Castine in the Time of the Bakehouse: Castine Historical Society debuts living histories on Bah’s Bakehouse and Markel’s Bakehouse
August 5th, 2024
Castine: The Castine Historical Society is a place where volunteers can support the institution’s mission while pursuing their own historical interests. For example, thanks to a group of energetic volunteers, the Historical Society preserves an important series of interviews with Castine residents in a variety of formats from tape recordings, to videos, to digital formats. All are preserved in the Historical Society’s permanent collection. Many can be viewed on the Historical Society’s website at castinehistoricalsociety.org/living history.
Historical Society volunteers began conducting oral history interviews starting around 1980. More recently, a series of interviews have been conducted by Ken Scheer, a summer resident of Castine. Scheer is retired from a practice of obstetrics and gynecology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and from the faculty of Harvard Medical School. He devotes time and energy year-round to video recording and editing these “living histories” for the Castine Historical Society archives and for interested people to watch.
Bah’s Bakehouse and its reincarnation as Markel’s Bakehouse were Castine institutions for 30 years.
His latest living history focuses on the founding and development of Bah’s Bakehouse in Castine. The Bakehouse was an important and valued gathering spot in Castine for 30 years beginning in 1991 with Bah’s Bakehouse and continuing as Markel’s Bakehouse after the business was sold to Mark and Kelly Sawyer. In this new video, Scheer interviews Barbara Ann “Bah” Hero, Joey Macomber, and Kelly Sawyer – all of whom were instrumental in these two important Castine businesses.
All of Scheer’s living history videos are available to view on the Historical Society website. They range from interviews with graduates of Castine schools to long-time residents to trained historians speaking about Castine’s history. The Historical Society provides the equipment and Scheer does the rest, entirely as a volunteer project.
Lisa Simpson Lutts, Executive Director, notes, “We are so fortunate that Ken Scheer has taken the time and used his expertise to create these valuable archival histories of Castine. It’s so important to capture the stories of Castine residents in their own voices to document contemporary history for the future.”
The Castine Historical Society makes Castine history accessible, relevant, and inspiring to all. The Historical Society preserves local history and hosts permanent and temporary exhibitions as well as lectures, educational events, and town walking tours. Currently on display for the 2024 season in the Abbott School gallery at 17 School Street is “A History of Castine in 40 Objects.” The Grindle House offices, collection facility, and research library are located at 13 School Street, Castine.
The Historical Society exhibits are free and open from June 10 – September 2, Monday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.; Sunday, 1 – 4 p.m. Fall hours are September 6 – October 14, Friday, Saturday, Monday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.; Sunday, 1 – 4 p.m. Free one-hour walking tours of Castine are offered Friday, Saturday, and Monday at 10:00 a.m. through October 14. For further information about exhibits, events, and the Historical Society visit castinehistoricalsociety.org, call 207-326-4118, or email info@castinehistoricalsociety.org.
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