1983
February 1983
When I first glanced at the front page of the February 9, 1983 Hollis Times, I chuckled. Under the headline “Times Article Arrives by Pony Express” was a photograph of me with my pony Trixie and the Murphy’s dog Elsa, delivering my Horsin’ Around Hollis column to the Times office. Julie Lavergne stood smiling in the open doorway, ready to accept my copy. Next to this photo was an equally interesting image, accompanied by the headline “New Traffic Light at 4-Corners.” State Highway Department personnel were pictured drilling test holes for “a new traffic light at 4-Corners [which] should help alleviate severe traffic problems present for some time at that location.”
Things haven’t changed much in 15 years. Although the Hollis Times office location and my choice of mount are different, I still ride up to the Times office with my column. And the light does still alleviate traffic back-ups at the 130-122 intersection, although the originally promised left-turn lanes might help even more, especially when school buses are running!
Another headline that appeared on the front page of the Hollis Times in February of 1983, this time in the February 23 edition, also seems to hold true today, 15 years later – “Town Budget Hearing Draws Small Crowd.” Except in years when large capital expenditures threaten to impact residents’ pocketbooks, attendance at town and school budget hearings is historically low. In the February 23, 1983 Hollis Times, the reporter covered the agenda for the town budget hearing in about 200 words. Indicating that turnout was low, between 30 and 35 people, she closed her article with the statement, “Before the meeting ended, the audience was down to thirteen – the night was cold and the hour late.” School budget hearings were equally poorly attended.
Probably the most interesting article on the town warrant, and the most widely discussed, was Article 3. This article, which was primarily targeted at the Hollis Flea Market operations, in response to complaints from residents, was generalized to include door-to-door salesmen, peddlers, farmers and merchants. It did exempt those selling merchandise grown or manufactured on site and items sold by persons under 15 years of age. (Note: The proposed ordinance was defeated at the March Town Meeting by a two to one margin, with 371 ballots cast. Interestingly, the last vote counted that evening, on Article 14, was tallied with only 195 voters participating, again perhaps because “the night was cold and the hour late.”)
March 1983
In March of 1983 an election anomaly occurred which has never happened before and probably never will again. A Planning Board request for a recount of votes cast on a petition amendment resulted in a “turn-around in the tallies” when a 357-vote margin in favor of the amendment was replaced by a 36-vote defeat. The petition amendment would have strengthened controls on gravel pit operations.
The Planning Board requested the recount because chairman Candace Gregg, who had acted as a counter during the town elections, felt that the results would be close. When the tally was 693 yes and 336 no, she suspected that 197 votes might have been put into the wrong pile. This was evidently the case, as the no vote gained 198 votes in the recount.
The Planning Board was also considering a municipal parking lot in March of 1983. According to the March 30, 1983 Hollis Times, the proposed lot was “to be located off Cleasby Lane in back of the Town Hall.” After concerns were raised over runoff, screening and lack of Historic District Commission approval, the board tabled the discussion on this proposal.
May 1983
The Selectmen’s agenda in May of 1983 focused on damage caused to graves in town cemeteries by horses straying from established paths and the need for a new Teen Center. The Planning Board was discussing Del Mar's proposed subdivision located off Wheeler Road and a golf course to be built on 110 acres east of Runnells Bridge. The Planning Board also held a public hearing to present the results of its Water Resources Project.
The front page of the May 11, 1983 Hollis Times featured two photos of a very successful Balloon Day at Hollis Elementary School and an article on the HEP-sponsored June Jamboree, across which was the announcement, “Cancelled Due to Lack of Response.” These two events are no longer planned at the elementary school. The May 25 edition indicated that four other events held at the schools in May were successful and very well attended – a Hollisaires Variety Show at HES, the Junior High School Science Fair, and the Arts Festival and Foreign Language Night at the high school. Fifteen years later, the Science Fair, Arts Festival and Foreign Language Night are still on the school calendar.
