President Donovan Bowley called the monthly meeting to order at 7:03 PM at the Hope Historical Home. Also present were: Joe Berry, Gwen Brodis, Phelps Brown (Appleton), Hope Chase, Brian Davis, Cynthia Dellapenna (Raleigh NC), Jonathan Goodman, Tom Hardy, Herb Hart, Mary Ireland, Jan Janville (Appleton), Bill Jones, Ann Leadbetter, Barbara Ludwig, Isabel Lyndon (Wayland MA), Arthur Small & Diane Sprowl.

Sec. Bill Jones's draft minutes of the May 15th meeting were approved.

Gwen Brodis's Treasurer's Report was approved. Between May 16th and August 20th, we had $3,718.28 of income and $3,812.48 of expenses. Principal expenses were paying for insurance and fuel. A new Boston Post cane cost $37. On the income side, our food sale at the June election netted $606. Collection of returnable bottles and cans netted $226. The checking account balance was $794.90; the savings account balance, $3,783.93. Dues are due in October.

Reports

For the Building Committee, Herb Hart reported that everything was ship-shape and that he would be relinquishing his post and moving as soon as he sold his house. The Society voted its heartfelt thanks and gave a round of applause for all that Herb has done for us.

Ideas for future programs should be given to Ann Leadbetter, chair of Program Committee. It would be good to have next year's program topics lined up before the annual meeting so that they can be announced in the annual dues letter.

Donovan announced that the Frank Grassow bean thresher had been given to Searsmont Historical as voted and is now in a Searsmont barn, having been moved there by Ed Dodge, an auto wrecker.

For Archives, Donovan reported that he and Gwen Brodis are working on our newspaper collection. The Historical Home has been open from 9 'til 2:30 on Mondays and, thanks to Marie Berry, on last Fridays.

Old Business: none
New Business

Following our visit to Montville Historical Society on June 19th in lieu of our monthly meeting, Donovan proposed that we institute an historical calendar similar to that produced by Montville Historical. Theirs uses their historical photographs and is supported by local businessmen. We were asked to think about this and about instituting a newsletter by the October annual meeting. He also asked us to think about making and erecting a signpost giving distances to the other Maine virtue towns (Union, Liberty, Freedom, Industry, Friendship. Harmony, ?).

He announced the Union Historical meeting on the limerock railway.

At the end of the business meeting, Cynthia Dellapenna gave an update on her massive project to transcribe all the social news from Hope in the Rockland Courier-Gazette from 1888 to 1907, and to work out the genealogies of the Hope residents mentioned therein. The manuscript, now 675 pp., is daunting Heritage Press, the agreed publisher. Interestingly, at that time, Hope was considered to have 4 villages: South Hope, the Corner, Head of the Lake, and North Hope. In 1900, South-Hope-born Miles E. Carter drove his automobile from Attleboro MA to South Hope at speeds up to 15 MPH. That made a big splash in Hope, and in Rockland where it was the 1st auto.

The featured speakers were Hope's two remaining commercial apple producers: Tom Hardy and Brian Davis. Tom explained how apple-growers can control disease using integrated pest management. He explained the major apple diseases and how they are controlled. With Brian, who arrived late because of his other business (Camden Whole Health), he discussed the varietal change on Hope orchards over the years from the Baldwins and Ben Davises before the 1933/4 freeze to mainly Macintosh and Courtlands to new varieties like Honey Crisp, and from full-sized trees to dwarfs and semi-dwarfs.

Respectfully submitted,
Bill Jones, Secretary