OUR
COMMENTS - APRIL, 1997
As noted last month, this page was added to the First Mountain Forest Homepage to offer our periodic comments and to allow us a more informal way to address those persons viewing our homepage. Last month we wrote about who we are and what our goals are.
This month we would like to offer our impressions of the small town of Shelburne. Our preservation efforts for the First Mountain Forest are not intended to protect a small forest island, but instead are designed to complement a much greater effort already in progress by the Town of Shelburne. The town had already begun to protect its rural nature as early as 1962 and and again in 1982 when it created a Master Plan for the town. The revised Master Plan issued in 1996 included these lines in their General Statement of Goals: "The highest priorities of the town are the preservation of natural beauty, keeping intact the rural nature of the town, .... guarding against the loss of open spaces...".
Shelburne has always been a rural town, and continues to be one today, as it has been able to function as a bedroom community for Gorham and the much larger mill town of Berlin. While development has drastically changed those two towns, Shelburne has been able to remain free of the modern development and urban sprawl encountered elsewhere. The latest Annual Report of the Town shows over 13,000 acres in Current Use assessment (forest-land), 1,820 acres in residential use, and 152 acres in commercial use within the town.
The small village of Shelburne lies on the south side of the Androscoggin River along Village Road, and includes a local church, the town hall and park, and a few residences. The rest of the town's citizens live on North Road, along US Route 2, or on one of ten town roads, each of which is less than a quarter mile long. The town's population of just over 400 citizens are governed by elected selectmen and numerous other town citizens who fill the various elected and appointed posts of the town. In Shelburne, government is very close to the people governed.
If you were to visit Shelburne today, you would discover that a fair number of the family names mentioned in the history accompanying this homepage are still well represented in the town. We have found our neighbors there to be friendly and helpful, and have greatly appreciated the assistance provided by the owners of the Philbrook Inn. The town secretary has also been exceptional in providing us with records to aid in our research and in providing us with town reports so that we might keep current with the town's developments. We think that Shelburne is a pretty special place.
Larry
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