Founded:
The Frye Island Historical Society was organized in 2019.
Mission:
The Frye Island Historical Society Committee is dedicated to discovering, preserving, organizing and sharing the historical background of beautiful Frye Island, Maine.
Collections:
The FIHS is collecting, scanning, organizing, and assessing photos, documents and artifacts. The Frye Island Historical Society has a collection of maps, town documents, photographs, pamphlets and other publications. The photo collection demonstrates the history of the island as a sheep farm, a boy’s camp, a summer retreat and finally as the newest town in Maine.
A library is available with books about the history of the Sebago Lake area and well as Frye Island. There is also information about Maine's involvement in the Civil War, specifically original books, documents and photographs of Joshua Chamberlain, the General who led the 20th Maine as they held the left flank of Little Round Top to win the Battle of Gettysburg, the turning point of the Civil War.
The Frye Island Historical Society is fortunate to have a Native American canoe anchor, as well as several arrowheads discovered on the island.
It is our plan to have on-going revolving exhibits involving Native American history, colonial history and the early development of the island. The foundation for these goals is presently being developed until our permanent home is completed.
Facilities:
At the present time, collections are stored, and the FIHS meets and works in private homes. The Society is currently waiting for the Frye Island Community Center renovation to be completed.
Upon completion, the FIHS will have space for displays, hands-on exhibits, as well as a library and research center. Meanwhile, the FIHS is sharing information on this website, on the Maine Memory Network, on social media and in the local paper, the Frye Island News Service (FINS).