On a foggy morning in October, 2012, somewhere between 100 and 200 townspeople gathered in Lincolnville Center. Actual numbers vary, but there were a lot of us. We were there for a purpose. The old Center schoolhouse, which had finished its original purpose 65 years earlier, needed to be moved across the road.

Lincolnville pre-1947 was a town divided, beyond the Beach/Center divide I have previously written about. One room school houses were how our children were educated, at least to grade 8.

The Lincolnville Historical Society believes there may have been as many as 17 school houses scattered across town. Basically, anywhere where children lived there needed to be a school within walking distance. The Beach School, the Center School, the Wiley School, Miller, Youngtown — you get the idea.

But is the late 1940s, Lincolnville Central School was built on the site of the current LCS. A four-room school with indoor plumbing, fluorescent lighting, all the modern conveniences. And Lincolnville children who may never have met found themselves in class together. A town united. And so the day of the one-room school house in Lincolnville passed. The Lincolnville Historical Society has placed plaques at the sites of those school houses; most are long gone, a few have been repurposed.

The Center School House sat next to the Lincolnville Boat Club, then the Center Fire Station. The old school house had seen a number of uses since closing, and only an eye well trained in history would know what it used to be. It was ramshackle and the entire front covered by a garage door, the interior full of random junk.

Meanwhile, just across the street was property owned by the town. The former site of Dean and Eugley’s service station (yes, those Eugleys), it was now a vacant lot, smack in the middle of the Center. Townspeople started talking, and setting up committees, and making plans, as we do.

Somehow this led to, “what if we drag the school house across the street and turn it into a library?”

I’m obviously doing an incredible disservice to all those involved in this process, but basically this is what it boiled down to. And how would they do this? As it was described to me, the plan was explained by placing a deck of cards on a couple pencils, the age old roller method.

Many, many conversations with state and town officials were had, permits were obtained, a concrete slab was placed on the town land for the building to set on.
The school house was jacked up, and metal pipes were placed beneath it. And on that foggy morning, using an extremely long rope and pulley system, we worked together to pull that old school house across Main Street, to the prepared slab.

It would be another year and a half of fundraising and donations of material and labor before the Lincolnville Library opened its doors in February of 2014, complete with indoor plumbing, energy efficient lighting, solar panels- all the modern conveniences.

I recently visited the library and met the new director, Lincolnville resident Kris Landi. She took over in January when long-time director Sheila Polson took a well deserved retirement. Kris is a former middle school teacher and librarian, and enthusiastically took me through all the library has to offer.

All town residents are entitled to a free library card, $10 per year for non-residents. The library’s catalog is available online, and a library card also gives you access to the Maine Infonet Download Library, which offers downloadable titles, as well as to the interlibrary loan, giving you access to the physical collections of hundreds of Maine libraries.

Beyond this, the library offers free wi-fi, which can be accessed all over the property, like the garden in the summer, or the parking lot in the winter. They also can provide computers for use within the building. The library volunteers do a beautiful job of landscaping, and the property is also home to the Jackie Watts Open-air Museum, displaying some of the Historical Society’s larger artifacts.

Kris hopes to facilitate more library programming, which was side-tracked during the pandemic. Author talks, activities for children, small musical presentations- Kris is open to hearing about your ideas for what our library can offer.

And there really isn’t a much cozier place on a cold winter day. The large windows provide passive solar heat, and the interior is simply beautiful, accented by rotating art pieces.
Interestingly, I just learned this isn’t the first Lincolnville Library. There appear to have been several in the past, probably housed in people’s homes. The Lincolnville Historical Society comes across old books marked Lincolnville Library from time to time. Makes me think of the old stories of the Library Police, those books must be SERIOUSLY overdue.

The moving of the Center School House is one of my favorite memories of this town. Check out the video of that day. I spotted my two oldest children, toddlers snuggled into Pat Shannon’s lap. My father and other townspeople long gone. A day when so many of us came together for a common purpose.

Condolences

Sympathy to the family of long time summer resident Marge Olson. You may know her as the one responsible for the painted rocks at Lincolnville Beach and for sale in front of Dwight Wass’s Fine Art Gallery.

She raised thousands of dollars for the Lincolnville Improvement Association with those rocks. On a sunny summer day you would usually find Marge in her barn on Beach Road, the doors wide open to let in the sea breeze, painting her rocks. She was also a driving force behind the garden plots at the Beach. She loved this town, and is a shining example of how much value our summer residents bring to out community.

Thoughts of Spring

I am sure I am not alone, after the warm weather last week, in thinking about spring to come. The perennials which will be popping out of the ground, splashing our dooryards with color. The seedlings gently placed into the warm earth, the return of the bees. And the birdsong. I swear I heard a phoebe singing the other morning; too early, little bird.

Yes, it is too early. Winter is not done with us yet, even with last week’s mud season preview. My wife said “February is like purgatory.” You know there are pleasanter days are ahead, but for now, you have to abide with where you are.

And soon we face what the old-timer’s called “March Hill” — a difficult climb, which not everyone makes it up. So it is time to take extra care of your friends and neighbors. In life as well as in hauling a 160 year old building across the street, we are more effective when we work together.

And as ever, do not hesitate reach out- ceobrien246@gmail.com