By Nicholas Brown
Staff Writer

This 135-year-old hearse was auctioned Aug. 16, with the Candia Historical Society being the winning bidder. The hearse was originally purchased by the town in 1871, but later sold to a private individual. (Courtesy Photo)

After more than 65 years on the lam, a 135-year-old horse-drawn hearse has made its way back into town hands.

The Candia Historical Society recently purchased the relic, used for decades by townspeople for funerals, for $7,000.

The group, which raised the money through private donations, was the high bidder at an Aug. 16 auction. Candia resident Ron Severino agreed to front money for the hearse purchase.

“We are delighted that the historical society was able to raise the funds to keep this hearse for the town of Candia,” said society President Ed Fowler.

The historical society raised exactly $7,000, hoping to keep the 1871 hearse in town.

“We went to the auction not knowing how much it would go for,” said Fowler.

Fortuitously, “The gavel dropped at $7,000,” he said.

The town hasn’t owned the historic hearse since before 1930, when it was sold to a local undertaker, George E. Seavey, for $1.

The town originally purchased the hearse for $500, plus $50 for runners for use in snow.

Seavey was the first in a string of private owners of the hearse.

The most recent private owners stumbled upon the hearse when, in the 1950s, they bought a farm in Candia where the hearse was being stored.

Fowler said the old hearse has been kept in pretty good condition over the decades since it’s been under cover and protected from the elements.

Some parts of the hearse, Fowler suggested, like replacement carriage lamps, a rear window and a missing hub, do call for restoration.

“We do need more funds, clearly, to do those sorts of things,” said Fowler.

A local man has agreed to store the hearse in his barn until the historical society can secure a more permanent location.

Fowler said the hearse has nearly been lost to the town on several occasions throughout previous decades.

He said the most recent owners were contacted by some people in Vermont interested in buying the hearse.

“We came very close to losing that hearse without ever knowing about it,” he said.

Several area towns have recently launched hearse restoration projects, revamping relics of town history that perhaps fell by the wayside for decades.

Donna Dunn has been instrumental in restoring Dunbarton’s 1871 town hearse over the last several years.

“I’ve heard Candia’s was in better shape than ours,” said Dunn. “Then again, anything was in better shape than ours.”

Dunn suggested the Candia Historical Society is in for a long and arduous journey when it comes to restoring such an old artifact, but she says, “It’s worth it. The research is amazing.”

Fowler said he’s thrilled not to be lamenting another piece of town history.

“It’s good to keep so our future generations can see something like this and think about the days of the horse and buggy,” he said.