Secretary's Report
Annual Meeting Minutes
September 16, 2021
Present: Bob Corrette, Gary Taylor, Dan Sutton, Richard Goettle, Ron Heroux, Cathi Davis, Bill Davis, Barbara Young, Carole Beckwith, Ken Beckwith, SallySue Davis and Maureen Sutton.
The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. at the Blake House Museum.
Agenda:
- Reports
- Nomination and Election of Board of Trustee Members
- 2021 Events
- Other Business
Reports
Bob Corrette opened the meeting with a summary of the 2020 annual meeting, and Dan Sutton explained that there would be no Secretary’s report of the 2020 annual meeting due to the absence of Secretary Marcia Camden. Carole Beckwith noted that there may be volunteers who would fill in as an acting secretary if Board meetings were in the late afternoon or early evening.
Bob, Dan and Gary Taylor reviewed the Society’s activities in 2021 including completed (roof and heating system repairs and improvements) and proposed (cellar waterproofing and storage shed) work on the Blake House, cancelation of the Strawberry Festival and Antiques Show due to the coronavirus pandemic, and plans for a fall 2021 Apple Crisp and Arts Festival on Columbus day weekend and a Pumpkin Carving event on the Saturday before Halloween. There was a lengthy discussion of the cellar moisture and mildew problem, and Richard Goettle explained the bids received from two contractors. SallySue Davis commented that the exterior paint on the Blake House is badly deterioration and that repainting should be a priority. Dan Sutton acknowledged the problem and said that the Board would address it in 2022.
Richard Goettle gave the Treasurer’s Report and Ron Heroux gave the Archivist’s report, both of which are attached.
Nominations and Election of Board Members
Ron Heroux moved to nominate and elect the following slate of officers:
Chairman – Gary Taylor
Vice Chairman – Dan Sutton
Treasurer – Richard Goettle
Secretary – vacant
Members – Richard Goettle and Eric Stanway
The motion was seconded, and after no nominations were heard from the floor, passed by unanimous vote.
2021 Events
Gary Taylor outlined plans for the Apple Crisp and Art Festival to be held on October 9, 2021 from 11-2 on the Common and the Pumpkin Carving event for 5th and 6th grade Emerson School students to be held at 4:00 p.m. on October 23, 2021 on the Common.
Barbara Young suggested that the Blake House be open during upcoming Farmers’ Market days on the Common, September 18 and October 16.
Other Business
Ron Heroux moved to amend the bylaws by replacing the word “area” in Article 2, second paragraph with “Fitzwilliam” and by striking the word “region” from the third paragraph of Article 2. Ron explained that the amendment properly focuses the Society’s efforts on Fitzwilliam history and avoids overlapping the missions of historical societies in surrounding towns. Dan Sutton seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.
Dan Sutton commented that the membership list which is used for sending out notices such as the notice of the annual meeting, is missing many members’ email addresses and, in some cases, a mailing address. He suggested that the membership form be updated to emphasize the importance of an accurate email address. Cathi Davis requested and was provided with a copy of the membership list in order to solicit volunteers for the Apple Crisp and Art Festival.
Carole Beckwith commented that the museum’s costumes and quilts are in need of regular cleaning and refolding, and Gary Taylor responded that he is working with the Cheshire County Historical Society for guidance on proper textile preservation.
The annual meeting closed at approximately 8:00 p.m. followed by refreshments provided by SallySue Davis and Dan and Maureen Sutton.
Dan Sutton, Acting Secretary
Archivist's Annual Report
September 16, 2021
Having assumed the duties of archivist this past March I assessed the state of the archives and related same to the Board. There was – and still is – a significant backlog of unaccessioned donations.
The computer situation has been updated and progress is being made in digitizing the collection records. Continuing donations are being addressed as soon as possible so they do not add to the existing backlog. Operational records have been re-organized and kept separate from collection records.
Duplicate materials are being reviewed for disposition along with non-Fitzwilliam related objects. Difficulty with locating many of our objects will be solved as the accession process continues. A collections policy was offered, and a collections committee is still needed to address various aspects of acquisitions and dispositions.
In addition to digitizing past accession records, projects that should be addressed include:
- photographing every collection object to associate with an accession record
- transcribing and digitizing historic letters
- digitizing maps, photos, engravings, etc.
