Calendar of Classes & Events
Chase’s Mill serves as a workshop for hands-on learning and a community gathering space. Every year from mid-June through September, we offer woodworking and craft workshops, lectures of local interest, hikes, and family-friendly events.
Browse our schedule below to learn more and sign up—or jump directly to one of the following topics:
Financial Assistance
Workshops & Classes
Lectures & Presentations
Social Events, Walks, & Field Trips
Community Woodworking Shop Events
Safety Policies
Calendar of Events (monthly view)
All Upcoming Events (list view)
Financial Assistance
Discounts and fee waivers are available for all classes and workshops at Chase's Mill. You will find instructions and details when you register for a class.
If you have questions or have trouble with the registration form, please contact us.
Lectures & Presentations
From historical talks to participatory storytelling events and story slams
All our lectures and presentations are done for the 2025 season. Check back next spring for more!
Community Woodworking Shop Events
Take part in an orientation, then make use of open shop time or the Lumber Bank at our Community Woodworking Shop.
Safety Policies
Please be sure to review our safety policies, as well as our visitor/participant releases. All woodshop or craft class participants will be required to adhere to these polices and to sign a release form prior to participation in those activities.
Calendar
Classes and events take place each year from mid-June through September. Scroll through the calendar to view upcoming events, or view a list of all upcoming events below the calendar.
All Upcoming Events
Beginners Guide to Mosaics: Crafting a Stepping Stone (Class 1)
Saturday and Sunday, August 30 and 31, noon to 4 p.m.
With: Chloe Barcelou
Class Fee: $50/adult; $75/adult + child pair
Materials Fee: $55/participant
Class Size: 8 / Appropriate for children 8+ with accompanying adult
Mosaic making is a splendid, versatile art form with endless creative possibilities. In this Introduction to Mosaics class, you will be designing and making your own stepping stone for use in your garden or home. You will learn the basics of mosaic art: designing, cutting tile, and grouting your work to complete your piece. By the end of this class you will have acquired the skills to continue to craft your own projects at home.
Chloe Barcelou is a professional artist, set designer, prop maker, and stylist working in a range of mixed mediums for over a decade. Together with her partner, she owns Shiphouse Productions. She has been creating her own collection of creative mosaic art pieces, handcrafted throughout her time exploring different artistic mediums.
The above is the first class in a two-class program.
This registration is for both classes (this class on August 30 and Class 2 on August 31).
Beginners Guide to Mosaics: Crafting a Stepping Stone (Class 2)
Saturday and Sunday, August 30 and 31, Noon-4pm
With: Chloe Barcelou
This is the second class in a two-class program.
Field Trip to Alstead Historical Society
With: Ann Acheson
Trip Fee: donations may be made at the Alstead Historical Society
Trip Size: 10 / all ages
Step back in time with us as we visit the Alstead Historical Museum. The Alstead Historical Society operates out of a restored 19th-century church. The museum houses a wide range of exhibits, including collections of furniture, textiles, tools, and other everyday objects from the town's past. The upper floor is set up to replicate life in Alstead in the 18th and 19th centuries which gives you a sense of how folks lived in this community.
There is direct access to the second floor for those with the inablility to climb stairs.
We will meet at 9:30 am at the museum in Alstead Village. The address is 16 Pleasant Street. Parking is available on Bragg Lane.
Ann Acheson enjoys going on field trips! She currently serves on the Mill Hollow Heritage Association's Board of Trustees.
Open Shop Time
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.
Book Swap at the Library
With: Alyson Montgomery and Kathy Torrey
Adults only
Come gather with community members at the Shedd-Porter Memorial Library in Alstead for a fun evening to talk about our favorite books, share recommendations, and celebrate reading! We will also swap books, so bring a few to trade, if you like! Enjoy the beautiful library, the company of fellow book lovers, and a chance to refresh your collection. Please take home unclaimed books.
