March 2001 meeting............

New Rye Re-visited

The last meeting of the Epsom Historical Association was held at the I.O.O.F. Hall on Sunday, March 25th with a record 42 people in attendance.
The topic focused on the New Rye section of Epsom, as Phil Yeaton reprised live his Epsom Public Library 1993 Infothon video presentation.
Phil gave us a “walking” tour of the road leading from Short Falls through New Rye with excursions to the Mountain and Wing roads. Along the way we met the families that used to populate this area of Epsom. Among the families encountered were those of Brown, Haynes, Davis, Dolbeer, Cass, Dowst, Yeaton, Goodhue and others. He also discussed how these families are closely linked in this small community. Among the landmarks on the journey were the New Rye Church, the New Rye Schoolhouse, Little Red Schoolhouse and various small family cemetery plots. Other items of interest mentioned were how these families made a living, from farming, shoemaking, to making ice.