The evening program was entitled, “Old Rules Prevail: Fiddling contests in New Hampshire and New England”. It was given by Adam Boyce of West Windsor, Vt., and sponsored by the NH Humanities Council. The earliest contests recorded were held in 1736, and were usually a one day affair.  As the years went by, a hard and fast rule was that no song written after 1911 was to be played.  It was a rule difficult to enforce.  Mr. Boyce commented that a fiddler was known by bragging how little his fiddle cost, while the violinist took pride in just how expensive his instrument was! Fiddling contests are not as popular as they were at one time, and meanwhile they now also get together for a good old fashion “hoe-down” or jamboree as well.

Fiddling contests included three song styles with varying rhythms. These included the waltz, (in three/four time”), the “jig”, and the reel, (rag or “hoe-down”). Mr.  Boyce entertained by playing all three as well as CD’s from previous contests.  The audience voted as to who they thought was the winner on each CD.

The speaker had great humor as well as talent that made for a most enjoyable evening. By tradition, a New England fiddling group always plays as its last song, “Smile awhile – “till we meet again”. Mr. Boyce did just that to sum up our evening together.

Barbara Lauterbach

Barbara spoke about New Hampshire foods from early days through to the present. She and her daughter had done exhaustive research on the subject and she was brimming with interesting facts such as plain cooking was pious, shellfish was regarded with suspicion, fiddleheads were unknown – foods that were later used, but in the early days when they could have enriched the diet, were not used. Thanksgiving was not a feast day as we know it, nor was it sitting at a bountiful table with the Indians – it was a day of prayer and thanks for survival in a new land.

The first cookbook was by Amelia Simmons. New Hampshire. food was plain and simple – adapted to the climate and availability.   Seventeenth century pease porridge was served for many meals and morphed into pea beans. Beans were a staple of the early diet. Lydia Marie Child’s cookbook was published in 1828. White flour was a luxury and was used only for the “upper crust” of pies – thus the saying “upper crust”. Cabbage was familiar as were the many dishes made from corn – sweet corn was not known as such until the 1850’s.

The boiled dinner was a dish that could be cooked in one pot over an open fire so was popular. Red Flannel Hash followed.

Hardtack was sampled by all those in attendance.

Barbara found a great deal of information in Hayden Pearson’s book “Countryman Cooking”. The Salt Pork Dinner, Salmon and Peas on the 4th of July – still popular today.

Tortiere – a Canadian meat pie, served mostly on Christmas Eve by the French Canadians who had migrated into New England to work in the mills/ Cider was in every New England home as was rum. Seasonings and spices not native to the area were introduced around 1828. Barbara talked about other favorites such as apple pie and cheese for breakfast, salmon or tuna wiggle. She passed around some ‘hardtack’ a very hard cracker-like food that sustained the Pilgrims on their journey to the new world. She had a word about the Shakers who were way ahead of everyone in kitchen accessories.

At the end of her talk, Barbara entertained questions from the audience.  She also handed out recipes with a reading list included.  CLICK HERE to download it.

Did you miss this presentation?  Visit the “Audio Recordings” under the 2010 Events tab.

A big thank you goes out to Matthew Stearns for taking pictures of our annual plant sale.  Thanks to everyone who purchased flowers (which in turn supports Centre Harbor Historical Society).

John Moulton, well known local farmer and owner of Moulton Farm of Meredith, was our guest speaker.

John began his talk reminiscing about meeting in this building when he was a member of the Kanasatka 4-H Club as a teenager.

He mentioned that Earth Day, which is April 22, was started exactly 40 years ago and has been celebrated every year since.

The Moulton Farm was begun in 1892 by John’s family and the farm has gone through several evolutions since then, but remained in the Moulton family. He told of the many different phases of farming that the family has seen – summer boarders, a dairy farm, selling pumpkins and corn by the roadside, selling only what they grew, etc. He told of cleaning out an old shed on the property which held a collection of everything that his grandparents and parents had kept over the years – they never threw anything away.

