The Cold River Canoe Trip begins in the White Mountain National Forest in Stow, Maine, then to Fryeburg. The river has frequent twists and turns, channel blocking fallen trees, producing several “opportunities” for short portages. Follow Route 113 north from Fryeburg or south from Gilead to Deer Hill Road. In less than a mile, the…
(1894-1973) an Academy Award winning motion picture director, was born in Portland in an area now part of Cape Elizabeth. His family moved back to Portland where he grew up on Munjoy Hill. Ford was born John Martin Feeney to a poor Irish family, changing his name to Ford in 1923 when he was in…
“These are feature films with Maine-related themes or locations. Please note that many titles are not known to survive, or are not available.” — Karan Sheldon, Northeast Historic Film As the Earth Turns, 1934 Back to the Woods, 1918 Beans of Egypt Maine, The, 1994 Bed and Breakfast, 1992 Behind the Door, 1919 Behind Masks,…
The villages of Hiram and East Hiram are divided by the Saco River. Nearby Mount Cutler sports a hiking trail; a chain of ponds hugs the western border above South Hiram. Raymond Cotton, a storekeeper and author, made many home movies. See photos & 1938 video on blueberry farming. The community buildings (churches, library, grange, museum) are within walking distance in Hiram village.
Publications Up in Maine: Stories of Yankee Life Told in Verse (1900; his first book of poems)* The Legend of Frenche’s Isle (1900) An Edict in Modern Acadia (1901) Pine Tree Ballads: Rhymed Stories of Unplaned Human Natur’ Up in Maine (1902) * Kin o’ Ktaadn: Verse Stories of the Plain Folk… (1904) * Squire…
in Hancock County was settled in 1762. Jed Prouty’s Tavern and Inn, no longer operating, was a stop for the Bangor to Castine stage route. The paper mill (once St. Regis, then Champion, then Verso) dominates the north end of town and is across the Penobscot River from Fort Knox. Northeast Historic Film, a moving image archives, research and education center is located here. See photos.
The Maine Department of Economic Development had a hand in delivering two white tail deer from Maine to the Disney studios in 1938, in response to a request for model photographs for the animation artists in the forthcoming movie Bambi. In 1968, the Department recalled its role, with the help of Maurice “Jake” Day of…
Recorded as Skwahegan in early reports, the name means “watching place for fish,” drawn from the falls in the Kennebec River that harbored salmon. See photos. Local Indians speared them as they attempted to scale the falls. Textile and shoe manufacturing were major employment options for local residents during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Once home to Camp Modin, a camp for Jewish boys and girls until 1992, Lake George Regional Park is split between Skowhegan and Canaan.
[like BANANA] is part of Monhegan Plantation, just across Monhegan Harbor. It has no major buildings, except for the Fog Signal. The long ramp that runs from the harbor to the Fog Station is the “road” for supplies and fuel. Seguin Island had a similar arrangement with a rail tramway operated by machinery at the…
1930-1949 The 1930’s and 1940’s were difficult for most Americans. During the Great Depression, several projects set the stage for recovery in Maine, such as the Wyman Dam on the Kennebec River, the beginnings of Baxter State Park, the Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge in Washington County, and the temporary but productive Civilian Conservation Corp, which…