About

The Trenton Grange has been a center for community life for more than one hundredyears. Since 1925, when Trenton was a much smaller and more isolated place, it has provided a wide array of social and educational activities. 

The grange is a “rural” community building organization. Men, women, and youths 14 or older can easily work their way up through three levels of modest ritual to full voting membership in the Patrons of Husbandry, as the organization is officially called. From its beginning in 1867, both men and women have always been able to be elected as leaders (thanks to the persuasive efforts of the feminist niece of the founder). Individual granges took turns hosting monthly meetings of all the granges of their district and participated regularly in state-level gatherings. Delegates from each state attended national conventions where they elected leaders and formulated positions on issues that faced farmers and rural communities. The nationwide organization, with a membership of millions in the 1920’s, had political clout in every Congressional district. Soon after the Trenton Grange was (belatedly) founded, Maine had the honor of hosting the sixtieth annual national session, at Portland in November 1926. More than 15,000 members and delegates attended.

The Trenton Grange (the 550th formed in Maine) had 31 charter members and enrolled 53 more during its first year. This was nearly two-fifths of the eligible population . (The town’s population was about 320, of which 100 were under 14, and there already was at least one active grange in each of the surrounding towns.) The organization purchased “Evergreen Hall” from the Ladies’ Aid Society of the church (for $300). [This first building was located on the property that is now immediately south of the entrance to the Trenton Industrial Park. It was said to date from 1876, although it does not appear on a detailed 1881 map of Trenton.] The next year the Trenton Grange voted to make the building both longer and wider (expanding it to 55 x 35 feet). After specifying numerous architectural desires in a long series of discussions and votes, they finally voted to “leave the height of the building to someone understanding it.” Later they scaled back their plans, simply lengthening the building by 30 feet, at a cost of about $2000. They raised money by increasing their weekly donations from a “penny collection” to a “silver collection,” called for a $5.00 pledge from each member, and had cooperating granges from around the state sell clam shells with a Trenton decal at ten cents apiece. They also “hired” $1500 from the bank, using the property of willing members as collateral.

When the remodeled building reopened on October 17, 1926, the weekly round of Tuesday night meetings could be extended to include money-making Friday night dances and dinners, and occasional special events. On October 31 they combined the dance with a special Fair, and in late November they had a Goose Supper for which the men waited on the tables. Near Christmas they purchased forty pounds of fish from Mr. Dolliver for a special fish supper, and in mid January they held a “Way-Bak” Ball, where the roast beef supper was not served until eleven o’clock, and the dancing lasted until 1 AM. Arrangements were made with Brother Googins to allow the spreading of truckloads of gravel for a parking area on his property, and young men were hired to direct the automobile traffic coming to these popular events. Within two years the grange had completely paid off the loan and had fully outfitted the hall.

The programs at the Tuesday meetings included thought-provoking presentations such as “How to encourage home ownership”, “Garden tips”, and “The eight books that should be in every home.” They also included humorous programs such as a hat-trimming contest between Brothers Copp, McFarland, Leland and Alley. (Brother Alley was declared the winner, with a “distinct Paris creation”, and received a cash prize.) Husbands and wives debated each other on issues of the day, and a program entitled “The Working of the Third Degree” by the “Henpeck Holler Team” must have been hilarious, presumably mixing references to gender issues, the third level of grange ritual, and G-men interrogating bootleggers.

On April 4, 1935, after some members prepared the hall for that night’s meeting, a fire broke out. Despite the best efforts of local firemen, the hall burned to the ground. The fire also took out nearby telephone poles so that all of Mount Desert Island was temporarily isolated. The Mountain View Grange in Town Hill [you can still see their old pump in the lupine-filled lot near the 30-mph turn] immediately offered the use of their facilities during rebuilding, and by six months later the present structure was completed at the intersection of Trenton and Oak Point Roads. Except for a new hardwood floor in 1961, and a recent wheelchair access ramp, the building hasn’t needed to be changed much at all.

The Patrons of Husbandry (or Grange) has always been about communities. The Trenton Grange has deep roots here, and it can become whatever its members want it to be. Recognizing that it has one of the best hardwood dance floors in Hancock County, the Trenton Grange has actively sponsored contra-dancing and other musical events and meets monthly to help preserve the traditions of the organization. It has a stage for dramatic productions and could be used for an even wider variety of activities. In recent years, the Trenton Grange has been cited favorably by the national organization for its experiments with attracting another generation of members interested in community-oriented activities. Anyone interested in participating or learning more should contact the present Worthy Master Mister Meister at the 1134 Bar Harbor Road (Route 3), Trenton.

By Bill Skocpol of Cambridge, Mass, a summer resident of Mt. Desert, and a member of the Trenton Grange.