The Westbrook City Council voted during a meeting last week to defund the Westbrook Historical Society, adding another tangle to its dispute with another local nonprofit.

This decision comes as the historical society and Westbrook Bucket Brigade, two nonprofit organizations preserving the city’s history, threaten each other with lawsuits and lob accusations ranging from theft to elder abuse.

This year, the city reduced the number of organizations it gives money to directly because it adopted a more objective system to distribute donations and focus on food security programs,  Mayor David Morse said at the meeting on April 15.

At the time of the meeting, the only two outside organizations still receiving donations were the Westbrook City Band — which performs public concerts throughout the year — and the historical society. While the council voted to defund the historical society, it did not defund the band.

Previously, the city of Westbrook donated $7,500 to the historical society — $5,000 to cover the organization’s rent for its space in the Westbrook Community Center and an extra $2,500 donation for general operations.

THE NONPROFIT SPAT

Members of the Westbrook Bucket Brigade have accused the historical society of elder abuse, harassment, theft and staging a “hostile takeover” of the Bucket Brigade. The president of the Westbrook Historical Society refutes the claims, even contesting the Bucket Brigade’s status as an organization.

The Westbrook Historical Society is a nonprofit founded in 1975, while the Bucket Brigade formed from a group of firefighters in 1968 preserving old firefighting equipment. The Bucket Brigade did not become a nonprofit until November 2025, after the dispute began.

In 2022, the president of the historical society at the time, Mike Sanphy, and the chief engineer of the Bucket Brigade, Clyde Chapman, agreed to form a partnership between the two organizations.

When Sanphy stepped down in 2024, Deb Shangraw became acting president of the historical society, and the conflict started, according to members of the Bucket Brigade. They accused the historical society of harassment and staging a “hostile takeover,” but members of the historical society refute those claims, adding that the Bucket Brigade was always a committee of the society and never its own autonomous organization.

The Bucket Brigade was previously housed in the community center, taking up about a third of the historical society’s space, but now that the two organizations are no longer working together, the Bucket Brigade is looking for a place to go.

COUNCIL’S DECISION

Some councilors said the dispute between the Bucket Brigade and the historical society was a private matter that the council should not get involved with. However, the council still had to decide whether to continue giving taxpayer money to the historical society.

Councilor Victor Chau originally suggested splitting the $7,500 donation and giving half to the historical society and half to the Bucket Brigade. Council President Jennifer Munro said without the Bucket Brigade, she doesn’t think the $2,500 donation for the historical society is worth it.

Councilor Anna Turcotte said changing donation amounts because of interpersonal disputes would set a bad precedent. The council also discussed the historical society’s lease in the community center, but Turcotte said breaking that lease would be a legal risk for the city. The city attorney said the city wouldn’t necessarily be exposed to legal risks if it did it within the terms of lease document.

Councilor Gary Rairdon suggested eliminating the funding to the historical society to be consistent with the new guidelines for distributing donations.

Rep. Sue Salisbury, D-Westbrook, and her husband, Joe, said during public comment that by donating money, the city is endorsing the historical society’s alleged mistreatment of members of the Bucket Brigade.

“If you give that $7,500, you’re condoning that behavior,” Joe Salisbury said. “Until these two groups figure out a way to coexist in that same space — which I’d love to see — they shouldn’t be rewarded with any city money.”

Adele Jones, a member of the Bucket Brigade, said during the meeting that all the Bucket Brigade wants is a separate lease so it can stay in the same space.

Mark Swett, vice president of the historical society, said there was a lot of misunderstanding, and until the Bucket Brigade became a nonprofit, it had always been a committee of the historical society. Shangraw said the historical society still maintained the Bucket Brigade committee.

Ultimately, the council voted 5-2 to defund the historical society.

Immediately afterward, Turcotte — who voted against defunding the society — said if the council was following the donation guidelines, it should also defund the Westbrook City Band. She introduced a motion to defund the band as well. The motion failed.

“Point made,” Turcotte said.

The historical society remains committed to its mission and is moving forward in a positive and constructive manner despite the challenges caused by the council’s decision, according to a statement from the society emailed to the Press Herald.

“The Westbrook Historical Society is disappointed in the City Council’s recent 5–2 decision to remove our funding after nearly 50 years of continuous service to the community,” the statement read. “Our mission has always been to preserve and share the history of Westbrook — its people, places, and stories — and to make that history accessible through education, programming, and community engagement for residents of all ages.”

The Bucket Brigade never asked the city to defund the historical society, Sanphy — who is a member of the Bucket Brigade — said, but it was a great move to help save taxpayers’ money. He hopes the city will give the Bucket Brigade its space back, and the organization would pay for it.

“The Bucket Brigade and historical society are both great historical units, but they should be self-sufficient,” Sanphy said.

Correction: Due to a reporting error, an earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the year the Westbrook Bucket Brigade was founded. In started in 1968.