Community Corner

New Book to Tell Martinsville's History Through Pictures

The Martinsville Community Center is putting together a historical book to benefit the rebuilding of the center.

In the early 1920s, residents used donated property to create the Martinsville Community Center to support residents of that section of Bridgewater in recreational endeavors.

But five years ago, the property was taken over by the state after its owners were accused of partaking in illegal activity.

Now, after working to get it back since November 2008, residents of Martinsville recently received the title to the property and are prepared to do what they can to restore it to a working community center.

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So to raise the money to do so, the Martinsville Community Center is completing its own history book of the town of Martinsville.

“My cousin wrote a picture book two years ago in Pennsylvania,” said Jane Gandolfe, a member of the Martinsville Community Center. “She said we should do this book as a fundraiser for the center.”

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Beginning in November, Gandolfe said, they put out notices for pictures that reflect the section of town, and now, they have completed the book and are preparing to have it published through a collaboration with her cousin, Patricia Valentine Whitacre, and the Martinsville Community Center.

The book, Gandolfe said, will basically be a picture book, detailing the people, businesses and history of the town, with captions describing each.

“There are about seven chapters,” she said. “It is a picture book with captions telling the story.”

The book, Gandolfe said, is expected to be ready in September, and they are hoping to hold a book-signing in October with people who submitted photos.

Gandolfe said that, throughout the past few months, the Martinsville Community Center has received about 270 photos from residents of Martinsville and from people who are former residents but now live in such places as Washington State, Hawaii and Colorado.

“These are some people who moved out 40 or 50 years ago, but got really excited about the book,” she said. “We couldn’t even use all the photos if we couldn’t identify the people or they were too fuzzy.”

Gandolfe said she met with many older residents in town, and some of the more prestigious, including members of the Bartle family, who originally donated the land for the Martinsville Community Center.

“It was a melting pot of neighbors and people who settled here,” she said. “And we looked at businesses, like the butcher, gas station and stationary store.”

Photos, Gandolfe said, feature farming in the valley and residents caring for their animals, as well as leisure activities throughout town.

“The cover of the book has five women skating,” she said. “And we had people come to my house with pictures, and one of the women, who’s 93 years old, was one of the original members of the rescue squad.”

The earliest photo, Gandolfe said, comes from the 1800s, and is a photo of Jessie Bartle with her groom on her wedding day.

“We can see the different styles in the photos,” she said. “And there is a picture of grandmothers selling war bonds.”

The book itself, Gandolfe said, will cost $22.95, and can be pre-ordered by sending an e-mail to her. By purchasing it directly from the Martinsville Community Center, it is tax free, and half of the costs go to the publisher and half go to the community center itself.

But the book, which is being published through Arcadia, will also be available at all major bookstores and other businesses, like Walgreens.

“We also hope realtors might purchase the books and give them to new home buyers,” Gandolfe said, adding that they will be publishing 500 initially.

Gandolfe said she is proud of the work that was put into this and the finished product, which she said will be a great way to see the history of the town.

“This is a great way to capture the history and show it to people who come to town,” she said. “We treasure our history, and people don’t always like to sit and read, but they love to look at pictures.”

The main goal, Gandolfe said, is to use the money that is raised through the purchase of the books to improve the community center and fix the bathrooms, siding and other aspects of the property itself before opening it up to the residents again. 

“The main goal is for people in the community to come and meet,” she said. “We are trying to expand this with the library for children to have a reading time.”

“The center was once a place to go and relax, and it was open to seniors for playing cards and watching television,” she added. “The challenge now is getting the younger kids in to the center, and those who are between 25 and 40 years of age.”

Basically, Gandolfe said, the center will mainly be for Martinsville residents, with the boundaries defined by Dock Watch Hollow Quarry and Mt. Horeb Road, then out to Sunset Lake and onto Foothill Road.

But, Gandolfe said, the center would welcome all Bridgewater residents to come and participate in the different activities offered.

“This place is for anything a community wants to do, like to sponsor a New Year’s party,” she said. “We can have arts and crafts in the summer and a book club.”

As the book is being sent to the publisher, and all the initial work is completed, Gandolfe said she is proud of the work they have put into it, and the time it has taken to complete the project. She said she is happy for the opportunity to show people what Martinsville has had to offer over the years, with the former Martinsville school, the library that is actually the original firehouse and the first community center where the board of education once rented space for meetings.

“It’s meant a lot to meet with former residents and reminisce about the good times,” said Gandolfe, herself a lifelong resident of Martinsville. “I’m surprised how many people took part in this. So many families will enjoy it for generations.”

To pre-order a book, e-mail Gandolfe at jgandolfe@yahoo.com.


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