BETHEL — The Bethel Historical Society will sponsor a lecture by retired professor David B. Field at 1:30 p.m. Sept. 21 at the Mason House Exhibit Hall.
Executive Director Randall Bennett said in a news release that Field, who is a retired University of Maine professor of Forest Resources, will present an “illustrated talk about the Appalachian Trail in Maine,” focusing on how it is today and how it came to be.
Field has maintained six miles of the Appalachian Trail for more than 50 years, according to Bennett, and is credited with improving most of the 281-mile trail in Maine by “taking it off logging roads and putting it in the woods.” He was also recently inducted into the Appalachian Trail Hall of Fame and has served as an officer of the Maine Appalachian Trail Club and on the board of managers of the Appalachian Trail Conference.
“We first heard about David through one of our trustees, Richard Hale,” Bennett said. “Richard is a retired forestry professor and he said he had worked with David at the University of Maine and thought he would be a great person to speak at the Society.”
Following Field’s lecture, he will be available to sign copies of his book titled, “Along Maine’s Appalachian Trail.” The book will be available at the lecture at a special, discounted price.
“I remember when David’s book first came out,” Bennett said. “He’s a very impressive man who has done a lot for the Appalachian Trail.”
The lecture will coincide with the Bethel Harvestfest, which will take place on Saturday.
“Every year, for the past several years, we’ve tried to offer special programs that tie in with Harvestfest,” Bennett said. “Whether it’s a program on autumn or nature or the geography of the area, we come up with something.”
The Bethel Historical Society will also be running a cider press, with which residents will have the chance to press their own cider.
The lecture is free to the public and is a part of the Bethel Historical Society’s 2013 Lecture Series, “Trails, Trials and Tourism: Capturing the Maine Experience,” which is funded by a grant from the Maine Humanities Council.
mdaigle@sunjournal.com
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- David B. Field, a retired University of Maine forestry professor, will give a talk on the Appalachian Trail at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21, at the Mason House Exhibit Hall in Bethel.
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