Weirs Beach Chamber History

A trio of Laconia Chamber of Commerce brochures from the 1930’s. During this time, Weirs Beach was part of the Laconia Chamber. In the late 1940’s, Weirs Beach restarted its own independent Chamber, built a new information booth, and began producing an annnual brochure.

The second Weirs Beach information booth was located on the boardwalk.

Below, an advertisment in the 1947 Lakes Region Association’s “Where To” guidebook. The ad appeared prominently on the inside front cover of the guidebook.

Below, in 1947, the first of the annual Weirs Beach brochures was produced, in black and white, and featured an artistically detailed map of the Weirs Beach area. The 1948 brochure sported an identical cover and map, but different interior photos.

1947 & 1948

Recreation Center of Lake Winnipesaukee and the Lakes Region – New England’s Favorite Inland Resort

From 1949-1951 the Weirs Beach Chamber produced three brochures with nearly identical covers. Notably, the name of the area changed from “The Weirs” in 1950 to “Weirs Beach” in 1951, thanks to the brand new beach. All three of these brochures featured a separate, artistically detailed map in the inside middle pocket of the brochure.

1949

1950

1951

1952

The Weirs Chamber of Commerce had changed its name to the Weirs Beach Chamber of Commerce by 1952, but as can be seen on the bottom of the cover of this map/brochure, old habits die hard — the location was still known as “The Weirs”. Click here to see an artistically detailed map from this 1952 brochure!

In this photo from the 1952 brochure, passengers arriving from the Boston & Maine train carry their luggage down the boardwalk.

In 1954 the marketing slogan changed to the “Recreation Center of New Hampshire” and the name of the organization was now the Weirs Beach AREA Chamber of Commerce. Instead of an artistically detailed map of the Weirs Beach area these brochures featured a generalized map of Lake Winnipesaukee with numbered dots pinpointing the Weirs Beach area businesses.

1954

1955

1956

Detail from the map in the 1956 brochure. Recreation Center of Lake Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire – New England’s Favorite Inland Resort. A more detailed map was published in the 1956 booklet.

1957

First modern brochure is created, featuring color photographs thoughout the brochure. A simple map of Lake Winnipesaukee is inside; it does not pinpoint the exact locations of area businesses as previous brochure maps had done.

1957

Everybody has Fun at Weirs Beach… All the family will cheer your choice…nowhere is there so much for so many!

1957

This is it…the ideal vacation spot.

1957

Weirs Beach has everything to offer that a vacationer would want…

1958

In 1958, Tichnor Brothers, a well-know postcard publisher based in Boston, with the “co-operation of the Weirs Beach Publicity Bureau”, produces a 12 photo, chrome postcard folder, images from which are dispersed throughout this website. The inside cover of the folder contained the above write-up.

In 2008, 50 years later, many of the activities mentioned in the write-up are still providing the rationale for visitors to come to Weirs Beach.

Also in 1958, Beryl H. Plummer & Associates of Lakeport, who produced the 1954-1956 Weirs Beach brochures, produced an independent brochure about the pleasures of vacationing on Lake Winnipesaukee. (Mr. Plummer died October 19, 1999, at the age of 93.)

1959

On September 30, 1959, the Laconia and Weirs Beach chambers merged. The chambers separated again from 1976-1989, when the “Weirs Chamber of Commerce” was revived. In 1990, the chambers remerged. Since that time, the relationship between the two areas of the city has endured, and has become ever stronger.

1960s

The Pleasure Center of Lake Winnipesaukee

Your Host

1962

1976-1989

Weirs Beach splits off from the Laconia chamber, reviving its own chamber and producing its own brochure. Bob Lawton is president.

The Complete Four Season Resort – Vacation Center of Beautiful Lake Winnipesaukee – Vacation Crossroads of New England

1989

Laconia chamber logo before Weirs Beach rejoins the Laconia chamber

1996

1998

Weirs Beach – Where Lake Winnipesaukee Begins WeirsBeach.com website is created.

2000-2007

2008

On January 1, 2008, the Greater Laconia-Weirs Beach Chamber of Commerce merged with the Greater Franklin Chamber of Commerce to form the Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce.

2012

WeirsBeach.com website has its first major redesign, using the WordPress web content managment system.

