Town Report on Lincoln 1956-1959, Part 37

Author: Lincoln (Mass.)
Publication date: 1956
Publisher: Lincoln (Mass.)
Number of Pages: 1026


USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Lincoln > Town Report on Lincoln 1956-1959 > Part 37


Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).


Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60


At the time of the writing of this report, this Committee is unable to be specific as to the cost of the new facilities it will propose but it does intend to have public hearings in the early part of March at which the plans and cost estimates will be presented.


107


PLANNING AND PUBLIC WORKS


LINCOLN LAND CONSERVATION TRUST


Charles P. Kindleberger, Treasurer


Term Expires 1959


William N. Swift, Secretary


Term Expires 1959


Term Expires 1960


Sarah E. Brown Warren F. Flint


Term Expires 1960


Term Expires 1961


Term Expires 1961


Term Expires 1961


In 1958, the Trust purchased for $11,500 five and a half acres of land on Sandy Pond which would have otherwise been used as a build- ing site. An additional ten acres of swamp land on Silver Hill Road by Long Pond was contributed by Dr. and Mrs. L. Alexander Vance, Dr. and Mrs. Edwards W. Herman, and Dr. and Mrs. Oliver Cope of Cambridge. At the year's end, title has not passed on this donation.


A number of informal groups are examining the possibilities of further group donations of land to the Trust. The Trustees are interested in exploring further similar proposals.


On December 31, 1958, the Trust had 92 members. Membership is open to all citizens of the Town on payment of $10 annual dues. A copy of the trust instrument has been deposited with the Clerk of the Town. Duplicated copies in a limited number are available from the Secretary.


Financial Statement as of December 31, 1958


(From the date of Organization on December 2, 1957)


Receipts


Contributions to Land Acquisition Fund (76 contributors - includes dues)


$11,896.11


Annual Dues - 16 members Total Receipts


$12,056.11


Capital Expenditure


Land Purchase - Wheeler, Sandy Pond lot


$11,500.00


Fees, stamps, title search


54.05


Total Capital Expenditure


$11,554.05


Current Expenses


Printing, stamps, addressing, bank charges $ 131.67


Total Expenditure


$11,685.72


Bank Balance, December 31, 1958


370.39


$12,056.11


108


160.00


William M. Rand, Sr.


Ann S. Monks James V. Lennon


Schools Library and Recreation


TRUSTEES OF THE LINCOLN PUBLIC LIBRARY


Alice G. Meriam Roland C. Mackenzie


Morley M. John A. Bradlee Emmons


Edwin M. Cole, Chairman


1958 has been a year of many changes and of very marked growth for the Lincoln Public Library. The Library Trustees expect these changes to lead to even greater growth in future years.


The most dramatic change is the handsome Library addition which will be ready for use early in 1959. This addition with the existing building will provide a new circulation area, a new workroom, new librarian's room, and new toilets. It will also make possible three reading rooms, an adult reading room, a reading room for young adults, and a children's room, all containing appropriate book collections. The addition practically doubles the size of the Library.


New book stacks with adequate lighting and access space have been installed to house our growing collection of books and to make them easily accessible to Library users.


The Library staff has had to be increased to take care of the increased activity. Mrs. Maryalice Thoma, our Librarian, now has a full-time assistant, Mrs. Curtis Chapin. This summer they had the help of Miss Anne Norton. The staff has also had the professional assistance of Mrs. Rita Abbott, a Library consultant, who has gone through the reference and non-fiction shelves discarding out of date books and giving suggestions for selections in the areas where our book collection needed strengthening.


In 1958, a basic change in the Library took place with the change in the make up of the Board of Trustees. Up to this year, the Board has been comprised of five members: three life trustees, and the Chairman of the Board of Selectmen and the Chairman of the School Committee, serving ex-officio. The Trustees, believing that such a body was no longer suitable for Lincoln, obtained permission from the Town at the Town Meeting of March, 1958, to take necessary legal steps to amend the Lincoln Library Trust in order to change the membership of the Board of Trustees. Their petition asked that the Board of Trustees be increased to a membership of six, three members to be life trustees, and three other members to serve three year terms, one to be appointed by the Board of Selectmen, one to be appointed by the Lincoln School Committees, and a third to be elected by the Town. In September, 1958, the Superior Court of Equity handed down a final decree amending the Library Trust as requested. . Under the Court order


109


SCHOOLS, LIBRARY AND RECREATION


the Board of Selectmen appointed Mr. Bradlee Emmons and the joint School Committees appointed Mrs. DeWitt John to serve as Library Trustees. The Town will elect the sixth Trustee at the Town elec- tions of March, 1959.


