With: Juliana Stevens and Bob Brown

Class Fee: $30/adult; $45/adult and child pair

Class Size: 10 / Appropriate for children 8+ with accompanying adult

Create your own marble run using hand tools with wood provided by the Mill. Demonstrate how marble runs work and then bring home your creation. No experience necessary.

Juliana Stevens is a lifelong resident of Alstead. She found her love of reading at Edith Chase’s preschool and pounded lots of nails at Chase’s Mill. She is a retired teacher who taught physical education in grades kindergarten through college.  

Bob Brown is a retired science educator and administrator, having taught at Fall Mountain Regional High School for many years. Now an Alstead resident, he summered in Mill Hollow throughout his childhood and worked closely with Heman Chase at the Mill and surveying. Bob oversaw the rehabilitation of Chase’s Mill and its water power.

With: Randy Miller

Event Fee: by donation

Event Size: 50 / adults only

Today I climbed the hill alone,
And stood beside the arch of stone.
The landscape smiled beneath the sun;
The strong wind waved the ripened corn.
The sunshine glorified the trees,
And roused to life the drowsy bees.

from "Autumn in a New Hampshire Village" by Arthur W. Anderson (1919)

Please join me in climbing this particular hill of history: a detailed look at the origins of Alstead in the 18th century. Since moving into town in the early 1970s, I have collected many stories and historical tidbits of the town. Through scores of visits to the Cheshire County Registry of Deeds in Keene, leafing page-by-page through the old leather-bound volumes, I have collected abstracts of EVERY deed transaction in the town of Alstead in its first 30 years of settlement - from 1763 to 1793! I created a map of the town that accurately superimposes the original Lots and Ranges onto a current USGS map, to reveal where lay the farmsteads, the town center, and school and minister's lots.

Randy Miller first settled in East Alstead in the spring of 1973. He is a graphic artist and professional musician. His wood engraving "Brook in Winter" was used on the front cover of the Alstead Town Report (1975), and he illustrated Heman Chase's book, "More Than Land." He is the author of "A History of the Second Congregational Church of Alstead, N.H. - 1788-1988," and recently published "Music from Mill Hollow" containing his musical compositions and autobiographical story.

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Michael Nerrie

Walk Fee: By donation

Walk Size: 15 / all ages

Join Michael for a guided exploration of Distant Hill Nature Trail as he shares his knowlegde and passion for this peice of land that he and his partner have been in relationship with for many years. The walk is about a mile on smooth, gently sloped gravel trails, that are suitable for wheelchairs or strollers.No special footwear or gear is required.
We will meet and park at the Distant Hill Nature Trail pavilion at 66 March Hill Road, Alstead, NH.

Michael Nerrie is the designer, builder, and resident naturalist at Distant Hill Gardens and Nature Trail, a non-profit environmental and horticultural learning center he started in 2019, located on a 155-acre property in Walpole and Alstead, NH.

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Jason Breen

Class Fee: $40

Class Size: 6 / Ages 16 and older

Using grinding wheels and and hand sharpening stones, we move on from garden tools in the first tool sharpening class, to learn how to safely sharpen scissors, knives, or chisels. Bring some dull scissors to class and return home with sharp ones!

Jason Breen is a Brattleboro-based custom furniture maker and member of the Guild of Vermont Furniture Makers. He studied instrument building and history at Marlboro College, which he paid for by building timber frames and cabinets. Traditional tools have inspired his work ever since he inherited his ancestors’ hand planes.

With: Nancy Botkin

Class Fee: $30/adult; $45/adult and child pair

Class Size: 8 / Appropriate for children 8+ with accompanying adult

With free materials from your recycling bin or trash, X-Acto knives, glue, needle, and thread, we will make artistic / "junk" journals, sketchbooks, or notebooks. Be prepared to have fun!