Other successful May 1983 events included the Wheels for Life Bike-a-Thon to benefit St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, the annual Garden Club Plant Sale and the Book Sale sponsored by the Friends of the Hollis Library. May is certainly a busy month in Hollis!
July 1983
A large headline on the front page of the July 13, 1983 Hollis Times announced, “Hollis Market Day, July 23 – 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. See pages 6 and 7.” Of course, this headline drew my attention to the two-page spread of advertisements in the middle of the paper. The accompanying article about this “first annual” event explained. “Participating merchants will operate from their own business addresses, but they will set up displays outside, offering sales and promotions. The response from local merchants has been overwhelming and indications are that there will be close to 100% participation.” After listing the names of these merchants, the article continued, “The purpose of Hollis Market Day is to encourage shoppers, tourists and vacationers to take a short ride to a picturesque village and to introduce them to personalized shopping in a relaxed country atmosphere.”
See how many of these “local merchants” you remember: The Patchwork Lady, the Stove & Stave Shop, One of a Kind Gallery, Munroes Bakery and Pizza to Go, Calico Cat, Henry’s Greenhouse & Florist, Four Corners Hardware, Scrimshaw on Ivory, Patchadilly, Hollis True Value Hardware, the Hollis Community Store, Silver Lake Pottery, and Maine Post & Beam Company, Inc. All 13 of these merchants have gone out of business. Three others that participated have changed owners and their names– Ordes (now the Grain Store), The Village Cookery (now the Hollis Country Kitchen) and The Pizza Barn and Chocolate Chip (now Christopher’s and Cones). Only three of the businesses that offered their wares at the 1983 Hollis Market Day are still serving Hollis –Blue Lantern Antiques, Brookdale Fruit Farm and the Monument Square Market. If you consider that the Monument Square Market has gone through a name and ownership change in the past 15 years, only two of these merchants have operated continuously since 1983.
This would be an interesting tradition to revive, except that very few new businesses have moved into the center of town to replace those that are gone. The “market” would be almost empty.
August 1983
The front page of the August 17, 1983 Hollis Times featured a long article (three full columns) on the planning board public hearing concerning the Holly Hill Farms proposed gravel excavation, which was attended by more than 100 people on August 8. (I remember the meeting well as it was held on one of the hottest evenings of the summer in the extremely stuffy upper town hall.) Many spoke that night, but the planning board stated that they could not make a decision until they reviewed all of the public input. Also making the front page was a story about the soon-to-be established Youth Center, to be located in the Nichols Field House. And, according to a school board meeting report, a plan was being discussed for grade weighting at the high school.
September 1983
September is traditionally a busy month in Hollis, and several events took place in September of 1983 that may make you ask, “Did that really happen fifteen years ago?”
The traffic light at the Four Corners was installed in September of 1983. According to an article in the September 14, 1983 Hollis Times, this was a big change for people who had lived in Hollis for years and were accustomed to either stopping at the stop sign on Route 130 or proceeding slowly through the intersection on Route 122. The editor admitted, “The first few days of living with the new lights we stopped for a green light at least once when going west on 130 and almost went through a stop light going south on 122.”
Also 15 years ago, the school board voted on September 1 to spend $21,000 on brand new, state-of-the-art, Apple IIE computers. And on September 15, 1983, Carolyn Gargasz met with the Hollis School Board “to discuss a channel 11 TV project [This was BC – Before Cable!], entitled “Chemical People,” which dealt with drug and alcohol abuse and was to be aired in November. She urged that “interested persons watch the programs as a group at either the elementary school or the high school and attend discussion periods to be held after the programs.” This was surely the beginning of the Hollis School program, CATF (the Chemical Abuse task Force).
Finally, in September of 1983 Milton Place was struggling to be conceived. Although the Hollis Planning Board had denied the approval of Holly Hill Farms’ application for a gravel pit operation on French Mill Road in late August, on September 12 they scheduled a rehearing, at the request of the applicant, for October 17. Fifteen years ago, what is now Milton Place was a wooded hill, made of sand and gravel.
