Tonight on New Hampshire Crossroads, is high school today the way you remember it?

Students and teachers at Dover High tell us what's on their minds.

Then, Peterborough remembers the flood, the fire, the hurricane of 1938, 51 years later.

And we go to Intervale to meet Stephen Laurent, son of an Abenaki chieftain who is fighting to preserve the culture and language of the Abenaki people.

And we visit a piece of New Hampshire in Massachusetts at the Eastern States Exposition in Springfield, Massachusetts.

Hi, I'm Fritz Wetherbee, and this is New Hampshire Crossroads.

Theme Music Presentation of New Hampshire Crossroads is made possible by grants from Weeks Dairy Foods Incorporated, makers and distributors of fresh dairy products and premium ice creams for your family.

First NH Banks, serving the financial needs of individuals, corporations, and local governments throughout New Hampshire.

Continental Cablevision, providing quality cable service and community programing throughout New Hampshire.

And the Union Leader Corporation, publisher of New Hampshire's statewide newspapers.

We're right for New Hampshire.

Today, we're at the Currier Gallery of Art here in Manchester, New Hampshire, and this exhibit is by artist Verujan Boghosian, who is the artist-in-residence up at Dartmouth College.

It's mostly constructions, but there are also some paintings here, and it is as exciting a show as I have ever seen.

In fact, you're not going to find a more exciting show in America nowadays than the show that is here.

And it will be here through the 15th of October.

And if you can get over to see it, I would highly recommend it.

Well, school started this week.

No doubt you're aware of that, seeing all those brand new sneakers out by the side of the road waiting for the school bus.

We thought it might be fun to see what it's like in high school nowadays.

And so we spent two days over at Dover High School seeing what the students and the teachers are thinking about in the 1980s.

So let's get started.

Otherwise, we'll be late for the bus and miss all of the announcements in homeroom.

Music John Avery.

And you are the?

Senior class president of Dover High.

Okay, what are the, what are the most pressing issues of the senior class at Dover High?

Parking, where we're going on our senior class trip.

Pizza party, November 17th with the senior class and graduation and plans like that for the future and the reunions like that.

I have to get up at 5:30, and the bus usually comes around six, 6:55, 7:00, and then we get to school about 7:15 and then morning bell We go to homeroom about 7:35.

Music (school bell) Good morning.

May I please have your attention for the morning announcements.

Would everyone rise for the Pledge of Allegiance.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

And to the Republic for which it stands.

One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Would you please be seated for a moment of silence?

(no dialogue) Attention, seniors.

Cap and gown measurements will be today and tomorrow from 8:30 to 1:30 in the caf.

A representative from New England College will be at Dover High School on Tuesday, November 17th during seventh period.

Interested juniors and seniors can sign up in the guidance office before noon tomorrow.

There's a French club meeting Thursday after school.

All members must attend.

Reminder, all student homeroom reps, there is a meeting Thursday, November 12th, after school in the library.

Girls, if you have a favorite guy that you have been dying to ask out, here's your chance.

Ask him to the Sadie Hawkins Dance on Saturday, November 14th from 7:30 to 11:30 p.m.

in the caf.

$2.50 per person or $3.00 per couple.

Guys, if you haven't been asked, come anyway.

You'll have the time of your life and help to support your student newspaper.

Good morning, there’s one further announcement.

Regarding parking.

As I announced on Tuesday, there is no change.

Please wait for an announcement tomorrow, at which time I will indicate what the next move regarding parking will be.

(school bell) Music (school bell) Today, as I told you last week, we're going to work on conferencing with the autobiographies.

All right.

I'll be walking around listening to what you're talking about.

See what you're writing.

If you have any questions, ask.

I didn't get a chance to start my (inaudible).

Well, let them read it anyway.

Read the old one?

And.

Yeah, and you can tell them how you're going to change it, that you're going to zero in on that particular moment.

Okay.

Okay?

Your autobiographies are due this Friday.

No late papers will be accepted.

Do you want to type?

I used to be a speech and drama teacher.

So for many years I directed plays.

Now it's very difficult to get students to rehearse because they're working after school and involved in so many other activities that in the state of New Hampshire, speech and drama is not as active as it used to be.

Why am I getting a job?

To get money.

I work with Thomas Mann Jewelry.

When I went to school, kids didn't work.

They didn't get jobs.

They didn't have to go make money for going to college or for cars or for clothes or for their girlfriends.

If we earned $5 or $6 a week, it was a lot.

So as a result, we had more time for social activity.

There were many more dances.

Kids were more interested in school-centered activities than they are today.

Many kids go directly to their jobs after 2:00.

Some kids go home, they do their homework.

Then they go to thei job.

Chuck E Cheese.

