Flyer for the upcoming Sun Porch Soiree, hosted by the Farmington Historical Society. Submitted Photo
FARMINGTON — Farmington Historical Society will be hosting a “Sun Porch Soirée” at the Octagon House, located at 126 High St. in Farmington, from 6 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, July 29.
The event will feature hor d’oeuvres, old fashioned punch, homemade sweets and live music. A silent auction will also take place, and the historical society says it will be auctioning off “unusual items” this year. Attendees will also be brought up to date on latest improvements and plans for the future of the Octagon House.
It is $25 per person and all proceeds from the event will go to the matching grant received from Maine Preservation, who partnered with the 1772 Foundation to create The 1772 Foundation Historic Preservation Grant. The grant has been awarded to non-profit organizations maintaining historic buildings in Maine for the past four years.
Seventeen non-profit organizations were awarded grants totaling $128,952, with FHS receiving $4,930 on Saturday, May 17. FHS had previously received The 1772 Foundation Historic Preservation Grant in 2022 in the amount of $4,000.
The grant is a matching grant, meaning the organization needed to match the $4,000, which they accomplished last year with the first soiree.
“It was good,” Marion “Tootsie” Scharoun, trustee and former president of FHS said, “because there were a lot of people that came that hadn’t been into the house in years.”
The inside of the sun porch of the Octagon House on Tuesday, July 4. The upcoming soiree will take place here and will help benefit the porch with repairs to the exterior and ceiling. Brian Ponce/Franklin Journal
The Octagon House was built in 1858 by local brick yard owner Cyrus Ramsdell, who was inspired by the octagon house designs of Orson Squire Fowler. According to FHS’s website, this architectural style was popular from 1850 to the 1860s as the angles allowed increased square footage for the same building price, as well as the philosophy of better heating/cooling with the central cupola.
Ramsdell spent the next decade in the homestead before selling it to his brother Hiram Ramsdell. The house would go on to be referred to as “The Hiram Ramsdell House” to historians. Hiram resided in the home until his death in 1903.
Over the next nine years, the house fell into disrepair. In 1912, the principal of Farmington Normal School [now The University of Maine in Farmington] Wilbert G. Mallett bought the house and the The W.G. Mallett family occupied the home for a century. After the passing of Deborah Mallett Cressall in February of 2012, her family offered the home to the FHS, who purchased it in 2013.
The first grant covered the expenses needed to repair the foundation and exterior of the sun porch at the Octagon House. With this soiree, FHS hopes to earn the money needed to match the grant and continue improvements to the structure and exterior of the porch and other necessary maintenance items.
According to Scharoun, the first event was such a success many local community members have asked that it become an annual event. Those who are interested may call [207] 778-2932 for more information or to reserve tickets.
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