Early in the year the Library Trustees accepted with great regret the resignation of Mr. George G. Tarbell, who had served as a Library trustee since May, 1915. Mr. Tarbell is the first of the life trustees to resign in accordance with their desire to make possible greater participation on the board by more people. Mr. Tarbell's advice and guidance through the years have contributed greatly in making the Library a valued part of the life of the Town.


Dr. Edwin M. Cole was appointed to take Mr. Tarbell's place as a life trustee.


The Library trustees have appreciated greatly the contribution made by the Chairman of the Board of Selectmen and the Chairman of the School Committee as members of the Library Trustee Board in the past, and regret that the growth of the Town has made it impossible for them to continue serving in this capacity. We know that we can continue to count on the support of both the Board of Selectmen and the School Committees and their interest in our affairs.


In May of 1958 a Citizen's Advisory Committee for the Library was formed. One of the most important actions of this committee has been the organization of a group of volunteers to help in the Library. These volunteers have given invaluable service volunteering many hours of work at a great variety of tasks.


We must express our especial appreciation to Mr. John Carley and his assistants who organized and executed the strenuous and time consuming job of moving the entire book collection from the old stacks in order to install the new stacks.


The Advisory Committee published the first Library News Sheet in December of 1958 as a means of bringing complete news of Library acti- vities and acquisitions to the Town. Further editions are planned as needed.


Another valuable service of the Advisory Committee has been a plan it has initiated for Lincoln citizens who are qualified in cer- tain fields, because of their work and education, to recommend books in their particular field for purchase by the Library . It is hoped that this plan will develop an adequate and selective book collection in our Library.


The Library Trustees appreciate greatly the new ideas and practi- cal support given by the Citizen's Advisory Committee.


110


LIBRARY


We are happy to report close cooperation between the School and the Library . During the summer, Mrs. Thoma was able to set aside a large number of books appearing on the summer reading list of the grade school and high school. The school staff sent such books as they had to augment our collection. In addition, many people loaned copies of the books needed. We also are providing material as requested by the teachers throughout the school year. With the aid of the School Librarian, and some advance planning by our staff, we have been able to place in the school those books which might be needed by the pupils during the period the Library has been closed for the installation of new stacks and the integration of the new and old buildings.


The Trustees regret very much that the Library had to be closed for a period of two months due to the remodelling of the plant and are grateful to the citizens of the Town for their tolerance at this time. Readers were allowed to take home all the books they wished for this period and a great many took advantage of this - one en- thusiastic woman took home a clothes basket full. Needless to say, there were no fines during this period.


Friends and colleagues of the late Mr. William A. Wilson, an active worker in our community for the improvement of the educational facilities and standards of our schools, have, presented the Library with a generous fund in his memory. This fund is being applied toward the furnishing of the Children's room. We feel that this is a most fitting memorial and we wish here to express our gratitude to the many participating donors. We are glad in this way to have the Library contain the continuing expression of the devotion of one of our fellow citizens to the welfare of the community.


The Trustees are particularly grateful to the townspeople for their interest in and support of the building project, and to those many friends who have contributed books and exhibits. Again we are indebted to the Garden Club which has supplied the flowers for the Library throughout the year. We look forward with pleasant antici- pation to the improved service and attractive surroundings we shall be able to provide for the Town during the coming years.


LIBRARIAN


Maryalice Thoma, Librarian


The year 1958 brought further increases in the use of the library; 310 new members were added to the 756 who borrowed books from the Library in 1957. Our circulation increased from 25,404 to 30,412, or about 20 per cent. More than half, or 16,574, were child- rens' books, and this coming year we look forward to a still greater


111


SCHOOLS, LIBRARY AND RECREATION


increase because of our much larger, pleasanter new childrens' room.


During the year children from the 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades, accom- panied by their teachers, have visited the library in order to learn what "joining" the library means. The children were told what their responsibilities were toward the care of the books they borrowed, and the what and why of fines. The older children were taught to use the card catalogue.


Our first story hours were held, and we hope to make these a regular part of the library regime in 1959. Mrs. Warren of the Con- cord Book Shop, Mrs. Richard Fleck, and Mrs. Didrick Tonseth were our story tellers this year, and we are very grateful to them, as were the children who sat quiet and enthralled listening.


We also started a book report competition with the winners becoming members of the Children's Advisory Committee to the Librarian. The committee this year consists of Eliot Hubbard, Electa Kane, Lucy Livengood, Andrea Loewenstein, Sally Kindleberger and Philip Moss, and they have been very helpful by reading new books and reviewing them for us. Their reviews are pasted in the books and have helped other children in their choice of books. We hope the book report competi- tion will continue every year with more children becoming interested in the art of book reviewing.


