news

1999 Smithsonian Folklife Festival
Washington, DC

THE CITIZEN VISITS THE SMITHSONIAN FOLKLIFE FESTIVAL
July 23, 1999. The Citizen, p. D1.
Smithsonian Institution officials said the New Hampshire exhibit was larger than any other exhibit they've had on the Mall in the last 15 years... Fife was featured in the cover photograph on the festival book and program.
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NEW HAMPSHIRE AT THE SMITHSONIAN: REBUILDING STONE WALLS
June 15, 1999. The Union Leader, p. C4.
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STONE WALL BUILDER HELPS PRESERVE STATE'S HERITAGE
June 10, 1999. The Telegram, p. 8.
Fife, who will be demonstrating his craft at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington DC later this month, last summer completed restoration of a 500-foot section of stone wall at Canterbury Shaker Village.
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Canterbury Shaker Village
Stone Wall Restoration, 1998

HISTORIC STONE WALL RESTORED
September 17, 1998. The Weirs Times, p. 19.
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BUILDING A HISTORY: THERE ARE NO BOUNDARIES FOR STONE WALL BUILDER KEVIN FIFE
September 2, 1998. Neighbors (Concord Monitor), p. 3.
"It's kind of an art in a way, mixing the stone and building it. Kind of like painting a picture."
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STONE WALL FIFE
August 30, 1998. Foster's Sunday Citizen, p. 2A.
A Northfield man recently restored a piece of history when he rebuilt a 350-goot stretch of a stone wall at Canterbury Shaker Village. Kevin Fife... has specialized in reconstructing stone walls since he was in high school.
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THE GREAT WALLS OF FIFE
May 27, 1999. The Citizen, p. 25.
The 90-foot retaining wall craftsman Kevin Fife is building at a Northfield home has blocks of granite for its base and steps. The wall is being built without any preconstruction drawings. He visualized the layout in his mind. Fife is going to show Folklife Festival visitors how a stonewall is built...(he) will also demonstrate how rocks and granite slabs are split.
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N.H. LIFE TO TAKE CENTER STAGE: 10 FROM AREA TO DISPLAY TALENT AT D.C. FESTIVAL
April 8, 1999. The Citizen, front page.
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1999 SMITHSONIAN FOLKLIFE FESTIVAL ARTISTS ARE NAMED
April 8, 1999. Concord Monitor, p. B-1.
Every year, one state gets a chance to strut its stuff on the Mall in Washington. This year, New Hampshire will be featured from June 30 to July 4.
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GOOD FOR ANOTHER HUNDRED YEARS: SHAKER VILLAGE STONE WALL LOVINGLY RESTORED
August 21, 1998, The Union Leader, p. A5.
"I'm happy to be preserving New Hampshire's heritage, especially right here in my hometown."
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SHAKER VILLAGE RESTORES 200-YEAR-OLD STONE WALLS KNOWN FOR THEIR BREADTH
July 24, 1998. The Union Leader, p. B10.
The restoration work, being completed by master wall builder Kevin Fife of Northfield, has seen the Canterbury hillside strewn with enormous "nuggets" and smaller stones since April, as he deconstructs and re-assembles the walls.
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STANDING THE TEST OF TIME (photo caption)
July 24, 1998. Concord Monitor, front page.

SHAKER VILLAGE UNDERTAKES STONE WALL RESTORATION
July 23, 1998. The Citizen, p. 7.
As the submerged section of wall indicated, the stone wall reconstruction has involved much more than re-piling rocks. New drainage pipes and escape holes have been built under and into the walls, to prevent the erosion that destroys walls over time.
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STONE WALL RESTORATION IS ALMOST COMPLETE AT VILLAGE
July 22, 1998. Neighbors (Concord Monitor), p. 3.
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Meetinghouse Restoration, 2006
New Durham, NH

OLD MEETINGHOUSE RESTORATION WORK STARTS IN NEW DURHAM
September 17, 2006. Fosters Sunday; read more

2006 Lowell Folk Festival
Lowell, Mass.

LOWELL FOLK FESTIVAL
July 27, 2006. The Sun, p. B25.; read more

Stone Foundation
Symposium 2001, Virginia

ALONE, THEY ARE STONES. TOGETHER, THEY'RE ART
August 23, 2001. Washington Post, p. H01.
Fife is one of a few dozen professional dry-stone wallers left in America. See him from a passing car, and you might mistake him for a hillbilly. Talk to him, and you realize you have found a poet. Fieldstones are his words, walls his verses. read more