- discard/deaccession unrelated objects
- archival storage improvement
- OCR or speech-to-text conversion of text/written documents to digital files
- PDF conversion of old books and pamphlets
- move non-archival materials, e.g. housekeeping supplies, to a more appropriate location
- consider dynamic exhibits in addition to the static exhibits in each room
- labeling objects on display
Ron Heroux, Archivist
Treasurer's Annual Report
September 16, 2021
The current balances in the FHS TD Accounts are:
$6,483.83 Main Account)
$841.79 (Antique Show Account).
The balance of the Wells Fargo Advisors Account is $121,955.92
Year-to-date (YTD), we moved funds from the Wells Fargo Account to the Main Account and from the Main Account to the Antique Show Account to cover expenses. Monthly sweep transfers YTD from the Wells Fargo Account total $3,195.96 with an additional requested transfer of $6000.00 in May. Transfers from the Main Account to the Antique Show Account total $1,000.00 YTD.
The FHS clearly has benefitted from financial market performance. Between monthly sweeps and requested transfers, a total of $14,195.01 moved from the Wells Fargo Account to the Main Account over the last year. And, yet, the market value of the Wells Fargo investments is up by $455.96 from this date last year and our total asset position is up by $2,778.47.
Cash inflows YTD total $2,424.97 with $2,150.00 coming from individual contributions. Expenses YTD total $10,804.36 with Antique Show “on again, off again” publicity ($1,164.54), Insurance ($4,195.00), Repairs and Maintenance ($2,392.61), and Utilities ($1,618.73) being the largest expenditures.
In 2020, the FHS received a grant from the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance to cover half the cost of a Condition Assessment for the Amos J. Blake House Museum. The amount of the grant was $1,900. The remainder of this cost was covered in 2021 by a generous donation. Following the Assessment’s recommendations, in 2020, we replaced the burner and oil tank for the heating system. Security Burglar Alarm installed a heat sensor thermostat and alarm as part of our security system. In 2021, our focus is on roof and cornice repairs and on basement-foundation moisture remediation. The roof work has been completed, a down payment has been made for the cornice repairs and scheduled for later this Fall, and two estimates have been received for the basement-foundation moisture remediation. The latter is quite expensive and we are pursuing grant opportunities for partial funding.
Richard Goettle, Treasurer
Secretary's Annual Report
October 9, 2020
Bob Corrette retook his position as Chair of the Board of Trustees last fall. His term has expired, so a new Chair needs to be elected. Also, two other positions on the Board has a term that expires this year: Vice-Chair and Member at Large. Nominations would be appreciated to fill those positions. Our new by-laws restrict members to no more than two consecutive terms as a Trustee.
Article IV Section I: All Trustees shall be elected by a plurality of votes cast by ballot at the Annual Meeting. Two Trustees shall be elected each year, for a term of three years, to fill a regularly expiring three-year term. No person shall serve more than two consecutive terms as a Trustee and no Trustee shall hold more than one office at a time. After a two-year absence from the Board, a former Trustee shall become eligible for a new term.
Many of our plans had to be postponed or cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, which included both the Strawberry Festival and the Antique Show. Even our monthly meetings were affected.
The collection information has much work that needs to be done. New items have been received that need to be documented and cataloged, as well as updating and cataloging all existing items into a database. Volunteers would be appreciated. It was decided that we will request Victoria Hawkins to work on the collection this winter.
The physical building was gone over carefully, and many needed repairs were identified. A mini grant for evaluation of the building was applied for and received. A letter from New Hampshire Preservation Alliance was received acknowledging a grant of $1900; the agreement was signed and returned. We contracted with Mae Williams for this assessment with assistance from Brian Gallien from Marlow. Mae’s report of June 29 indicated that the roof and basement were the main problem areas.
Requests for quotations have been sent to various companies for work on the roof, furnace, and basement water remediation. Guyer Roofing has been contracted to do roof repairs this fall. Furnace King submitted a quote to replace the oil tank and do some repairs to the furnaces that the board found acceptable. Charlie is going to enquire if we can add temperature monitoring to our security contract. This may require a new thermostat, also maybe a flood monitor in the basement. We are still awaiting responses for water remediation work; a water barrier in the basement as well as repairs to the French drains outside. The vendors are all quite busy this fall.
The F.H.S. sponsored Genealogy Group at the Town Library was unable to meet due to the pandemic. There is no one available at this time to do genealogy research either.
