Pelham Old Home Day 2025

Pelham's Old Home Day is a gracious response to the request of the Governor of the state of New Hampshire in 1899 who asked for a statewide celebration of Old Home Days. The first Old Home Day was celebrated in Pelham on August 18, 1906. August was the best time because the farming communities were between harvests. Farmers were not known for having summer vacations. Pelham was championing its place on the new Electric Railroad System between the points of Lowell, Massachusetts and Canobie Lake/Salem, New Hampshire. Wednesday was an excellent day for this event! Businesses closed in Lowell for the afternoon and their day in the country benefited the people of Pelham. The first celebration in 1906 reunited the Greeley Singers. A souvenir book with ads and pictures was available. It was a time of speeches and a dinner at the Pilgrim Hall sponsored by the ladies of the Congregational Church. Several years later a parade and sporting events were added to the venue. The Lowell Symphonic Orchestra would come to play in the evening at 6 p.m. Mrs. Bigelow, choir director at First Congregational, was instrumental in bringing the Lowell Symphony to Pelham.

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Some people still fondly recall those summer celebrations. People had a good time just visiting. By 1931, Old Home Day was sponsored by the Pelham First Congregational Church. This fundraiser helped to meet church expenses. The Ladies Aid Society would make aprons and pot holders which would sell for a few pennies each. May Smith was known for buying enough aprons to keep herself for a year. A doll carriage parade, baby shows, fashion shows, plus talent and dance became a part of the program. A bake table provided cuisine fresh from the oven. Tug of wars and baseball games would not only provide entertainment but also be wonderful means of endearment and encouragement.