At the Medway Fall Town Meeting on November 13, 2017, the town of Medway voted to use $525,000 in Community Preservation Funds to purchase the historic “Jacob Ide” house and its 1.41 acres of land, at 158 Main Street, Medway.
In an impassioned statement, Sheila Dubrawski, President of the Medway Historical Society, called well-preserved Ide House a “vital part of Medway’s history.” Dubrawski continued that, “The Historic Society has outgrown its building.” In a response to resident Dawn Williams, she explained that the Historical Society would like to work with Medway to have the Ide House become the group’s new headquarters.
Following the meeting, Dubrawski told Local Town Pages, “We are expecting to manage the house as the Medway Historical Society Museum beginning next fall. Being near the park and right on Main Street will provide great visibility to promote programs and events.”
Dr. Ide, ordained in 1814 and married to Mary Emmons, daughter of Dr. Nathanial Emmons of Franklin a year later, moved into the newly built house in 1816. Eleven of their children were born there, five of whom died in infancy. Dr. Ide served on the Medway School Committee until the 1850s and became the first librarian of the West Parish Library at the Parish House. Friendly to slaves, he trained 40 men for the ministry, including his son-in-law Charles Torrey, who became active in the Underground Railroad.
Dubrawski says the Historical Society would like the Ide House to be open at least once per week, and they hope to host a Holiday Open House in 2018, where teams of volunteers decorate particular locations in the house. The group recently purchased cataloging software and will work to get all items into its new Past Perfect museum software. Displays would be enhanced by standard labeling on all items, she says, with a scanner ready to go. Volunteers will be needed.
“There is lots to be done, and we are very excited and thankful for the opportunity to make Medway’s history central to the community,” says Dubrawski, who joined the group by simply helping out with a newsletter in 2013. “Everyone is welcome. No special qualifications needed. And if you love history and Medway, you are guaranteed to enjoy the experience.
For more information on the Medway Historical Society email [email protected].
In addition to the purchase of the Ide House, Medway voters at the Fall Town meeting voted to purchase the building and 12.497 acres of land at 123 Holliston Street, the current site of the V.F.W. With membership declining, Dennis Crowley explained to voters, the V.F.W. can no longer afford to maintain the property and would likely sell the property. The town’s purchase of the property would avoid any future unfriendly 40B projects on the site, allow the V.F.W. to rent the building for three years at no cost and renegotiate the lease after 10 years, and the town will gain access to a landlocked 5.5 open space donated to the town years ago by the Peters family, as well as gain another lighted field.
In addition to the V.F.W. purchase, town voters voted to borrow $2.8 million for capital projects to improve Choate Park, Oakland Park and Medway Middle School. This parks improvement project was supplemented by a vote for an additional $2 million from Community Preservation Funds for a total project cost of $4.8 million.
The final vote of the evening approved a $400,000 purchase of lights for Cassidy Field.
Issue Date:
December, 2017
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