Pageant will recap village history

Holley, a village with a rich history, will be celebrating the 150th year of its incorporation this year.

While the anniversary celebration will not take place until August 4, festival chairmen will be hosting a fundraising spaghetti dinner at St. Mary's Social Center, South Main Street on March 10.

"We are planning a big celebratory bash," Chairman Gail Sevor said. "Some municipalities celebrate when they were settled, some go with the chartering, we have chosen our incorporation date."

As part of the one-day event, retired Holley school teacher Michael Charles is putting together a historical pageant highlighting Holley's history from its founding to present day. Charles has authorized two history books on Holley, Roses and Garlic and Minestrone Soup.

"The pageant should be a fun reminder of Holley's history and might even offer glimpses of information that even residents weren't aware of," Sevor said. "This will be a great way to get a visual history of our village."

Ray Shahin, the marching band director who led Holley to the state championships many years ago, is writing music for the historical pageant.

Chairmen are planning various attractions for the event including craft vendors, a parade, music in the canal park and a chicken barbecue. The day's festivities will be capped off by a fireworks display.

Village Historian Marsha DeFilipps said Holley welcomed its first settler in 1812. The village took its name from Myron Holley, one of the original canal commissioners.

Harrison Hatch was elected village president in 1850. DeFilipps said Holley suffered three major fires in its infancy. Two of the blazes consumed village records, the first was October 25, 1866, the second in 1874.

Holley boasts several "famous" individuals, DeFilipps said, including Colonel John Berry, a produce dealer who was a member of the state Assembly; Professor George Olds, who taught mathematics at Amherst College and whose father was the first proprietor of the Holley Hotel. Jewel Buckman, who has an American Legion Post named after him, had his musical scores published. Ida Padelford, a local poet, published a book of her poetry, entitled "Flutes in the Wind."

One of the first females doctors in the area, Phebe A. Sprague, who was born in 1845, also called Holley home.

"A lot of people don't realize that we had three people aboard the Titanic," DeFilipps said. "One survived but the other two went down with the ship."

A monument was erected in Holley's Hillside Cemetery in remembrance of those who lost their lives on board.

"During the excavation of the canal, a two pound, two ounce mastodon tooth was discovered," she said. The tooth was donated to a state museum but DeFilipps said they are attempting to secure its return in time for the August celebration.

Anyone wishing to volunteer to participate in the festivities, including the historical pageant is asked to contact Sevor at 638-3322 or they can contact the village office for more information. Tickets for the spaghetti dinner are $5 for adults and $3 for children under 12.