Friday, March 13, 2020

Made in Conway Village

Look for the tall spire of the old Methodist Church at 121 Main Street, Conway NH, 03818
is this address correct? 



Park in the lot behind the church for the old fire house at 111 Main Street.
Park in the lot behind the church seen in this satellite photo (click on image to enlarge it)






Change is nothing new to Conway Village. You can see evidence, clues to its changing past.
like a palimpsest
and when physical evidence, remains combined with photos, maps, archives, from Conway Historical Society and Conway Public Library's Henney History Room well...

This evidence also shows multiple recycling, repurposing, refunctioning of buildings. These New England buildings are resiliant, well built, able to be reused. .. 

three churches once marked this area of Conway Village. Catholic Church now the Robert Frost Charter School, Brown Church, Methodist for sale.
This tour focuses on the subject "Made in Conway Village." 

We will use the 1896 Bird's Eye View as a guide.





everyone who goes on this olli tour gets a free copy of this map suitable for framing at the end
they were originally printed in black and white as as in this example hand colored



Note that some of the buildings are numbered
Number 17 was at that time called the Union Church. Number 18 was the school. (click on image to enlarge it) maybe new more detailed scan.


insert pics of some/all of the numbered buildings here?

x





The church is still there, now for sale.
The church spire has been and continues to be a significant landmark.


insert detail 1896 birds eye with the church steeple, or that ok?

For more on the history of the church see this link.




The school was intentionally burned in x year, see hounsell

both buildings had spires, steeples
we have the copper finial
post card of the school here

x


The old fire house was built when? on the site where the current fire station is now
photo of current fire and rescue, that address
in x year it was moved so the new one could be built there
insert that brick one

then in x year, the brick one was torn down? and replaced by the current fire station

The old firehouse was moved and now houses the meeting room for the Conway Historical Society and the offices of the Upper Saco Valley Land Trust.








Before we go into the old fire house, let's explore Pequawket Park
to the south of the parking lot is Pequawket Park. Notice the black granite bench commemorating the x in y year.

The park with its gazebo is maintained by the Conway Village Fire District. See this link.

The park is also the location of a farmer's market. See this link here.

insert map in addition to satellite?

For info on Pequawket Pond see info from the NH Fish and Game here.

For a wikipedia article on Pequawket Brook see here.

insert pic tax map to show boundaries? link to it here.



insert pic and tie to lidar and historic quad maps, etc. here.







Will there be a renaissance in Conway Village? See this link.
The town will move its offices to the old Bank of New Hampshire building and the bank is building a new facility insert pic being constructed



ghi

in Sanborn map of x year, shows insert pic

The old firehouse was moved and now houses the meeting room for the Conway Historical Society and the offices of the Upper Saco Valley Land Trust.

On display in the ground floor meeting room are five watercolor paintings by Brownlow Thompson. For more on this collection see this link.

To the east is the Lord Barn now housing historic fire fighting equipment.

The new fire house is next with its meeting room.

Next is the JEM coin laundry with nice timber framing and in the loft above is Tentsmiths premier historic tent makers for movies including ...

Maggie Hair Studio was a gas station.

UNH Extension Carroll County was peg mill. 



fldsdflj
To the east is the dam. On the 1896 bird's eye view you can see logs in the mill pond here.

Cross the street or continue east
Stan's was blacksmith shop
New Town Hall/Offices

Mountain Top Music Center and Majestic Theater

see the dam
Here are pics of the mills here. A series of mills.
Here where x Eastman, sons of William K. Eastman  learned about mills and later involved in founding what is now the Pillsbury Flour Company.
pics from Alva Carver book 

other buildings and on to the Eastman Lord House.
number 49 on the 1896 bird's eye view listed as Geo. A.  Heath residence.
this detail shows context


this shows tighter detail









The 1860 census, 1890 census on George A. Heath.
insert here





Before entering the building look across the street to the south where we just walked was William K. Eastman's tannery.

However, like many other residences, houses, this house was also a factory, manufactury and shop as well.

Eben Lord, box maker
Mary Daniels Lord millinery shop
Son Raymond Lord, night watchman for the Conway Fire Department (across the street)

William K. Eastman
store
farm 

He also owned mills,
tannery
shoe-making
harness-making  
carding mill
dressing (fulling?) mill 
straw board mill 

We will explore these processes. 

In the ELH  or move to the OFH? by then?
totem pole
flax kit
conway chair
Champney chair
first conway table
pendexter settle 

mud and fire Furber pottery hhr pc C:\Users\Chinook Dog\Pictures\pottery CHS
see hhr pc
C:\Users\Chinook Dog\Pictures\Outreach pics HHR c drive
hhr shared 
\\STAFF\Share\Henney Room Shared\Outreach pics HHR PC
sand and fire glass M ornament


xyz

No comments:

Post a Comment