We cannot be grateful enough to the volunteers who have typed, mended, prepared books for circulation, pulled cards from the cata- logue, discarded books, acted as pages, and done many other odd chores with unfailing cheerfulness and interest.


During the weeks the library has been closed Mrs. Chapin completed the typing of the card catalogue which Mrs. Farrar started and was un- able to finish when she moved away. Mrs. Thoma weeded the adult fiction, and so, with Mrs. Abbot's work in adult non-fiction, the shelves have been cleared of books which no longer had value or inter- est.


With the help of Miss Dregger, the school librarian, Mrs. Thoma went over the list of subject headings in the children's catalogue so that the same headings will be used in both libraries.


We were unable to take an inventory of the number of volumes in the library and those lost or discarded because the storage of the books in the reading room during the renovation of the stack room of necessity made many titles unavailable.


112


LIBRARY


LINCOLN LIBRARY


Hours open :


Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 3 to 9 P. M.


Saturday, 2 to 6 P. M.


Closed on legal holidays


Statistics, 1958


*Books purchased or given to Library 1,083


New members


310


Total membership


1,487


Number of days open (Library closed from November 26 through December )


165


Amount of fines collected


$831.36


Circulation


Fiction


8,557


Non-Fiction


4,327


Juvenile


16,574


Periodicals


954


Total


30,412


1957 Circulation


25,404


Increase


5,008


* No inventory of total number of volumes in library possible this year .


113


SCHOOLS, LIBRARY AND RECREATION


LIBRARY ADVISORY COMMITTEE


Mrs. Lawrence Anderson Mrs. Paul Brooks


Mr. John Carley


Mrs. Nathaniel Gerson


Mrs. Stanley Heck


Mrs. Christopher Hurd


Mrs. DeWitt John


Mr. Henry B. Kane


Mr. Charles Kindleberger


Mr. Henry Morgan


Mr. Leonard Moss


Mr. Alanson Sturgis, Jr.


Mrs. Arthur Thiessen


Mrs. Didrick Tonseth


Mrs. Hans L. Van Leer


Mrs. Guilbert Winchell, Jr.


VOLUNTEERS


Mrs. Lawrence Anderson


Mrs. William Barrington


Mrs. Albert England


Mrs. David Garrison


Mrs. Nathaniel Gerson


Miss Doris Grason


Mrs. William Grim


Mrs. Cecil Hall


Mrs. Norman Hapgood


Mrs. David Lawrence


Mrs. John Loud


Mrs. Leo Palmer


Mrs. George Peterson


Mrs. Eliot Pierce


Mrs. John Stewart


Mrs. Didrick Tonseth


Mrs. Henry Warner


Mrs. John White


EXHIBITS


Mrs. Charles Bliss


Mr. Curtis Chapin


Mrs. James M. Cryer, Jr.


Miss Virginia Dregger Mrs. H. C. Kent


Mrs. Lawrence B. Anderson Mrs. Virginia Armstrong Mr. Robert Austin Miss Margaret Ann Avery Mrs. Paul Brooks Mrs. Secor Browne


Mrs. Robert C. Chapin Concord Book Store Mrs. Perry J. Culver


Mrs. Robert M. Cunningham


Miss Judith Daniels Geoffrey Davis Mr. George Davol (Concord) De Cordova Museum Mrs. Malcolm Donaldson


Mrs. Eliot DuBois Mr. Richard Eaton


Colin Loader


Mrs. Arthur W. Swanson


Mrs. Maryalice Thoma


Mr. David Webster


GIFTS


Mrs. Norman Hapgood, Jr. Mrs. Stanley Heck


Mr. Harlow H. Hovey (Wakefield)


Mr. Christopher Hurd


Mrs. Robert F. Jillson


Mrs. DeWitt John Mr. Henry B. Kane


Mr. Charles Kindleberger


Mrs. William T. King


Mrs. David Lawrence


Miss Ruth Lyon Mr. James W. Mar


Mrs. Robert F. Maroni


Mr. Paul E. Marsh


Miss Eliza McClennen


Mrs. Richard S. Meriam


Mrs. Thomas R. Morse


114


LIBRARY


Mrs. Homer D. Eckhardt Mr. & Mrs. Bradlee Emmons


Miss Connie Filbin


Mr. John H. Fitzgerald Mrs. Richard C. Fleck


Miss Olive Floyd


Mrs. Norman W. Fradd


Mrs. Nathaniel Gerson


Mrs. L. Gordon Glazier


Mrs. William M. Grim, Jr.


