Digital History: Stories from Maine Memory Network

Online Exhibit: Summer’s Favorite Game

Cabot Mill Baseball Team, Brunswick, ca. 1930. MMN #9236

It’s that time of year again; we’re heading out to the stadiums to watch our favorite baseball teams in action, be it the Red Sox or a local Little League chapter. We revel in the smells, the sounds, and the history. Baseball has been part of American society for several centuries. It is that universal appeal that makes baseball so much a part of many peoples’ experiences of summer. This online exhibit features images from many Maine Memory contributing partners throughout our state, all of whom share the spirit of the game. View online exhibit.

Join us on Saturday, June 30th at Fort Williams park for an exciting 19th century baseball game series. The Essex Base Ball Organization team of Massachusetts will square up against Augusta’s Dirigo Base Ball club. Learn more about this program here.

This Week 

Thursday, May 24, 7pm

The Mysterious Penobscot Belle: Early Photography & A Forgotten Wabanaki Encampment in Portland in the mid-1800s

Speakers: Harald E. L. Prins & Bunny McBride, Kansas State University

The noted anthropologists will explore the story behind a mid-19th century engraving of Mary Louise, a beautiful Penobscot Indian woman, originally published as a “Fashion Plate” in a popular women’s magazine. This is the seventh and final program in the Richard D’Abate Lectures: Conversations About History, Art, and Literature.Series details.

To see a full list of upcoming programs, please click here.

Public programs at MHS are sponsored, in part, by the Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust.

Seen at MHS

Our annual gala, the Mad Hatter Affair, was a great success this year. Friends enjoyed a festive evening and we paid tribute to Richard D’Abate, who leaves his post as Executive Director of MHS on June 2.

Photographer Rene Minnis captured some great shots of everyone!  Visit this link to view her photos of the event.

Support Your History

Give to the Annual Fund

Donate a Historic Item

Friends of Collections

For more ways to give, visit us online or call 207-774-1822 ext. 206.

Visit Us Online

Maine Historical Society Maine Memory Network Maine History Online

Vintage Maine Images Longfellow Website Museum Store

Online Museum Catalog MHS Library Catalog

This Week at MHS is your online source for exhibits, programs, and events.

Maine Historical Society  489 Congress Street Portland, ME 04101   info@mainehistory.org

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Open Memorial Day: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Beginning Memorial Day, Monday, May 28, the Museum
will be open on Mondays from 10 a.m to 5 p.m.

Final Days

Edgar Degas: The Private Impressionist 

On view through May 28

“Edgar Degas, bristly, embittered, and occasionally misanthropic, may not have been an easy man to know. But there’s something extraordinarily intimate and compelling about ‘Edgar Degas: The Private Impressionist’…”  –The Boston Globe

Portland, Paris, Giverny, and back again!

In this week’s Museum blog learn how a trip to Giverny inspired the the interactive spaces in the exhibition From Portland to Paris: Mildred Burrage’s Years in France.

Movies at the Museum

Dinner and a Movie! Enjoy a light dinner before a movie! Visit the Museum Café by Aurora Provisions for seasonally inspired soups and salads, gourmet sandwiches, and creative entrées. Beer and wine served. No admission required to dine. Free Wi-Fi. Menu changes daily.

Monsieur Lazhar 

Friday, May 25, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 26, 2 p.m.

Sunday, May 27, 2 p.m.

PG-13

In Montreal, a school teacher dies abruptly. Having learned of the incident in the newspaper, a 55-year-old immigrant goes to the school to offer his services as a substitute teacher. Quickly hired to replace the deceased, he finds himself in an establishment in crisis, while going through his own personal tragedy.

Click here for complete movie listings

Quick Links

Visit Us

Exhibitions

Programs and Events

Membership

Museum Store

Portland Museum of Art | Seven Congress Square | Portland | ME | 04101

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Digital History: Stories from Maine Memory Network

Yarmouth: Leader in Soda Pulp

View of Royal River, Forest Paper Co., Yarmouth, ca. 1900

This online exhibit, created by the Yarmouth Historical Society, tells the story of the Forest Paper Co., which was known around the world for its high quality soda pulp and the paper it produced.Between 1874 and 1923 Forest Paper Co. was recognized for its technical innovation and employed hundreds of Yarmouth residents. Key to the operation was the power provided by the Royal River. Click here to read more. Special congratulations to Yarmouth Historical Society which will break ground this week on a major project that will convert a former water district building on the Royal River into a new museum facility.

