Moosehead Historical Society & Museums

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We are the keepers of the cultural heritage of Maine's Moosehead Lake Region: Moosehead Cultural Heritage Center; Aviation, Logging & Native American History, Eveleth-Crafts-Sheridan Historical Museum.

Do you remember Dr. Norman H. Nickerson?Our History by the Lake presentation, “Dr. Norman H. Nickerson — Greenville’s Do...
10/07/2026

Do you remember Dr. Norman H. Nickerson?

Our History by the Lake presentation, “Dr. Norman H. Nickerson — Greenville’s Doctor,” is now available online.

Dr. Nickerson’s granddaughter, Carol Poole Driscoll, joins moderator Matt Muzzy to share family photographs, stories, and memories of the physician who served Greenville and the Moosehead Lake region for more than 50 years.

During the original presentation, members of the audience shared some wonderful memories of Dr. Nickerson. Those comments were not captured in the recording, and we would like to preserve them.

If you remember Dr. Nickerson, please watch the presentation and leave a comment on YouTube. Tell us about a house call, an office visit, a family story, or simply what you remember about him. You are also welcome to share your memory below on Facebook.

Watch the presentation here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoVAga3tX3U

Please share this post with others who may remember Doc Nickerson.

Greenville’s Masonic Temple will be rebuilt, preserving its four original brick walls—and preparations began today.For e...
09/30/2026

Greenville’s Masonic Temple will be rebuilt, preserving its four original brick walls—and preparations began today.

For everyone who has wondered what would become of the temple after the December 15, 2025 fire, this is welcome news. The building Arthur A. Crafts gave to Columbia Lodge in 1929 will keep its familiar appearance, with the roofline, windows, and entrance looking very much as they did before.

Getting here has taken nine months of work with the insurance company, engineering, and planning. Interior demolition is scheduled to begin next week. Crews will remove the damaged interior and rebuild within the surviving brick walls. Work will continue throughout the winter, with a new roof a priority to protect the building from the weather. It is too early to give a completion date.

The lodge room and associated rooms will remain upstairs for members’ meetings and ceremonies, with the hope of restoring their familiar appearance. The biggest change will be bringing the kitchen and dining room up from the basement to the first floor. An accessible entrance ramp will also be added, making it easier for people to attend the public breakfasts, dinners, and gatherings many have enjoyed there over the years.

Columbia-Doric Lodge No. 149 is grateful to all the lodge members who have helped bring this about, especially former lodge leaders Craig Watt and Sawyer Murray. Special thanks also go to fellow Masons Dwayne Littlefield of E.W. Littlefield, Inc. & Sons, who has been helping since day one and whose company will undertake the rebuilding, and Keith Hewing of Plymouth Engineering for his engineering and planning work.

There is plenty of work ahead, but today’s activity marks a beginning many people have been waiting for. It is good to see work underway at the temple—and to look forward to people gathering there once more.

What a way to finish our 2026 History by the Lake series!Another standing-room-only crowd joined us last night for Dr. N...
09/18/2026

What a way to finish our 2026 History by the Lake series!

Another standing-room-only crowd joined us last night for Dr. Nathan Hamilton’s presentation, All Things Kineo. Nathan gave us a fascinating and wide-ranging look at Mt. Kineo and its history, and we could not have asked for a better conclusion to the season.

Thank you to everyone who attended last night—and to everyone who joined us throughout the summer. Week after week, you filled our auditorium, shared your memories, asked thoughtful questions, and reminded us how much this community cares about its history.

We are grateful to all the presenters, family members, historians, and local participants who shared their photographs, knowledge, and stories. Special thanks also go to Rocky Lizotte, Barb Crossman, Kathy Bishop, and Sue Drinkwater, who helped welcome visitors, arrange chairs, distribute newsletters, assist our presenters, and take care of all the little things that kept the programs running smoothly.

History by the Lake will return next year with more stories from Greenville and the Moosehead region.

In the meantime, keep checking our website over the coming weeks. We recorded this season’s presentations and will be adding them online as the videos are completed.

Thank you for making History by the Lake such an important part of our summer. We will see you again in 2027.

ALL THINGS KINEO!Join us Thursday at 4:00 p.m. for the final History by the Lake program of the season as Greenville nat...
09/15/2026

ALL THINGS KINEO!

Join us Thursday at 4:00 p.m. for the final History by the Lake program of the season as Greenville native and retired University of Maine professor Dr. Nathan Hamilton presents All Things Kineo.

Nathan will take us through the many layers of Mount Kineo’s history—from its remarkable geology and early maps to Native American archaeology, the succession of hotels built there over more than 150 years, and the Oakes family’s ownership of the property.

The presentation will feature many original photographs, along with several remarkable items Nathan is bringing for the audience to see—including Native American baskets and the first guest register from the Kineo Hotel.

Nathan will also answer questions and promises to have a few surprises in store.

Thursday, September 17, at 4:00 p.m.
Center for Moosehead History
Free and open to the public.

If you are interested in Kineo, Moosehead Lake, archaeology, old hotels, maps, or local history, you will not want to miss this one.

Travel down the Allagash with someone who knows it better than almost anyone.This Thursday, September 10, Maine author, ...
09/08/2026

Travel down the Allagash with someone who knows it better than almost anyone.

This Thursday, September 10, Maine author, humorist, and retired ranger Tim Caverly will join us for “The Allagash—New England’s Wild River.”

Tim supervised the Allagash Wilderness Waterway for eighteen years. Through music, scenic and historic photographs, and firsthand stories, he will take us on a virtual journey exploring Native American archaeology, forgotten logging history, river travel, wildlife, and some of the memorable characters and legends he encountered along the way.

Tim’s books for children and adults will also be available for purchase and signing following the program.

