Berlin and Coös County Historical Society

As our longtime genealogist and dedicated volunteer, Jackie Nadeau was certainly an integral part of our Society. Jackie will be sadly missed by all of us. Her dedication to our organization will always stand as a benchmark to us all.

https://www.bryantfuneralhome.net/obituaries/jacklyn-nadeau

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NEWS FROM THE HOUSE

PRESERVING THE PAST FOR THE FUTURE.

VOLUME 53                                                                                                           Winter/Spring 2023

Left to right: Paul Gilbert, Paul Bousquet, Oscar Patry, Mayor Paul Gre-
nier, Dennis Murphy, Renney Morneau, Nancy Murphy, Jill Dubey, Arlene
Lambert, Davis Bryant, Barbara Barbieri, Diane Pelchat

Berlin Falls House Museum Dedication A Smashing Success

On Saturday December 10, 2022, the Berlin & Coos County Historical Society dedicated its newest museum building, the Berlin Falls House, honoring Berlin’s ethnic and industrial history. That morning at 10 am a ribbon cutting ceremony was held to officially open the museum. Mr. Raymond N. Patry, former owner and longtime Funeral Director of the Fleury-Patry Funeral Home did the honors of cutting the ribbon. Pastors Dean Stiles and Jesse Arsenault graciously gave invocations and blessings to the new museum venture honoring the past, present and future. Honorable Mayor Paul Grenier was also on hand for the festivities. The dedication ceremony was made even more special with the presence
of the Androscoggin Valley Fish & Game Board of Directors.

Upon entering the museum, visitors were serenaded by flutist, Aimee Bousquet. Her concerto, consisting of a variety of well-known melodies, added an element of grace and charm to the joyous setting. The open house was well attended by over 350 visitors from near and far. Displays chronicling Berlin’s ethnic, social and industrial past make up an impressive array of exhibits in what was formerly known as the Fleury-Patry Funeral Chapel. The folklore of our area comes to life through the varied displays of photographs and personal effects. The pride and fortitude of our ancestors is prominently
displayed as a testament to our cultural legacy. Aspects of Brown Company’s history, detailing our logging and paper making past, the Brown Family’s legacy, with the inclusion of our ethnic diversity, conjure up a perfect recipe for a unique melting pot success. To top everything off, the works of local artists embellish the diversity of the museum. Among these creative works is a hand-carved carousel horse, which was exquisitely and realistically detailed by local artist, Mr. Ed Solar, which was created as a tribute to his late daughter. Additional exhibits of interest include a tribute to the Northland Dairy Bar and Restaurant, Berlin’s veterans, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, and Berlin’s First Responders.
Upon entering the museum from the School Street entrance, visitors are greeted by an historic antique post office counter which once graced the old Milan Post Office on Main Street from 1957 to 1997. Prior to 1957, the post office counter was located at the Cascade Post Office. The vintage facade is certainly a testament to yesteryear with stained glass windows highlighting antique brass window cages. Special open house postmarked envelopes continue to be available for purchase at both museums. Many thanks to all of you who made the grand opening such a memorable event.

Moffett House Sports
Museum–Grand Opening

On December 10, 2022, the Moffett House Genealogy and Sports Museum held the grand opening of the sports museum featuring the New Hampshire Legends of Hockey Hall of Fame, Berlin Inductees. Over 110 visitors attended and enjoyed walking
among the 40 “Legends” of Hockey from the Berlin area, reading their hockey biographies and viewing their photographs. This hockey space also contained Berlin’s Hockey History from 1903 to present day, featuring significant events throughout this period. Those events included the 1957 Notre Dame High School New England  Champions, the 1967 Berlin High School New England Champions, and the Berlin Maroons’ three Senior Amateur Hockey Association National titles. Other sports’ exhibits are unified basketball, women’s sports, the Nansen Ski Club, basketball, powerlifting, and boxing, among others.

