Hawthorne House to conduct silent auction fundraiser June 3

A major Silent Auction Fundraiser will be conducted at Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Boyhood Home in Raymond at 40 Hawthorne Road from 5 to 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 3 and the public is encouraged to participate.

Nathaniel Hawthorne's Boyhood Home in Raymond at 40
Hawthorne Road will be the site of a public silent auction
fundraiser from 5 to 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 3. Proceeds
raised at the event will be used to make repairs to
structural deficiencies in the historic house's roof,
exterior siding and interior walls. FILE PHOTO 

The funds are urgently needed to make repairs to structural deficiencies in the historic house’s roof, exterior siding, and interior walls, said Abel Bates of the Hawthorne Community Association. Support of the Silent Auction Fundraiser will help ensure that one of Maine’s most beloved literary/historical treasures will endure and thrive as a community events center, cultural icon, and point of local pride.

The Hawthorne House is the boyhood home of the legendary author of The Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables in Raymond and has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places since 1969.

Author Nathaniel Hawthorne was born on July 4, 1804, in Salem, Massachusetts, a descendant of William Hathorne, a Puritan who emigrated with his family from England to the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Hawthorne’s grandfather John Hathorne was a judge who presided over some of the Salem Witch Trials.

Hawthorne’s mother was widowed when he was age 4 and after living for 10 years with relatives in Salem, the family moved to a home near Sebago Lake in Raymond built for them by Hawthorne’s uncles Richard and Robert Manning in 1816. He lived there with his family for three years until being sent to boarding school in 1819, but later in life, said the time he spent at that home was indeed the happiest period of his life.

Among the dozens of attractive items to be auctioned at the boyhood home of the author of The Scarlet Letter will be a Two-Night Stay at The Inn at Ocean’s Edge, Penobscot Bay; A Five-Course Meal at Migis Lodge; four Portland Sea Dogs tickets, two tickets to Titanic at the Maine State Theatre; a Pontoon Boat Rental at Moose Landing; a Handcrafted Christmas Reindeer and Wreath; and much
more. (For winning bid payments, personal checks preferred but credit cards graciously accepted.)

The festive Silent Auction will also feature a 50-50 raffle, a complimentary appetizer-buffet, beer, and wine. Musical entertainment will be provided by popular local artist Dana Reed, affectionately known as Capt’n Uke.

Hawthorne House’s Phase II Fundraising Campaign

The June 3 Silent Auction is part of the Phase II Fundraising Campaign for Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Boyhood Home in Raymond, whose goal is to raise $75,000 for urgent repairs. Those who cannot attend the Silent Auction—but who would still like to donate—are invited to do so by sending a much-appreciated check or online donation. Please make checks payable to “Hawthorne Community Association” / PO Box 185 / South Casco, ME 04077. Credit card, debit card, and/or Paypal donations may be made online at: https://www.hawthorneassoc.com.

For more information, please contact Abel Bates at 207-318-7131 or jbates4@maine.rr.com.<