Miss Hazel Newton


Mrs. Robert Niles


Mrs. George E. Peterson


Mrs. Howard L. Rich, Jr.


Mrs. J. Leslie Rollins


Mrs. Frederick B. Taylor


Mrs. Arthur E. Thiessen


Mrs. Maryalice Thoma


Mrs. Robert D. Wilson


Tommy Worthington


115


SCHOOLS, LIBRARY AND RECREATION


LINCOLN LIBRARY ADDITION BUILDING COMMITTEE


Morley John Charles Bliss Edwin M. Cole A. Bradlee Emmons, Chairman


Alice Meriam Secor Browne Roland Mackenzie


Pursuant to the authorization given your Committee at the Annual Town Meeting in March, 1958, and subsequently confirmed at a Special Town Meeting, direction was given the architects, Messrs. Hoover & Hill, to proceed with final plans for the Library Addition. Bids were requested, and on June 23, 1958, bids from 35 sub-contractors were publicly opened. On June 27, 1958, the bids of 9 general con- tractors were received, opened and reviewed at the Town Hall. The Cardarelli Construction Company was the low bidder and received the contract for the work. Ground was broken at an informal ceremony on July 15, 1958.


Work proceeded on schedule with only slight delays resulting from slow delivery of certain materials.


Within the old building rewiring has been done to improve the general level of lighting, and new improved stacks have been obtained and located in a more efficient manner than formerly.


At the present writing it is contemplated that both the new and the old parts of the building will be open for use in February.


We should like to extend thanks to these individuals who served at various times on the Committee: Kenneth Bergen, John Carman, W. Van Alan Clark, Charles Fitts, George Tarbell and John Tew. It goes without saying that the help of both Mrs. Farrar and Mrs. Thoma has been invaluable.


i16


RECREATION COMMITTEE


LINCOLN RECREATION COMMITTEE


Mary Belanger Ruth Burk James Mar Earle Street John Barnaby


Elin Lennon John Garrison Ernest Johnson Bert Kessell Albert Avery, Chairman


SUMMER PROGRAM


Our Summer Playground Program this year was again under the super- vision of Mr. Joseph Herlihy, assisted by Miss Janet Brady, with Sandra Robinson and Rob Ross serving as Junior Assistants.


Due to the intense interest in the Red Cross Water Safety Pro- gram, most of the Playground activities were of necessity scheduled during the morning hours. These included among others baseball, softball, basketball, tennis, horseshoe pitching, croquet, wood- working and handicraft. Quiet games and stories and movies were scheduled during the afternoons for the children not actually engaged in the Red Cross Program at the time. In addition to cook-outs on Fridays, several trips were sponsored to points of interest in the Greater Boston area. Professional tennis instruction was available to the children four days a week for six weeks and in this regard the new tennis courts were a tremendous help. We feel that the true value of these new courts will not be realized until we have had an opportunity to observe the results over two or more years.


A July Fourth Round Robin Tennis Tournament was sponsored for adults and boys and girls. This extended over the "long week-end" and a record number of people took part. The annual Fall Open Tournament was directed by Fred Walkey and Bill Swift and it was gratifying to see so many of the young people of the Town enrolled. Our thanks go out to Fred and Bill for a fine job.


One of the most enthusiastically received activities of our program this year was the new Softball League. Four Town Teams were formed, and they, with the team from the Nike Base, enjoyed a full summer of activity. All the arrangements for this event were made by Earle Street and John Garrison.


WINTER PROGRAM


The badminton program under the direction of Ruth and George Burk enjoyed a most successful season. Many more Lincolnites parti- cipated than did last year . This year we hope is the beginning of a complete rejuvenation of this sport. Ernest Johnson arranged for Wayne Schell and his associates to hold a "Demonstration Night" for us. These people are the "top" badminton players in the country,


117


SCHOOLS, LIBRARY AND RECREATION


and a fine evening was enjoyed by all.


This year some of the men of the Town volunteered their services in the supervision of the basketball for the boys on Saturdays. Boys in the 4th and 5th grades play in the mornings, and the Junior and Senior highschoolers play in the afternoons. We appreciate this un- selfish action on the part of these men who give up their free time in order to provide recreation for our children.


The committee wishes to express its appreciation to the School Committee, the School Staff, and the others who contributed so much to the over-all success of our program.


NEW TENNIS COURTS BUILDING COMMITTEE


Ernest L. Johnson Albert M. Avery, III


James W. Mar


The two new tennis courts were completed by the middle of June, and were heavily used during the summer months. They are very well constructed with adequate drainage for fast drying. We on the con- struction committee are most pleased with the result.