Again, I would like to suggest that the F.H.S. sponsor an oral history project to save the recollections of seniors and other locals who recall Fitzwilliam’s history. We could provide a Kindle Fire or other small recording device in a quiet corner of the Library. A resident could go anytime the Library is open to sit and reminisce. Perhaps a member could arrange to meet them and prompt them with questions, or we could come up with a “cheat sheet” of questions to get people started.
Respectfully submitted,
Marcia Camden, Secretary
Membership Annual Report
October 9, 2020
Annual Membership
Total members 179
Inactive members 47
Non-attending members 36
Active members 62 (29 – 2019/20)
Active Member Summary
Lifetime members 14 (20 people)
Couples 13 (23 people)
Family members 4 (7 people)
Single members 4
Sustaining members 3
Business 2 (3 people)
Treasurer's Annual Report
October 9, 2020
The current balances in the FHS TD Accounts are:
$6,387.95 (Main Account)
$1,272.33 (Antique Show Account).
The balance of the Wells Fargo Advisors Account is $120,640.31.
Through the course of this year, we have moved funds from the Antique Show Account and the Wells Fargo Account into the Main Account to cover operating costs. Our total asset position is down $11,298.49 from this date last year. This is due in part to the cancellation of our fundraising events.
Cash inflows for the year total $3,045. Wells Fargo YTD is down $3,489.10, reflecting the net change in market value and our recent transfer of $4,000 into the Main Account. Expenses YTD total $12,706.04, with the Building Assessment reports, Insurance and payment to-date for the heating system being the largest expenditures.
FHS received a grant from the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance to cover half the cost of a Condition Assessment for the Amos J. Blake House Museum. The amount of the grant was $1,900. We are committed at present to replacing the burner and oil tank for the heating system. The majority of this work is complete and we have paid half of the cost. Security Burglar Alarm is working to install a heat sensor thermostat/alarm as part of our security system; this work is ongoing.
Respectfully submitted,
Richard Goettle, Treasurer
FHS Update - August 2020
Even though we were forced to cancel our summer events this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, we have not been idle. We applied for a grant from the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance covering half the cost to assess the Blake House and determine exactly what work is needed to repair and preserve the building. The grant was approved in mid-February. We engaged Mae Williams to do the assessment. In late February, Charley Kenison accompanied Mae and her associate Brian Gallien on a thorough tour of the building.
We received the assessment results June. 29th. The Board reviewed the report over the next couple of weeks and met on July 16th to decide our next steps. Certain Board members have been tasked with contacting vendors with requests for proposals for some of the work recommended and others are working with NHPA to find additional grants to help defray the costs. Donations from our members and community-at-large also are gratefully accepted. We expect to have more details to report in the coming months.
FHS News - May 2020
The Fitzwilliam Historical Society would like to hear your stories about the COVID-19 pandemic. These will be recorded for our archives, for future generations to look back upon. It is a chance to record your history in our time. Fitzwilliam recorded very little history of the 1918 Flu pandemic here in town.
The Board of Trustees has decided to cancel the Strawberry Festival and Antiques Show and Sale for 2020 due to uncertainties caused by the COVID-19-related restrictions on public gatherings and our concern for the health and safety of the public, vendors and volunteers who make these events possible. Because of the advance planning and preparation involved, we had to make the decision in March and we hope to resume sponsoring both events in 2021.
Work is continuing updating the collections information and making repairs to the building. We are working on a grant to evaluate the building and determine the priorities for repairs.
Chairman's Annual Report - 2018-2019
As most of you know, I was elected at last year’s annual meeting to fill the remainder of Bob Corrette’s term as Chairman which expires in September 2020. You likely also know by now that due to family and business commitments which will be keeping me out of town for significant stretches over the next few years, I have reluctantly decided that I must step down as Chairman. However, Maureen and I will continue to support the Society as volunteers as much as we can.
My abbreviated term came in the third year in the post-Morton embezzlement era, and the Board concentrated its efforts on the development and implementation of a three-year strategic plan which serves as a template for the revitalization, preservation and growth of the Society and its assets. In particular, the strategic plan concentrates on sound management of our assets, improved programming and services, and the long-term fiscal health of the Society. The plan is posted on our revamped and improving website for which we can thank Dick Goettle who has worked tirelessly to bring the Society into the digital age.
