Merton Lane (1910-2004) was a fixture in the lore of Maine’s gallery of interesting characters, typifying the State’s culture. In 1905 he became the first fire tower lookout warden in the State located atop Squaw Mountain [now Big Moose Mountain] in Greenville. It was a special breed of men who manned the lookout towers,…
Harpswell Sound is a body of water that flows from Casco Bay at Little Mark Island ten miles to the Ewing Narrows Bridge, then two miles on to Long Reach and finally merges with the New Meadows River. Casco Bay has been reported as a significant warming water body. This may be contributing to…
Anson was the home of Francis B. Henderson, who moved there from from New York City in 1940 where he had been Captain of a barge moving critical material, equipment and supplies in New York Harbor for the military during World War II. Soon after moving to Anson, he was appointed Chief Deputy Sheriff and…
Maine has several protections allowing the public access to government proceedings, such as meetings of town officials and regulatory agencies, along with their rules and documents. The Maine Freedom of Information Coalition is a private non-profit advocating to insure that Maine state and local government agencies adhere to their own obligations to the public. According to…
The Maine Reader: The Down East Experience 1614 to the Present Day. Houghton Mifflin Company. Boston 1991. Edited by Charles and Samuella Shain. 524 pp. Maine: A Literary Chronicle. New York 1968. W. Storrs Lee. Funk and Wagnalls. 487 pp. The Lobster Coast: Rebels, Rusticators, and the Struggle for a Forgotten Frontier. Colin Woodard. Viking. New…
Bowmantown is a small township along the western most Maine border at the Quebec border. It is the northernmost township in Oxford County. It contains the 30 acre Upper Black Pond. Located south of Twin Peaks near the Canadian border, it is not readily accessible to the general public. Permission must be obtained from International…
National Register of Historic Places – Listings Photos, and edited text are from nominations to the National Register of Historic Places researched by Maine. Historic Preservation Commission. Maine Experiment Station Barn Experiment Station Barn (1989) [University of Maine campus] Built in 1885, this long gable roofed building was the original agricultural structure used by the Maine…
National Register of Historic Places – Listings Photos, and edited text are from nominations to the National Register of Historic Places researched by Maine. Historic Preservation Commission. Full text and photos are at https://npgallery.nps.gov/nrhp Boarding House and Storehouse at Churchill Depot The Boarding House and Storehouse at Churchill Depot are located…
[May 3, 1912 – July 16, 1995] Poet Eleanor Marie (May) Sarton was born in Belgium. Her family moved to England as World War I threatened, then to Boston in 1915 As an adult she published poetry and traveled widely in Europe and in the United States, earning accolades for her work. Eventually she moved…
Ruel Williams was a Senator from Maine; born in Hallowell, June 2, 1783; attended Hallowell Academy; studied law; admitted to the bar in 1804 and commenced practice in Augusta, Maine; member, State legislature 1812-1829, 1832, 1848; commissioner of public buildings in 1831; presidential elector on the Democratic ticket in 1836. He was elected February 22,…
Gideon Stinson Palmer (1813-1891) was born in Gardiner, attended the Gardiner Lyceum, and graduated from Bowdoin College in 1838. He returned to Gardiner after graduation and was principal of the Lyceum for several terms. He then began to practice medicine in Gardiner and also served on the Gardiner city council and as a representative in…