BEMIS FREE LECTURES


Mabel H. Todd Paul Brooks


Christopher W. Hurd, Chairman


With the rising cost of fees for lecturers and more expense for printing and postage of notices, the Bemis Lecture Trustees are doing their best to keep within their annual budget. We are striving to present to the Town a variety of lectures, fewer in number but of distinctive interest, appealing to all ages and carrying out Mr. Bemis' wish that the lectures be "of an instructive and elevating character".


Our audience attendance on the whole has been excellent and to date the Town House has not yet been over-crowded.


We are always open to suggestions from the townspeople on types of lectures they desire. Some citizens have been of great help, and we have used their ideas in past programs.


118


De CORDOVA MUSEUM


DeCORDOVA AND DANA MUSEUM AND PARK


BOARD OF DIRECTORS


John Quincy Adams, President


William N. Swift, Vice President


A. Bradlee Emmons, Treasurer Elizabeth J. Snelling, Clerk


Paul W. Cook, Jr. Stanley Heck George Wells


During 1958, the De Cordova Museum operated at capacity both as regards the physical plant and the staff. Owing to receipt of 100% of income from the B Trust under the Will of Julian de Cordova, for which the Directors of the Museum are grateful both to the Town and the Trustees, operation has been on a less stringent basis than formerly.


This year has seen the construction of a much needed garage and further renovation of the caretaker's cottage. The toilet facilities constructed in the park last spring enabled the Museum to conduct an outdoor program for children last summer.


The Directors wish to thank the friends and associates of the Museum whose loyal support has made possible the foundations of an art collection, and again, we wish to express our appreciation to the staff for all their hard work and to the host of volunteers who make it possible to carry out the program.


EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR


Frederick P. Walkey


The statistics which accompany this report give a precise account of our operation for 1958 in quantitative terms. More students were enrolled in more Museum classes than ever before; attendance at many exhibitions and events topped records set in previous years; the collection was substantially enriched by a number of generous gifts and by Museum purchases; and financially, the magnitude of our operation soared -- in 1958 it was more than double the level of 1953.


However, 1958 is notable to us chiefly as a year of qualitative rather than quantitative achievement. In our report for 1957 we set forth two goals: (1) improvement of the exhibition program and supplementary activities and (2) extension of our educational acti- vities on the grade and secondary school levels. In 1958 we made considerable progress toward the fulfillment of both goals.


119


SCHOOLS, LIBRARY AND RECREATION


In an exhibition program that was perhaps the most ambitious in the Museum's history, two shows were outstanding - "A Decade in Review", presented last spring, and "Lithographs by Honore Daumier", presented in the fall. "A Decade in Review" brought together representative work by many of the world's most renowned contemporary artists and won national attention. In the Daumier exhibition, 150 lithographs from the collection of Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin A. Trustman were shown to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Daumier's birth. The exhibit was selected and arranged to reflect all phases of Daumier's work and to present each phase in its historical context.


As in each preceding year, a number of promising new talents were introduced to the public in exhibitions at the Museum during 1958. Particularly well received by the critics were the Roxbury and Nahant pastorals of Achi Sullo, whose paintings and drawings were shown for the first time at the Museum this fall.


At the request of the Boston Symphony management, the Museum assembled two shows for exhibition at Symphony Hall: the first, a group show of New England painters called "Preview '58" and the second, a group of paintings from the Museum's own collection.


The exhibition program embraced a wider geographical area in 1958 than in previous years; although a majority of our exhibitions continued to feature work by New Englanders, a number of artists from other sections of the United States were represented and three important international shows were presented.


In connection with our major exhibitions last year, we scheduled gallery talks and published illustrated catalogues to provide visi- tors with background information which would help them to understand and enjoy the works of art on exhibit. A welcome newcomer to our part-time staff last fall was Margaret Finch, who presented a series of exceptionally lively and informative gallery talks on the Daumier exhibit and who will continue with us as staff lecturer in 1959.


To achieve the second goal set forth in our 1957 report - ex- tension of our educational services to young people - we made some revisions in the regular class program, presented an intensive crea- tive arts program during the summer and expanded our scholarship program for high school students.


Our classes for children and teen-agers in 1958 featured a new emphasis on "instruction in depth". Designed to supplement the instruction which children receive in school, these classes are for young people who wish to study one or more of the fine arts in greater depth than the normal school program permits. It is our purpose in presenting this instruction to provide an environment and facilities which will enable each student to advance as rapidly as




Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.