Jake's Jake’s Restaurant.

I'm trying to get a job, though.

Music I want you to look at these two, and this is the assignment that goes with this, and tell me which one is the most successful of the two.

I don't want you to make a little list of what Jefferson did.

What you’re gonna do is, you're not going to mix that with (inaudible).

Music If it wasn't for this class, I really wouldn't have any goal to get through high school.

(school bell) Music Discipline is much more difficult today.

We have to work at disciplining the kids all the time.

I think, when we were in school, we tended to get a great deal of discipline at home.

On the other hand, I think that that the kids, because of their outside exposure, tend to be much more mature.

I want to be a teacher.

I'm only 17.

I don't know, I can't make up my mind what I want to do for the rest of my life.

There are too many things.

It's very confusing for kids.

Medicine, doctor.

I'm going to the Marines.

Yeah, I want to go to art school.

I don't know, whatever comes.

I want to be a cop.

I want to be an accountant.

Okay.

We've got an electrical apparatus here.

No, no no, no.

Now I'm getting blastissimo from that end.

Set, here goes, meet your destiny.

(inaudible) means victory!

Set, here goes, Meet your destiny.

(inaudible) means victory!

Music Since we produced that piece, there have been some major changes at Dover High School.

First of all, the student body has gotten a great deal larger.

And they have a brand new principal, Mr.

Kegelairy, and they have added an area vocational center as well.

This Thursday marks the anniversary of the worst natural disaster to hit New England in the 20th century.

That's the 1938 hurricane.

And in all of New England, there was no town that suffered any more than the town of Peterborough.

A while ago, I spent some time at the Peterborough Historical Society and talked with some of the people who remember that day very well.

All that you see around me, all of this blowdown, is the result of a hurricane that slammed through New England almost 50 years ago, a hurricane so huge and so strong that in the minds of those who witnessed it, it ranks along with other momentous occasions like the bombing of Pearl Harbor or the death of John Kennedy.

It happened September 21st, 1938.

The hurricane had been tracked up the East Coast, but appeared to be moving out to sea.

Weather forecasting in 1938 wasn't what it is today.

Weather bureaus closed up early that night, and the weather forecasters went to bed thinking nothing would happen.

They could not have been more wrong.

The storm changed course during the night, and the next morning slammed into the Connecticut shore with a force that in some cases through small boats a quarter of a mile inland.

It took everything down in its path.

No one was prepared for it.

The storm moved inland across Massachusetts, up the center of New England.

Peterborough, New Hampshire, was right in the center of the path inland.

Roofs were blown off, whole forests flattened.

There were floods and fires.

The Contoocook River turned downtown Peterborough into a lake, and the Transcript Printing Company burned flat because many of the firefighters could not get across the river to help save it.

Unfortunately, the fire trucks and the firemen couldn't get to the fire.

It started from the wind and it started in the grain mill from, what do you call it?

Spontaneous.

Spontaneous combustion.

And that, of course, burned the Transcript and burned the grain mill and burned the block beyond it.

Oh, that was - These are members of the Peterborough Historical Society who got together for our cameras to discuss that day in 1938.

I was with my soon- to-be brother-in-law, and as we got as far as the Congregational parsonage, the trees were coming down across the road and Reverend Gooch came out and he said, you must not go any farther.

So we went in and spent the night there, all of us looking out the window while Reverend Gooch prayed, thinking the whole town was going.

My sister was taking it very much in stride, until all of a sudden her pear tree went sailing by the window and she says, My God, there goes my pear tree.

And so then we realized there was a real strong wind.

And I saw a tree break right in front of my eyes.

It must have been a foot in diameter, and I figured I couldn't go much further.

And I looked up at where Hazel (inaudible) house was, and I could see the the shingles being lifted off the house.

I don't think they were came off the house, but they were lifting, lifting up.

I went down in the backyard.

This is after the fire had started and the wind seemed to change, you know, first it would go this way and that way and every way.

And I remember seeing great pieces of the building come right up the river and land in my backyard.

We were walking down Concord Street to see how much damage had been done, and all the people, sightseers, were up on the hill, and my sister was shaking her fist at the sightseers, and she stepped into a hole that she didn't realize was there.

I think that was the only time we had a laugh during the whole thing, but it was very scary.

Well, this is the Contoocook River in downtown Peterborough the way it looks today.

This bridge that I'm on, during the hurricane, was under about 12ft of water.

Across the street there is where the Transcript Printing Company was, which is the place that burned flat.

You know, a few years ago when Hurricane Gloria was barreling up the East Coast, a lot of people were alarmed.

Mostly older people.

And a lot of other people wondered what the fuss was all about, mostly younger people.

Hurricane Gloria, of course, fizzled out.

