BIDDEFORD — Biddeford’s history has an updated platform for its showcase as the Biddeford Historical Society is set to launch a revamped version of its website today.
The society, which has been active since 1968, is welcoming a revitalized biddefordhistoricalsociety.org today, complete with more photos, blog entries and interactive pieces than ever before.
The site also includes a “tell your story” feature, which allows residents to share their unique items and memories of Biddeford over time — something the city is losing quickly, said Louise Merriman, vice president of the Biddeford Historical Society.
“There really isn’t a place in Biddeford where we can do that,” Merriman said Monday. “Part of the problem with Biddeford is a lot of people who have valuable connections with history are going away.
“All of it really belongs to the community,” she said.
The new website also features a calendar of events, which will highlight the society’s upcoming series, “Fireside Chats.”
The chats, which will be held every Friday at 7 p.m. starting in August, will feature guest speakers in different areas of expertise, from shipbuilding, to mill work, to local landmarks and everything in between.
Merriman said the chats — and the new website — are meant to encourage people to take active roles in their city’s history.
“We want people to walk these streets and look at this architecture and have a connection with history and understand history,” she said. “The fireside chats are one vehicle to bring this history to life.”
“It’s really for the community to discover the rich and magnificent 400-year history Biddeford has had,” she said.
And that history isn’t just for the members of the historical society to appreciate; it’s for the people who continue to shape the city’s history today.
“We want people to understand and to participate and appreciate the remarkable culture of innovation, boat building and milling (of Biddeford),” Merriman said. “It’s their invitation to participate in their history.”
— Staff Writer Alan Bennett can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 329 or abennett@journaltribune.com.
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