Farmington, Maine Historical Society

06/20/2026

‘Octagon Barn Treasure Trove’ is opening Friday June 26th, from 10am until 2pm.

The idea began with discussions regarding the Annual Yard Sale held over Labor Day weekend, which eventually morphed into an exciting idea. We would open a small shop in the barn of the Octagon House. It will only be open when the Octagon is open for visitors, Fridays from 10am until 2pm. The hope is that visitors, and regular downtown walkers will take a moment and see what treasure is in the store that week. Items will vary from week to week, giving potential shoppers a variety of temptations.

So stop by and check out the weekly selections.

Cash or check only

All sales go to the upkeep of the Farmington Historical Society’s buildings.

06/14/2026

HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT FARMINGTON’S HISTORY? Round #2

As America celebrates its semiquincentennial, the Farmington Historical Society is proud to celebrate the town’s rich history through most of those same 250 years. How much do you know about Farmington’s history? Here’s a chance to test your knowledge and learn some fun facts about Farmington’s history! We will post new questions and answers each week on the website and Facebook on such topics as buildings and houses, education, and arts and entertainment in the Farmington community. Each answer will note its source, and the sources are located at the Natalie and Ben Butler Community Research Center, part of the Titcomb House Museum on Academy Street. We invite you to visit on Fridays between 10 am and 2 pm to learn more about our community and its history.



Our definition of Farmington includes the villages of Fairbanks, Farmington Falls, and West Farmington. This month we are featuring questions and answers about business and agriculture in the Farmington community.

Here are this week’s questions:

The corn-canning industry was a large business for many decades in the Farmington area. Many men and women looked forward to earning a little extra money processing corn at the factories in the summer months. One such sweet corn canning factory was constructed at the east end of the Center Bridge by J. Winslow Jones, and it operated for many years. What year was it built?

a) 1857

b) 1869

c) 1877

d) 1883




The former Bouffard’s Furniture Store that was located in the Mt. Blue Plaza was opened in what year?

a) 1965

b) 1977

c) 1980

d) 1968

The answers can be found here:

06/09/2026

Farmington Historical Society Tea Party June 14th

06/06/2026

It's Tea Time!!

06/03/2026

HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT FARMINGTON’S HISTORY?

The Ferrari Brothers Business on Main St. sold one of the following:

a) Sports cars

b) Boy Scout Uniforms

c) Halloween Costumes

d) Party Hats

[Source: The Franklin Journal, 07/14/1951, article and photo. ] The Research Center has bound copies of “The Franklin Journal and Farmington Chronicle” from the 1840’s--2020’s. Our scrapbook database also contains many newspaper articles from the 1900’s.





Among the many thriving businesses in Farmington Falls in the 1880’s, one proprietor was Susan Croswell. What did she sell?

a) boots and shoes

b) hats

c) groceries

[Source: “The Falls: Where Farmington Began in 1776, Pilgrimage No. 6, 1976, by Ben and Natalie Butler.”] This booklet is one of 6 that the Butlers produced between 1965 and 1976. The booklets featured road trips around the Farmington area and included descriptions and photos of houses and buildings in each of the 6 areas. The Research Center has each “pilgrimage” booklet available.

Clink on the link below for the answers:

https://farmingtonhistoricalsociety.wordpress.com/2026/06/03/how-much-do-you-know-about-farmingtons-history-answers/

06/02/2026

Farmington Historical Society - Annual Member Meeting - June 22 at 7pm - North Church

Good Morning fellow members of the Farmington Historical Society, We want to remind all of you to plan on attending the Annual Meeting of the Farmington Historical Society on Monday June 22nd at th…

05/17/2026

Farmington Historical Society will be meeting on Wednesday May 27th

The Farmington Historical Society will be meeting on Wednesday May 27th for their monthly meeting. FHS are trying a new night: Memorial Day on Monday, Tuesday the North Church is rented, so it's Wednesday. Potluck dinner at 6:00 with a short meeting and Program at 7:00. The Program is Lyons, Tigers, Bears and Golf Course???? YES Stanwood Park. Jane Woodman will tell of the creation of a wild animal Zoo in Farmington. You may recognize the buildings of today. The archives, photographs and a scrapbook of Stanwood Park were donated to the Farmington Historical Society by Marjorie Gaskell Goodwin. This is her story as told to Mt Blue TV many years ago.

05/12/2026

What's going on at the Octagon House now?
After 168 years the 3 large granite steps to the front door have migrated down and away from the house. They are going to be reset into their original position. The project is being partially funded by a 1772 grant from Maine Preservation.
Tree Line Landscaping is doing the restoration of the steps and a new railing made by Robin''s Welding will be installed.
Come by and check out the progress, from a safe distance!

04/25/2026

FHS Monthly Meeting - April 27th, 6:00 PM - North Church

FMI:

We will be having the potluck dinner at 6:00 on April 27. Following will be a meeting led by Dave. The Program will begin around 7:00 for those will not joining us for dinner Kami Howes will be pre…