BIDDEFORD — A pair of historic 19th century maps detailing Biddeford’s Main Street have been returned to McArthur Library after undergoing extensive conservation treatment at the Northeast Document Conservation Center. The work was funded by a grant from the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation.

In 2018, a pair of hand-drawn survey maps of Main Street, Biddeford were donated to McArthur Library by an anonymous good Samaritan. The maps date from 1884 and circa 1890 respectively, and show Main Street properties from Alfred to Elm streets. Property information found on the maps includes owners, lot sizes, building names and building types. Each map is more than 2 feet by 4 to 5 feet in size.

“It’s not unusual,” says Special Collections Librarian Renée DesRoberts, “that someone finds something in a barn or attic that they think might be important historically, and drops it off anonymously, hoping it will find a good home. I was really glad these maps were brought in, as they are important historically to our city — but they were in really rough shape. I knew right away we would need to get them treated professionally so people could access and use them now and in the future.”

DesRoberts brought the maps to the attention of Library Director Jeff Cabral, who applied to the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation for funding not only to have the maps undergo conservation but to have high quality digital copies made for access. The foundation granted the project, and the work commenced in February 2019 in North Andover, Massachusetts.

Founded in 1973, the Northeast Document Conservation Center is the first independent conservation laboratory in the United States to specialize exclusively in the conservation and preservation of paper- and film-based collections. It provides professional conservation treatment for books, maps, photographs, documents, parchment, papyrus, manuscripts, architectural plans and works of art on paper. It treats many highly significant paper and photographic objects and continues to be the premiere center for the most difficult conservation challenges.

Library officials say that they are grateful to the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation for supporting its work in helping to preserve and provide access to Biddeford’s history. Plans are being made to put the maps on display. Digital copies will be made widely available via the library websites and online catalog.