The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1914-08-13

b. Dyer, now a resident of Belfast, then
styled the Dyer House. The Nevens
House has also been used as an Inn at
the village. At the Dyer House in the
summer of 1890 the Dale Clan, or CLUB,
was organized, whose members were IN
youth from schools in the three towns OF
Searsmont, Montville and Liberty.
The first Baptist church was organ
lzed at the village in 1927. After fifty
years from the date of its organization
it suffered by fire the loss of its house OF
worship, built in 1916, and disbanded.
The Methodist church was organized in
1929, and continues it's religious actlv-
tiles, under the able direction OF Rever-
end John N. Palmer, pastor, with its
only church building in town, erected IN
1915, standing as "the classic of the vii
lage." There was in 1888 second Bap-
list church organized at "the brick
schoolhouse" in North Searsmont, and
near that time a Methodist church was
organized at the same place. But one
of them could have been maintained by
heroic sacrifice. and on separate missions
both inevitably perished.
Searsmont having been named in honor
of David Sears of Boston, one OF the
proprietors out of whose lands the estates
of the town were carved, his son, David
Sears, Jr., in letter dated October IA,
1916, presented to the town clock, to
be put in the tower of the Methodist
church, and bell, to be put in the tower
of the Baptist church, to revert to the
uses of the town in other ways, should
the societies at any time cease to exist.
The gift was accepted in town meeting
October 20, 1916.
The town built toWn-house at the
village, that was first occupied for town
meeting purposes September 10, 1888,
and last occupied for town meeting pur-
poses March 6, 1865, it being destroyed
by fire shortly after that date.
Quantabacook Lodge of Free and Ac-
cepted Masons was chartered in 1865.
In 1912 it reported membership of 81,
and activities characteristic of the fra
ternity.
Victor Grange is large, alive to all in
terests of home life and scientific agrl-
culture, fruit growing, roads and shade
adornment, one of the most influential
organizations of its kind in the State.
On the southern shores of the beautl-
full Quantabacook lake, shaded by both
evergreen and deciduous trees, are some
fine summer cottages, whence people
from other parts, some former residents
of the town, or relatives of the towns
people, find delightful pastime, rambling,
boating and fishing.
The schools of the town have, since
the organization, multiplied in school
districts to eight and in the history of its
teaching corps stand many noble eX-
amples of the true expression Of the
first ranking profession in the world:
as from her schools have gone out some
of the best thinkers, inventors and eX-
emplars.
TIE SEARSMONT METEORIC STONE.
A knight Grant of the heavens, me-
teoric stone fell and was buried in the
field of Rev. John Bean in the southeast
part of the town, a little after eight
O'Clock in the evening of May Fl, 1871,
the fiying earth where it struck being
noted by Mrs. Buck living only 80 rods
away, it being exhumed by Mr.. Luce
within the next half hour, and report
of it being sent by Mr.. Edward Burgess
to the Republican Journal of Belfast
that week. Charles Upham Shepard,
Prof. of Natural History in Amherst
College, then made an examination, re-
tanning the largest fragment of the me-
teor, weighing two pounds, the whole
body being estimated at twelve pounds
weight. His record of it is to be found
in the American Journal of Science, page
1873. The path of the meteor was from
the southwest in the heavens. First
CONTINUED ON PAGE THREE.