The visitors enjoyed perusing the circular clothes rack examining the many championship jackets from women’s and men’s sports that go as far back as 1932. Among those attending that day were Hall of Famers John Normand (Player), President of New Hampshire Legends of Hockey, Richard Roy (Player) and Pierre Belanger, inducted as a Hockey
Official. The concept of the hockey exhibit began almost two years ago with a discussion with Hall of Fame goalie Rod Blackburn. His dream was to remember current and future Hockey Hall of Famers. This concept carried into other Berlin sports. Rod’s dream has come to fruition.

Update on PastPerfect

Museum volunteers began entering and cataloging artifact information into the PastPerfect software at the beginning of June 2022. To date, they have entered information for approximately 2,100 items – objects, photographs, books, documents and taken 4,600 pictures of those items. Entering artifact information into the software will allow the museum to maintain accurate and up-to-date records and details about each item, such as condition and location, classification, measurements, etc.

As the museum’s software renewal date arrives in May 2023, the Board of Directors has approved the additional licensing of the web module of the software, which will enable the viewing of artifacts via the museum’s website. Visitors will be able to take virtual tours of artifacts located at either the Moffett House or the Berlin Falls House. Stay tuned for more information on the development of this new and exciting phase of the museum’s PastPerfect implementation.

It Takes a Volunteer…

…to maintain and operate a historical society. Like the buildings and artifacts that comprise the historical society, its volunteers are priceless, as they perform all the behind-the-scenes tasks needed to keep the doors open, the buildings in shape, and the grounds maintained. The Berlin & Coos County Historical Society is fortunate in having a very dedicated and energetic group of 48 volunteers. With the implementation of the PastPerfect software system in June of 2022, we now have the ability to track the number of volunteers and the hours they put into making the historical society a vibrant and relevant part of our community. The numbers for 2022, listed below, are not all-encompassing as we only began tracking in PastPerfect in July, but they are still amazing.

Volunteers and their spouses/significant others were feted at a dinner in recognition of their efforts on November 17, 2022, sponsored by Ann Marie Blackburn Bills. The Board of Directors of the historical society would like to thank these dedicated, hard-working individuals for all of their efforts throughout the years.

Benefactors

A benefactor is defined as a person who gives a large amount of time/help and/or significant financial resources to a cause. BCCHS recognizes the many individuals who brought the Historical Society to where it is today. Past, current, and future benefactors are/will be inscribed on plaques that are on display in the Moffett House and the Berlin Falls House. The names on each plaque are relevant to contributions made at each location. Some individuals are inscribed at both locations. BCCHS benefactors are those who contributed a significant amount of time over the past many years gathering,
organizing, and creating displays related to our history, writing grants, maintaining the various properties, among other duties. Some benefactors provided skilled licensed services saving the Society thousands of dollars for electrical work, legal advice, architectural knowledge, among other things. Some wrote books on our local history that brought in significant revenue over the years, while others provided considerable financial resources when needed the most. Moffett House benefactors are Mary McKee Moffett, Ann R. Mckee, Don and Odette Leclerc, Maurice Lavertue, Raymond Daigle, Paul “Poof” Tardiff, Walter and Jacklyn Nadeau, Renney E. and Louise B. Morneau, Josephine Routhier, S. Melvin Rines, Roderick H. Blackburn, Ann Marie Blackburn Bills, Martha L. Taylor, Kenneth Ernest White, Kenneth Neil White, Lawrence Richards, Donald and Betty Oleson, Bertram Judson, and Msgr. Eddy Bisson. Berlin Falls House benefactors are RJE Properties, Robert Lafrance, Roland E. Olivier, Esq., Roger Dignard of Dignard Architectural Services, Roderick H. Blackburn, Ann Marie Blackburn Bills, S. Melvin Rines, Martha L. Taylor, Kenneth Ernest White, Kenneth Neil White, and Bertram Judson.

