Meredith's Old Home Day returns Saturday, Sept. 6, after a 75-year hiatus

MEREDITH — It’s been 75 years since the town celebrated itself with an Old Home Day event — the last took place in 1950.

And 50 years have passed since the town’s beloved resident, Bob Montana, the creator of Archie Comics, passed away in his mid-50s after having a heart attack while cross-country skiing nearby in 1975.

This year’s revival of Old Home Day will celebrate both town history and Montana on Saturday, Sept. 6, with fun that includes a parade, offerings from area businesses, a 15-minute performance of one of Montana’s works, and games for children and families.

“I think it’s going to be a great event that will bring people to the community,” said Andrew Eaton, owner of Art of Turning and member of the Meredith Old Home Day Committee. “It’s a great opportunity for the community to come together and have a hometown celebration for the locals.”

The focus on Montana draws on the Meredith Historical Society’s declaration that 2025 is the Year of Bob Montana and its roll out of a museum display of Montana artifacts, life-size figures of Archie and his gang created by local artists, and the staging of a rediscovered play written and directed by Montana in the ’50s for the Meredith Village Players theater group.

Born in California, Montana spent summers in Meredith as a young person. After creating the character of Archie at 21, he and his wife, Helen, returned to Meredith in 1948, raising four children in an old New England-style farmhouse.

While he drew Archie, Veronica, Jughead and his other teenage characters by day, he sailed on Lake Winnipesaukee to relax in the afternoons on his sloop, the White Eagle.

His daughter, Lynn Montana, lives in Meredith, and she will serve as the parade marshal on Old Home Day, when the parade steps off from Middleton Building Supply and heads down Main Street, ending at Plymouth Street. Marchers will pass right by Montana’s little red studio on Main Street, across from White Birch Gifts.

“It’s something for the locals,” said Jennifer Williams of Center Harbor, a member of the Old Home Day Committee. “It’s meant for the people who live here year-round and grew up here to celebrate Meredith and all that it is. Once the tourist season dies down, it’s nice to have a focus on the community coming together.”

Sam Seeley, another committee member from Center Harbor, remembers attending Old Home Day in Sandwich as a child, and he’s excited to help plan a large, free festival honoring Meredith and those who helped shape it.

“Meredith needs something like this,” he said. “The town is awesome.”

One highlight of the day will take place at noon on the Main Street stage, where talent from the Winnipesaukee Playhouse will perform a 15-minute skit featuring one of Bob Montana’s works.

Other events include an egg toss at 11 a.m. at the First Baptist Church for anyone who wants to take part; a pie-eating contest near the stage at 1 p.m.; and a children’s scavenger hunt that will be ongoing all day, concluding in the afternoon.

For information on parking, detours and downtown shops, visit MeredithOldHomeDay.com or find Meredith Old Home Day on Facebook.

The committee is looking for volunteers, who can sign up online.

“I think it will be the beginning of an annual event,” said Eaton. “It’s a great way to celebrate.”