One of the most prolific of all American holidays likely had its genesis on the shores of Maine, more than 169 years before the United States became a country and nearly 213 years before Maine won her statehood. On July 31, 1607, more than a dozen years before pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock, two ships […]
maine history
Repast is history: What Mainers ate on Thanksgiving through the decades
We pored over Maine’s newspaper archives for a casual look at how Mainers from other times celebrated the holiday, and most especially what they were eating.
Longfellow’s Haunted House tours continue to spook Portland
The popular seasonal tours of the Wadsworth-Longfellow House are based on Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem “Haunted Houses,” and focus on those who lived and died in the Portland landmark.
Stories from Maine: A Bath-built legacy
On Saturday, Nov. 18, 1899, the funeral of a legendary man was held in Bath, and although he had “gone to his eternity” 125 years ago, the legacy of “Bath’s Great Benefactor” still shines today. When Zina Hyde and his wife Eleanor brought their son Thomas Worcester Hyde into the world on Jan. 16, 1841, […]
When Lyndon B. Johnson came to Portland 60 years ago, a hundred thousand followed
Johnson’s 1964 visit drew what may have been the largest crowd Portland has ever seen. Sixty years later, those in attendance still remember the group’s energy.
Plant-based food columnist explores Maine’s buried vegetarian history
Avery Yale Kamila talks about her co-curated exhibit, ‘Maine’s Untold Vegetarian History,’ which opened this month at the Maine Historical Society Museum.
‘Conscience’ tells the story of Margaret Chase Smith’s most famous speech
In the runup to a presidential election, Portland Stage is presenting the play, which is set in the time immediately before and after Smith’s confrontation with powerful demagogue Joseph McCarthy.
100 years ago, KKK stunned Lewiston with gunpowder and a huge, flaming cross
The Aug. 10, 1924, scene atop Mount David highlighted the growing power of the racist, anti-immigrant, anti-Catholic group in Maine.
The Longfellow Garden Club of Portland celebrates 100 years
Appalled at the sorry state of the garden, a Portland socialite organized the club in 1924. It has maintained the garden at the historic Wadsworth-Longfellow House ever since.
A Window on the Past: The Higgins family farmers of Highland Avenue
In September of 2019, we published an article about the Buck Bros. and Taylor farm at 501 Highland Ave. (the street has been renumbered – that address used to be known as 451 Highland Ave.; the farmhouse is still there and the former farm/greenhouse property is now home to the Church of the Nazarene). In […]