In order to make a living, the farm has evolved to a full service farm stand carrying fruits, flowers, berries (Did you know that Belknap County produces the largest amount of blueberries in the state?) from other growers, besides all of the produce that is grown on the farm. The Moultons have acquired more land to add to the original farm as well as growing crops, mostly corn, on several other pieces of land around the area. Fresh seafood has been added to the stand as well as a commercial bakery. The CSA – people who buy shares during the winter and received regular baskets of produce from the farm all summer is a program that now has over 1,000 shares sold. The farm has also expanded into the Christmas season with trees, etc.

John hires students during the growing and harvesting seasons as well as a core of adults who oversee the planting. He owns machinery of every type to do the work of the planting, cultivating, and harvesting crops, although some crops are handpicked. He praised the work of the young students who do such good work and many return for several summers. People come to the farm for farming advice as well.

John praised the research and work of Ortho Welles and the University of New Hampshire – their work is well known throughout the USA. The New Hampshire Department of Agriculture and the New Hampshire Farm Bureau are of utmost importance and help to the farmer. Labor is the highest cost.

Everyone was given a ticket upon arriving for a raffle of a wonderful cake especially baked for this meeting with “Center Harbor Historical Society” written on it, and two baskets of pansies raised on the farm. We did have two winners… Perhaps the next meeting you attend you might win something!

John entertained questions from the audience before the meeting was adjourned to enjoy refreshments.

1997 was “the year to be here!” Ask anyone that attended any of the multiple events of the year. Yes, it was the 200^th birthday of Center Harbor in 1997, its’ birth date being December 7, 1797. There was so much to cover; the birthday party was started a little early.

January kicked off the year with a winter outing at the Red Hill Inn. There were over 85 people that braved the cold, icy winds and enjoyed the introduction of all the events that were to follow. In February, there was a winter carnival that was so popular that everyone thought it should be an annual event. The Beard contest in April seemed to draw a lot of attention from the media. There were pictures of bearded men in most of the states’ newspapers. Well over 100 people crowded into the hall at the Congregational church on a Saturday night in April to watch haircuts.

Spring brought out still more people to watch the tree planting in the park. Spring also displayed the work of those that had done the fall planting. New gardens were popping up all over town. The gardens of Center Harbor had people talking all year long. It was a beautiful display well planned and maintained. May was the Civil War Living History display, combined with garden planting and the celebration of Memorial Day. June saw the Reenactment of the landing of Moses Senter and John Bean. The Mount Washington Cruise was a “sell out” for a beautiful three hour evening sail on the lake.

The Bicentennial quilt was begun in July of 1996 and twelve women worked on the project for twelve months. It was presented to the town just before the parade. The Bicentennial quilt won the “best of all floats” in the annual parade. The bandstand, started on Mother’s day, was to be completed by the 4^th of July. However, the floor was just being put in place two days prior to the Fourth of July celebration; the dedication was on the 6^th. It was finally completed December 3^rd, just in time to decorate for the Christmas season.

The Town Band was the first to use the new bandstand on the Fourth of July. That night there were thousands gathered to hear the band and watch the fabulous town fireworks. (Some people were stuck in traffic in Center Harbor for over 45 minutes that night after the show!). Over 250 people showed up for each of the Friday night band concerts on the new town bandstand. All the events of that weekend clicked off with only minor interruptions of brief rain showers. The dedication of the bandstand included several speeches and a concert by the Freese Brothers Big Band. During the weekend there was a Commemorative Postal Cancellation under the tent. The two seals used were the results of a contest at the Inter-Lakes High School that was held in April. The pancake breakfast was sold out and the Chicken Bar-B-Que was a winner. All this was influenced by the festive atmosphere supplied by a big circus tent pitched on the Town Hall lawn and decorations to match the occasion. The annual parade was the “best ever”, as expressed by many of the life-time residents.

August was also a highlight that brought out the tents again. The Harrington Catalog had a tent sale that made people take note. There were musical groups on the bandstand and a display of vintage autos in the park. The two day event had something for everyone. Yes, there was also a picnic in the park featuring a horseshoe contest on the beach. A cold Sunday in September was the time chosen for the Harvest concert. It was COLD! The music was Hot!