2022

WeirsBeach.com has its second major redesign, using the Divi theme and design framework for WordPress.

Below are the page titles from a 1930’s Laconia Chamber of Commerce brochure,”The City on the Lakes and The Weirs, Lake Winnipesaukee”. (Scroll up to see the brochure cover.)
The glowing descriptions of the area still hold true today!

Laconia, New Hampshire – The Playground of New England – A Place For Play and Rest – With Lake and Mountain Atmosphere

Good Roads for Motoring – Good Trails For Walks

Quiet Waters For Canoeing – Deep Water For Power Boats

The Best Fishing in New England – In Lake And Running Stream

A City of Modern Stores – And Up-to-Date Business Methods

A Place Where Folks Are Friendly – And Strangers Are Ever Welcome

The Progressive Spirit Dominates – But Old Traditions Remain

Facilities for Travel – By Motor, Train, Boat, and Air

The Chamber of Commerce Serves All – Not Only Our Own Citizens But Visitors

The Glory That Is Experienced Is The Product of Nature

A Place Where You Can Dream and Let the Other Fellow Work

A Paradise For Children – Where Health Is In The Air

A Variety of Sports – For Young Or Old

Lake Winnipesaukee – And Its 274 Island Resorts

The Famous Weirs – Where People Play

Surrounded By Mountain Ranges – All Year Vacation Land

With Unassuming Prosperity – Laconia Invites You

With Summer and Winter Sports – Excellent Sites for Summer Homes

Advantages Are Natural – And Unparalled In New England

Schools, Churches and Library – Stores, Theatres and Shops

The More You See of Laconia – The Longer You Will Want to Linger

Below, a list of the various organizations that have promoted travel and tourism to Weirs Beach from the 1920’s to the present.

ORGANIZATION	YEARS
Laconia Board of Trade	Prior to 1919
Laconia Chamber of Commerce	Formed in 1919
Weirs Business Association	Formed by Jim Irwin in 1919
Winnipesaukee Improvement and Protective Society	On September 4, 1923, at the Laconia Tavern, a "well-attended and enthusiastic meeting of resident businessmen, summer guests, and representatives of neighboring towns" voted to merge the Winnipesaukee Improvement Society into a new organization, to be named later, whose purpose would be "to bring Lake Winnipesaukee with her abundance of natural unsurpassed scenic beauties to the attention of tourists as one of the most ideal recreation centers in America". The new organization became the Lakes Region Association (see below).
Lakes Region Association	Formed by Jim Irwin in 1923 “to coordinate the efforts of towns around the lake with the main object of completing a road around the Lake so that a pleasant trip could be made without breaking too many axels.” After this successful effort, which included lobbying for the imposition of a statewide, 1¢ per gallon gas tax with “all the money going into roads”, the organization produced 35,000 copies of its first, 36-page guidebook in 1925, featuring many photos of Lake Winnipesaukee. The organization survives to the present day, and is now known as the Lakes Region Tourism Association.
Weirs Business People’s Association	Late 1920s thru 1946
Laconia Chamber of Commerce	Mid 1930s thru mid 1940s
Weirs Chamber of Commerce	April 23, 1946 thru 1951
Weirs Beach Chamber of Commerce	1952-1953
Weirs Beach Area Chamber of Commerce	1954-1957
Weirs Beach Publicity Bureau	1958-1959
Greater Laconia-Weirs Beach Chamber of Commerce (1st Merger)	1959-1972
Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce	1972-1989. The Chamber takes on a new name.
Weirs Chamber of Commerce	1972-1989. The Weirs breaks away from the Lakes Region Chamber.
Greater Laconia-Weirs Beach Chamber of Commerce (2nd Merger)	1990-2007
Weirs Action Committee	1995-Present
Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce	2008-Present

Laconia Chamber “The HUB of VACATIONLAND” bullseye map and promotional material, 1930s

20 Miles Around Laconia. Map from a 1930s Laconia Chamber of Commerce brochure.

Fireworks

Music

Weirs Beach Chamber History

1947 & 1948

1949

1950

1951

1952

1954

1955

1956

1956

1957

1957

1957

1957

1958

1959

1960s

1962

1976-1989

1989

1996

1998

2000-2007

2008

2012

2022

ORGANIZATION

YEARS