In April 1966, the Jaffrey-Gilmore Foundation held a three-day open house in a newly constructed building in the middle of Jaffrey.
The brand-new “Civic Center” was open to the public from 2 p.m. until 8 p.m. Inside were several exhibits, all offered free of charge. There was a show of artwork from the Jaffrey Grade and High Schools, objects from the Sharon Arts Center on view in handsome new display cases, a Jaffrey Woman’s Club exhibit, and “Jaffrey Scenes” organized by Homer and Louise Belletete. Nowhere does the open house invitation name the woman most responsible for the day’s events. That visionary founder, the driving force behind the creation of the Jaffrey-Gilmore Foundation and the construction of the building, was Marion Mack Johnson.
There was, in the heart of Jaffrey, next to the Clay Library, an unoccupied house. The owner, Dr. C. Francis Wozmak, was “willing to sell.” The large lot was a suitable site for the “open center” Johnson wanted to build, a center freely available for educational, scientific, cultural and creative activities.
The first meeting of the Jaffrey-Gilmore Foundation was held on May 21, 1964. The original trustees of the corporation were: Marion Mack Johnson, president; Daniel M. Johnson, vice president; Donald E. Proctor, treasurer; Harry Mack Johnson, assistant clerk; Homer J. Belletete, assistant treasurer; and Elisabeth S. Torrey, clerk.
Soon after that first meeting, the group was introduced to architect John Radford Abbot, who had previously designed buildings for the Belmont Hill School and recently completed the Merrimack Valley Textile Museum in North Andover, Massachusetts. His plans for the proposed building were accepted in November 1964.
The contract to construct the building was awarded to the Seppala and Aho Co. of New Ipswich in March 1965. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on April 9, 1965, at which “half of the town of Jaffrey, it seemed, was on hand…” After the ceremony, attendees retired to the town library for coffee and snacks.
The brick, two-story, “fireproof” Civic Center has been described as “colonial” or “Georgian-colonial.” It sits in line with the Clay Library and has in front of it a large lawn which, “shall remain forever green with no further buildings to be placed thereon.”
The original layout of the Civic Center hosted an office, a fireproof file room, a library, a small meeting room, a kitchenette and a lecture hall on the first floor. The basement and second floors were designated as areas to be used as exhibits, work rooms, studios and classrooms.
Johnson said the plans were especially designed to allow various rooms to function in any of several capacities.
Great attention was paid to the interior design of the building, which was done with the assistance of W. Arnold Seale of Hancock, New Hampshire. All furnishings, wall coverings and fixtures were carefully selected. [discussion of wallpaper, chairs and sound system TK].
The terrace and outdoor landscaping were designed by Mrs. Robert Whitcomb of Peterborough, New Hampshire, while the exterior groundwork and parking areas were constructed by Howard Whitcomb of Peterborough.
The Civic Center opened, as mentioned above, in April 1966.
The first few years of the Civic Center were managed directly by Johnson, president of the Jaffrey-Gilmore Foundation, and her close friend and foundation secretary, Claire Moore.
In 1967, Betty and Jim Balentine were appointed executive secretaries, soon called simply “directors,” with the charge to handle the day-to-day activities of the Civic Center.
Early use of the Civic Center included gallery exhibits, historical displays, arts and crafts, nature studies, cultural displays and trade shows.
An annual “Young People’s Exhibit” showed artwork by students of the Jaffrey-Rindge schools. A similar show, the “Annual Area Art Exhibit,” led to the creation of the Civic Center Art Group. Other art exhibits included a yearly Photography Show, as well as groups like the New Hampshire Pastel Society and the Dublin Art Show artists.
There was a Trees of Christmas exhibit that ran every year from 1975 to 1991 in which real trees were decorated with handmade ornaments representing different countries.
The Civic Center hosted a popular free weekly film series for more than 20 years.
Many groups have used the Civic Center for meetings and functions throughout its history. Those groups include the Jaffrey Historical Society, Daughters of the American Revolution, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Monadnock Garden Club, Jaffrey Bridge Club, the Recreation Department’s Senior Coffee Hour, Jaffrey Writers Group and, most recently, the Monadnock Co-Op working group.
The Civic Center has been home to the Jaffrey Historical Society since the building opened. The bottom floor of the center eventually became wholly devoted to Historical Society displays and office space. The JHS has used the conference room and auditorium for meetings, events and functions for 60 years.
Betty and Jim Balentine retired as directors of the Civic Center in 1992 and were succeeded by Scott and Kim Cunningham. Around that time, some changes were made to make it easier to display artwork. The Chinese wallpaper was removed from the conference room, and the tan burlap walls of the auditorium and second-floor spaces were painted white. Under the Cunninghams, the Civic Center expanded its outreach to Jaffrey’s fourth and fifth graders, having students meet Civic Center artists. They co-sponsored programs with the Jaffrey Public Library and Andy’s Summer Playhouse.
In 2018, the Civic Center undertook the task of making the building more accessible. The bathroom on the first floor was made “accessible,” a wheelchair ramp was installed to the north entrance of the building, and an $80,000 “lift” was added to provide people in wheelchairs access to the second floor. The addition of the lift removed the fireproof file room on the first floor and took some of the gallery space from the second floor.
From 2006 to 2014, under the directorship of Dion Owens, the Civic Center hosted “Night of 1,000 Cupcakes” each summer in July. Tents were erected on the front lawn, and volunteers baked cupcakes, which were given away free of charge to attendees. There were cupcake competitions for “most creative” and “grand prize.” In 2014, 3,500 cupcakes were given out to more than 1,500 visitors, who enjoyed listening to live music and eating cupcakes on the front lawn.
In 2025, the Civic Center underwent the largest series of renovations, upgrades and improvements since the building opened, thanks in part to a Community Development Block Grant worth about $325,000, with the Civic Center contributing 15% of that total. The grant allowed the Civic Center to construct a new rear entrance, install new fire doors and a new fire security system, pave the rear parking lot, reroof the building, replace the windows, and install new flooring on the first and second floors.
In addition to the interior updates, the exterior of the building was rehabilitated. Some overgrown elements of the original planting, such as Japanese barberry and Japanese yew, which had occluded the front of the building, were removed. Overgrown pine trees in a lot behind the Civic Center were removed, as was a dead Norway spruce, which, once again, opened the lawn to its original expanse.
Sean Driscoll is a member of the Civic Center Board of Trustees.