LIVERMORE — The year is 1924. The Olympics were held in Paris, France, mountaineers George Mallory and Andrew “Sandy” Irvine disappeared on their third attempt to summit Mount Everest, IBM was founded in New York state and former president Jimmy Carter was born. His one hundredth birthday will not be until October, but one Livermore resident has already beaten him to that big milestone.

Mary Moulton celebrated her one hundredth birthday at the Livermore Community Center on Saturday, March 2, with a packed house of friends and family. The part took Moulton by surprise, who was expecting a quiet lunch, but sitting in a room surrounded by so many friends and family, the freshly minted centenarian was beaming with energy and joy.

“I want to pass along a huge thank you to all those who came to celebrate with us, and for all the wonderful cards, gifts and beautiful flowers,” Terry Nova shared with the Livermore Falls Advertiser. Nova noted that over 80 guests were in attendance at the celebration and came from all over the state of Maine and beyond, with friends and family coming from Connecticut, New Hampshire and Massachusetts to join the celebration.

The family also shared that five generations of family were in attendance to share in Moulton’s milestone.

Moulton is a well known figure in the community, with her Halloween decorations earning her the nickname of Ghost Lady for several years and even getting her featured in the paper on a few occasions before she moved into an apartment, according to great granddaughter Megan Norris.

“She’s the reason no one wants to play Scrabble with me anymore,” Norris shared, saying that Moulton would not hold back when playing games with the kids. “She is cutthroat.”

Moulton is a woman of many talents, with her son Tim Cox sharing that she used to do welding in the shipyards of Boston. “She would hitchhike back and forth,” he shared. Moulton also worked at International Paper, where she would strip spools of remaining paper, cut it up and toss them in the hydro pulper.

She traveled yearly to Australia, even into her 80s, and was an avid hunter. “Fantastic hunter,” Cox said. “She could never find her way out of the woods, but she was good at getting deer.”

“Those stories growing up were a huge inspiration,” Norris shared.

Moulton’s talents continued with her well known collage paintings, which were created from found items and fashioned into landscapes and snow scenes. She even lent efforts to the Jay Historical Society with a project about Jay Hill during it’s early days of settlement. In the meeting room of the historical society, a model of Jay Hill, complete with the houses, tavern, and homes along the winding dirt road, lay spread out on the table with some of Moulton’s handiwork in it.

Moulton currently is living with family, and is as spry and alert as ever. Lobster rolls and other items adorned the tables for guests to help themselves, but Moulton’s only request was a chocolate cake. “She’s got a sweet tooth, even to this day,” Norris shared.

Moulton’s family want to give a special thanks to Jill Litalian and family for providing a delicious spread of food; to Norris for decorating the venue in which they celebrated; and to the guests who helped put the hall back in order when everything concluded.

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