This Week 

Click this image to see aerial film of Portland’s waterfront taken in 1940.

Tuesday, May 15, 7pm

On the Waterfront: Heritage, Re-use, and Economic Development

Moderator:

Michael Brennan, Mayor, City of Portland

Panelists: Anne Pringle, Community Volunteer; Bill Needelman, Senior Planner, City of Portland; Steve DiMillo, business owner

Development and use of the waterfront is an ongoing policy balancing act, and has significant implications for Portland’s economic development, harborside landscape, and the city’s identity and heritage.

Please join us to learn about the issues that the city, developers, business and property owners, fishermen and lobstermen, preservationists, and others think about when they consider development along the waterfront. In Partnership with Greater Portland Landmarks. This is the fourth of four programs in (Re) Designing the Greater Portland Landscape: Issues in Contemporary Design and Development. Series details.

Next Week

Thursday, May 24, 7pm

The Mysterious Penobscot Belle: Early Photography & A Forgotten Wabanaki Encampment in Portland in the mid-1800s

Speaker: Harald E. L. Prins & Bunny McBride, Kansas State University

The noted anthropologists will explore the story behind a mid-19th century engraving of Mary Louise, a beautiful Penobscot Indian woman, originally published as a “Fashion Plate” in a popular women’s magazine. This is the seventh and final program in the Richard D’Abate Lectures: Conversations About History, Art, and Literature. Series details.

To see a full list of upcoming programs, please click here.

Public programs at MHS are sponsored, in part, by the Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust.

Support Your History

Give to the Annual Fund

Donate a Historic Item

Friends of Collections

For more ways to give, visit us online or call 207-774-1822 ext. 206.

Visit Us Online

Maine Historical Society Maine Memory Network Maine History Online

Vintage Maine Images Longfellow Website Museum Store

Online Museum Catalog MHS Library Catalog

This Week at MHS is your online source for exhibits, programs, and events.

Maine Historical Society  489 Congress Street Portland, ME 04101   info@mainehistory.org

Please support The Valley Voice by “LIKING” us on Facebook at the bottom of this page. Thank You!

Are You Really My Friend?

Tanja Alexia Hollander: Are You Really My Friend?

On view through June 17

“I have crawled on the floor, played Legosand read books with children I just met, admired chickens and prize roosters, shared a bowl of gumbo in New Orleans with a friend I hadn’t met in real life…and listened to stories of family tragedy and strength.”  –Artist Tanja Alexia Hollander, The Globe and Mail

The Winslow Homer Studio

Mountain Lake Journal EXTRA: An American Original
The program provides an in depth look at the history of Winslow Homer, from his beginnings as an illustrator for Harper’s Weekly to his work on Prouts Neck at the Studio.
Learn more about the Winslow Homer Studio.

Blog: Free Friday Night at the Museum

The Museum blog looks at last Free Friday night’s activities. Artist Intervention with Karen Gelardi gave visitors the opportunity to collect botanical prints made by the artist and Parlor Talk: Collaboration with Might & Main premiered new Winslow Homer products!

Movies at the Museum

Dinner and a Movie! Enjoy a light dinner before a movie! Visit the Museum Café by Aurora Provisions for seasonally inspired soups and salads, gourmet sandwiches, and creative entrées. Beer and wine served. No admission required to dine. Free Wi-Fi. Menu changes daily.

Monsieur Lazhar 

Friday, May 18, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 19, 2 p.m.

Sunday, May 20, 2 p.m.

Friday, May 25, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 26, 2 p.m.

Sunday, May 27, 2 p.m.

PG-13

In Montreal, a school teacher dies abruptly. Having learned of the incident in the newspaper, a 55-year-old immigrant goes to the school to offer his services as a substitute teacher. Quickly hired to replace the deceased, he finds himself in an establishment in crisis, while going through his own personal tragedy.