But, you know, it could have been, well, you see what it could have been.

The movies that you saw in that piece were taken by the late Ned Larrabee, a very talented man who used to live in Peterborough.

And I'd like to thank the Peterborough Historical Society for the use of that film, and also for the use of the stills that you saw in that piece.

A while ago, we traveled up to Intervale, New Hampshire, just a stone's throw away from the Mount Washington Valley vista.

And there, producer Chip Neal spent some time with Stephen Laurent, an Abenaki Indian who is working quietly but persistently to preserve his ancient Abenaki heritage.

And one of the projects that he's working on is an Abenaki to English Dictionary.

(speaking in Abenaki) This is the story about an encounter between Mohawks and Abenakis in which the, at one point they haate bark and so they were called bark eaters.

Now here you have the etymology of the word Adirondack.

It's an Iroquois word because the Mohawks are Iroquois.

And the Mohawks were calling the Abenakis Adirondacks, calling them bark eaters because they had seen them eat bark.

(speaking in Abenaki) And then (Abenaki) they decided to fight.

Stephen Laurent, son of an Abenaki Indian chief and caretaker of his tribe's former summer campsite in Intervale, has also been preserving his native language.

Since 1965, he has been translating an English to Abenaki Dictionary.

The author of The Autocrat at the Breakfast Table, he said that language is, is, is a noble thing, and it comes right from the from the very heart of a human being.

And through language we know what what they believe.

We know what they, what food they ate, what what games they played.

We know whether they’re, they were happy or miserable.

You get an insight into into the, into their mentality which, which otherwise you would, it would be lost.

Music Now I play the violin and the the word for violin is (speaking Abenaki).

And I could say violin, (speaking Abenaki), and go, go on to the next word.

But people would say, what does that mean?

Well, (speaking Abanaki) at the end always means a tool, an object.

And (speaking Abenaki) means to sway, you know, like this.

Because, you know what struck the Indians was, it, It could have been a melody of the supreme beauty.

But that didn't strike them at all.

What struck them was this swaying business, you know, violins.

So they called (speaking Abanaki) the thing that, the instrument that sways.

Music Stephen Laurent lives about a mile from this gift shop, which he and his wife run in the summertime.

It offers Indian- made products of all kinds.

And Stephen wanted me to remind you that what you're seeing here is not the fully stocked shop you would see in the summertime.

But more important to him and to us is where the shop is located.

It's on three acres of land, which is the historic site of his tribal summer camp.

They were occupied by 12 or 15 Abenaki Indians, who came here to spend the summer and make baskets, and in the fall go back to the reservation for the winter.

They came down from their reservation, some 220 miles north in Canada, to trade with local hotels and tourists.

And it was his father, Chief Joseph Laurent, who negotiated the deal for this summer camp with a local hotel owner.

He came to a hotel run by a Mr.

Wyman, and Mr.

Wyman facetiously said, why, chief, you come here so often, I should think you'd live here.

And my father said, well, I'd like to, but I don't have any money.

I can't buy land.

(inaudible) said, you don't need any money.

If you go and pick out a spot there in the woods somewhere, and he pointed about right about here, and any place that you'd like to and just set your cabins there and it'll be all right, because I own that land, and it's all right if you stay there as long as you want to.

So his father did stay there and returned with his tribe each summer until he died in 1917.

But before Chief Joseph died, he published a book of Abenaki names, grammar, and dialogues, thus planting a seed in the heart of his son Stephen, which became his passion some 50 years later.

For the past 20 years or more, Stephen has been translating a French dictionary written in 1715 by Joseph Aubery, a Jesuit priest.

It's a very slow work because I, I, I don't just, as I said, don't just translate the word, I, I break the word down.

I give the etymology of the word, see, and that makes it more valuable, you see.

And more interesting.

You see, the Indians had no written language except for pictograms.

So Stephen's etymology of their spoken language is not only valuable, it's downright refreshing.

(Speaking Abenaki) means a clock.

What it means, the thing that makes a noise for nothing, you know, it makes a noise and it doesn't do anything.

It doesn't achieve anything.

When, when, when when the Indian utters the war cry, well, that's for something.

He’s going on a war.

But here's the thing.

I don't know what it's for, but it’s, it goes tock, tock, tock and makes a noise.

And what is it for?

So it's, it's the thing that makes a noise for nothing.

This Abenaki etymology reminded me of the beach.

When my daughter was four or five years old, I used to bring her here all the time.

And she had a special name for the beach.

She called it the place where the water catches you.

I thought maybe she was really an Abenaki at heart.

But Stephen told me the Abenaki word for the beach is (speaking Abenaki), and it means sandy place.

You know, I think I like my daughter's version better.