The Board’s primary focus over the past year was to (1) continue and, hopefully, improve attendance at our two major public events, the Strawberry Festival and the Antiques Show, (2) continue the process of archiving our museum collection, (3) begin overdue repair work on the Blake House and (4) expand membership. How did we do?
The Strawberry Festival and Antiques Show were held with excellent support from our members and the community at large. Unfortunately, both events produced somewhat disappointing turnout, and both generated a net loss to the Society. The Strawberry Festival’s attendance was likely hurt by a series of thunderstorms that swept through just to our east in the midst of the day, and temperatures in the mid-90s probably kept numbers down for the Antiques Show. In addition, participating vendors dropped from 43 in 2018 to 27 this year, an alarming trend that is consistent with the apparent general decline of public interest in antiques. At this point, there is a serious question as the continued viability of these events as the return on our collective efforts is not encouraging. We have several ideas on reformatting the Strawberry Festival, perhaps by combining it with an art show, which seem promising, but the Antiques Show may be more difficult to salvage, at least without significant restructuring..
The work on the collection project is on hold due to lack of volunteers which is a significant obstacle, and we have made little progress in expanding our membership.
On the positive side of the ledger, we have been working with the New Hampshire Preservation Society to undertake a professional evaluation of the Blake House’s needs, and will be working with them over the upcoming year to secure grants which will help us pay for the necessary work to preserve our unique and wonderful museum.
Our biggest challenge going forward is an aging and static membership and an aging and shrinking pool of volunteers. It is imperative that we either build our membership and volunteer base and, ultimately, that may require consideration of merging with another historical organization or organizations such as Troy,
In closing, I want to thank all of you and in particular my fellow board members – Marcia Camden, Bob Corrette, Dick Goettle, Gary Taylor and Gretchen Wittenborg who have been a delight to work with – and Donna and Charley Kennison for their devotion to preserving the Blake House the countless hours of time that they have quietly contributed.
Respectfully,
Dan Sutton
(603) 585-3146
Treasurer's Report - Fiscal Year 2019 through September 16th
The Fitzwilliam Historical Society remains financially healthy. Current asset balances are as follows:
TD Bank Core Checking Account $7,399.88
TD Bank Antique Show Account $3,406.05
Wells Fargo Advisors Account $130,166.74
Total Financial Assets $140,972.67
To date, inflows net of expenses total $6,214.77. Interest, dividends and market gains in the Wells Fargo Account are in the amount of $17,347.51. Strawberry Festival receipts were $1,502.74 against net expenses of $1,847.67 for a loss of $344.93. The Antique Show earned $5,944.00 in revenue with total expenses of $7,684.91 for a loss of $1,740.91.
The Trustees view the Strawberry Festival more as an important Community event rather than a fund-raiser and are committed to its continuation while working to ensure that it more closely covers its cost.
The Trustees feel the Antique Show is unsustainable in its present form and will be exploring other options for 2020 and beyond.
The Society contributed $1,000 to the Town of Fitzwilliam to help fund restoration of the fountain on the Town Common.
To date, major operating expenditures include $4,207.00 for building and content insurance, $1,874.46 for electricity and heating oil, and $1,638.89 for repairs and maintenance.
A Trustee focus for the coming year will be to address needed repairs and infrastructural improvements to the Amos J. Blake House.
Respectfully,
Richard (Dick) Goettle, Treasurer
(603) 585-3311
Fitzwilliam Historical Society
Strategic Plan - 2019-2021
Introduction
The Fitzwilliam Historical Society (“FHS” or “the Society”) is now beginning its third year of recovery from the devastating events of 2016 when it was discovered that the Society’s former Treasurer had been systematically converting Society funds to his personal use over a period of two and one-half years, resulting in a substantial financial loss and serious harm to the Society’s reputation in the community. Since that time, a new Board of Trustees has been elected, new bylaws with stronger fiscal controls have been adopted and essential work to address the maintenance and repair of the Blake House Museum as well as the updating of the Society’s collection records, both of which had been neglected for several years, has begun. These efforts have been aided greatly by a positive community response, offers of help and donations from members and other volunteers and a renewed interest in the Society and its important role as a community resource. To expand on these initial steps, the FHS Board of Trustees is adopting this three-year strategic plan as the template for the revitalization, preservation and growth of the Society and its assets. In particular, the strategic plan concentrates on sound management of our assets, improved programming and services, and the long-term fiscal health of the Society.
