The historical society will launch its summer docent-guided tours on Wednesday, June 19. Escorted, interpreted tours of the Eveleth-Crafts-Sheridan Historical House, the Carriage House, Lumberman's Museum and more will be offered from 1 to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Friday until the end of September. The cost of tours remains at $2 for adults and $1 for children, and members are admitted free of charge.

A number of new exhibits have been mounted for the 2002 season, so there's a lot of new things to see even if you visited the historical society last year. A special exhibit of Native American artifacts has been mounted, including items dating back to the Paleo-Indian period of pre-history and ranging through the centuries to the Contact Period of the 1600s.

A special display has been mounted in honor of Henry Perley, better known as Chief Henry Red Eagle. Mr. Perley was an nationally known Penobscot Indian, writer (author of over 500 articles), movie star (he had higher billing than Mary Pickford in some silent movies) and Maine Guide (he received his license at 14). This memorial exhibit is in recognition of Mr. Perley's many contributions to the Moosehead region on the 30th anniversary of his death in 1972.

In addition, special textile exhibits have been mounted in various rooms of the Eveleth-Crafts-Sheridan Historical House. A wide range of dresses and men's attire dating from the 1830s will be on display as part of our docent-guided tours. Another special display will show items from the historical society's four decades, including photographs of early officers and ephemera.

A variety of escorted day bus trips will be held during the summer and fall. The first one on June 5 saw a group of folks traveling to Fort Knox in Prospect and Northeast Historic Film in Bucksport. Several of our very popular trips to Quebec Province will be scheduled. You can call the office (695-2909) to be placed on a list for these trips, or watch this publication for dates of forthcoming trips.

During the summer, a number of special programs will be offered to commemorate the 40th anniversary. On Sunday, July 14, a 40th Anniversary Garden Party will feature special music at the sunken garden. There will be special tours of the displays on that day, as well as recognition of early members and past presidents. Refreshments will be served. Festivities ill begin at 2 p.m.

On Tuesday, August 6, a 40th Anniversary Tea and Fashion Slide Show will be offered. Over the decades, several fashion shows have been held to showcase the hundreds of textiles in our collections. Due to the age and fragility of many of these textiles, they are no longer actually worn, but are presented on static displays. Slides of the earlier fashion shows will be shown during the afternoon tea, offering a glimpse back at how these events used to be done.

On Wednesday, September 4, there will be a repeat of the "1950s slide show" which was initially shown on June 6 to a packed house. The Joseph Kudor Collection includes 80 slides of aerial views of the greater Moosehead region from Northeast Carry to Greenville made in the mid-1950s. Additionally, there will be slides from the Bill and Isa Squiers Collection and Charlotte Dickinson Collection showing views from the same period.

Another facet of the 40th anniversary year will be a membership drive to encourage more people to become supporters of the historical society. Membership is $10 a year for families, and for that investment, you receive free docent-guided tours, a 10 percent discount in the gift shop and quarterly issues of the newsletter "Insight." Each issue of this publication features news of what's happening at the historical society, but also includes well researched articles on local history. As example, the current issue includes a three page history of the old Moosehead Theatre.

Those interested in membership should contact the office at 695-2909 or write to Post Office Box 1116, Greenville, ME 04441-1116. The Carriage House office is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. The historical society is also providing guide service and special tours for the Acadian Railroad on Mondays and Thursdays during the summer.