October 1983
October in Hollis is a busy month with several events scheduled outdoors in the crisp, fall air under brilliantly colored foliage. The Hollis Apple Festival, the Applefest Half Marathon and the Fall Freedom Ride/Race draw hundreds of out-of-towners to our scenic countryside each October and many linger to pick apples, select their Halloween pumpkin or take a leisurely walk in the woods of Beaver Brook.
The 1983 Apple Festival was held on October 2 in 1983 on a beautiful fall Sunday, and the October road race 15 years ago was the Apple Cider 10K Run, which was sponsored by the Hollis/Brookline Booster Club. The race, which was held on October 23, drew many Hollis runners, and the names and times of the Hollis and Brookline finishers were listed on the front page of the October 26, 1983 Hollis Times. A well-known Hollis resident was listed in the Over 50 category. I will not report her name and time because, after all, this was 15 years ago (and she doesn’t look her age)!
The Holly Hill Farms proposed gravel pit operation once again dominated the news. At the October 17 public hearing, with more than 100 people in attendance, a decision on the proposal was once again postponed “until all new testimony could be reviewed.”
November 1983
The Hollis Grange was still very active in November of 1983. According to the November 23, 1983 Hollis Times, Gold Sheaf certificates and pins were awarded to 50-year members at the November 10, 1983 Grange meeting, which was attended by visitors from Prescott Grange of Pepperell, Mass., Wattannick Grange of Hudson and Jr. Grange of Goffstown. Upcoming meetings were announced for November 26, December 6 and December 17.
On November 5, 1983 the Country Christmas Fair was held at the Congregational Church of Hollis. The fair was a success, thanks to the “spirit of fun, fellowship and dedication” of the volunteers who supported it. I remember going to this fair for several years in the early 1980’s. I am not sure when this Hollis tradition fell by the wayside, but I miss it.
The November 23, 1983 Hollis Times also carried announcements of two community events planned for December, one of which has disappeared form the Hollis calendar and one which continues today. The Colonial Garden Club of Hollis planned a Homespun Christmas Flower Show at the Hollis Town Hall on Friday, December 9 and Saturday, December 10. Hollis residents were invited to “enjoy the fragrance of greens and the festive spirit of Christmas” as they walked through a town hall transformed with wreaths, greens, flowers and holiday decorations. It was also advertised as a perfect time to share decorating ideas with friends and neighbors. This event was not held again.
The Community Christmas Card, sponsored by the Hollis Congregational Church, was also being prepared in November of 1983. Those who wished to participate were invited to send a printed or typed list of the names of their family members along with a donation to the Christmas Card Vocational Scholarship Fund, which annually funds scholarships for Hollis High School seniors. Thankfully, the Hollis Congregational Church still organizes this community project.
December 1983
The talk of the town in December 1983 included preliminary plans for Hollis to provide public kindergarten. According to the December 21, 1983 Hollis Times, Carolyn Araujo, chairman of the Readiness-Kindergarten Committee, presented data at the December 15, 1983 Hollis School Board meeting on the advantages of this option for Hollis.
The new Police Station was also being discussed. The Police Building Committee, consisting of Dr. James Squires, Roy Richardson, Brad Glass and James Monahan, reported on the results of their studies at the December 5, 1983 Hollis Selectmen’s meeting. The December 21, 1983 Hollis Times reported, “They described the requirement for a 3200 square foot building, recommending a site on Depot Road and suggesting immediate action.” Preliminary budget meetings between the department heads and the Selectmen indicated that the two capital improvement projects being considered for 1984 were “the new police station, roughly estimated at $150,000, and town hall remodeling and expansion at $200,000.”
The December 7, 1983 Hollis Times reported that David Peckham of D. H. Peckham and Son, had briefed the Board of Selectmen on a new planned commercial development off Ash Street. He planned to develop “a 1700s village-style mini-mall of shops and a restaurant in addition to a professional area of offices behind Ladd Place.”
Finally, people were talking about the new traffic light at the Four Corners. One resident wrote, in a letter to the editor, that she appreciated the increased safety the lights provided but felt that four lights, instead of eight, would have been sufficient!
