Five pupils from Morison Memorial School have been awarded prizes from a member of the Corinth Historical Society for their essays on the history of farming in Maine.

The winners were: first prize, Harley Dennis; second prize, Rachel Trafton; and third prize, Nick Harvey. Honorable mentions were presented to Brett Speed and Cristy Gray.

In the meantime, the society recently welcomed 47 fourth-graders as well as teachers and helpers from the Morison school. The children were given a tour of the society’s new museum on Main Street. Each child received an old-fashioned wooden game and an appreciation award.

Yvon Labbe, director of the Franco-American Centre at the University of Maine, and Gilbert Albert of Project Mainstay recently received the rank of Knight in the French order of the Palmes Academiques.

Given by the French Ministry of Education, the award traditionally recognizes active promoters of French language and culture who work in the United States. M. Stephane Chmelewsky, consul general of France in Boston, presented Labbe and Albert with the award at a ceremony in Augusta.

Labbe is the founder and director of the Franco-American Centre, which opened nearly 30 years ago. He has worked to bring together the Franco-American community in the area through education on issues that are important to Franco-Americans.

Albert is a bilingual education outreach coordinator with Project Mainstay at UMaine, and a professor of bilingual education at the University of Maine at Fort Kent.