June 15, 2023

1 On Exhibit: Henry W. Herrick

2 31st Annual Historic Preservation Awards

3 2022 Annual Report

4 Mt. Calvary Cemetery Tour

5 New to the Collection

6 MHA Names New Board President

7 Manchester Trivia Questions

Now on Exhibit:

“Henry W. Herrick: Manchester’s Most Versatile Artist”

The Millyard Museum's current featured exhibit showcases the works of artist and illustrator Henry W. Herrick.

Henry W. Herrick (1824-1906) was a talented wood engraver, book illustrator, and watercolorist. After spending his childhood in New Hampshire, Herrick began his career as an artist in New York, working for several prominent publishers and teaching at the School of Design for Women. In 1865, he returned to Manchester where he continued to work as a designer and engraver and took up the art of watercolor. This exhibition features many of his works from throughout his long and illustrious career.

On exhibit through September 30, 2023 - included with regular admission

31st Annual Historic Preservation Awards

Thank you for a

great event!

The 31st Annual Historic Preservation Awards, held on Tuesday, May 23 at Saint Anselm College, was a great success. Thank you to everyone who came and to all of our sponsors for making the event possible!

Our lead sponsor was RBC Wealth Management – The Boulanger Wealth Management Group and award sponsors were Eastern Bank and St. Mary's Bank. Please click here to see the Program Book and a complete list of sponsors.

This year's event recognized the following award recipients for their contributions to the historic preservation of Manchester:

Homeowner’s Award: Michael and Lynn Murphy for their home at 1053 River Road

Adaptive Reuse Award: Linda Murphy of Bare Knuckle Murphy’s Boxing for 163 Lake Avenue

Restoration of a City Landmark Award: City of Manchester for the Civil War Memorial at Veterans Park

Stewardship Award: Grace Episcopal Church for Grace House at 98 Lowell Street

Lifetime Achievement Award: Justine "Brownie" Gengras      

Also recognized with Century Club Awards were the Manchester Country Club, Manchester Lions Club, and Manchester High School West for a century of service to the community.

Homeowner's Award recipients Michael and Lynn Murphy with Master of Ceremonies Ed Brouder.

Justine "Brownie" Gengras receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award.

2022 Annual Report



2022 Annual Report

The Manchester Historic Association's 2022 Annual Report is now available! Please click on the above link to view or download the report.  

Print copies of the report are also available at the front desks of the Millyard Museum and Research Center and can be mailed upon request.

We hope you enjoy reading about some of the highlights from the past year!

Mt. Calvary Cemetery Tour

Thursday, August 3, 2023

5:30 - 7:30 p.m.

Join us for an interactive summer evening tour of the Mount Calvary Cemetery. Partnering with the Majestic Theatre, live actors will engage guests in the telling of first person accounts of some of Manchester’s most prominent citizens, including sculptor Lucien Gosselin, Mayor George Trudel, and photographer Ulric Bourgeois.

474 Goffstown Rd, Manchester, NH. Meet in the parking lot of the cemetery office on the opposite side of the road. Please note, this tour involves extensive walking on uneven terrain, and may not be suitable for indivduals with mobility issues.

COST: $10 Manchester Historic Association members – $15 General Public

Pre-registration is required. Click here to register

New to the Collection



This Chicopee Manufacturing Company sign has recently been installed at the Millyard Museum.

In 1937, the Chicopee Manufacturing Company purchased the former Coolidge Mill building on Manchester's west side. By 1970, Chicopee’s Manchester plant was the largest producer of cotton gauze in the world and employed 600 people. 

Selma Naccach-Hoff Elected

Board President of Manchester Historic Association

Members of the Manchester Historic Association Board of Trustees recently voted to approve a new slate of officers for the coming year and elected Selma Naccach-Hoff as President.

Selma Naccach-Hoff is a Manchester native and long-time English teacher and department head at Manchester High School Central. Her numerous involvement in school activities has included co-chairing the school’s reaccreditation committee for two decennial cycles; helping the school to achieve full accreditation; advising the National English Honor Society and the Oracle, the school’s literary arts magazine. 

Selma has also served the greater community on the boards of the Elliot Health System, the VNA, the Bean Foundation, and UNH Manchester, among others. She has previously served as Vice-President of the Manchester Historic Association and co-chair of the 2022 Historic Preservation Awards. 

Naccach-Hoff succeeds Colleen Kurlansky in this role, who served as President from 2019 to 2023, and now fills the role of Immediate Past President and Chair of the Governance Committee. Also elected was Jeffrey Myrdek as Vice-President, Walter Milne as Treasurer, and Shannon Sullivan as Treasurer. 

Last Month's Trivia Question: What plentiful food from the early days of Derryfield was called “Derryfield Beef”?

ANSWER: The lamprey, referred to as eel by the settlers of Derryfield (now Manchester), was one of their chief sources of food. It was estimated that the yearly catch of lamprey/eel at the Amoskeag Falls equaled three hundred cattle. The lampreys were salted down and known as “Derryfield Beef”. 

Our fathers treasured the slimy prize

They loved the eel as their very eyes

And of one ‘tis said, with a slander rife,

For a string of eels, he sold his wife.

From the eels they formed their food in chief,

And eels were called the ‘Derryfield beef’.

-         From a poem by William Stark (see Potter history)

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This Month's Trivia Question: Following the Civil War, what did the Amoskeag Manufacturing Company attempt (unsuccessfully) to grow in Wagner Park?

The answer will appear in next month's newsletter.