Thursday, September 10
4:00 p.m.
Center for Moosehead History

Free and open to the public

This program is generously sponsored by Bangor Savings Bank.

We received a wonderful response to Thursday’s History by the Lake program on the history of Greenville’s schools.After ...
09/05/2026

We received a wonderful response to Thursday’s History by the Lake program on the history of Greenville’s schools.

After the program, Greenville fifth-grade teacher Leslie Ranta-Watt asked if she could bring her class to the Center for a repeat presentation. We thought that was a great idea—and we have decided to open the program to the public as well.

Please join us at the Center for Moosehead History on Friday, September 11, at 12:40 p.m. Rich Nadeau will join Luke Muzzy as we follow the story of Greenville’s schools from the earliest neighborhood schoolhouses to the Greenville Consolidated School that still serves the town today.

The fifth-grade class will be our special guests, but everyone is welcome. We think it will be good for today’s students to see how much their school means to people throughout the community—and to hear some of the memories that former students, teachers, and staff still carry with them.

The presentation will conclude by 2 p.m.

This Thursday at 4:00 p.m., History by the Lake will present the story of Greenville’s schools—from the town’s earliest ...
09/01/2026

This Thursday at 4:00 p.m., History by the Lake will present the story of Greenville’s schools—from the town’s earliest schoolhouses to the Consolidated School that still serves Greenville’s students today.

The program will explore the rebuilding of Greenville’s school system in 1903, the fire that destroyed Roosevelt High School, the remarkable gift of a new school from Louis Oakes, the expansion of the campus in 1964, and the eventual return of all grades to the 1935 building.

We will also show rare 1935 home-movie footage of the school under construction and Louis Oakes inspecting the new building.

Sue Drinkwater, Class of 1965, and Rich Nadeau, Class of 1968, will join us to share their memories as students—and their later experiences with Greenville schools.

At the end of the program, we will invite members of the audience to share a brief memory of a teacher, coach, custodian, cafeteria worker, classmate, or anyone else who helped make Greenville’s schools what they were.

Join us Thursday at 4:00 p.m. at the Center for Moosehead History.

What an afternoon at History by the Lake!Yesterday, the Moosehead Historical Society welcomed a standing-room-only crowd...
08/28/2026

What an afternoon at History by the Lake!

Yesterday, the Moosehead Historical Society welcomed a standing-room-only crowd for "Growing Up on Indian Hill: Three Farm Boys Remember Greenville in the 1960s".

The program featured brothers Matt, Mark, and Luke Muzzy, with Luke's son John Muzzy moderating, but what unfolded was really much bigger than one family’s story.

Through memories of the farm, the dairy, downtown Greenville, school, Wilson Pond, snowmobiles, neighbors, friends, work, mischief, and everyday life, the afternoon became a shared trip back to Greenville in the 1960s.

The laughter, the stories called out from the audience, and the conversations that continued afterward were a reminder of why local history matters. Sometimes one family’s memories open the door to an entire community’s memories.

That is exactly what the Moosehead Historical Society hopes History by the Lake can do — preserve not only dates, buildings, and businesses, but also the people, stories, and everyday experiences that made this community what it is.

We’re also pleased to say that the program was successfully recorded, and we’ll share it once it’s ready.

Programs like this, along with the ongoing work of preserving and sharing Moosehead-area history, are made possible by the support of our members. If you value this work and would like to help us continue it, we invite you to become a member at MooseheadHistory.org.

And History by the Lake continues next week with another subject that should bring back plenty of memories: the history of Greenville’s schools.

Thank you to everyone who joined us and helped make the afternoon so memorable.

This Thursday at 4 — a History by the Lake program that is especially close to home.My brothers Matt and Mark are joinin...
08/24/2026

This Thursday at 4 — a History by the Lake program that is especially close to home.

My brothers Matt and Mark are joining me for "Growing Up on Indian Hill: Three Farm Boys Remember Greenville in the 1960s."

We’ll start with a little history of Indian Hill and how the Muzzy family came to be there, but most of the program will be the three of us remembering what it was actually like to grow up on a working dairy farm in Greenville.

There will be stories about the farm and the cows, the motel, milk routes, snowmobiles, Wilson Pond, growing up around town, family trips, the people who were always around — and probably more than a little mischief.

My son John will moderate the conversation, which means he has the unenviable job of trying to keep three Muzzy brothers on topic.

We’ve pulled together a lot of family photographs that haven’t been seen publicly before, and I think this one is going to be a lot of fun.

Thursday at 4.

Hope you can join us for "History by the Lake."

History by the Lake: Wilson’s Camps — 161 Years at East OutletThis Thursday at 4:00 p.m. at the Center for Moosehead His...
08/18/2026

History by the Lake: Wilson’s Camps — 161 Years at East Outlet

This Thursday at 4:00 p.m. at the Center for Moosehead History, we’ll take a look at the remarkable history of Wilson’s Camps and the East Outlet of Moosehead Lake.

Wilsons has been part of East Outlet since 1865, but its story is about much more than a sporting camp. East Outlet was a critical point where Moosehead Lake, the Kennebec River, logging, the dam, the railroad, steamboats, fishing, and a small working community all came together.

I’ll be joined by current owner Scott Snell, whose family has operated Wilsons since 1983. Scott will help tell the story of the property, the Wilson family, the Snell years, and what makes East Outlet such a special place today.

We’ve uncovered some wonderful historic photographs and stories for this program, and I think it’s going to be a fun one.

Address

444 Pritham Avenue
Greenville, ME
04442

Opening Hours

Wednesday 10am - 3pm
Thursday 10am - 3pm
Friday 10am - 3pm

Telephone

+12076952909

Website

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