Nancy Botkin is the granddaughter of Edith and Heman Chase. She spends her winters at her home in San Francisco making books, playing with paper, and taking classes at the San Francisco Center for the Book. She then teaches book arts in the summer. This is her fifth year teaching at Chase's Mill.

With: Sharon Spaulding

Event Fee: by donation

Event Size: 50 / family friendly

The inventor of GPS who couldn't find a job. The ACLU co-founder who was booted from the group for being too radical. The 16-year-old who rode twice the distance of Paul Revere to warn of approaching British troops. Join us for the inspiring stories of these and other groundbreaking women who changed the course of history and then were mostly forgotten.

Since 2011, Sharon Spaulding has been researching and writing the stories of groundbreaking women who accomplished remarkable things and then fell into the shadows of history. For the last five years, she has produced a monthly newsletter, Women Make History: Stories we should have learned in school. A collection of these stories will be published this fall. She is also at work on a book about suffragist and reproductive rights activist Mary Ware Dennett. When not in Alstead during the summers, she lives outside Salt Lake City with her husband, and their dog, Hank.

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Tricia Miller

Class Fee: $20

Class Size: 6-10 / teens to adults

Why is rug hooking being rediscovered as an outlet for creativity, imagination, community and fun? Hear about the roots of this tradition that morphed from a humble craft into an art. Many hooked pieces will be on display showing how methods and styles have changed over the years. There will be a demonstration of the process of how a hooked piece is created from an idea to an actual rug or mat. Attendees will be offered the opportunity to try out hooking. If there is interest, a beginner class will be scheduled.

Tricia Miller began hooking rugs in 1983. She has been inducted into the Rug Hooker Hall of Fame sponsored by Rug Hooking Magazine and has won many awards for her work, most recently in 2024 with Viewers' Choice for her entry in Celebration of Hand-Hooked Rugs 34.

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Gail Golec

Event Fee: by donation

Event Size: 50 / adults only

For a time in the latter half of the 19th century, Vermont had some of the most progressive divorce laws in the Northeast. Contrary to the alarmist news media of the time, it wasn’t people from out of state moving to Vermont just to game the system - it was by and large local people and by and large, women choosing this legal option to end their marriages. At a time when women had very little agency, be they married, widowed, or single, these divorce laws became a life saving option for many. But it wasn’t just rich and well-connected people who got divorces; rich and poor had to rely on an undocumented network of other women, divorcees, sympathetic lawyers, family, and friends to protect themselves, their children, and property. This discussion covers a study of 180 divorce cases from Windsor County Vermont from 1871-1880, shedding light on this little known part of our local history.

Gail Golec is a professional archaeologist, who has worked on sites around New England for over 20 years. She currently works for Monadnock Archaeological Consulting. Gail was born and raised in New Hampshire and developed an interest in local history at an early age. Most recently, she has taken her years of research and funneled it into writing, producing and hosting a podcast about local history called The Secret Life of Death. www.thesecretlifeofdeath.com. Recently, Gail became a board member of the Mill Hollow Heritage Association.

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Nancy Botkin and Juliana Stevens

Class Fee: $30/adult; $45/adult and child pair

Materials Fee: $10 / participant

Class Size: 8-10 / Appropriate for children 8+ with accompanying adult

From the intrepid wanderer to the secret lover, folding paper has long been a creative challenge.

Come learn techniques for paper folding, from the practical to the whimsical. In addition, we will learn different ways of letter locking to keep prying eyes out!

Each participant will take home their samples as well as some tools so they can keep practicing: a bone folder, sealing wax, and a stamp.

Nancy Botkin is the granddaughter of Edith and Heman Chase. She spends her winters at her home in San Francisco making books, playing with paper, and taking classes at the San Francisco Center for the Book. She then teaches book arts in the summer. This is her fifth year teaching at Chase's Mill.

Juliana Stevens is a lifelong resident of Alstead. She found her love of reading at Edith Chase’s preschool and pounded lots of nails at Chase’s Mill. She is a retired teacher who taught physical education in grades kindergarten through college.  