Click here for complete movie listings

Quick Links

Visit Us

Exhibitions

Programs and Events

Membership

Museum Store

Portland Museum of Art | Seven Congress Square | Portland | ME | 04101

Please support The Valley Voice by “LIKING” us on Facebook at the bottom of this post. Thank You!

In this last month of fundraising, every gift and every amount counts more than ever!  With your help, we have successfully achieved the $250,000 grant from an anonymous regional foundation to complete the Winslow Homer Studio Building Endowment Fund.

Our final challenge is a $700,000 grant from a Maine foundation to fully fund the Winslow Homer Education Endowment. With just a month to go, your gift is worth even more to the Museum than its face value.

To join in the excitement, contact Annelise Conway, Sr. Major Gifts and Planned Giving Officer, at (207) 775-6148, ext. 3243 or ataconway@portlandmuseum.org. Gifts can also be made online. Please join us today to help us reach our goal!

Homer Studio 2006; Unknown Artist, “Photograph: Winslow Homer on the Gallery of his Studio, Prout’s Neck, Maine,” ca. 1884, photograph, 4 7/16 x 6 11/16 inches. Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Brunswick, Maine, Gift of the Homer Family.

Mother’s Day Gifts at the Museum Store

Come into the Museum Store for the perfect Mother’s Day Gift!

We have assorted jewelry by local designers Michelle Estell, Jennifer Nielsen, and Daunis; silk scarves by Ashley Tyler; and the largest collection of art books in the state.

Events at the Museum this Week

Parlor Talk: Collaboration
Friday, May 11

6 p.m. Reception to follow.
Free admission.
Museum staff and local design agency, Might & Main, will talk about collaboration across disciplines and mediums. Learn more…

Artist Intervention: Karen Gelardi

Friday, May 11 

5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Free admission.  

Visit the galleries on select Free Friday Evenings to participate in “happenings” planned by PMA’s team of Maine artists. Learn more…

Gallery Talk

Portraits in the Permanent Collection  

by Sy Epstein  

Saturday, May 12

1 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.

Free with Museum admission. 

Join our Docents for casual and informative discussions of works in the Museum. Learn more…

Movies at the Museum

Dinner and a Movie! Enjoy a light dinner before a movie! Visit theMuseum Café by Aurora Provisions for seasonally inspired soups and salads, gourmet sandwiches, and creative entrées. Beer and wine served. No admission required to dine. Free Wi-Fi. Menu changes daily.

Joffrey: Mavericks of American Art

Friday, May 11, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 12, 2 p.m.

Sunday, May 13, 2 p.m.

NR

The first film to chronicle the legendary Joffrey Ballet from its humble beginnings touring the country in a borrowed station wagon to becoming one of the world’s most exciting and prominent ballet companies.
Click here for complete movie listings

Quick Links

Visit Us

Exhibitions

Programs and Events

Membership

Museum Store

Portland Museum of Art | Seven Congress Square | Portland | ME | 04101

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Current Exhibits

Museum

Dressing Up, Fitting In, Standing Out: Adornment & Identity in Maine (through May 27, 2012)

Lecture Hall Gallery

Downtown: Portland, Circa 1912 (through June 30, 2012)

Showcase Gallery

Student art work from our Local History/Local Schools program

Spring Hours

Museum & Museum Store: Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Sundays 12-5pm.

Brown Library: Tues-Sat 10am-4pm

Wadsworth-Longfellow House:

Daily tours. Call for times: 207-774-1822.

Spotlight On:Larissa Vigue Picard

Larissa has worked at MHS as Community Partnership Coordinator since 2009. In this role, she manages the Maine Community Heritage Project and other initiatives that provide training, guidance, and grants to communities around the state as they share local collections and stories on Maine Memory Network. She also maintains MHS’s Facebook page, blogs, and makes many other contributions to the organization.

Larissa, who is a graduate of Bates and Middlebury Colleges, is a humanities person to the core. She previously served as Director of Community Programs at the Vermont Humanities Council. She leads discussion groups for the Maine Humanities Council, and for the past four years has run MHS’s own reading groups.

Larissa lives in Topsham with her husband Curtis, director of the Maine Merchants Association, and their son Nicholas.

