UNION — Exploring a rich past that spans more than two centuries is clearly a significant part of this weekend — a huge celebration to mark the 250th anniversary of the settlement of Union. While free concerts, face painting, and food trucks are a few of the modern activities planned, the Union Historical Society is hosting many activities that highlight days gone by.
Fifty years ago, the town’s Bicentennial fun was captured in a charming “home movie” that will be shown at the Old Town House. Whether you were there in 1974 or not, scenes of the parade, the wild raft race on Seven Tree Pond, and the fashion, hairstyles, and smiles from back then are too fun to miss — and there will be popcorn! Also on Friday, the curated displays at the Robbins House will be open to visitors between 3 and 6 p.m. and the Mathews Museum will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Expert docents will be present at both locations to share anecdotes and to answer any questions visitors may have.
Instead of Saturday morning cartoons (another relic of times gone by), the Come Spring Bus Tour will depart the Old Town House at 8:30 a.m., rain or shine. Mary Thompson and Karin Larson will lead the roughly 2-hour tour which follows the George’s River Scenic Byway and identifies sites not only where Union’s early settlers built their homesteads, but also chronicles other fascinating stories, such as one young teacher’s daily commute to her pupils on Clarry Hill. Some of the dismount stops at the historic sites featured in Ben Ames Williams’ book Come Spring are on private property and are not open to the public at any other time. Tickets are $15 each and must be reserved in advance because space on the bus is limited. Call 207-385-4611 and leave a message for Mary, or see Karin at the Robbins House on Friday.
Hour-long walking tours of the Common and its surrounding buildings, past and present, will also be led by Union Historical Society guides. Participants will each receive a hardcover copy of Bridges to the Past – Union Maine. Tours leave the Old Town House at 9 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $10 each and will be available at the Robbins House as well as at the merchandise table on the Common.
If you missed the 1974 Bicentennial movie on Friday, you have another chance to see it on Saturday at 1 p.m. At 4 p.m. a new movie, “Union Community Voices” completed in 2024, will be shown. Finally, a classic movie from 99 years ago, before there was color film or a recorded soundtrack, Charlie Chaplin’s “The Gold Rush” is showing at 7 p.m. Doug Protsik will play fantastic accompanying music on the upright piano. All these movies at the Old Town House are free and include popcorn!
Some Sestercentennial activities will be rather quiet: artisans demonstrating traditional crafts and skills such as rug hooking, felting, tatting, and woodworking, some will be louder: people eating, children laughing, and musicians playing. The firing of muskets in the parade, on the Fairgrounds, and at the closing ceremony will be quite loud. We aren’t sure how loud the unicycles and sheep dogs will be (just kidding!).
Everyone is invited to come to Union for the fun between July 19-21 (but no pets, please). Due to road closures, altered traffic patterns, and all the activities around the Common, please plan to park at the Fairgrounds and ride the Shuttle, provided by Luce Transportation, to the Common. A complete schedule of all the Sestercentennial events is available on the Union Historical Historical Society https://unionhistoricalsociety.org/ , visiting “Celebrating Union’s 250 Years” on Facebook or Instagram, or by scanning the QR code on the posters and signs. For those interested in volunteering to help with any of these and other Sestercentennial activities, please contact the Union Sestercentennial Committee at [email protected].
