Along around late October through November I dropped a ball that should not have been dropped. Frederick Robinson in Pineville, Louisiana, wrote me inquiring about various of his Edgecomb buddies in the military during World War II. I got a good letter in response from Olive Wright in Pemaquid, nee McKay, who answered a lot of Mr. Robinson's questions. Most of his friends have passed on. I was happy to talk with Mrs. Wright, however. Her brother Thomas McKay lives with her. Another brother, Alfred, still lives on McKay Road in Edgecomb. He drove me and the Reed brothers to school my first (his last) year at Lincoln
Academy, in a Model A Ford. It was quite adventurous transportation, especially in the winter!

For all those Edgecomb swimmers as well as parents and anyone shopping for camp counseling jobs: The American Red Cross is conducting a Water Safety Instructor Certification course in February and March, with the Wiscasset Community Center. Call the Red Cross at 729-6779 for information about costs and requirements. The registration deadline is February 10, so do it now!

Is anyone following the report in last week's papers about Midnight Oil Company's application to the Newcastle Planning Board, "to undertake a commercial development in a rural zone" just over Edgecomb's northern border? It involves a "tank farm," that is, "5 tanks . . .to hold . . . heating oil, diesel fuel and kerosene" which will "exceed state and federal safety standards," as attributed to the company's president Charles Pratt. ". . . The topography of the site will help limit runoff to the nearby Sherman Lake area." Newcastle's rural zoning prohibits such wholesale commercial development.

Put Friday, February 7 on your calendar! To stave off the cold winter night, from 5 to 6:30 pm, a delicious hot Spaghetti Supper will be provided at the new Edgecomb Eddy School Cafeteria! Cost is $5 for adults, $2.50 for ages 4 through 12, kids aged 3 and under eat free. Checks payable to Edgecomb School PTC. Space is limited to 150 people. Call Judy Reid at the school, 882-5515 to reserve your seat, and to get more information. See you there!

Edgecomb Schools X: Katherine Chase Owens (KCO) in Early Edgecomb, Maine, volume 1, recounts the setting up of school districts during the 1770s-‘90s, with their boundaries defined by peoples' home sites and town boundaries. It is probable that classes met in several homes, although schoolmasters are reported to have been hired. There were also a number of Free High Schools which held classes in homes or school buildings during the evenings.

Finally, in 1819, by order of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Edgecomb formally organized its educational system. KCO, pages 32-34, reviews the records of School District No. 1, with a picture of the Central (Eddy) School. Apparently the original building burned some time in 1856-57. Of interest: In 1828, "all boys 4-8 [were to] be admitted to summer school, and girls 4-13, and all be exempted from winter school." Girls and boys had separate recess periods.

While we are on the subject of education, congratulations, Laurie Cucci on Spring Hill Farm Road! She is on the Dean's List for the Class of 2004 at Stonehill College, Easton MA. And kudos for Marcia Carter, a junior at Lincoln Academy, who has been a leader in L.A.'s current workshop series on Civility.

On Sunday, February 2, the Friends of Fort Edgecomb will be gathering at the Vienna, Maine, Grange Hall for a workshop on how to make presentations for school classes and other groups about Circum-Revolutionary Life and Society. The workshop will start at 10 am, and continue "until done." For more information, call the new president, Matt Dunn, at 377-5335. And then, on Wednesday, Feb. 5, at 7 pm, the Friends of Fort Edgecomb will hold their regular monthly meeting at the Sheepscot River Inn. Officers for 2003 are Matthew Dunn, president; Mary Grant, vice president; Laurel Dunn, treasurer; Michael Stowe, secretary.

Typing all this from under 7 layers of sweaters, long johns, jacket, leg warmers, ear muffs, etc. at 234 River Road, 633-2978, bonesukl@midcoast.com. This column appears in The Boothbay Register, The Lincoln County News, The Wiscasset Newspaper, and at www.Edgecomb.org.