Ghostly Encounters

Waterville Historical Society presented another interesting and well-received Ghostly Encounters program. The spirits of residents past talked to current Waterville residents, and others, about the health problems that beset former residents. Doctors Paris and Welcome Pray, our earliest doctors, talked of Ague or Swamp Fever (Malaria) and primitive methods of treatment. They also discussed outbreaks of Cholera which wiped out the towns of Miltonville and Providence. School teachers spoke of caring for all kinds of student ailments and injuries. Dr. Daniels spoke of Civil War surgeries, ignorance of sanitation and the spread of disease among the soldiers. Dr. Babcock also discussed how the same spread of disease killed more soldiers in the Spanish American War than were killed in battle and how the dreadful flu pandemic of 1918-1919 was spread through the ranks and brought home to the U.S. population by returning soldiers from W.W. I. Dr. Waldo Suter and nurse Mildred Barnett talked of making house calls for childhood diseases, the need to quarantine for some serious diseases and of the fearful polio outbreaks. Finally Dr. Suter mentioned how heavy smoking led to his own early demise. The program had an attendance of 137. After the program the Waterville Presbyterian Church invited everyone there for refreshments and to meet the cast.

The following cast portrayed the past residents:

Characters and who played them:  

Mattie Lyon: Kathy Saco; Dr. Welcome Pray: Fred Goodell; Dr. Waldo Daniels: Joe Dowd;

Amanda Eastwood: Kathy Dowd; Dr. Harry Babcock: Jim Herzberg; Private Emery Christman: Abe De Lisle;

Charlotte Hutchinson: Kris Goodell; Mildred Barnett: Aggie Ault; Dewey Longstreet: Liem Eichenlaub;

Resident String Section: Alex Bielsk; Jim Conrad: Dr. Paris Pray and Dr. Waldo Suter; Stage Crew: Jim

Stoma and Scott Duncan; Membership Chair: Steve Lauer; Cemetery Sexton: Rory Hartbarger