YARMOUTH — Maine Preservation announced its 18th Maine’s Most Endangered Historic Places List on the WCSH-6 television show 207 on Sept. 15, 2015. Belfast Opera House is listed among the threatened historic places.

The Maine’s Most Endangered Historic Places List began in 1996 for the purpose of identifying and raising public awareness of the breadth and interest in preserving endangered and threatened historic properties and materials.  Since that time, 113 places have been included on the list of which 53 have been saved, 26 are in motion and only 18 have been demolished.  Maine Preservation is a statewide, nonprofit, membership organization that promotes and preserves historic places, buildings, downtowns and neighborhoods, strengthening the cultural and economic vitality of Maine communities.

"Maine’s Most Endangered Historic Places List for 2015 illustrates the broad range of historic buildings and structures that are community assets across our state,” said Greg Paxton, executive director of Maine Preservation. “Preservation of these key structures can be a catalyst for, economic development, community revitalization and continued quality of life for the citizens of Maine’s towns and cities. Through historic preservation, our communities can wisely manage and adaptively use existing buildings, bolster our tax base and provide a firm foundation for future prosperity and a sense of place.”

Listings this year highlight the Vaughan Woods Stone Bridges in Hallowell, Stimson Memorial Hall in Gray, Old Town Hall in Bridgton, Old Surry Schoolhouse in Surry, Oak Grove Chapel in Vassalboro, Weston Homestead in Madison, the Crooker House in Norway, the Jonathan Eddy House in Bangor, Keen Hall in Freedom, and the J. M. Rice Block in Houlton. For more information on each of the listings, please visit mainepreservation.org.

New to the list in 2015:

• Keen Hall, Freedom – Built ca. 1850s and located near the recently restored Freedom Mill, Keen Hall has served as the residence of Carter B. Keen, former director of the Postal Savings System, and one of Freedom Academy’s past presidents.  Presently, Keen Hall has sat vacant for more than 5 years and was acquired by the town of Freedom due to tax foreclosure.  The Freedom Historical Society recently purchased the building and has consulted with the community. Preservation architect Christopher Glass volunteered an adaptive use plan that includes the Historical Society office, archives, and a community meeting room, along with a second floor apartment, which would serve as a potential source of income for the non-profit organization. Financial support is necessary to help with the rehabilitation project. 

• Vaughan Woods Stone Bridges, Hallowell – Seven dry-laid stone bridges built between 1890 and 1930 connect a three mile network of trails in the Vaughan Woods, a 197-acre nature preserve maintained by the Vaughan Homestead Foundation that enjoys an estimated 25,000 visitors each year. Since 2014, two bridges have been closed to the public, one of which was deconstructed in July 2015 due to safety concerns.  Each of the seven bridges requires critical structural repairs by skilled stonemasons. Fundraising efforts are underway, and community support is needed to ensure that the public may continue to enjoy the Woods as Vaughan intended. Without funding for the repairs, all seven bridges could be lost.

•Stimson Memorial Hall, Gray – Featuring a two story temple-front facade, Stimson Hall is one of the most architecturally prominent landmarks in the center of Gray.  In response to Maine Preservation placing Pennell Institute on its Most Endangered list in 2008, the Town of Grey rehabilitated Pennell and moved its town offices there and has not invested in repairs on ongoing maintenance to Stimson Hall since. In late 2014, Gray began obtaining bids for demolition of the historic hall with an agreement to list the property for sale for a short period of time.  With few architecturally significant properties, Gray would be well served to hold a public charrette for this key property to generate ideas for its rehabilitation and adaptive use.

• Old Town Hall, Bridgton – Old Bridgton Town Hall was built in 1852 as the town’s primary municipal and community center.  Despite serving as excellent example of how a historic building can be adapted to new uses to meet the changing needs of a community, some members in the Bridgton community have sought to prevent the Town from continuing to invest in the building, which the voters have twice defeated. Adding uses to the historic property – and even exploring the future option of selling the building to a new owner interested in adaptive use – are far better options than demolition, which should be taken off the table.

