Exhibit and Store News
The Museum is open in September on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays; hours are 10-4:00, except Sundays, which are 1-4:00. In October, we’ll be open Saturdays and Sundays; October 12 is our last day.
We have 2027 Cathy MacNeill calendars, “A Taste of Chebeague” cookbooks, and a new printing of the Stone Sloop Book with an updated Doughty genealogy page. Also, many sweaters and sweatshirts, both adult and kids, and CIHS gift cards. And check out our September selected sale items!
We’re so grateful for your support — we’re having great traffic this season. Thanks for sending your friends, family, houseguests, and summer acquaintances our way. We’re proud to be an important part of our Island community.
From the President’s Desk
After a thorough study of our building, the old schoolhouse, we are excited to tell you that the Historical Society is putting into action a plan that will improve conditions for our collections and sharply cut our operating costs. There will be later, more radical steps, but this is a good beginning.
September 28: Suzie Arnold Speaks On the Changing Waters Around Us
The next presentation in the 2026 Ellsworth Miller Summer Lecture Series will be at 7:00 at the Community Hall. Dr. Suzie Arnold, marine scientist at the Island Institute, will trace the temperature and height of the ocean over the years and how those changes have impacted how islanders lived and earned a living. Refreshments!
Have a History Question? Tell Us, and We’ll Write About It!
We’re always looking for topics to cover in the Historical Society’s Journal, The Sloop’s Log. If you have an idea for an article, do tell us! Stop in at the Museum, or email us at [email protected]. The next edition of The Sloop’s Log will be published in late autumn.
September Mystery Photo
Who is in the vehicle? How was the vehicle used? What was it called? What is the building behind the vehicle? Who owned it, and how was it used? Email [email protected] with your answers.
August Mystery Photo Revealed
The Chebeague Methodist Episcopal Church, as pictured, was built in 1855. The photo is from an 1881-82 stereopticon. The church reflects the Greek Revival style of the day. Heavy plaster cornices adorned the white plastered walls. In the 1870s, the plaster cracked, and some of the cornice fell into the church! The steeple is said to have been toppled in a storm in the 1880s. The Church was renovated and enlarged in the early 1890s. During the renovation, the plaster interior was covered by varnished matched boards, and stained-glass windows were installed. Architect and summer resident Antoine Dorticos designed the belfry/entry addition as it stands today. Newspaper accounts describe the balcony as being built for 75 people. The addition and renovation cost $2000 and was debt free at completion. The Methodist Conference deemed it “practically a new edifice”.
