FARMINGTON — Hundreds of bound newspaper volumes were saved from possible damage or disposal this month as members of several Franklin County historical societies joined staff from the Franklin Journal for a two-day preservation effort.

The project began Oct. 17, when volunteers organized the collection at the Franklin Journal office in preparation for moving day. On Oct. 18, board members and volunteers from the Farmington, Wilton and Livermore Falls historical societies formed a line to load hundreds of old volumes into a moving van.

“It was quite a sight to be seen,” said Charlene McGraw, circulation manager for the Kennebec Journal, Morning Sentinel and Sun Journal weeklies. “They all worked in a line to load a moving van. Preservation of our history was very important to each of them.”

McGraw said the effort began when she realized the Franklin Journal’s bound issues stored in the basement were deteriorating.

“This all started from my needing to clean up the volumes laying all over the Franklin Journal office,” she said. “They were getting old down cellar and some got wet on the bottom shelf during a little flooding, so we had to start running dehumidifiers. The historical society called me after I mentioned we needed to get rid of these before they were ruined.”

Unsure at first whether any could be saved, McGraw reached out for help.

“We didn’t know if some would have to be trashed due to poor condition,” she said, “but we found they might be able to restore and repair, too, so saving history, that’s what it was all about.”

Through a network of local contacts, the effort quickly grew. McGraw said Portland-based colleagues supported the plan to donate the newspapers, and Roger Spear and attorney Paul Mills in Farmington helped coordinate logistics. Mills hired a box truck for the move, and Jane Woodman, past president and curator of the Farmington Historical Society, contacted other area societies to take part.

Woodman said the project fulfilled a long-standing wish.

“We created a research center at the Titcomb House Museum this past summer,” she said. “The newspaper books at the Franklin Journal building gave the FHS a chance to complete the full collection, a dream we never knew would be possible.”

About 150 bound volumes of the Franklin Journal and Farmington Chronicle were relocated to the museum’s new research center.

“The most recent years from 1980–2024 were in excellent condition,” Woodman said. “The fill-in books had varying conditions from well-bound leather to sheets of newspaper without covers. Those without covers will be stored the best we can until funds are found to repair, if possible.”

She added that the preserved newspapers will eventually be available to the public.

“The well-preserved bound books will be available when we open in the spring 2026,” she said.

Woodman said access to the complete archive will serve the community in many ways.

“We’re contacted frequently through our website and email with questions about building locations, weather events, criminal stories and biographical information on people of Farmington and Franklin County,” she said. “Having a complete collection is a large benefit of having active historical societies in so many of our towns.”

Volunteers who took part included Maxine Brown and Richard Corey of the Wilton Historical Society; Layne Nason, Theresa Foster and Jane Woodman of the Farmington Historical Society; and Gary DeJardins of the Livermore/Livermore Falls Historical Society, who transported the Livermore Falls Advertiser volumes.

“Preserving the actual print copies is what the local historical societies all wanted to do,” McGraw said. “It worked out great, saving history for future generations.”