Bangor museum moving to new historic location

BANGOR – The Bangor Museum and Center for History has announced that it will move out of its current home at 6 State St. by next month.

Minerva’s Museum Store, formerly The Golden Fleece, will move to the museum’s new building, the Circular Block at 25-27 Broad St.

Administrative offices will move to the museum’s Thomas A. Hill House at 159 Union St.

Minerva’s Museum Store will be open in time for Winter Weekend, Feb. 10-12. Minerva’s features unique gifts, including a limited selection of items inspired by the museum’s own collections.

Also for Winter Weekend, the new facility will exhibit some of its winter artifacts, such as skis and ice skates from the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Museum curator Dana Lippitt will give a historic walking tour of downtown Bangor and a lecture, “Winters with John Godfrey,” based on the published journals of this Bangor judge and historian. The walking tour starts at 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Sea Dog Restaurant on Front Street. The lecture is at noon at the Broad Street location, also on Saturday.

The Circular Block also will host temporary exhibits as the museum prepares extensive interior renovations in order to provide adequate storage for its artifacts, create exhibition space on the first and second floors, and make room for public functions and administrative offices. Some of the exhibits will be in the building’s vault, a part of the original bank building.

The Thomas A. Hill House will reopen for public tours in early spring. The Hill House, a 1830s Greek Revival house designed by Richard Upjohn, has been operated as a house museum by the Bangor Museum and Center for History, formerly the Bangor Historical Society, since the 1970s, after the Sons of Union Veterans deeded the home to the Society.

The museum has given tours of the house by appointment only for the last two years, but will reopen on a regular basis with a revised tour.

Bill and Sally Arata of Veazie gave the Circular Block to the museum in November. Museum officials said that the generous gift would allow the museum to consolidate its collections in one building, as well as expand its exhibition, education and administrative space.

The museum has more than 15,000 objects in its collections, including an extensive Civil War collection, photographic and fashion collections, as well as a significant archival collection dating as far back as the mid-18th century.

“The Aratas’ donation of this wonderful historic building comes at an opportune time for us,” said Terri Garner, executive director of the museum. “Not only will it allow the museum to store our collections under one roof, it gives us the opportunity to provide appropriate climate controls for our various holdings.”

Jean Deighan, president of the board of directors, stated that she is thrilled with the gift. “There are few buildings in downtown Bangor that are large enough to house our collection of artifacts, and that also have such great historic character. We naturally wanted to remain in an historic building, so this is just the perfect place for us to be. Plus, it’s near the parking garage and the children’s museum, so it has great access.”

Museum personnel welcome new volunteers to help with a variety of tasks.

“Many hands make light work,” said Deighan. “We need volunteers to work in the new gift shop and to give tours of the Hill House.”

For information about Minerva’s Museum Store and volunteer opportunities, call Willow Martin at the museum at 942-1900.