The Shelburne Inn c. 2010

Once again, I am missing my friend Larry Weathers!  It just seems so wrong that he isn’t here to carry on with all the things he was into way before anyone else was noticing.  Like SHIPS – the Seaview Historical Preservation Society.  He would have loved the concept and he would have loved attending their gathering tonight at the Shelburne Hotel.

Shelburne c. 1900

In case you haven’t been keeping up… the iconic Shelburne Hotel (the oldest continuously operated hostelry in the state) has been closed since early January while new owners Brady and Tiffany Turner oversee a little renovating – most specifically refurbishing the fifteen guest rooms. “Conceptually, we want to take them back in time, but modernized for today’s travelers,” say the Turners.

This evening from 6:00 p.m. until 7:00, SHIPS will be getting an in-person update and sneak-peak look-around at the historic hotel before it opens to the public in the spring.  There will also be an update on the Seaview sign replacement endeavor – a huge undertaking, in itself.  (Gone are the days of our youth, Larry, when a few good men could cobble together an approach sign from the bits and pieces of a salvaged shipwreck – but that’s another story.)

Larry Weathers c. 2001

Larry Weathers worked in the Pacific County Planning Department (as I think it was called in those days) in the late seventies and eighties.  He was the… drum roll… designated County Preservation Officer. Part of his job involved helping County residents obtain official recognition for their historic properties.  He assisted the then Shelburne owners David and Laurie Campiche in getting the hotel placed on the National Register of Historic Places and he spent a considerable effort in trying to interest Seaview residents in forming a Seaview Historic District.

Larry, my friend, in your efforts on behalf of Seaview, you were definitely ahead of your time.  How I wish you were still with us.  I’d pick you up in a Nano-second and take you with us to the Shelburne tonight.  The event is open to the public and, by going early, we could actually order a meal from the pub!  And, best of all, I could introduce you to Nan Malin, primary mover-and-shaker in Seaview these days and president (I think) of SHIPS!  Or… maybe there’s a heavenly communication network.  You can reach her by calling 360-655-5883 or at info@seaviewhistorical.org.

Meanwhile, for all of you still earthbound history buffs… hope to see you at the Shelburne tonight! And, keep this thought: Very few things happen at the right time, and the rest do not happen at all: the conscientious historian will correct these defects. – Herodotus, The History of Herodotus