NEW SALEM — Old Home Day, though it started as a reunion for New Salem Academy graduates, has since become a treasured tradition for the entire town.
This year’s theme, “New Salem Academy: Then and Now,” gave attendees a taste of the community that keeps the graduates themselves coming back each year.
On Saturday, the town held its annual Old Home Day celebration in New Salem center. This year marks half a century since the academy closed in 1968, but alumni still come from all around the state to honor the old school’s legacy.
The day began at 9 a.m. with a historic visit to the Quabbin Reservoir. Phyllis Hamilton Frechette and Don Flye, both Academy graduates, led the expedition to a sunny spot by the water. The spot overlooked the part of the Quabbin that used to be the village of Millington, where Frechette once lived.
Using a hand-copied map, the tour guides located significant Millington landmarks and Frechette shared her intimate knowledge of the area. Her memory, which remains very much intact, dates as far back as the Great Depression, even before the construction of the reservoir.
“My father (would say), ‘They always talked about it being built. But it never was, and it never will be,’” Frechette said.
Of course, her father was wrong, and it was built. In the late 1930s, the Works Progress Administration would ship workers in from Roxbury, whom locals referred to as “woodpeckers.” To Frechette, it was clear that many of these “woodpeckers” had never cut down a tree before, she said.
“Eventually, they’d just sort of wear it down,” she said.
Frechette, author of the autobiography and local history, “Remembering Millington,” can recount much from her childhood — everything from cooking hot dogs in her cellar to the location of the old water pump she used. When the 1938 New England hurricane hit, she recalls how her sister went missing, only to be found at a friend’s house, where she had gone for a play date.
Even though much of the town was flooded by the reservoir, Frechette brought the submerged village back to life for those of us who were not around to see it.
People in New Salem help out their town’s community and, according to Judy Northup-Bennett, one of the event’s organizers, Old Home Day is no different.
“Most people go from booth to booth,” Northup-Bennett said. “People wear many hats here.”
This year, booths supporting local businesses and organizations, from Falls Custom Carpentry to the Swift River Valley Historical Society, lined the streets of the town center.
In addition to tricycle races, a parade and a cross-cut saw competition, the celebration hosted several fundraising efforts, including a “Cake Walk” and a giant book sale at the New Salem Public Library.
Outside the 1794 Meetinghouse, the Quabbin choral group Pro Musica auctioned off various items to raise money for the meetinghouse. Paul Shallers, of Greenfield, a bass in Pro Musica, has held the auction three times. He has received many of the items he brings, though some are donated specifically for the cause, including several bottles of liquor.
“Always the booze gets more bids than anything else,” he said.
Lynn Dudley of Orange, another member of Pro Musica, donated her 126th quilt. Since rediscovering quilting in the early 1980s, she has become “certifiably crazy” for the art form, she said, and has made a blanket for just about every one of her family members more than once. This most recent quilt might just be one of her favorites though.
“That’s my color palette,” Dudley said. “Blue, green, white. Cool colors.”
At 11 a.m., Sue Cloutier, a New Salem resident, led a discussion of the New Salem Academy’s history. Cloutier explained how the five main buildings of the Academy ran right through the town center, and discussed how certain buildings served different purposes throughout the school’s history.
Still, Cloutier claimed that when it comes to local history, she sees herself as only a novice.
“Most of you probably know more about New Salem than I do, since I only came here in the ’70s,” she said, addressing her audience.
In the 1980s, New Salem Academy briefly resurfaced as a high school with an alternative educational program. The curriculum became less structured with a greater emphasis on interactive learning through games and projects. But a few years later, the school shut down again due to funding issues.
However, the Academy’s spirit lives on through its trustees like Eleanor McGinnis. According to McGinnis, once the trustees sold the Academy’s five main buildings to the town, they invested their money in both stocks and the education of future generations.
Academy trustees have sponsored art programs, field trips and computer education programs for schools in the area. The trustees created a scholarship fund for New Salem students, and they have given hundreds of thousands of dollars to schools, according to McGinnis.
McGinnis credits the Academy experience as the inspiration. The school was often on a “shoestring budget,” yet it always found a way to teach students skills that would help both themselves and the greater community.
“Because (it was) a struggling school, there’s always been a sense of camaraderie,” McGinnis said. “There’s a sense of purpose. To keep this school’s spirit alive.” And, at the same time, the community.