The final meeting of the Bicentennial Committee was held at the Chequers Harbor Restaurant on December 6^th. A short business meeting was held, followed by a fun gathering of over 60 people who talked and laughed recalling the past year’s events. Friday the 7^th, the actual date of the founding of Center Harbor, there was a service at the Congregational Church. The Carter Mountain Brass was there to help bring close to the year’s celebration. They also accompanied our trek to the bandstand to sing Christmas Carols. The fellowship continued with hot drinks and food at the church after the caroling.

Did you miss “the year to be here!”? The Centre Harbor Historical Society has been named curator of all pictures and news clippings, and is “guardian of the quilt” and all of the Bicentennial artifacts. The Bicentennial quilt can be viewed at the Town Hall in Cary Mead room. The Greater Meredith Chamber of Commerce honored Center Harbor with the Civic Project Award of 1997 for the new town bandstand. A 45 minute video is being prepared as a keepsake of this bicentennial year.

Just think! The Bicentennial Committee started out without any tax funding. Over thirty-three thousand dollars was raised to run the year’s Bicentennial events. Sixty-five thousand dollars was raised, plus countless donations of time and materials, to build and develop the bandstand area. The total funding was done without one dollar of tax money being spent. That was an accomplishment many thought to be impossible.

All in all, it took a lot of dedication by many committed people to bring the Bicentennial Year to Center Harbor; the individuals that showed up each month for the committee meetings, the 100 or more that gave money to support the activities and the bandstand, those that gave time and talent to make it happen, and most of all a community that showed their appreciation for the time spent by attending the Bicentennial events.

Center Harbor, you did yourself proud in 1997! Let’s keep the spirit alive and well.

Seth Ira Stearns, Co-Chairman,

Center Harbor Bicentennial Committee

— Where were you during the 1997 festivities? Did you have any favorite moments? Take a moment to share them with us by leaving a comment below. Thanks!

All those questions can be answered thanks to modern technology. Thanks to organizations like Cruise NH and Winnispesaukee.com you can.

We’ve added a link to the Center Harbor webcam on our site, but if you’d like to view other New Hampshire locations you can visit Winnipesaukee.com now and check it out.

The Squam Lakes Conservation Society is a land conservation organization dedicated to the protection of the natural environment in the Squam Lakes Region of central New Hampshire for the benefit of all present and future residents and visitors. SLCS was formed in 1960 by long-time residents of the area and obtained 501(c)(3) status as a private, non-profit charitable organization in 1961.

To find out more visit these links:

www.squamlakes.com or,

The Lakes Region Conservative Trust
www.lrct.org

From the Center Harbor Historical Society’s history of the Town, we learn of the Sturtevant Farm, on what is now known as Dane Road/Route 25B.

On that property in the 1800s was a tavern, for the accommodation of travelers on the old Plymouth stage route, and later a summer boarding house. Notable people spent summers on the farm, including literary figures Lucy Larcom, Celia Thaxter, and John Greenleaf Whittier.

Whittier, who lived from 1807 to 1892, was one of the most celebrated American poets in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, recognized as the poet of everyday life in rural New England.   At one time, all New England school children learned his poems. Less known is that in the years leading up to the Civil War he was an ardent and active abolitionist.

Whittier spent seven summers at the Sturtevant Farm prior to 1889 and there composed some of his most beautiful poetry, including “The Wood Giant”, which recounts the search for majestic trees not lost to timbering and the discovery of an immense pine in a pasture at the farm. This tree, which came to be known as the “Whittier Pine”, was believed to have been about 400 years old when struck by lightning in the 1950s and was later taken down.

Whittier wrote:

At last to us a woodland path,
To open sunset leading,
Revealed the Anakim of pines
Our wildest wish exceeding.
Alone, the level sun before;
Below, the lake’s green islands;
Beyond, in misty distance dim,
The rugged Northern Highlands.
Dark Titan on his Sunset Hill
Of time and change defiant
How dwarfed the common woodland seemed,
Before the old-time giant!”

Why not visit the Association of Historical Societies of New Hampshire and their website.  Click on “directories.”  To see our listing, click Belnap county.

You can get there by clicking here or by checking out the link on the right hand side of this website page.