Living, Learning, and Worshiping: Buildings of Sweden, Maine From Concept to Sales

Living, Learning, and Worshiping: Buildings of Sweden, Maine From Concept to Sales

Concept Research and Resources Writing, Review, Editing, and Proofreading Production and Publishing Promotion and Sales

Concept On a walk around town in 2011, Sweden Historical Society members were taking photographs on a beautiful fall day. We came up the idea of taking photographs of the old houses of Sweden for the upcoming bicentennial. At our next meeting, we decided to write the histories of those buildings still standing that were built before the town s centennial in 1913. The book is a guide to Sweden s buildings with a single page for each building with a current photograph, along with the date it was built, and a history beginning with the original owner.

Concept We identified the buildings: By two period maps dating from 1858 and 1880 By interviewing current owners By reviewing old photographs and documents

Concept Map of Sweden - 1858

Concept Map of Sweden - 1880

Nora, Christine, and Del Holden (and horses) ~1906

Research and Resources An important resource was the monograph Genealogies of the Early Inhabitants of Sweden, Maine, 1795-1890 by Dr. Clifford L. Pike (1859-1919), which contains birth, death, and marriage dates, as well as places of residence for many Sweden families through 1890. Dr. Pike, born in Sweden and educated at Bowdoin, gathered the information for his genealogies from cemeteries, family Bibles, town records, and notes from family members and townspeople. To support and supplement Dr. Pike s genealogies, we used deeds, census records, tax rolls, and cemetery records.

Research and Resources Records from the Oxford County Registry of Deeds (Western Division) in Fryeburg built the foundation of each building s history in the form of original deeds and other property documents. One problem encountered was reading the original handwritten documents and, in some cases, understanding the 19th century vocabulary. Note that records are not restricted to real estate:

Research and Resources The first US census of Sweden was in 1820 after the town s incorporation in 1813. Each US census until 1850 listed only heads of households; other members of the households were enumerated by sex and age. US census records after 1850 allowed us to identify where families lived as the census takers typically gathered information by neighborhood. Each US census after 1850 was unique in the specific type of information gathered, but generally included at a minimum each occupant s name, age, sex, and occupation. All 1890 US census records for Maine were destroyed by fire. The latest US census made available to the public is 1940.

Research and Resources We used the following web resources to corroborate names, dates, and places. Ancestry.com FamilySearch.com Library of Congress (loc.gov) Maine Genealogy (mainegenealogy.net) Find a Grave (findagrave.com)

Research and Resources Other resources used during our research include: Tax rolls from 1813 to 1871 Cemetery records Wellington Eastman s Centennial Address" Oral histories Interviews with descendants of Sweden s families Pictures, journals, and letters

Research and Resources Archives of the Bridgton News dating back to 1870 were reviewed to gain a better understanding of how people lived during the late 19 th and early 20 th centuries. We included selected clippings from these archives, particularly those related to the dayto-day life of Sweden residents, including social activities, births and deaths, schools, and the various ways both men and women earned their livings. The Bridgton News archives are available online from the Bridgton Public Library (http://www.bridgton.lib.me.us). The Cattle Show and Fair at Lovell Entering the hall, we behold a fine exhibition, especially of Fruit and Vegetables. In the department of Fruit we noticed a Pearmain, of 12 1-2 inches circumference, exhibited by Aaron Jones of Sweden. The Bridgton News October 13, 1871 Mrs. Asa Sawyer s Plymouth Rock pullet laid an egg which girts 8 by 6 inches. The Bridgton News December 31, 1897 Mr. Chas Whitehouse is having his barn taken down and moved to rebuild to connect with his other buildings. Masterworkman O. V. Edwards. The Bridgton News October 14, 1889 Andrew Libby raised this season on seven eights of an acre of land twenty-seven bushels of wheat, also, on one-half acre, one hundred and seventy bushels of potatoes. The Bridgton News November 2, 1883

Lucy and Stephen Ridlon ~1890s

Writing, Review, Editing, and Proofreading Three members of the team did the research; one wrote the first draft to ensure the writing was consistent and in a single voice. Once the drafts for each building were completed, they were reviewed and challenged by the team for content and readability. Revised pages were edited by a team member with a fresh eye who had seen any drafts. Another team member proofread the prepared draft and worked with the editor. Near the end of the process, the introduction was prepared to set the stage for the content.

Writing, Review, Editing, and Proofreading Lessons Learned: Define the audience, intention, and structure and stick to it (and be flexible to change). Reconcile yourself to a long, complex, and sometimes painful, process. Take advantage of the strengths of the team. Work together in lovely conditions with plenty of tea and food.

Vianna and Seth Brackett ~1900

Production and Publishing Once the book was edited and proofread, it was compiled and formatted. Our goal was to make a book that was easily readable as a guidebook. We decided on the following: Book dimensions of 8.5 x 11 A single page for each building Layout of the individual pages Use of a non-serif font for clarity and readability Serif Fonts versus Non-serif Fonts Serif fonts have small lines attached to the end of a stroke. They are typically considered more readable in books, newspapers, and magazines, although this is a subject of debate.

Production and Publishing Before final formatting, we selected a mode of publishing to ensure that publishing requirements were met. We decided to pursue self-publishing: traditional or online print-on-demand (POD). We chose online POD self-publishing through CreateSpace, an Amazon.com company. Other online-based services for self publishers: lulu.com lightningsource.com blurb.com

Production and Publishing Why online POD self-publishing? Cost savings with minimal outlay (applicable to CreateSpace only) Costs for printing are per book regardless of number of copies There are no set-up fees Printed proofs are priced the same as an individual book There is no extra cost for revisions Availability of online and print proofs Inventory freedom since books are printed on demand Reasonably fast turnaround Books are automatically available on Amazon.com (CreateSpace only); we receive a fixed royalty on books sold through them.

Production and Publishing The online POD process: We obtained an ISBN (International Standard Book Number). An ISBN can be purchased through bowker.com (the official ISBN agency) or may be available from the online POD service. We purchased an ISBN from CreateSpace that identifies the Sweden Historical Society as the publisher. We read and followed the requirements for submission. We used tools offered by the online service including start-to-finish detailed instructions, format templates, and review options.

Production and Publishing The online POD process (continued): Copy was prepared for approval by CreateSpace. We found that it was much more reliable to submit the copy as a PDF than a Word file. CreateSpace provided free online proofs that highlighted formatting problems or inconsistencies. A printed proof could also be purchased. We used both online and printed proofs. As recommended by CreateSpace, we first looked at the proofs on a macro scale was the formatting correct and appealing, making it easy to read? The second read-through was a word-by-word proofreading. Changes were made, the book resubmitted, and the review process was repeated. We ended up submitting the book three times. Expect errors even though there have been a number of reviews! Upon receipt of books, we checked through the books to identify any printing problems. To date we have ordered 305 copies: of these, about 25 were considered unacceptable. In each case, these books were quickly replaced with overnight shipping.

Haskell Schoolhouse ~1907

Promotions and Sales In December 2014, we kicked off book sales with a tea and sweets reception at the Town Meeting House. We submitted press releases to local newspapers and newsletters. We have books available at Bridgton Books, Pietree Orchard, and the Sweden Town Office. We compiled a list of Historical Societies (Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts) and libraries and sent them a postcard announcing the availability of the book at a discounted price. Individual members have books available for incidental sales. Other sales opportunities include: Annual Town Meetings Town Office and local sales as seasonal residents return Special town functions during the summer

Center School ~1906