Listed below are some selections from past newsletters, presentations, and other publications.
Bud Lauridsen, remembered.
Almost since the Society's inception, Bud Lauridsen helped guide and build it into its present form. The following tribute was written on Sepember 23, 2005, one day after his death, and originally published in our Winter 2006 newsletter:
Bud Lauridsen picked a glorious day to leave us—sunny, warm and dry, with a gentle breeze. It was the kind of day that makes you think you’re in the best place in the world. Then we all heard an unfamiliar, wailing siren from the direction of the firehouse. My son asked what it meant, and I could think of only one message: a modern echo from a much earlier day when the church bell regularly signaled deaths within the small community.
We walked over to the Historical Society, gave the Schoolhouse bell a good ring, and lowered the flag. How many times Bud rang that same bell over at the King Ridge Ski School, I don’t know, but he must recognize its sound by now. We stood silent at the edge of the field overlooking Sunapee and King Ridge until one of the crows that watches over the village let out a long, scolding squawk. He lifted off the tree-top above us and flew down the row of buildings: Acquisitions, Schoolhouse, Privy, Country Store, Violin Shop, Eagle Hose. Is there anything that Bud hasn’t helped create?
James Goold, carriages & sleighs
► See the society's Albany Sleigh
The Albany sleigh in our collection was built by the firm credited with inventing its distinctive, swell-body design. This is a four-passenger model (much less common than the two-person cutter), and it is relatively rare in New England as the “Portland” sleigh was predominant. Donated to the Society in 1996 by Brad and Gretchen White, the sleigh was built by the James Goold Company of Albany, New York, perhaps around 1880, and passed down through the estate of Brad’s grandfather, Willis White.
Early Life
Born in 1790, James Goold moved at age four from Granby, Connecticut, to Stephentown, New York. His father was a farmer and blacksmith. The family was comfortable but not wealthy, and at age 14, James was sent to Troy, New York, to serve as an apprentice to Obadiah Penniman, a bookbinder. After a year, James moved to Pittsfield, Massachusetts, as apprentice to a carriage-maker, William Clark. The enterprise failed 18 months later, so James completed his apprenticeship with another carriage-maker, Jason Clapp.