Please Consider Making a Lasting Gift

Consider becoming one of the many people who have chosen to make a lasting gift to the Berlin & Coos County Historical Society. As our mission of preserving the past for the future continues to grow by leaps and bounds, your financial commitment enables our organization to continue its task of preserving our rich heritage. Our museum campuses are popular destinations to visit and tell the story of our proud community and the people who built it. The Berlin & Coos County Historical Society is a 501c(3) non-profit organization. Whether your preference be in the form of an annual gift or perhaps by remembering the Society in a future bequest in your estate planning, our organization would be extremely grateful for your thoughtfulness and continuing our community’s lasting legacy. For more information, please call the historical society at (603)752-4590. Many thanks. This year’s dates for the barn sales held at the Brown Company Barns, 137 East Milan Road are: May 27, general, June 24, featuring gardening and 4th of July items, July 22, Household items, glass and dishes, August 19, Books, September 9, Holiday items, and September 30, general. All sales are from 9 AM to 3 PM.

BCCHS WEB SITE

There is a lot of activity on our web site. The Brown Bulletins have been especially very popular. It’s a great way to research relatives’s activities who worked in the mills. Some articles are very amusing while others are informative. You can now explore the many Berlin Neighborhoods. By clicking on a particular neighborhood, you read about its history. Check out our website at www.berlinnhhistoricalsociety.org.

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NEWS FROM THE HOUSE

PRESERVING THE PAST FOR THE FUTURE.

VOLUME 52                                                                                                                                                  Spring/Summer 2022

Berlin Falls House

Work on the Berlin Falls House is moving along—one of the reasons why this newsletter is a little tardy. The Spring Newsletter is now the Spring/Summer Newsletter. Things that we wrote about in the last newsletter are coming to fruition. The archival storage space is fire rated with plenty of shelving and open space to accommodate historic writings and objects. For the past 25 years BCCHS was fortunate to use an empty classroom at the former Guardian Angel School (AG) to store materials. Tri-County Community Action Program was kind enough to provide BCCHS with this space at no cost.  Retired board member Raymond Daigle documented and carefully stored the items while they were in the 600 square foot space. Over the past month as many as 10 volunteers at one time made seven trips to transfer about 450 boxes, several file cabinets, portable wardrobes, map cases, dozens of large,framed pictures and paintings, nine sets of steel shelving, etc. All this had to be brought down four flights of stairs, loaded onto a large ATV trailer, and two trucks. Under the direction of curator Jan Ely, this was unloaded into the former chapel of Fleury’s Funeral Home and organized in categories. Over the next few months everything will be examined again, organized, and stored in the new archival storage room.

Last fall, a mini-split heating/air-conditioning system was installed in the former chapel, and it did very well in heating the large room over the winter. Two other mini splits will be installed soon in other areas of the Berlin Falls House. Bob Lafrance, our treasurer/electrician is awaiting some parts to complete the fire alarm system.

Technology Upgrades

Our volunteers have been busy working on a number of technology upgrades that will provide visitors greater access to the museum’s collection. Moving the collection from Guardian Angel School presented us with an opportunity to reorganize, photograph and provide more detailed descriptions of the objects in the collection. To facilitate this work, new high speed internet access has been installed at the Berlin Falls House and extended to the Moffett house. A new file server with 16 Terabytes of digital storage will provide volunteers a place to store and share photos, videos, and documents. Data on the server is automatically and securely backed up off site to preserve these records in the event of a disaster.

The museum has also upgraded the catalog software to the current version of PastPerfect Web.  PastPerfect is considered the industry standard for museum collection management and is used by many other museums throughout New Hampshire and across the country. This web-based software is a subscription service with software support provided by the hosting service. This allows the museum staff and volunteers to focus on managing the collection without having to worry about keeping computers up and running.

PastPerfect software will allow museum volunteers to catalog and track not only the museum’s numerous artifacts, but also its members, donors, and volunteers. The software can produce lists, generate letters and has e-mail functionality.

