The Camden-Rockport Historical Society has a tasteful way to celebrate Mom: Let her eat cake!
The Camden Cake Walk tour Saturday lays out the welcome mat at select historic inns in the downtown area to offer visitors a peek inside many of the Greek Revival and Victorian-style homes.
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Samples of cakes baked from scratch by inn owners will help to sweeten the deal. Proceeds raised will be the frosting on the cake, helping to pay for a newly installed $14,000 roof on the society’s 1770 William Conway House.
Jane Carr, a member of the historical society board and its Cake Walk Committee, said the tour allows residents a rare look inside these homes, while raising funds to preserve historical society properties.
“We are constantly working to keep it alive and active,” said Carr. “The work is ongoing with a variety of things that need to be done. This is a way to raise significant funds.
“We have quite a lot of bed and breakfast (businesses) in town and presented this idea to them. They loved the idea.”
Cake Walk coordinator Dana Fittante said the hard part of putting the tour together was having to limit the number of inns (12) and ticket sales (200) to keep things manageable and give innkeepers a head count for how many people to bake for.
Street maps, featuring pictures and addresses of the participating inns, will be included in the ticket packets. While most of the inns are within walking distance of each other, All Aboard Trolley Co. will provide free shuttle service.
Kristen Bifulco, president of the Camden Bed & Breakfast Association, will welcome guests to her 1854 Camden Windward House. The National Register of Historic Places property is considered a “green” business.
Bifulco said she’s likely to offer an organic sweet and savory dessert like an Italian olive oil and orange cake or something made with maple syrup or goat’s milk. She’ll also provide guests with a history of her inn and the area.
“The historic nature of this area is becoming lost,” said Bifulco. “We are trying to support the charming character of this town. This is a unique opportunity to see these big, beautiful houses and sample some cake. This whole block is on the National Register of Historic Places. It is like stepping back in time.”
Hawthorn Inn owner Maryanne Shanahan also is excited to open her 1894 Queen Anne Victorian.
“Part of being an innkeeper is the love of entertaining and having people grace your door,” said Shanahan, who is known for her baking skills.
“I’m working on the fun part, which is the presentation,” said Shanahan, who is researching Victorian-era recipes to create two to three varieties of cake for attendees to sample.
“I’m not interested in just making a sheet cake. I’d like to serve something that is personal-sized and looks fun as well.”
Shanahan plans to have the recipes and a bit of their history printed out for guests to take home.
“I think the way (this event) is put together is very clever,” said Shanahan. “It’s Mother’s Day weekend, and this is a beautiful little town. This will offer grandmothers, mothers and daughters a great way to have a little adventure together.”
Caroline Morong, owner of HAVII video store on Elm Street, is selling tickets for the event.
She likes the idea of celebrating Mother’s Day with an old-fashioned stroll to view period inns while sampling cake and, perhaps, sipping tea. She hopes to attend the walk with her two daughters, ages 18 and 20.
“It’s a really neat idea to get people out and doing something fun to benefit a great organization,” said Morong.
Staff Writer Deborah Sayer can be contacted at 791-6308 or at:
dsayer@pressherald.com
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