Around and about Houlton

The Fence is dead!  Long live the Fence!!
A sight not seen in almost 60 years has been returned to its former state. The superb restoration and house enlargement done by Drake and Tammy Ritchie on the corner of Pleasant and Charles Streets has been completed with the return of its landmark white picket fence.
After a prolonged period of neglect, the fence and posts were totally removed in late April. “The house with the picket fence” has been a Houlton fixture for almost three-quarters of a century.
Over the years, one or two errant automobiles with drivers fueled with more than gasoline have invaded the dooryard knocking down the fence.
The house was originally built by Samuel Antworth about 1940. He was the manager of the Atlas Plywood Mill which was located at the site of the current TD Bank on North St.
There was an apprehension on Pleasant St. that the fence was not going to be replaced but that has been put to rest. After the lawn and other yard work were completed, the new white picket fence was set in place.
The white wooden pickets are set in undulating style. The fence was made and installed by Roger Penner of Bridgewater.
Pleasant St. was originally named Elm St. when it was first being developed in the 1860s. The western end of the street came off the old Charles P. Tenney farm which extended easterly to the fence along the west line of the Gentle Memorial Building.
Tenney was a prominent merchant in Houlton having a retail store at about the site of the current Sage Financial Building. Tenney must have liked the name Elm St. for he used it to name the eastern-most street on the north side of Pleasant St. on his farm. Today, there are no elm trees on the street which bears the tree name.
Being an astute businessman, Tenney knew the benefit of a more pleasing descriptive name for the area where he had house lots for sale and consequently adopted Pleasant St.
Elm St. was the original name of the street reflecting the recent planting of elm trees along its passageway some 150 years ago. Commonly referred to as “The American Elm,” this tree became the landmark tree of many communities across the country. Elm St. was, and still is, one of the most common street names in the country.  According to a U.S. Census report in 1993, Elm Street was the 15th most common street name with 5,233 so named across the country.
While the stately elms of Houlton were ravished by the Dutch elm disease which swept across the country in the 1960s, they are making a comeback locally. Through the determined efforts of the Houlton Rotary Club, Aroostook County Commissioner Paul Adams of Houlton and individual property owners on Pleasant Street, the elm tree is experiencing a revival in Houlton.
Three years ago nine new elm trees were planted from the bottom of Pleasant St. up to the corner of Charles St. “Pleasant Street Proud” is a force in action.  One of the new trees lies within the Ritchies’ dooryard.
The return of the white picket fence in all of its newfound beauty is certainly the piece de resistance to the corner of Pleasant and Charles Sts.  Long live the fence!
A “tip of the hat” to the Ritchies and congratulations on a job well done.