Lyle Cramer	Term expires December 2013
Frank Cassidy	Term expires December 2013
Jack Green	Term expires December 2014
Alison Metcalfe	Term expires December 2014
Chris Gray	Term expires December 2015
Betty Nims	Term expires December 2015

Finance	Bruce Cobb (Chair), Lyle Cramer, Dan Day, Milt Parsons, Dave Shaub, Elaine Tracy
Membership	Bonnie Packard (Chair), Dave Shaub
Programs	Alison Metcalf (Chair), Dave & Suzy Shaub
Hospitality	Bonnie Packard, Debbie Hilt
Publicity	Alison Metcalf
Newsletter	Wednesday Group, Suzy Shaub (Chair), Dave Shaub
Robbins House	Dave Shaub (Chair), Frank Cassidy, Catherine & Pritchard Meyer, Kay Santorineos
Old Town House	Jack Green (Chair), Frank Cassidy, Elaine Tracy, Milt Parsons, Dave Shaub
Cobb's Ledge	Dan Day (Chair), Lyle Cramer, Lee MacFarland
Nominating	Dan Day (Chair), Bonnie Packard, Dave & Suzy Shaub
Book Sales	Dan & Connie Day
Technology	Suzy Shaub, Nick Santorineos
Matthews Museum Liaison	Nick Santorineos
Chamber of Commerce	Dan Day, Lyle Cramer
Vose Library Liaison	Alison Metcalf
Website Manager(s)	Nick Santorineos, Suzy Shaub

The Robbins House is usually open from 9:30 A.M. to 12:00 noon on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday mornings. You are welcome to visit us and enjoy the displays. Society volunteers will be glad to assist you in your research related to Union history and genealogy.

There may be additional open hours; look for the "Open" sign at the corner of the building, or if you do not pass by the Common, call us (207-785-5444). If you wish to make an appointment to meet the Curator, call the Union Historical Society's number to leave a message.

Directions

Union may be approached from all directions. Below are driving directions to visit the Robbins House, the UHS headquarters at 343 Common Road, or the Old Town House at 128 Town House Road, where most of our programs are held.

From the East or Camden/Rockland area:

To reach the Robbins House - travel west on Route 17 approximately 11 miles to Route 131 South, (South Union Road;) turn left (south) onto Route 131 for a few hundred feet and then turn right (west) onto Common Road (old Route 17). Travel west on Common Road to the Common area. The Robbins House faces west at 343 Common Road, on the left, across from the entrance drive of Camden National Bank. There is a looped driveway for parking at the front of the Robbins House. (If you reach the Post Office, you have passed the Robbins House.)
To reach the Old Town House - continue about ½ mile past the Route 131 South intersection on Route 17 to Route 235 South (Town House Road). Turn left (south) onto Route 235; travel up the hill to the Old Town House on the left at 128 Town House Road, with parking available just before the building in a grassy lot.

From the West – Route 295 or Augusta area:

To reach the Robbins House - travel east on Route 17 (approximately 25 miles from Augusta) to Common Road just beyond Route 131 North; turn right onto Common Road across from Union Farm Equipment. Travel on Common Road past the Union Fairgrounds and up a hill into the Common area. Continue on Common Road past the Post Office on the right. The Robbins House, at 343 Common Road, will be in view at the east end of the Common area, across from the entrance drive of Camden National Bank. There is a looped driveway for parking at the front of the Robbins House.
To reach the Old Town House - continue about ½ mile past the Common Road intersection on Route 17 to Route 235 South, (Town House Road.) Turn right (south) onto Route 235; travel up the hill to the Old Town House on the left at 128 Town House Road, with parking available just before the building in a grassy lot.

From the South or Towns along Route 1:

To reach the Robbins House - travel north on Route 1 through Waldoboro, past Moody’s Diner, to Route 235. Turn left onto Route 235 and travel approximately 9 miles to Union, where Route 235 becomes Depot Street, to a stop sign at the Post Office and the Common. Turn right onto Common Road. The Robbins House at 343 Common Road will be in view at the east end of the Common area. There is a looped driveway for parking at the front of the Robbins House.
To reach the Old Town House – after the stop sign, travel north through the intersection of Route 235 and Common Road, through the Common and up the hill, where the road becomes Town House Road to the Old Town House, at 128 Town House Road, with parking available past the building in a grassy lot.

From the North/Northeast, Belfast area:

To reach the Robbins House – travel west on Route 3 from Belfast to Belmont. Make a slight left turn onto Route 131 and travel south approximately 15 miles to Route 17. Turn left onto Route 17 then make an immediate right onto Common Road across from Union Farm Equipment. Travel on Common Road past the Union Fairgrounds and up a hill into the Common area. Continue on Common Road past the Post Office on the right. The Robbins House, at 343 Common Road, will be in view at the east end of the Common area, across from the entrance drive of Camden National Bank. There is a looped driveway for parking at the front of the Robbins House.
To reach the Old Town House – after the left turn onto Route 17, continue on Route 17 about ½ mile past the Common Road intersection to Route 235 South (Town House Road). Turn right (south) onto Route 235; travel up the hill to the Old Town House on the left at 128 Town House Road, with parking available just before the building in a grassy lot.

