WOOLWICH

Residents are invited to a meeting at the Nequasset Meetinghouse on Sept. 19, during which plans for a second entrance to the historic building will be discussed.

On Monday night, the Board of Selectmen agreed to approve the meeting. The Meetinghouse, built in 1757, is owned by the town.

Deb Locke, president of the Woolwich Historical Society, said prior to Monday’s board meeting that a Meetinghouse committee needs a decision from the town regarding a second entrance. Because the building is sometimes used for gatherings of more than 50 people, Locke said, state rules require it to be fully accessible.

“It needs to meet state safety codes,” Locke said. “This building is now owned by the town, and towns are held to the highest safety standards.”

Townspeople already have funded an electrical update and new paint job at the Meetinghouse.

“It’s such a neat building, and the town uses it every Christmas for a Christmas program,” Locke said.

Weddings, funerals, a Memorial Day observance and a Woolwich Days event also are held at the Meetinghouse, which for many years served as a Congregational Church.

Connie Wills, genealogist for the Woolwich Historical Society, said that Rev. Josiah Winship served as first pastor at the church, from 1764 until 1824. Willis was quoting from the book “History of Woolwich, Maine; A Town Remembered,” written by Burnette Bailey Wallace.

The Rev. John Andrews was the last full-time pastor from 1948 to 1951, according to the book, but church services there continued at least into the 1960s.

Also on Monday night, Town Clerk Jean Mank reports, the Building Committee submitted a report regarding a needed addition to the town office. The town office is crowded, and the small rooms do not allow for enough people in the rooms.

The committee will meet twice monthly, with hopes of having an article ready for a town meeting vote in May, Mank said.

Selectmen also heard from the Road Committee regarding problems at the intersection of Walker and Gray’s Corner Road. Several accidents have occurred there, Mank said.

There are two stop signs, one at Gray’s Corner and another to the right. There is a proposal for a third stop sign, but the state would need to get involved in that, Mank said. Meanwhile, it was discussed, a sign advising people to signal when turning right could provide a temporary solution.

lgrard@timesrecord.com

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