With: Margaret Chase Perry and Nancy Botkin

Event Fee: By donation

Event Size: 50 / Family friendly

We will continue the celebration with Margaret Perry and her most recent accomplishment: Modern Times Come to Mill Hollow: The Technology and Cultural Changes Discussed in the Chase/Dennett Family Letters. This book launch will involve a short reading, time for discussion with the author, and a book signing. Her previous collection of letters Building the Mill will also be available.

Margaret Chase Perry is the daughter of Heman and Edith Chase. She is the archivist of the extensive collection of Chase family letters.

Nancy Botkin is the granddaughter of Edith and Heman Chase. She spends her winters at her home in San Francisco making books, playing with paper, and taking classes at the San Francisco Center for the Book. She then teaches book arts in the summer. This is her fifth year teaching at Chase's Mill.

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Jim Gruber

Event Fee: by donation

Event Size: 50 / family friendly

We will gather in the community room of the Mill for an evening of reflections and stories of what it was like to be part of the community of Mill Hollow in the 60's, 70's and 80's. Many were drawn to this area, many were already here. Come and listen or come and share your memories. If you want to share a story and you have a picture or two to include, please send them to Jim Gruber: jgruber@antioch.edu. Pictures are needed at least 3 days before the event (by July 15th).

Jim Gruber arrived in Mill Hollow in 1978. He worked with Heman Chase to do Mill structural repairs and to restart the woodworking classes for kids on Saturdays. He lived in the Brick House with Mary Burroughs his first year in New Hampshire, and cut out the timbers in the Mill for his house that he and his family live in. He served on the Board of Chase's Mill for 6 years. He is now semi-retired and currently serving in the NH House.

Event photo: Heman and Edith Chase and youth woodworkers, 1960s - courtesy of Bruce Bellows and the Alstead Historical Society.

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Dudley Laufman

Event Fee: This program is free. Registration is encouraged as space is limited.

Event Size: 50 / Family friendly

Since the late 1600s, the lively tradition of contra dancing has kept people of all ages swinging and sashaying in barns, town halls, and schools around the state. Contra dancing came to New Hampshire by way of the English colonists and remains popular in many communities, particularly in the Monadnock Region. Presenter Dudley Laufman brings this tradition to life with stories, poems, and recordings of callers, musicians, and dancers, past and present. Live music, always integral to this dance form, will be played on the fiddle and melodeon.

This program is made possible by New Hampshire Humanities. Find out more at www.nhhumanities.org.

Dudley Laufman received the highest honor for traditional artists, the National Heritage Fellowship, in 2009. He received the 2001 NH Governor's Arts Award for Lifetime Achievement. In 1999, Laufman presented at the Smithsonian FolkLife Festival in Washington, DC. Laufman has been playing fiddle and calling for contra and square dances for 64 years. He co-authored Traditional Barn Dances and recorded several CDs. Under Laufman's leadership the Canterbury Orchestra produced five recordings.

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Laurel Iselin

Class Fee: $30/adult; $45/adult and child pair

Class Size: 6-8 / Appropriate for children 8+ with accompanying adult

Come carve a cooking spoon! Learn to work with the grain of the wood using gouges and knives to shape a unique creation and return home with a functional and beautiful kitchen utensil. This class will include an introduction to edge tools and carving safety.

Laurel Iselin has enjoyed working with wood since she was a kid and has taught woodworking and craft classes at Kroka Expeditions, Gathering Waters Charter School, and the Roots School. She lives up the road in East Alstead with her husband and three children.

With: Matt Saxton

Event Fee: by donation

Event Size: 50 / family friendly

Matt spends time with old photographic portraits and listens as they tell their life stories. Come and meet these revived characters who, as told through Matt's creativity, humor, and imagination, come alive.

Matt Saxton is interested in American cultural history. He is an old man living in an old house with old furniture and makes a living repairing old furniture with old tools. He started his business long ago in…….Chase’s Mill!