Our Properties

The House:

The Robbins House, now the home of Union Historical Society, is located on Union Common at 343 Common Road. It is an 1847 modified Greek Revival building with a center chimney and an attached ell. The parlors on the north side of the first floor are furnished in early Victorian style. One upstairs bedroom is furnished in period style pieces that were made in Union. The meeting room, which also serves as a research area, is accessible by a wheelchair ramp. It was purchased and renovated by the Society in 1975.

History:

The house was first built for Dr. Isaac Flitner, possibly to entice a doctor to come to town to live. It was then owned by a series of doctors until 1897, when it was purchased by Jason Robbins. The Robbins family lived there for 58 years, until the death of Jason's niece Clemmie Robbins in 1955. Clemmie Robbins was the town's telephone operator.

It was probably during the time near the turn of the last century that a porch was added, and the doorway between the two north parlors was widened. The south part of the building had been the dining room, kitchen, woodshed and entrance to the barn. In 1973 the Union Historical Society bought the property with the intention of sharing the building with the Vose Library.*

The house was in sad shape. It was the Society's intent to have the outside of the house look as it had when it was first built. Therefore the sagging porch was removed and the garage, which interim owners had substituted for the barn, was replaced by the present meeting room. The foundation revealed that the original door had been recessed and an appropriate door with sidelights was donated by Society members.

Furnishings:

The furnishings were donated by residents of Union and members of the Society. There have also been bequests to the Society and a few items were purchased with funds raised.

Parlors:

With Brussels carpets over hardwood floors, the Victorian-style parlor furnishings include upholstered sofa and chairs, a round marble-topped table, a card table, a dining table and cane-seated chairs, a Brown pump organ that was made in Union, and a Morse Brothers organ, also made in Union. On the wall hang portraits of Jason Robbins and his wife Laura.

North bedroom:

In the larger bedroom upstairs, is a complete chamber set made of local woods in Union's Thurston Bros. Factory, later the casket factory, along with various items donated by Union residents. Furnishings owned by the Come Spring characters. The Society owns a small chair that once belonged to Joel and Mima Robbins Adams. The 1940 historical novel, Come Spring, records their journey to purchase it after their marriage. The Society also has artifacts used by Mima Robbins Adams in her daily life - her mortar and pestle, her Book of Sermons, and her Bible.

Exhibits:

Also to be seen in the Robbins House are the town's old telephone exchange switchboard, a secretary-desk once used by the selectmen at the Town Office and many artifacts and paper memorabilia relating to the history of the town, its industry, businesses, citizens and civic life. The displays are changed periodically. We welcome additional donations of items from Union.

* In the spring of 2011, the Vose Library moved into a “home of its own” at 392 Common Road.

2. The Old Town House

Dating from 1840 and located on 128 Town House Road, a classic New England meeting house, is the town’s early public meetinghouse and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This building may be rented at reasonable rates for wedding receptions and other gatherings for personal or business functions. Call the Society for availability and rates.

The Old Town House simple, elegantly functional proportions are enhanced by the unique curved ceiling and multi-paned windows. It was integral to the life of the community, serving as the venue for town meetings from 1840 until 1952 and high school graduations from 1890 until 1931.


The second level projection room was built to accommodate silent movies and the ticket vendor's window is still in place. Regular movie showings (25¢ admission), social functions, dances, plays and suppers made the Town House a busy place for its first century. After construction of the Thompson Memorial Building at the other end of Union village, the Town House fell into silence and disrepair, functioning as a warehouse for all sorts of cast-offs until it was threateresponsible for the Robbins House, offered to care for the building and paid the princely sum of $1.00 to the town.

In 1978 a fortunate bequest from the estate of Esther Morton enabled a major restoration. In 1986 a subsequent update was undertaken to bring the building into conformity with safety standards for public buildings. In 1998 and 1999 the Society performed further major maintenance to the exterior and interior, including stabilizing, repairing and repainting the plaster of the interior curved ceiling and the walls. Ongoing maintenance receives sensitive attention to authenticity. The Old Town House was deeded by the town to the Union Historical Society.

3. Cobbs Ledge

This structure was once at the top of Cobb's Ledge, the highest point in the center of Union village. During WWII volunteers took shifts to watch for enemy airplanes.

The pin on the right was worn by the volunteers.

Programs

The Union Historical Society holds monthly program meetings, open to the public, at 7:30 PM on the first Wednesday of the month, March to December. The meetings are held at the Old Town House or the Robbins House, see monthly announcement for meeting location. Check the "Programs" page for more information.