary’s Report
President Stuart Strothman presented the minutes of the November 14th PHS meeting.
Lyssa moved to accept the minutes. Motion was seconded and passed unanimously.
Newsletter
The newsletter is published quarterly. The winter one, about to be released, consists mainly of an article, by Tom, about archaeology and local history. Smaller entries include a transcription of a Civil War letter written by a soldier opposed to Abraham Lincoln, and a piece about the Veterans photo album by Marion Daley. Lyssa commented on the impressive format of the newsletter, which Stuart produced using Photo Shop software. In the future, he will try Howard Printing, which has a tower port and is less expensive than our current choice. Lyndley volunteered to fold (with her family) the newsletter copies for mailing and has table technology for labels. Lyssa has an old mailing list, which needs to be updated in our office computer (upstairs). We will issue 250 copies.
Large Furniture Moving
Last Saturday, Stuart, his son Jacob, Tom, and Ruth moved and organized the remaining contents of our collection upstairs in the Town Hall. They created a pile to move to the mill and one to eliminate. In addition, they identified certain tall, wooden glass cases for pick up by the Cavendish Historical Society, as a result of Ruth’s advertisement in the Vermont Historical Society newsletter. Meanwhile, we will keep (and store on the stage) some big, heavy shelves, bookcases, and display cases. Apart from our mill and get-rid-of piles, our project of clearing out of the Town Hall is nearly complete. We do, however, have to decide what to do with our paper items, such as pictures and magazines relevant to history, but not to that of Putney. For example, there are some volumes on the historical architecture of Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Lyssa has talked to the Putney Librarian and the Putney Library Board about the possibility of a grant for handling our paper collection, through Expanding Librarians in conjunction with historical societies. There is a dry space downstairs in the library. This would be a suitable place for paper items, such as the law books Laura Heller has urged us to keep. If the library can get a grant to store and display our valuable paper collection, perhaps even the addition of a local history room is possible. Barbara commented on the frequent use of the genealogy room staffed by the historical society at the Brattleboro library. (There is also a collection in the Brattleboro town vault.) Perhaps we could form a subcommittee with Putney Library members to explore the possibility of a mutual grant for handling our paper collection.
According to Stuart, we can discuss the magazines and wait a couple of weeks regarding the library. Otherwise, Ruth will take them, as she recognizes their historic value and does not want them thrown away. In terms of the mill pile, Ruth said we should wait until April to move into the Thwing Mill. It has a leaky roof, but can be used. Stuart will go look at roof.
Tim asked if we are going to identify the road to the Thwing Mill, as the deadline is 2009. Lyssa says there is a record of the Select Board accepting a redrawn map of the town, naming the Mill Road as a cul de sac. Stu will talk to Town Attorney Coutant to ascertain whether the continuation (of the road) across the brook still exists as a right of way.
Meanwhile, we will most likely have another work day on the first Saturday in February. Because Saturday morning may not be convenient for all, this date will be announced in advance. Jane will try to recruit community service club students from the Greenwood School.
Identifying Items for Accessioning
As we know, we have made progress with cataloguing our accession files. Marion Schlefer has created lists of oral histories, of the Aiken Nursery catalogues, and of letters. In addition, Laurel has made progress on former accessioning records, in addition to subject files. Despite our progress, we still need help with listing our collection.
Oral Histories
At our last meeting, we agreed to reserve extra money for a tape recorder. Some oral histories are now underway. Next Wednesday, Laurel and Stuart plan to interview Louisa Amidon. Jane would like to produce a 30th Anniversary student interview about Greenwood. We will buy the necessary equipment to facilitate more projects. Stu will be happy to help any group.
The Fashion Show
Laurel tried to schedule our fashion show at the Community Center for January, but due to many events, we will have to wait until March. One event is a Victorian tea. Tim suggested we combine the fashion show with the tea and have a real social. Although the fashion show will not consist of clothing from our collection, we have many hats that could be displayed in some way. Lyssa added that we could enhance a display of our period hats by pairing them with photographs of people wearing such hats. Beyond this, Ruth feels we should eliminate some of our clothing collection because we have no place to display it. Because Stuart is involved in projects at Guilford Central, a March date is better for him.
The Settee
Tim asked about the status of our settee. Ruth talked to a woman who is willing to truck it up here. This woman had a question, however, regarding whether the deal would be tax deductible. Ruth advised her to ask her own tax consultant. The settee belonged to Amos Joy and is one item in a category of items that are historic, but do not pertain to Putney. For example, Stuart asked Lyssa about the recent estimate she had done to clean and stabilize our Civil War (poster) document. Lyssa responded that the estimate was $610.00, which is high for our budget.
Work Part of Meeting
Mr. Macannaney, of the Cavendish Historical Society, arrived to view the wooden cases ear-marked for his organization. We then moved upstairs to further discuss our collection. The meeting was adjourned by 11:00 a.m.
Work Day ahead first weekend in February — to be announced.
Respectfully submitted,
Jane Rawley
Secretary