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Nancy Botkin

Class Fee: $30/adult; $45/adult and child pair

Materials Fee: $10 / participant

Class Size: 8 / Appropriate for children 8+ with accompanying adult

Shibori is the Japanese art of indigo dyeing. We will create blue and white patterns on cloth by folding, using string, rubber bands, and wooden clamps. Watching the reaction of indigo dye as it oxidizes and turns the fabric from white to brilliant green and finally settling on a beautiful blue is part of the fun. The resulting fabric will be colorfast in the washing machine but will fade in the sun.

Nancy Botkin has been dyeing shibori-style for about 8 years now. She's enjoyed using the fabric in quilts and other sewing projects.

With: Laura Andrews and Ann Acheson

Class Fee: By donation. Registration is required as space is limited.

Materials Fee: $5

Class Size: 6-8 / Appropriate for children 8+ with accompanying adult

Beautify Alstead together! Chase's Mill is partnering with the Beautify Alstead group to build flower boxes for the town's bridge. In this workshop, we will assemble and decorate wooden flower boxes to be mounted on the Alstead Village bridge over the Cold River. You will see your creative handiwork every time you drive over the bridge this summer! This is a free event, and if you choose, each participant will have the opportunity to build and plant a smaller wooden flower box to take home. For this there will be a small materials fee. This is a fun opportunity for adults or families. No experience necessary.

Registration is required as space is limited.

Laura Andrews learned woodworking from her grandfather in his basement workshop. But it was "Woodworking for Women," taught through Keene Community Education by Gail Grycel, where Laura learned about power tools and other building skills. Laura now lives in Keene and is the University Director of Institutional Advancement at Antioch University.

Ann Acheson, in the first year of the Mill's programs, took Woodworking for Women from a great crew of instructors including Laura. She has been practicing her skill set ever since.

With: Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Steward

Chase's Mill is very excited to provide open shop time for the community. There is no charge for using the shop or tools; participants supply their own raw materials.

If you have attended a wood shop class or a Woodworking Shop Orientation session at Chase's Mill, you may drop in to use our tools and equipment during open shop time - Thursdays 6pm-8pm and Sundays 9am-noon from June 26 through August 28, EXCEPT Thursday, July 3 and Sunday, July 6. The shop will be closed those days.

While Chase’s Mill maintains hand and power tools from the 19th century for education and demonstration, we also have everything you would hope to find in a 21st century woodworking shop.

Back this year - the Lumber Bank. Need one more piece of wood? Want to make something small? Shop our by-donation Lumber Bank and get going right away.

Before using a power tool, Greg Weisel, our Woodworking Shop Steward, will give you a brief safety orientation to that machine. Greg is available during each open shop time to provide guidance, help with tools, and maintain our safety policies. Feeling shy about working on a self-directed project or rusty about your skills? Come in and make a simple project like a cutting board or a plant stand to get warmed up.

Youth ages 9+ are welcome to use hand tools during open shop time with an accompanying adult, and, after either completing a woodworking class at Chase's Mill or attending a one-hour Woodworking Shop Orientation, offered in 2025 on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm and Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am.

Contact Jill Hall jhall@chasesmill.org with questions.

With: Greg Weisel

Class Size: 6 / Open to adults and children ages 9 years and up with accompanying adult

Woodworking Shop Steward Greg Weisel will share both shop safety information and give a basic introduction to the tools and equipment that are available for community members to use during regularly scheduled Open Shop time. Attendance at an Orientation session is required before using the Shop. If you have taken a woodworking class at Chase's Mill, attendance at an orientation may be waived. Anyone wishing to use a power tool will be given a safe usage training to that machine prior to using it. These will not be part of the basic orientation, but will be given as needed during Open Shop time.

Youth ages 9 and up are welcome to attend the orientation and then use the hand tools in the shop with an accompanying adult. Youth ages 16 and 17 are allowed to use the power tools after attending a Woodworking Shop Orientation and having a safe usage training to the power tools, with the permission and guidance of a parent or guardian.