When I first glanced at the front page of the February 9, 1983 Hollis Times, I chuckled. Under the headline “Times Article Arrives by Pony Express” was a photograph of me with my pony Trixie and the Murphy’s dog Elsa, delivering my Horsin’ Around Hollis column to the Times office. Julie Lavergne stood smiling in the open doorway, ready to accept my copy. Next to this photo was an equally interesting image, accompanied by the headline “New Traffic Light at 4-Corners.” State Highway Department personnel were pictured drilling test holes for “a new traffic light at 4-Corners [which] should help alleviate severe traffic problems present for some time at that location.”
Things haven’t changed much in 15 years. Although the Hollis Times office location and my choice of mount are different, I still ride up to the Times office with my column. And the light does still alleviate traffic back-ups at the 130-122 intersection, although the originally promised left-turn lanes might help even more, especially when school buses are running!
Another headline that appeared on the front page of the Hollis Times in February of 1983, this time in the February 23 edition, also seems to hold true today, 15 years later – “Town Budget Hearing Draws Small Crowd.” Except in years when large capital expenditures threaten to impact residents’ pocketbooks, attendance at town and school budget hearings is historically low. In the February 23, 1983 Hollis Times, the reporter covered the agenda for the town budget hearing in about 200 words. Indicating that turnout was low, between 30 and 35 people, she closed her article with the statement, “Before the meeting ended, the audience was down to thirteen – the night was cold and the hour late.” School budget hearings were equally poorly attended.
Probably the most interesting article on the town warrant, and the most widely discussed, was Article 3. This article, which was primarily targeted at the Hollis Flea Market operations, in response to complaints from residents, was generalized to include door-to-door salesmen, peddlers, farmers and merchants. It did exempt those selling merchandise grown or manufactured on site and items sold by persons under 15 years of age. (Note: The proposed ordinance was defeated at the March Town Meeting by a two to one margin, with 371 ballots cast. Interestingly, the last vote counted that evening, on Article 14, was tallied with only 195 voters participating, again perhaps because “the night was cold and the hour late.”)
March 1983
In March of 1983 an election anomaly occurred which has never happened before and probably never will again. A Planning Board request for a recount of votes cast on a petition amendment resulted in a “turn-around in the tallies” when a 357-vote margin in favor of the amendment was replaced by a 36-vote defeat. The petition amendment would have strengthened controls on gravel pit operations.
The Planning Board requested the recount because chairman Candace Gregg, who had acted as a counter during the town elections, felt that the results would be close. When the tally was 693 yes and 336 no, she suspected that 197 votes might have been put into the wrong pile. This was evidently the case, as the no vote gained 198 votes in the recount.
The Planning Board was also considering a municipal parking lot in March of 1983. According to the March 30, 1983 Hollis Times, the proposed lot was “to be located off Cleasby Lane in back of the Town Hall.” After concerns were raised over runoff, screening and lack of Historic District Commission approval, the board tabled the discussion on this proposal.
May 1983
The Selectmen’s agenda in May of 1983 focused on damage caused to graves in town cemeteries by horses straying from established paths and the need for a new Teen Center. The Planning Board was discussing Del Mar's proposed subdivision located off Wheeler Road and a golf course to be built on 110 acres east of Runnells Bridge. The Planning Board also held a public hearing to present the results of its Water Resources Project.
The front page of the May 11, 1983 Hollis Times featured two photos of a very successful Balloon Day at Hollis Elementary School and an article on the HEP-sponsored June Jamboree, across which was the announcement, “Cancelled Due to Lack of Response.” These two events are no longer planned at the elementary school. The May 25 edition indicated that four other events held at the schools in May were successful and very well attended – a Hollisaires Variety Show at HES, the Junior High School Science Fair, and the Arts Festival and Foreign Language Night at the high school. Fifteen years later, the Science Fair, Arts Festival and Foreign Language Night are still on the school calendar.
Other successful May 1983 events included the Wheels for Life Bike-a-Thon to benefit St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, the annual Garden Club Plant Sale and the Book Sale sponsored by the Friends of the Hollis Library. May is certainly a busy month in Hollis!
