The former Pleasant Valley Grange in West Bethel, built in 1877 and recently restored and modernized, has been nominated to the National Register of Historic Places.

Owners Celina Adams and Cameron Wake have been working on the project for six years. Renamed the Pleasant Valley Commons, the effort has qualified the building for nomination as well as made it functional and safe for community gatherings.

The Maine Historic Preservation Commission makes National Register nominations. It voted in July to send its recommendation to the National Park Service, Adams said. Inclusion on the register qualifies buildings for certain protections and opens up eligibility for preservation grants, if desired.

The couple was encouraged to apply for the status by the nonprofit Maine Preservation, according to Adams. As Wake and Adams undertook the renovations and safety improvements, the advice of Maine Preservation and others helped them to preserve the character of the structure on Route 2. 

In 2025 Michael Goebel-Bain, the National Register and survey coordinator at the State Historic Preservation Office, visited the Commons to do a survey for a potential nomination. In addition, Wake said, Will Chapman from the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society helped in the research.

The national Grange, formed in 1867, is a family and community organization with its original basis in agriculture, according to its website. The West Bethel chapter was formed in 1875 with strong involvement from the Grover family of West Bethel and Mason, Adams said. The land where the building stands was purchased by Daniel Grover in the 1870s, with construction in 1877.

“The spirit of the founders and builders stayed with us throughout the six years we spent working on the building and it’s gratifying to see their family members enjoying events here a hundred years later,” Adams said.

Adams and Wake split their time between a home in Kittery and a camp on property they purchased in Mason Township 20 years ago. Wake is the director of the Center for North Atlantic Studies at the University of New England. Adams is mostly retired from philanthropic advising with individuals and foundations.

They bought the Grange hall in 2018. Adams, a former history teacher, said she had always appreciated Grange history and had had her eye on the building since the mid-2000s.

“It’s always been a community asset, a place for people to gather,” she said.

Fifteen years passed, and then the building went up for sale. The couple toured it out of curiosity.

“The upstairs performance hall took our breath away,” she said.

They put in an offer and it was accepted.

The Maine State Grange organization required that they no longer refer to the building as a Grange Hall, so they changed the name to Pleasant Valley Commons, a nod to the building’s community-facing purpose.

For a time they researched the possibility of using it for events such as weddings, but doing that would have required extensive upgrades. So, they aimed instead to fulfill the historic purpose of the building by welcoming people in for community events.

The building needed a roof, plumbing, electrical, landscaping and other work. Wake and Adams did much of it themselves, with help from many friends, but relied on local tradesmen for more significant upgrades such as electricity and plumbing.

Last summer, they hosted their first function, a history-minded one that celebrated the launch of the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society’s fifth “Goose Eye” publication, which had West Bethel as its theme. Since then there have been a musical performance that included Grange songs, community dinners, a gathering of the Northern Forest Center organization — Adams served as a board member and chair — centering on the opening of the Gehring House apartments, and a meeting of the Mahoosuc Land Trust. Next month the Commons will host a storytelling event.

The events will continue as Adams and Wake wait to hear on the nomination. Adams said that traditionally, a nomination by a state historic organization meant likely approval at the federal level. But with changes and cutbacks at the National Park Service, she said, the path to approval is more uncertain.

“We have our fingers crossed,” she said.

In any case, Adams said, she and Wake hope any future owners of Pleasant Valley Commons will carry on the community-gathering mission.

“We see ourselves more as stewards than owners,” Wake said.

Will Chapman, executive director of the Bethel Historical Society, provided this background on the Grange: “The farmers in Bethel have played a leading role in agricultural reform, innovation, and cooperative efforts. The first ‘farmer’s club’ in Maine (a precursor to the National Grange) was founded in Bethel in 1853. The Pleasant Valley Grange is one of two Grange chapters founded in Bethel in 1875 (along with another at ‘Bethel Hill’ or Bethel village). The former Pleasant Valley Grange Hall was the center of community life in the village of West Bethel for many decades. The unusually well-preserved structure retains much of its distinctive character — down to surviving posters and wall markings from past performers.”

Alison Aloisio is a freelance writer.