Rotary Log for Thursday January 26th, 2023
We met in our new Service Credit Union Headquarters location. Some bugs are still being worked on including the online audio. But John Rice’s invocation was perfectly pitched, so thank you John!
Food is being catered by the Kitchen and Vida Cantina. Be sure to sign up by RSVP’ing to President Joanie on Mondays, so she can get the caterers a head count. It’s also possible to respond for the guests you are bringing.
PP Cleo introduced new member Walter Hoerman, M.D., the first Rotarian in my experience to be inducted via zoom. Walter is a transfer from the Rochester Rotary Club. A Granite State pediatrician for 35 years, he has 27 years of Rotary membership, including serving as president of the Rochester Club.
Walter practices at Salmons Falls Family healthcare. A certified race director, the doc suggests that if we’d like to try a road race fundraiser again, he is The Man. He enjoys selling Christmas trees and will be attending Thursdays via zoom and activities and events in person.
Joanie shared the timetable for Spring District Events, including the first one, a concert on February 14th at University of Southern Maine. More details can be found on the District 7780 Website.
Announcements
You should have received an electronic evite to our 100th Anniversary Celebration at the Portsmouth Elks Club, April 20 at 5:30 pm. Cleo says there will be live music by Yellow House Blues Band, Great Circle Catering will provide delicious food, and lots of fun is sure to be had by all. The Committee looks for members and guests to sign up early.
Happy Bucks!
John Rice had happy bucks for a potential Philadelphia Eagles NFC Championship. It looks like he pulled some weight as the Eagles are heading to the Super Bowl.
Larry Gray had his 4th grandchild and
Betsy Scott her first. Congrats to the grandparents!... PE Yvonne was happy they didn’t get more snow to shovel in North Hampton.
PP John Lyons had a few bucks for his alma mater Marquette, which is having a great basketball run. Speaking of sports, Conrad Braun had a happy announcement about his nephew, recently named Northwestern University’s Defensive Co-Ordinator. All in all, lots of fun stuff to share and learn about each other this week.
Guest Speaker
Mark Perkins introduced our speaker, Roxie Zwicker. Roxie owns New England Curiosities and New England Ghost Tours, and is the author of seven books. Born in Boston, she is fascinated with New England folklore and stories. You can see her out and about in Portsmouth, leading groups to historic locations and sharing her fascinating stories and local knowledge.
Roxie started her business in 2001. She was drawn to Portsmouth by its architecture, the friendliness of the people and the city’s amazing history, or what she likes to call, “The Magic of the Seacoast.”
Looking at the plaques on the doors of the historic houses, she wanted to know more. That inspired her to start her successful business and she has since been on the History and Travel channels, bringing our history to life.
Fun stories she shared with us include the mystery behind the tunnels that run underneath St. John’s Church. St. John’s was built after Queen’s Chapel burned down in 1806. On the Bow St. side of the Church is a very non-descript wooden door. Behind are some of the oldest tunnels that Roxie has toured.
The tunnels are made of stone. Painted on the walls were the words STOUT and INDIA PALE ALE. Roxie does a lot of her research at the Athenaeum. It was there that she discovered in an 1871 church ledger that St. John’s leased its tunnels to a brewery for $100 dollars a year. At that time, Portsmouth was the beer production capital of the country.
Other interesting buildings and sites she touched on included the William Pitt Tavern, built in 1766 and home to the state’s oldest Free Masonry Lodge. Also Point of Graves Cemetery, Four Tree Island, Rockingham Hotel, and the John Paul Jones House.
The former Sise Inn and the Mark Wentworth Home are on Roxie’s list of interesting places. She described the many ghost sightings by staff and residents alike at the Mark Wentworth Home. In fact, there were so many ghost stories that the staff started a “Ghost Log” and turned them over to Roxie to research further.
Located on the South Mill Pond, the Mark Wentworth Home was the residence of the colony’s last Royal Governor. It took fire from local patriots as the revolutionary war began and bullet holes can still be seen in the Home’s front rooms. Governor Wentworth and his family escaped to a waiting boat on the pond. He would later become governor of Nova Scotia.
Another fun fact is that the Music Hall is home to a ghost cat which likes to rub up against folk’s ankles as they watch the show.
I particularly enjoyed her story about Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse, constructed in 1771 and first north of Boston. Many ghost stories have been shared about the light house over the years. Roxie did an overnight with a medium at the “keeper’s home.” The medium put her in contact with the spirit of Connie Small, who was the deceased lighthouse keeper’s wife and lived there for many years.
Whether you believe in ghosts or not, Roxie’s stories are rooted in the fascinating past and history of Portsmouth. If you want to hear more, listen to her podcast, or sign up for a tour.
Respectfully submitted Aileen Dugan
Photos by Don Chick and Sara Treacy
