Etta Falkner

YORK - Etta Falkner, 90, former director of the Old Gaol Museum (1958-1960s) and a resident of York during her tenure here over 40 years ago, died Oct. 29 at Sunbridge Health Care in Portsmouth, N.H., after a long illness.

Formerly a resident of Sturbridge, Mass., where she lived for almost 40 years, Etta Falkner resided in Portsmouth for the past nine years. 

Born in New York City, where she attended public schools, she received a Bachelor of Arts from Hunter College and a Master of Arts in Adult Education from Teachers' College, Columbia University.  Her various occupations involved working for the New York City Public Library system and the American Museum of Natural History, where she won acclaim for arranging special exhibits, including traveling exhibits for schools.  

Subsequent employment included a house museum, notably the Munson Williams Proctor Institute in Utica, N.Y., after which she came to York as director for the Old Gaol Museum Committee, which later merged with the Old York Historical Society and the Old York Historical and Improvement Society to form the Museums of Old York as we now know it. 

Etta Falkner was the first professional to be involved with the artifacts, many of them gifts, in the collections amassed over the years; as such, she conducted research and organized the collections along recognized parameters, rendering them available to others in the museum field. Through her efforts, the impressive collections here became well known in museum circles. Additionally, Etta Falkner was the first person to catalog the book collections and to commence the work of setting up a library, making the books in the library accessible to those interested in York history. Her work was such that it set standard for the first-rate museum that is Old York.

Subsequently, in the 1960s, she accepted an offer as director of the Research Library at Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge, Mass., a position which she held for 25 years until her retirement in 1982. 

Along with membership in various museum and library associations, she was a member of the Southbridge Garden Club. In addition to library and museum work, which she enjoyed, her hobbies included gardening, reading and ornithology. Her friends knew her as a true naturalist. She enjoyed participating in these various activities during her retirement.

Survivors include her sister, Stella F. Barnette of York; her niece, Okanta Leonard of Hallifax, Nova Scotia, and a great nephew, Neahga Leonard of California. 

 

E. Harper Holbrook

YORK HARBOR - E. Harper Holbrook, 89, died Nov. 9, 2007, at York Hospital in York.

He was born June 5, 1918, son of Edwin and Mildred Holbrook in Great Barrington, Mass. He was raised by his grandparents, John T. Harper and Mildred Maude Harper. After graduating from Searles High School in Great Barrington, he attended Williston Academy in East Hampton, Mass., and Bryant Stratton College in Boston, Mass.

He served in the United States Coast Guard as a  Boatswain's Mate, First Class, during World War II from 1942 to 1945. Prior to leaving for service, he married Elizabeth "Betty" Searle on Sept. 19, 1942. They were married for nearly 60 years prior to her death in 2002. After being honorably discharged from the Coast Guard, Harper worked for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as a municipal examiner, retiring in 1983.

While living in Great Barrington, Harper was also very active in local government and community affairs. He was a longtime member and chairman of the Great Barrington Finance Committee and of the board of trustees at Fairview Hospital, and is presently a mason in the Cincinnatas Lodge.

After retiring in 1983, he and his wife moved to Cape Porpoise, where he served on the Kennebunkport Budget Committee. In 1994, he moved to Kennebunk, and in 2001 moved to Sentry Hill in York Harbor.

He was predeceased by his wife, Betty, and is survived by one daughter, Judith Bubriski of Hamilton, Mass.; one son, John Holbrook of York, and one granddaughter, Jennifer Bubriski of Cambridge, Mass.

A private burial service will be held in Great Barrington. Memorial contributions may be made to the York Ambulance Association, P.O. Box 238, York, ME 03909.

Lucas & Eaton Funeral Home is directing arrangements. Visit www.lucaseatonfuneralhome.com.

 

Doris K. Lindvall

OGUNQUIT - Doris K. Lindvall, a longtime Ogunquit summer resident, died Oct. 20, 2007, in Wilmington, Delaware. She had recently celebrated her 100th birthday.

She was the wife of the late Bertil E. Lindvall.

The daughter of the late James E. and Emma Allen Kimball, she was born and lived in Arlington, Mass., until moving to Winchester, Mass., in 1937.

In 1973, she and her husband relocated, dividing their time between Ogunquit and Clearwater, Fla. She volunteered at the York Hospital, was a member of the Maine Chapter of the Society of Mayflower Descendants and enjoyed membership at the York Golf and Tennis Club.

She had four sons; the late David K. Rocray of York; John A. Rocray of Brattleboro, Vt.; Samuel E. Rocray of Orleans, Mass., and Peter E. Lindvall of Wilmington, and a step-daughter, Jean Lindvall O'Rourke of Stowe, Vt. She had 10 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

Services and interment will be private. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to a charity of your choice. Visit www.chandlerfuneralhome.com.