As items are unpacked and sorted, curator Jan Ely and other volunteers are photographing, writing detailed descriptions of the object, and cataloging the objects in PastPerfect. The object location, origin, description, photos and any other information are being entered into PastPerfect. Cataloging objects in PastPerfect will take time, but as the collection grows, the plan is to procure an optional feature to allow public access to portions of the catalog via the web. Public access to the collection will also allow visitors at the museum to scan a code and get more information about objects on exhibit.

The addition of the new file server has enabled volunteers to begin digitizing the photos and converting movies, video tapes and DVD media into a format that can then be more easily accessed. As funding becomes available, museum staff hope to procure additional equipment such as video displays which will be integrated into the exhibits at the museum to display videos and photo slideshows and surveillance cameras to ensure the security of the buildings and their contents. Stay tuned for more updates.

Contributors & Members

The BCCHS board thanks all those who contributed to the Society and paid their membership in 2021. These contributions and memberships really provided the impetus in moving on those needed repairs/improvements at the Berlin Falls House. Here is the list of those who generously gave last year:

New Hampshire Legends of Hockey Hall of Fame

Berlin Inductees

 Last summer we met with Roderick (Rod) Blackburn. Rod discussed the idea of having a hockey hall of fame in Berlin to recognize current and future Berlin individuals who are inducted in the New Hampshire Legends of Hockey Hall of Fame. Forty people from Berlin currently are N.H. Hockey Hall of Famers. Rod and BCCHS reached an agreement that the Society would use a 420 square foot space in the Moffett House Museum to remember Berlin’s Hockey Legends and he would provide the financing for this project. Several others contributed to this project: Joseph & Joan Banks, David Barton, Ann Marie Blackburn Bills, Ronald Deyette, John R. Dulude, Maurice Dumais, New Hampshire

Roderick Blackburn, 1961 All-American Goal Tender
July 29, 1939 – November 19, 2021

Legends of Hockey, Edward Mullen, Mary Jane and Paul St. Amant and Pamela Couture. The Hall of famers will be honored with a 10.5-inch x 13-inch plaque with a photo and a narrative of their contribution to the sport of hockey. These 40 and future plaques will be displayed on 3-sided kiosks spaced throughout the room. The remainder of the space will tell Berlin’s Hockey Story. BCCHS has a goal of opening the Hockey Hall of Fame by November of this year.

In 1961 Rod Blackburn became the University of New Hampshire’s first ever All-American. His goal-tending career began at Notre Dame High School, perennial New Hampshire champions in the 1950’s. Blackburn helped guide Notre Dame beyond the state title to victory in the New England Championship in 1957. 

U.N.H. team captain in 1961, Rod Averaged 42 saves per game and was considered by many U.S. college coaches as the best goaltender in college hockey. He was a post-season selection to the All-New England, All-East and to the NCAA All-American Team. Blackburn played for the Berlin Maroons Senior Hockey Club, finalist in the 1961 and 1962 National AHA tournaments. In both tournaments, he was selected most valuable player. 

To learn more about Rod Blackburn’s hockey career visit the Moffett House Museum after the opening of the Hall of Fame exhibit this fall.

NEWS LETTER CHOICES

If you would prefer receiving our newsletter by e-mail or reading it on our web site, let us
know by e-mailing us with your e-mail address to bcchs@hotmail.com. If you wish to read
the newsletters on our web site, go to www.berlinnhhistoricalsociety.org.

BCCHS WEB SITE

There is a lot of activity on our web site.  The Brown Bulletins have been especially very popular.  It’s a great way to research relatives’s activities who worked in the mills.  Some articles are very amusing while others are informative. You can now explore the many Berlin Neighborhoods. By clicking on a particular neighborhood, you read about its history. Check out our website at www.berlinnhhistoricalsociety.org.

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