• Old Surry Schoolhouse, Surry – Built in 1872, the Old Surry Schoolhouse served the town of Surry for over 140 continuous years as a school, firehouse and then community center.  Since 2014, however, the building has stood vacant and is now under threat of demolition by practice burn if a new use and appropriate funds are not found for its repairs and code upgrades. At the September 1, 2015 Surry selectmen meeting, the Old Surry Schoolhouse Preservation Group was organized in an effort to develop a preservation plan and fundraising efforts for the building.

• Oak Grove Chapel, Vassalboro – Built in 1786, and listed in the National Register in 1977 as the River Meeting House, the Oak Grove Chapel was one of the first Quaker Meeting Houses in Maine. In 1895, the chapel was deeded to the Oak Grove School, which transformed the interior and façade from a humble meetinghouse into a picturesque shingle style chapel. The Chapel is now owned by the Oak Grove Foundation and cared for an independent nonprofit known as The River Meeting House and Oak Grove Chapel, which recently formed to advocate for the restoration of the historic property.  The property is underutilized and has deferred maintenance that must be addressed.  Fundraising efforts are underway, but additional community support is needed to restore the property.

• Weston Homestead, Madison – Located in Madison, the Weston Homestead provides an important link to the early settlement of the area and is a historic regional landmark. In 1817, Deacon Benjamin Weston commissioned a Federal Style house to be built on his family homestead, which had been settled in 1771. After over 225 years of ownership, the Weston family is looking to sell the house, which sits in remarkably unaltered condition, retaining much of its original interior finishing.  To make the nineteenth century house livable to a twenty-first century occupant, many modern updates are needed.  If updates are done without knowledge of modern preservation practice this could put the historic fabric of the structure at risk. The family is seeking a preservation minded buyer who wants to carry on its stewardship of this historic property for future generations with a preservation easement in place.

• James O. Crooker House, Norway – James Crooker, a noted tinsmith and hardware dealer, built his house ca. 1865, and two years later constructed his hardware store within sight on Main Street. The house is in good structural condition, but has been vacant for three years and is falling into disrepair. After years of decline, Norway downtown is undergoing revitalization.  The house and the neighborhood are key to continuing the town’s momentum.  The Crooker House requires a buyer who will rehabilitate this property and keep its significant historic character and help further downtown revitalization.

• Jonathan Eddy House, Bangor – Built about 1855, the Jonathan Eddy House is a Second Empire Style house that serves as a reminder of the wealth and ambition in Bangor in the early nineteenth century.  Unoccupied for nearly a decade, deferred maintenance and updated systems must now be addressed.  Without maintenance and rehabilitation, this historic property will continue to deteriorate, causing loss of historic fabric and blight to the neighborhood. The current owner could seek financing and use historic tax credits to rehabilitate the building or consider its sale at current market value to a new owner who can make the necessary repairs and place the building back in service.

• J.M. Rice Block, Houlton – The J. M. Rice Block, built in 1897, is a contributing building to the Market Square Historic District of Houlton, which was officially listed in the National Register in 1980.  The district is significant for its collection of large commercial buildings built during the economic boom resulting from the construction of the railroads near Houlton.  The existing tenants were moved out of the J.M. Rice Block when the current owner identified a prominent commercial tenant and began efforts to rehabilitate the property.  When the owner’s financing fell through, the rehabilitation efforts were put on hold and the building has now sat vacant for more than a year. New financing or a new property owner needs to be identified to move the project forward and to bring businesses to the J. M. Rice Block building and the Houlton downtown.

2014 Most Endangered List Update

5 in motion, and 3 still threatened.

Belfast Opera House, Belfast – Threatened

Downtown Gardiner – In Motion

Sewall Mansion, Bath – In Motion (Property listing removed from Zillow March 2015)

Skowhegan Drive-In Theater, Skowhegan – In Motion. The theater continues to operate in its 61st year. Fundraising efforts are still underway to covert to from a 35mm to a digital projector.

Abijah Buck House, Buckfield – In Motion. The property is for sale through Maine Preservation’s Revolving Fund and Keller Williams Realty.

Biddeford City Hall Clock Tower, Biddeford – Threatened

Lincoln Mill Clock Tower, Biddeford – In Motion. $25,000 raised as of Aug. 27, 2014

Anson Town Office, Anson – Threatened.  Listed for sale as a commercial property through Hearth and Home Realty.

TOTALS 1996 - 2014: 113 properties listed, 53 Saved, 26 In Motion, 16 Threatened, 18 Demolished