July 1983
A large headline on the front page of the July 13, 1983 Hollis Times announced, “Hollis Market Day, July 23 – 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. See pages 6 and 7.” Of course, this headline drew my attention to the two-page spread of advertisements in the middle of the paper. The accompanying article about this “first annual” event explained. “Participating merchants will operate from their own business addresses, but they will set up displays outside, offering sales and promotions. The response from local merchants has been overwhelming and indications are that there will be close to 100% participation.” After listing the names of these merchants, the article continued, “The purpose of Hollis Market Day is to encourage shoppers, tourists and vacationers to take a short ride to a picturesque village and to introduce them to personalized shopping in a relaxed country atmosphere.”
See how many of these “local merchants” you remember: The Patchwork Lady, the Stove & Stave Shop, One of a Kind Gallery, Munroes Bakery and Pizza to Go, Calico Cat, Henry’s Greenhouse & Florist, Four Corners Hardware, Scrimshaw on Ivory, Patchadilly, Hollis True Value Hardware, the Hollis Community Store, Silver Lake Pottery, and Maine Post & Beam Company, Inc. All 13 of these merchants have gone out of business. Three others that participated have changed owners and their names– Ordes (now the Grain Store), The Village Cookery (now the Hollis Country Kitchen) and The Pizza Barn and Chocolate Chip (now Christopher’s and Cones). Only three of the businesses that offered their wares at the 1983 Hollis Market Day are still serving Hollis –Blue Lantern Antiques, Brookdale Fruit Farm and the Monument Square Market. If you consider that the Monument Square Market has gone through a name and ownership change in the past 15 years, only two of these merchants have operated continuously since 1983.
This would be an interesting tradition to revive, except that very few new businesses have moved into the center of town to replace those that are gone. The “market” would be almost empty.
August 1983
The front page of the August 17, 1983 Hollis Times featured a long article (three full columns) on the planning board public hearing concerning the Holly Hill Farms proposed gravel excavation, which was attended by more than 100 people on August 8. (I remember the meeting well as it was held on one of the hottest evenings of the summer in the extremely stuffy upper town hall.) Many spoke that night, but the planning board stated that they could not make a decision until they reviewed all of the public input. Also making the front page was a story about the soon-to-be established Youth Center, to be located in the Nichols Field House. And, according to a school board meeting report, a plan was being discussed for grade weighting at the high school.
September 1983
September is traditionally a busy month in Hollis, and several events took place in September of 1983 that may make you ask, “Did that really happen fifteen years ago?”
The traffic light at the Four Corners was installed in September of 1983. According to an article in the September 14, 1983 Hollis Times, this was a big change for people who had lived in Hollis for years and were accustomed to either stopping at the stop sign on Route 130 or proceeding slowly through the intersection on Route 122. The editor admitted, “The first few days of living with the new lights we stopped for a green light at least once when going west on 130 and almost went through a stop light going south on 122.”
Also 15 years ago, the school board voted on September 1 to spend $21,000 on brand new, state-of-the-art, Apple IIE computers. And on September 15, 1983, Carolyn Gargasz met with the Hollis School Board “to discuss a channel 11 TV project [This was BC – Before Cable!], entitled “Chemical People,” which dealt with drug and alcohol abuse and was to be aired in November. She urged that “interested persons watch the programs as a group at either the elementary school or the high school and attend discussion periods to be held after the programs.” This was surely the beginning of the Hollis School program, CATF (the Chemical Abuse task Force).
Finally, in September of 1983 Milton Place was struggling to be conceived. Although the Hollis Planning Board had denied the approval of Holly Hill Farms’ application for a gravel pit operation on French Mill Road in late August, on September 12 they scheduled a rehearing, at the request of the applicant, for October 17. Fifteen years ago, what is now Milton Place was a wooded hill, made of sand and gravel.
