The Museum is located in the Union Fairgrounds (Fairgrounds Lane,
Union, Maine), in Knox County, close to the seacoast towns of Rockport and Camden).
The Museum houses more than 10,000 artifacts, including
carriages, agricultural tools, musical instruments, books, collection of photo prints and a
research library.
It also houses a sizeable collection of Moxie memorabilia,
occupying, among other things, the new annex, at the west end of the museum.
East of the museum main building you will find the Hodge one-room
schoolhouse, as it was when it stopped operations in 1954.
At the north side of the museum is the Carriage House
now under reconstruction. Due to past past severe weather conditions, our carriage
house became dangerous for the exhibits stored there. For this purpose, the
Museum is launching a major fundraising effort, starting with an
AUCTION on July 30th, 2010, at the Blueberry Acres building in the Union
Fairgrounds. This auction became possible through the generous offers of area
businesses, museum enthusiasts and our many members and friends. All proceeds
are ear marked for the Carriage House Restoration Fund.
| 1 | Business Machines | 2 | Case #7 Tinware | 3 | Case #11 Native Artifacts |
| 4 | Case #3 Household Implements | 5 | Case #5 Toys | 6 | Case #6 Correspondence |
| 7 | Bench | 8 | Case #12 Toys | 9 | Case #17 Rev. Ufford Pulpit |
| 10 | Case #15 Carpenter | 11 | Case #K1 Crystal & Pottery | 12 | Case #K2 Household Implements |
| 13 | Case #13 Beauty Parlor | 14 | Case #16 Beauty Parlor | 15 | Case #2 Curios |
| 16 | Case #1 Personal Items & Jewelry | 17 | Case #4 Weaving | 18 | Case #10 Quilts |
| 19 | Case #14 Library | 20 | Case #8 Jewelry |
Our new annex, twice as tall as the museum is finished.
The annex is the home of the Moxie
Bottle and temporarily the One Horse Shay,
among other things. This great building was built entirely by volunteer help
and funds. It is great to know that we have so many people who appreciate our
efforts so much, they are willing to donate their time and money to help make
a dream a reality. Some of these volunteers traveled for hours to get here,
and . camped in the fairgrounds until their job was done.
The amount of work was formidable, and the effort super-human. People had to
use harnesses to hang from the top of the building, suspended in mid-air! But
they all (above all) had fun doing it. One guy, visiting the fair for business,
was talking to museum people, telling them that something was not "exactly"
right. Next thing our people knew, the guy had his tools out and was fixing
the problem! Not only that, he was there at eight o'clock next morning to continue
the job. Took his two days, but he did not stop until he was satisfied that
it was "exactly" right.
Simple thanks are not enough
for them. The Board of Directors of the Museum approved unanimously to grant
honorary memberships to all the volunteers who worked for the Annex, along with
a commemorative T-Shirt made just for them.
For many years the Fairgrounds suffered
extreme weather and flooding. Our Carriage house, the home of one-of-a-kind
exhibits was damage forcing us to close the building to visitors and store the
carriages elsewhere
Repairs
to the current structure were prohibitive and ineffectual. In addition, the
building lacked in necessary facilities to make it compliant to the legal requirements.
The olmy solution was a new structure.
Matthews Museum President George Gross announced plans to replace the carriage
house on the rear of the museum building in Union at a recent meeting. Citing
the leaking roof and open construction, plans were announced to raise funds
to totally replace the lean-to structure.
The
new building would be at the same level as the museum, making it handicap accessible.
It would also eliminate the annual flooding problem by raising it out of the
flood plain where it is currently located. It frequently receives up to one
foot of flooding during spring runoff, jeopardizing the collection of sleighs
and wagons.
Fundraising
efforts will kick off Friday, July 30 with a goods and services auction at the
museum at the Union Fairground. For more information visit matthewsmuseum.org
Many local businesses in Damariscotta and Waldoboro have donated to the auction,
including The First, Yellowfront, Fernald's, Paco's Tacos, Mediterranean Kitchen,
Borealis Breads, and Newcastle Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep.
The museum and carriage house may be viewed Wednesday through Saturday from
noon to 4 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for seniors. The museum will
be open for viewing at 4 p.m. on July 30 for one hour prior to the auction being
run by Bruce Gamage of Rockland. Refreshments will be available.
Another fundraising effort to benefit the Carriage House will be our
Bean Hole Supper .
So What Are Bean-Hole Beans? The early Native Americans in Maine (the Penobscot Indians, according
to one source) cooked in holes in the ground for hundreds of years. The early settlers learned to
make a special baked bean dish from the Penobscots. The beans are so good that people still go to
the trouble to dig fire pits and bury bean pots overnight to cook them.
So, come join us for a unique experience on Thursday, August 26, 2101, 5 pm.
Tickets will be $7.00 for adults and $5.00 for children. Please not that there will be only
50 tickets, so get yours early, available at the Museum prior to dinner.
The dinner will take place at Snack Shack beside the Fair Campgrounds.
The menu includes:
Hot Dog with Roll & Sauerkraut or Relish
Cole Slaw
Desert
Beverage Variety
Note: Most of the historical information in this article was taken from the book The First Century - Union Fair 1869-1969, compiled and written by Donald and Marion Mattoon. This article written by Janet Boetsch originally appeared in the 1992 Union Fair Premium book, and has been adapted here to reflect the last decade.
In the September 17, 1869, issue of the Courier Gazette, an announcement appeared stating that The North Knox Agricultural and Horticultural Society will hold its first annual fair at Union, October 5, 6, & 7. That publication was the announcement of the birth of the Union Fair. With the exception of 1943 and 1944, the fair has been held annually since with many changes along the way, and has become one of the best agricultural fairs in the State of Maine.
This year, the Union Festival will take place on August 21 through 28, 2010. For more information go to the Fair's website http://www.unionfair.org/
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