All those using the shop will also be asked to review and sign the safety policy for the Mill and the Woodworking Shop. This one-hour orientation as well as Open Shop Hours are free to the public.

If neither this scheduled orientation time, nor the one on Thursday, June 26 from 6-7pm work for you, please contact hello@chasesmill.org to request an orientation.

Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Mentor, has been building things both practical and fanciful since his youth. Greg is a life-long educator focusing on the design and implementation of inclusive programming for all learners and participants. He strives to create teaching and learning environments that foster a sense of shared responsibility for successful outcomes. He looks forward to sharing all of his experience and training with the Chase's Mill community this summer and beyond.

With: Jeff Schadler

Walk Fee: By donation/ registration encouraged

Walk Size: 12-14 / Appropriate for children 8+ with accompanying adult

Following a whole tree harvest in 1998, Jeff has owned and worked on rehabilitating this 270 acre parcel. It comprises a majority of the second largest watershed that feeds Lake Warren. The terrain stretches from hilltop to wetland and includes an active beaver pond, numerous wetlands, glacial features, stone walls, views of Lake Warren/Green Mountains and an emergent forest. This walk will afford participants an opportunity to enjoy the many facets of a New England forest.

This is a 2-3 mile hike that is moderate to strenuous. There are elevation gains. Hiking shoes are suggested. Park and meet at 77 Peachblow Road in East Alstead. Insect repellent is a good idea. Water is optional.

Jeff Schadler has worked as a land manager, carpenter, and landscaper. He and his wife Koo have owned property and resided in Alstead for 26 years.

With: Kali Lucey

Event Fee: by donation

Event Size: 50 / family friendly

The Land For Good organization offers direct technical assistance to farmers who are looking to access farmland and establish secure tenure. Land For Good also supports retiring farmers develop succession plans to transfer their farms to the next generation. Additionally, Land For Good works with landowners who are interested in leasing, or selling, their land to farmers. This presentation will be an overview of these topics, and their importance for the future of agriculture in New Hampshire.

Kali Lucey's search for farmland allowed her to experience first-hand the many hurdles farmers face when trying to start a farm or transition out of farming. She is passionate about helping to bridge this gap. She facilitates this as an employee of Land For Good, a Keene based organization. She came to New Hampshire to farm and was drawn here because of the abundant water and strong agricultural community.

With: Greg Weisel

Class Size: 6 / Open to adults and children ages 9 years and up with accompanying adult

Woodworking Shop Steward Greg Weisel will share both shop safety information and give a basic introduction to the tools and equipment that are available for community members to use during regularly scheduled Open Shop time. Attendance at an Orientation session is required before using the Shop. If you have taken a woodworking class at Chase's Mill, attendance at an orientation may be waived. Anyone wishing to use a power tool will be given a safe usage training to that machine prior to using it. These will not be part of the basic orientation, but will be given as needed during Open Shop time.

Youth ages 9 and up are welcome to attend the orientation and then use the hand tools in the shop with an accompanying adult. Youth ages 16 and 17 are allowed to use the power tools after attending a Woodworking Shop Orientation and having a safe usage training to the power tools, with the permission and guidance of a parent or guardian.

All those using the shop will also be asked to review and sign the safety policy for the Mill and the Woodworking Shop. This one-hour orientation as well as Open Shop Hours are free to the public.

If neither this scheduled orientation time, nor the one on Sunday, June 29 from 9-10am work for you, please contact hello@chasesmill.org to request an orientation.

Greg Weisel, Woodworking Shop Mentor, has been building things both practical and fanciful since his youth. Greg is a life-long educator focusing on the design and implementation of inclusive programming for all learners and participants. He strives to create teaching and learning environments that foster a sense of shared responsibility for successful outcomes. He looks forward to sharing all of his experience and training with the Chase's Mill community this summer and beyond.