PARIS – Larry Glatz, a member of the 2005 Oxford County Bicentennial Committee, was a guest at the Nov. 13 meeting of the Kiwanis Club of Norway-Paris.

His talk about the history of Oxford County and the plans for the bicentennial was engaging and generated a lot of enthusiasm among the club members for the upcoming bicentennial celebration.

Glatz first entertained the club with some interesting stories about the past of Oxford County. Of particular interest was that from about 1840 to about 1935, residents of Oxford County were known as Bears. This nickname originated from an insult used by Whig political editors of the coastal newspapers bemoaning the Democratic voting tendencies of the “back- wood bears” of the inland regions. As often happens, the insult was turned around and became a badge of pride for residents of the region for many years.

Glatz then told the club about some of the plans for the upcoming bicentennial. The official date of the event is March 4, 2005.

Various celebrations are being organized by the 2005 Oxford County Bicentennial committee, which was put together by the League of Oxford County Historical Societies. Among the activities already in the works are a bicentennial quilt with a square from each town and plantation in the county, a book of written works about the county or by authors living in Oxford County, and the creation of the Molly Ockett Trail, a self-guiding tour brochure for people interested in visiting the sites of events of importance to the Native Americans of the area.

The Kiwanis Club of Norway-Paris meets every Thursday at different locations in the Norway/Paris area. The speaker for the Nov. 20 meeting will be Michael Smith of Camp Sunshine. The following week’s meeting will be held on Nov. 25 due to the Thanksgiving holiday. Anyone interested in attending a meeting, contact club members Bob Bizier at 743-9303 or Sarah Glynn at 743-7753.