I. Mission and Purpose
As set forth in Article II of the by-laws, the purpose of the Society shall be to bring together those people interested in history and, especially, the history of Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire. The Society’s main function is to discover and collect any material which may help to establish or illustrate the history of the area: its exploration, settlement, development, and activities in peace and war; its progress in population, wealth, education, arts, science, agriculture, manufacture, trade, and transportation. It will collect newspapers, pamphlets, catalogs, circulars, handbills, programs, and posters in printed or digital form; manuscript material such as letters, diaries, journals, memoranda, reminiscences, rosters, service records, account books, charts, surveys, and field brooks; and museum materials such as pictures, photographs, paintings, portraits, scenes, aboriginal relics, and material objects illustrative of life, conditions, events, and activities of the past and present.
II. Objectives
Objective #1 – Increase membership and community participation in programs and activities, and in utilizing Society resources.
This is perhaps the Society’s most important objective and one that is critical to our survival and growth. The Board believes strongly that preserving, studying and understanding history is something that benefits the entire community, present and future, and that our local history is a public asset and not the territory of any particular individual or groups. Therefore, the Society supports and encourages the widest participation possible by all community members, and the Society will seek to develop individual abilities, initiate debate, and inspire solutions by being an agent that promotes an active, educated, and engaged citizenry.
Strategies
- Develop and implement a three-year Marketing and Communications Plan to promote awareness, involvement, membership and philanthropy.
- Continue to build on the successes of our two major annual events – the Strawberry Festival in June and the Antique Show in July – by studying the feasibility of additional public events, either as Society-sponsored events or in partnership with other historic organizations and community groups.
- Continue sponsorship of activities such as pot-luck dinners and historical presentations open to the public.
- Continue to encourage educational programs and collaboration with local schools.
- Improving physical and technological infrastructure
- Study the concept of “Cultural Heritage Center” and evaluate its appropriateness for the Society.
- Develop an overall interpretive plan for the Blake House Museum organization. Interpretive planning is a decision-making process that blends management needs and resource considerations with visitor needs and desires to determine the most effective way to communicate our message to our audience.
- Continue presentation of feature exhibits and other educational programming
- Increase number and variety of collaborators.
Objective #2 – Preserve and Expand the Society’s Collection.
Strategies:
- Solicit knowledgeable volunteers from the membership and community to assist the Board with collection activities.
- Complete the process of inventorying the collection and transferring accession and deaccession records from paper files to an electronic database.
- Prepare a procedure manual for accessions, deaccessions and cataloging.
- Begin digitization of photographs in the collection for posting on the Society’s website.
- Solicit donation or loans of historically-important collections and exhibits.
- Encourage endowment of donations when received.
- Publicize, when permitted by the donor, significant gifts as a means of encouraging donations.
- Support and collaborate with other historic institutions in preservation efforts and explore potential partnerships.
- Identify and apply for grants to assist collection preservation and expansion efforts.
Objective #3 – Maintain and improve the Blake House Museum to encourage greater use and visits.
Strategies:
- Solicit knowledgeable volunteers from the membership and community to assist the Board with maintenance and repair activities.
- Train additional museum docents and consider expanding museum openings.
- Develop a priority plan and obtain budget estimates for deferred work on the Blake House Museum.
- Develop and implement a preventive maintenance plan.
- Identify and apply for grants to reduce the costs of necessary maintenance and repairs.
Objective #4 – Obtain expert help for critical specialized activities and increase use of volunteers and interns.
Strategies:
- Identify tasks that require additional help such as: grant writing and other development activities, special events, and website management and improvement.
- Investigate and formalize collaborative relationships with area schools and colleges to facilitate internships and other joint ventures.
- Study whether and when volunteers should be made members.
- Develop a plan for recognizing the contributions of volunteers.
- Build Board leadership and capacity
- Identify and provide mentorship to potential successor trustees.
Objective #5—Increase income through membership development, annual contributions, and planned gifts.
Strategies:
- Develop a clear policy on the purpose and benefits of membership.
- Improve relationships and communication with members.
- Survey members in an effort to determine what inspires them to attend or be involved in the Society.
- Define membership benefits and enhance offerings for members.
- Determine giving level at which donors automatically become members.
- Encourage the fact that membership is an honor because it supports the preservation of local history and promotes civic engagement.
- Update and purge membership list.
- Complete regular membership drives.
- Increase individual donations and improve donor relations.
- Reach out to families and organizations.
- Review and update gifts policy.