In cooperation with the town of Kennebunk, Friends of Hope Cemetery and Woods volunteers have made significant improvements to the Red Trail at Wiggins Pond.

Decayed boardwalks intended to avoid muddy wet areas were removed and replaced with 90 feet of boardwalk and a 10-foot bridge over Scotchman’s Brook.  The improvements provide a firm stable surface for walkers, allow small amphibians unobstructed access to water, encourage natural revegetation and reduce silts from the trail entering Scotchman’s Brook.

Visitors will find the area safe and enjoyable for walking once again.

Kennebunk Land Trust schedules walk

Registered Maine Guide and Maine Master Naturalist Tony Liguori will lead a naturalist walk on Saturday, July 24 at Mousam River Wildlife Sanctuary at 10 a.m. The walk is about two hours and will focus on local flora and fauna. RSVP is encouraged, but not required.

Located in the center of Kennebunk, the 38-acre preserve has over 2,400 feet of frontage along the Mousam River and is convenient to the downtown area. Following a relatively steep initial ascent of crib steps, the trail levels and winds through mixed forest on a trail blazed in red.

Directions: From Route 1 in Kennebunk, turn onto Water Street and proceed .30 miles to the parking lot on the left side of Water Street, directly after the Kennebunk Treatment Plant’s administrative building.

Kennebunk Land Trust parking spaces are identified with a white sign and green letters. The trailhead is approximately 100 feet farther down Water Street on the left. For more information, email kennebunklandtrust@gmail.com or call 207-985-8734.

Dual archaeology exhibition explores Black and indigenous history

The Brick Store Museum in Kennebunk last week announced the re-imagination of its mainstay local history exhibition, now titled, Who Makes History? How Peoples, Museums and Archaeology Can Tell the Full Story. The exhibition includes areas exploring two recent archaeological projects taking place in the area: the Cape Porpoise excavation of a 700-year-old Wabanaki dugout canoe, and the Kennebunk Bicentennial Legacy Project, investigating the Freed Enslaved People’s Community that existed in Kennebunk between 1790 and 1830.

The exhibition is separated into three parts; first, the museum inspects its own collecting practices over its 85 years in existence, and takes note of how these have curated a particular local history over time (and suggests how to fix it); the exhibition then flows into the Cape Porpoise Archipelago archaeology work currently undertaken by the Cape Porpoise Archaeology Alliance (of which the museum is a part), focusing on the early indigenous inhabitants of the region.

In a third section, and on display to the public for the first time, are the results of a years-long (2018 – 2021) archaeological study of the Freed Enslaved People’s Community that existed in Kennebunk from 1790 to 1830. Visitors will discover more about the work done, and who the people were that lived in the community. The exhibition was sponsored by the town of Kennebunk’s Bicentennial Committee, that funded the archaeological dig as part of its legacy projects leading to the town’s 200th anniversary in 2020.

The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday (closed Mondays), for admission of $5 per person. Tuesdays are free. Learn more about the exhibition, open hours, and related programming at www.brickstoremuseum.org.

Kennebunk resident named to UMass Lowell dean’s list

Caleb Dumas, of Kennebunk, has been recognized for achieving academic distinction at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Dumas, majoring in meteorology atmospheric science, was named to the dean’s list at UMass Lowell for the spring 2021 semester.

Museum seeks Steampunk vendors and performers

On Saturday, Aug. 14, the Brick Store Museum in Kennebunk will host its seventh annual Southern Maine Steampunk Fair from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will explore the theme of Steampunk and how history is used creatively. Steampunk-inspired crafts and artwork will be on display; presentations, how-to’s and lectures will be scheduled throughout the day; and tour the museum’s exhibitions are all included in the fair.

All visitors are welcome to explore the world of Steampunk. What is Steampunk? It’s the perfect marriage between history and future; a view of the world if Victorian aesthetics and steam power were in existence in modern day. Much like the design of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea or Sherlock Holmes, Steampunk is a Victorian view of the future.

The museum is seeking artists, performers, and crafters to take part in the event. Those who create Steampunk-style art or research Victorian history are asked to contact the museum. More information, including a list of vendors, a performance schedule, and food and beverage offerings, is available on the museum’s website. Those interested in being a vendor or performer are welcome to contact the museum at info@brickstoremuseum.org.

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