A Divided GOP, Health Insurance Rates, A Pistol-Packing Teacher, And More

PHOTO: In 1973 Governor Meldrim Thomson’s administration continued to battle with the Republican Party’s state chairman, David Gosselin.

by Robert Hanaford Smith, Sr.
Weirs Times Contributing Writer

It was the summer of 1973 and the Saturday issue of the Laconia Evening Citizen was packed full of ads and news on Saturday, August 25th. Old Home Days, fairs, auctions, sports events, concerts, and a dance were listed on the front page as some of the activities that one could choose from as weekend activities.
Television and social media of today’s world does not provide us with information to the extent that the newspapers of a few decades ago did.
Weekend activities in that August of 1973 included Old Home Day activities in several area towns. Gilford had day-long activities beginning at 10:00 o’clock with a parade, followed by “…contests, parachute jumping, barbecue at 7:00 p.m., melodrama at 8:00 p.m., fireworks at dusk, followed by teen dance. Prizes, displays, exhibitions, competitions.”
Gilmanton celebrated their 75th Old Home Day at the Smith Meeting House with a bean hole bean dinner at noon, followed by a horse pull, flea market, auction, games, tables, and a chicken barbecue at 5:30 p.m. The Epsom band played in the afternoon. Sanbornton celebrated their Old Home Day on Sunday, beginning with a church service at the Sanbornton Bay Second Baptist Church. This was followed by a family picnic and a Concert by Moulton’s Band.
The Annual Plymouth State Fair was also running that weekend, all day and all evening. Wicwas Lake Grange in Meredith Center and the Province Road Grange were also conducting their fairs on Saturday, August 25.
There is nothing that quite compares to an old country auction, however, and the “Citizen” announced that there were four of them in the area on that active August 25th day. Home furnishings, antiques and farm equipment were being sold at auction by Leo Gaudet on Pickerel Pond Road in Laconia with Robert Zanes as the auctioneer at 10:00 a.m. Also at 10:00 a.m. in New London furnishings and antiques were being auctioned by Peverly’s auctions for Mrs. Helen Colburn. A two-day (Sat.&Sun.) auction was being held in Andover, near Proctor Academy, to sell modern furniture and antiques owned by Nancy Spearman and auctioned by Dexter Rowell. At the public auction in Ossipee four generations of antiques, guns and ammunition were being sold at Tice’s General Store beginning at noon.. J.W. Barber, Jr. and Larry Gray were the auctioneers.
Meanwhile on that busy August day and night there were sports events, concerts and dances going on, including a championship 65-mile water ski race starting at Weirs Beach, and a concert by the 1st Naval District Band in concert in tribute to all New Hampshire veterans with chief Warrant Officer Kumkel as the Bandmaster. This was also at Weirs Beach.
Concerning the news on that Saturday in August, the topics might sound familiar to those in 2022.
There was some division within the Republican Party in New Hampshire, but not enough to erode the support that Governor Meldrim Thomson held as the leader of the party. At an August caucus to select candidates to represent the party to fill three vacant legislature seats in Goffstown in a September 18th election three pro-Thomson candidates defeated three anti-Thomson candidates. The race between the Thomson brand of conservative Republicans and a more liberal anti-Thomson group showed that the Governor still held wide support in the state, His popularity was said to have increased since his election to be Governor the previous year. The Associated Press reported, however, that Governor Meldrim Thomson’s administration continued to battle with the Republican Party’s state chairman, David Gosselin.
Governor Thomson had replaced the state’s insurance commissioner, John Durkin, with Frank Waland. That change had been made in June, presumably because Durkin was too tight-fisted in his treatment of the Blue Cross Insurance Company. However, after Waland had reportedly spent 500 hours studying a request from Blue Cross for higher rates, he agreed with Durkin that the company wasn’t entitled to higher rates. He had, immediately after his appointment indicated that he thought the insurance company should have a rate increase, but after his hours of studying the matter changed his mind on the matter.
Mrs. S. Katherine French of Tilton retired from teaching in June of 1973 after 45 years in the profession.
In that year of her retirement she commented that the hazards of the teaching profession had decreased markedly. Mrs. French began her teaching career in 1928 in Tilton after graduating from Plymouth Normal School. When she married she was not allowed to continue teaching in Tilton, so she went to Boscawen where they didn’t have rules against married women as teachers. She then taught in a one room school in Canterbury. While teaching there she carried a revolver with her for protection. She said that she carried the brownie revolver in her purse and knew how to use it. She also taught in Sanbornton, and, for the last 15 years of her teaching career at the Walker School in Concord. Mrs. French was a member of the Concord Educational Association, New Hampshire Educational Association, and the National Educational Association. She was honored as New Hampshire Teacher of the Year during the 1950’s and received other honors as a member of other local organizations.

The main headline in the August 25, 1973 edition of the Laconia Evening Citizen proclaimed in large bold type, “Radiation from Nuclear Plant Drifts into N.H.” The article explained that “Most of the radiation released from the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant drifts across the Connecticut River into New Hampshire, according to a Vermont official.” The prevailing winds were said to have blown the radiation into the Granite State 90% of the time. The radiation was said not be enough to cause alarm, but New Hampshire did have radiation measuring devices that were set up at Hinsdale, Winchester, and Chesterfield. Looking back further the news from the area in 1873 included the increase in campers on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee and on some of the islands. A company of men from Lake Village thus purchased several acres of land on Bear Island on which to build a large boarding house.
In 1898 the news was “There are said to be more campers and cottages on the islands and shores of Lake Winnipesaukee this year than ever before. The lake is sure growing in popularity and new cottages are erected in large numbers every season.”
That popularity and growth appears to be still going on today.

NH History