Alyson Montgomery, as the Director of Shedd-Porter, can't wait to welcome the Chase's Mill community to the library! She looks forward to sharing her love of books and reading with you!
Kathy Torrey is a library trustee and a co-chair of the Mill Programs Team. Books and community gatherings are lifelong interests of hers.
Open Shop Time
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.
Torn Paper Collage
With: Amy Stodola
Class Fee: $25
Materials Fee: $5
Class Size: 4 -12 / Adults only
This simple collage technique creates beautiful collages from readily available materials.It is easy to learn and fun to do. In this two hour class, you will create new images out of images torn from magazines. Then you will apply your chosen images to a support using glue.
Amy Stodola has always enjoyed arts and crafts, including painting and fiber arts. She became interested in collage during the pandemic. She enjoys sharing this fun technique with others.
Open Shop Time
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.
A Trip to the Community Garden at Orchard Hill
With: Ann Acheson
Trip Fee: by donation
Trip Size: 10 / all ages
Don your gardening gear! For this field trip we will be visiting the community garden at Orchard Hill. This garden is tended by 15+ local families who come together once a week to grow fall storage crops.
We will be in the garden from 10 to noon getting our hands in the soil, learning about cover crops, and having any questions answered that might arise. At noon we will stop and have lunch together, at which time we will hear the origin story and intentions of fostering a community of wellness through this garden expression.
We will meet at the Center at Orchard Hill, 114 Old Settlers Rd, Alstead. Lunch is provided.
Ann Acheson not only fosters community at Chase's Mill as a MHHA board steward, she also participates in tending the community garden at Orchard Hill.
Open Shop Time
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.
Making Birch Bark Decorations
With: Emma Kuester and Hale Morrell
Class Fee: $40/adult; $60/adult and child pair
Materials Fee: $5 / participant
Class Size: 6-10 max / All ages
Making ornaments from natural materials like birch bark is a wonderful way to give special gifts without breaking the bank. In this class, we will weave one birch bark bird and one eight-pointed star. If there is time, additional items may be created as well.
Emma Kuester moved to this area from Illinois 2 years ago with her dog, Macy. She is passionate about making any craft that comes her way. Since moving to New England, she has been deepening her basketry, wool, and leather making skills.
Hale Morrell lives in Walpole, NH and works as a forester in Cheshire County, NH and Windham County, VT. She loves carrying on the tradition of historical crafting by learning about them and sharing them with others.
Open Shop Time
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.
Poetry Circle
With: Patience Stoddard
Event Fee: By donation
Event Size: 50 / Family friendly
Bring a favorite poem or two to share. Could be original or a long-time favorite. We will meet in the community room. Cookies and tea provided.
Patience Stoddard is a mostly-retired Unitarian Universalist minister and a lover of poetry. Over the years she has led gatherings of poetry sharing in services and other venues.
Open Shop Time
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.
Marble Madness: Making a Wood Marble Run
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.
Alstead in the 1700s: the Origins of Community
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.
Open Shop Time
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.
A Nature Walk with Michael Nerrie at Distant Hill
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.
Open Shop Time
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.
Sharpening Scissors, Knives, and Chisels
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.
Books from Repurposed Materials
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.
Women Make History: Stories We Should Have Learned in School
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.
Open Shop Time
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.
Hooked on Rugs
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.
Open Shop Time
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.
Intolerable Severity: Women and Divorce in 19th Century New England
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.
Open Shop Time
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.
Map Folding and Letter Locking
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.
Technology Comes to Mill Hollow
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.
Open Shop Time
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.
Remembering Together: An Evening of Sharing Stories from Mill Hollow's Past. How We Lived, Our Friends, and the Things We Did: 1960's -1980's
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.
Open Shop Time
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.
Contra Dancing in New Hampshire: Then and Now
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.
Social Events, Walks, & Field Trips
Join others to explore history and nature, share songs and poetry, and visit nearby sites like the library and the historical society.