By the way, all is not well around the tribal campgrounds these days.

It seems that North Conway’s traffic problems may affect Stephen's tribal campgrounds.

The E2 bypass plan would completely destroy the site.

I call the bypass a monstrosity.

So to to take, to wipe this out and instead put that monstrosity here, I think it's, I think it's criminal.

I think it's a I think it's I think it's an injustice.

Well, they should find some other way or they should, they should realize that it's not all that, all that big a problem.

Although his tribal campground is being threatened, I know Stephen Laurent has a firm grasp on the things that endure.

Translating this 270 year old Jesuit dictionary has inspired his passion now for more than 20 years.

Here's what Jesuit priest Aubery wrote at the end of his dictionary back in 1715.

Here is the end of this learning book of the Indian language.

May it help those who come after me, and in their in their work, to the in their work to the glory of God.

Let them sometimes remember in their prayers the one who made it.

Since we produced that story, Stephen has been concerned with the proposed E2 bypass.

But just last week, the area voted 500 to 800 in favor of the West One proposal.

And so the tribal campgrounds are safe, at least for now.

And the dictionary?

Well, it's not finished yet, but as Stephen completes each page, he sends it, along with an audiotape of the pronunciation of the words, to the Maine Historical Society where it will be made available to those who come after him.

And who knows, maybe those that use the dictionary will remember in their prayers the one who made it.

Last September we attended the Big E, the Great Eastern Exposition down in Springfield, Massachusetts, and we gave Chip Neal just enough time to take us on a quick tour of the New Hampshire Pavilion.

Music Real hot 50s band over there across the street.

Well, listen, they've only left me two minutes to let you know everything you may or may not have wanted to know about the New Hampshire Pavilion here.

So let's get started.

First things first.

The building.

This building is a replica of the original New Hampshire State House, and it was built on this land back in 1930.

This is one third of an acre of land that was donated to New Hampshire by the Eastern States Exposition.

So that makes this land technically New Hampshire, and that makes this building sort of like a New Hampshire embassy in the middle of Massachusetts.

I'll take this, please.

So that means you won't pay a Massachusetts sales tax in here, either.

Eat your heart out, Bay Staters.

And where else could I work in Massachusetts and not pay Bay State income taxes?

Tell me that, huh?

Thank you.

Live free or die.

Long live the pledge.

May I have a napkin, please?

Napkins.

Okay.

Thank you.

Here I am, right in the middle of Massachusetts, and I bought a New Hampshire Lottery ticket.

Great stuff, huh?

And while we're here, why not pick up a New Hampshire hunting and fishing license?

Your last name, sir?

Neal.

$70 for an out-of-state resident, huh?

First name?

Chip.

And your middle initial?

M. It's quite a bargain.

Quite a bargain, I'll take seven of them.

Okay, before you go, I want you to meet Betsy Booth here.

She's the New Hampshire state building coordinator, and we can't leave without a few statistics about the pavilion.

What are those statistics?

Chip, more than a million people visit the Big E each year, and 600,000 of them will come through the New Hampshire building to see our 20 exhibitors and watch the demonstrations.

All right.

You know, I had one thought in mind.

This is a very permanent building, and I wondered what happens to it the other 50 weeks of the year?

It's used for storage.

At one time, caskets were stored here, and now it's used more for boats.

Oh, one other thing.

What's the most popular item here?

I think you have to say the New Hampshire blueberry pie with ice cream.

Do you suppose I could get some of that?

You sure could.

Music This is Steve, our cameraman, Deb, our sound person.

They gave us free ice cream and blueberry pie.

It's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it.

Music If you'd like your own piece of blueberry pie, you're in luck, because the Eastern States Exposition is going on right now and will continue through the 24th of this month.

And on the 22nd, which is a Friday, they have New Hampshire Day down at the Big E. Fun for everyone.

Well, that's our show for this week.

Before we go, again, I highly recommend you’re coming by to see this wonderful show by Varujan Boghosian, which runs here at The Currier through October the 15th.

And don't forget to tune in next week when we will show you the Old Man of the Mountain as few see it, and that is from the viewpoint of the caretaker, Niels Nielsen.

Til then, for New Hampshire Crossroads, I'm Fritz Wetherbee.

Theme Music Presentation of New Hampshire Crossroads is made possible by grants from Weeks Dairy Foods Incorporated, makers and distributors of fresh dairy products and premium ice creams for your family.

First NH Banks, serving the financial needs of individuals, corporations, and local governments throughout New Hampshire.

Continental Cablevision, providing quality cable service and community programing throughout New Hampshire.

And the Union Leader Corporation, publisher of New Hampshire's statewide newspapers.

We're right for New Hampshire.

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