October 1983
October in Hollis is a busy month with several events scheduled outdoors in the crisp, fall air under brilliantly colored foliage. The Hollis Apple Festival, the Applefest Half Marathon and the Fall Freedom Ride/Race draw hundreds of out-of-towners to our scenic countryside each October and many linger to pick apples, select their Halloween pumpkin or take a leisurely walk in the woods of Beaver Brook.
The 1983 Apple Festival was held on October 2 in 1983 on a beautiful fall Sunday, and the October road race 15 years ago was the Apple Cider 10K Run, which was sponsored by the Hollis/Brookline Booster Club. The race, which was held on October 23, drew many Hollis runners, and the names and times of the Hollis and Brookline finishers were listed on the front page of the October 26, 1983 Hollis Times. A well-known Hollis resident was listed in the Over 50 category. I will not report her name and time because, after all, this was 15 years ago (and she doesn’t look her age)!
The Holly Hill Farms proposed gravel pit operation once again dominated the news. At the October 17 public hearing, with more than 100 people in attendance, a decision on the proposal was once again postponed “until all new testimony could be reviewed.”
November 1983
The Hollis Grange was still very active in November of 1983. According to the November 23, 1983 Hollis Times, Gold Sheaf certificates and pins were awarded to 50-year members at the November 10, 1983 Grange meeting, which was attended by visitors from Prescott Grange of Pepperell, Mass., Wattannick Grange of Hudson and Jr. Grange of Goffstown. Upcoming meetings were announced for November 26, December 6 and December 17.
On November 5, 1983 the Country Christmas Fair was held at the Congregational Church of Hollis. The fair was a success, thanks to the “spirit of fun, fellowship and dedication” of the volunteers who supported it. I remember going to this fair for several years in the early 1980’s. I am not sure when this Hollis tradition fell by the wayside, but I miss it.
The November 23, 1983 Hollis Times also carried announcements of two community events planned for December, one of which has disappeared form the Hollis calendar and one which continues today. The Colonial Garden Club of Hollis planned a Homespun Christmas Flower Show at the Hollis Town Hall on Friday, December 9 and Saturday, December 10. Hollis residents were invited to “enjoy the fragrance of greens and the festive spirit of Christmas” as they walked through a town hall transformed with wreaths, greens, flowers and holiday decorations. It was also advertised as a perfect time to share decorating ideas with friends and neighbors. This event was not held again.
The Community Christmas Card, sponsored by the Hollis Congregational Church, was also being prepared in November of 1983. Those who wished to participate were invited to send a printed or typed list of the names of their family members along with a donation to the Christmas Card Vocational Scholarship Fund, which annually funds scholarships for Hollis High School seniors. Thankfully, the Hollis Congregational Church still organizes this community project.
December 1983
The talk of the town in December 1983 included preliminary plans for Hollis to provide public kindergarten. According to the December 21, 1983 Hollis Times, Carolyn Araujo, chairman of the Readiness-Kindergarten Committee, presented data at the December 15, 1983 Hollis School Board meeting on the advantages of this option for Hollis.
The new Police Station was also being discussed. The Police Building Committee, consisting of Dr. James Squires, Roy Richardson, Brad Glass and James Monahan, reported on the results of their studies at the December 5, 1983 Hollis Selectmen’s meeting. The December 21, 1983 Hollis Times reported, “They described the requirement for a 3200 square foot building, recommending a site on Depot Road and suggesting immediate action.” Preliminary budget meetings between the department heads and the Selectmen indicated that the two capital improvement projects being considered for 1984 were “the new police station, roughly estimated at $150,000, and town hall remodeling and expansion at $200,000.”
The December 7, 1983 Hollis Times reported that David Peckham of D. H. Peckham and Son, had briefed the Board of Selectmen on a new planned commercial development off Ash Street. He planned to develop “a 1700s village-style mini-mall of shops and a restaurant in addition to a professional area of offices behind Ladd Place.”
Finally, people were talking about the new traffic light at the Four Corners. One resident wrote, in a letter to the editor, that she appreciated the increased safety the lights provided but felt that four lights, instead of eight, would have been sufficient!