Maine Facts & Trivia

Did you know that Henry Wadsworth Longfellow grew his beard in an effort to cover facial scars he received from trying to extinguish flames that tragically killed his wife Fanny?

This 1868 photograph, taken by Julia Margaret Cameron, is an iconic image of the bearded poet.
You can read the story of Fanny Longfellow’s death, and explore more about his family on ourwebsite.

Longfellow, sans beard, in 1854

Stay Connected

Visit Us Online
Maine Historical Society
Maine Memory Network
Vintage Maine Images
Longfellow Website
Maine History Online
MHS Museum Store
Online Museum Catalog

Digital History from
Maine Memory Network

Online Exhibit: Lt. Charles Bridges: Getting Ahead in the Army

Charles Bridges, Castine, ca. 1864.Maine State Archives image.
MMN# 67295

This online exhibit, researched and created by MHS intern Matthew Miller, explores the Civil War experience of Charles Bridges of Castine. Bridges and his comrades served with distinction in the 2^nd Maine Infantry, nicknamed “The Bangor Regiment.” When that enlistment ended in 1863, Bridges volunteered to serve as an officer in a black regiment in Louisiana. The exhibit simultaneously shares Bridges’s personal experience, the routine duties that were essential to the war effort, and the ways in which many black regiments and their white officers were deployed. Visit the online exhibit.

MHS News

Angus King to Deliver Keynote
at MHS Annual Meeting
Saturday, June 2, 10am

Please join us as we conduct the official business of MHS. Former Maine Governor Angus King will give a talk on history and leadership. The annual meeting will also include awards, an opportunity to greet new MHS Director Steve Bromage, and the dedication of the new Children’s Gate in the Longfellow Garden. Additional details available on the MHS website, and mailed to members, soon. Registration required. $25 for MHS members; $35 for non-members; lunch included. Call 207-774-1822 to register.

Historic Wadsworth-Longfellow House

Open for the Season

May 1st marked opening day for the boyhood home of famed poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Join us for tours daily, led by our knowledgable guides and docents. Call 207-774-1822 for times.

The house, built by the poet’s grandfather in 1785-86, is the oldest standing structure on the Portland peninsula. The house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a National Historic Landmark, and virtually all of the household items and artifacts are original to the Wadsworth and Longfellow families.

Explore the house online, and plan your visit today.

From the Collections

MHS Collections in Demand, Always

Art handlers move crated MHS objects going on loan to the Fenimore Art Museum.

A recent Portland Press Herald article featured a collections spectacle: the moving of a cannon from the War of 1812 to the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath. The canon is believed to be owned by MHS and has been on long-term loan to the City of Portland. The cannon, along with 31 other items from MHS, will be featured in Maine Maritime Museum’s upcoming exhibit about the War.
Currently, there are 12 active loans and five pending loans, according to MHS registrar Holly Hurd-Forsyth. “Requests come in all the time,” says Holly, “Sharing collections enhances both the borrowing and lending institution.”
Museum artifacts and library materials from MHS are currently on loan to museum nationwide including Fenimore Art Museum (NY), American Textile History Museum (MA), Saco Museum (ME), Shelburne Museum (VT), and the National Constitution Center (PA).

May Programs

This Week

Thursday, May 10, 7pm

Saving Second Nature: The Environmental Movement in New England

Speaker: Dr. Richard W. Judd, University of Maine

Join us to learn how the pastoral landscapes of New England–the valley farms, familiar woods, and fishing ports–became iconic symbols of New England beauty. Judd is a preeminent Maine historian, and an editor of our journal Maine History. This program is MHS’s annual Olmsted Lecture, given this year in honor of Helen Koulouris.

Last Week to Register

Thursday, May 17, 7:30am-7:30pm

Genealogy Research Bus Trip to Boston

NEHGS library reading room

Join MHS for a day of genealogical research at the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) or the Massachusetts Archives in Boston! Registration required by Friday, May 11. Fee: $35 for MHS members; $45 for non-members. This fee does not include admission to NEHGS Library (NEHGS Admission: NEHGS Members: Free; non-NEHGS members: $15). To register, please call 207-774-1822.

More May Programs

Tuesday, May 15, 7pm

On the Waterfront: Heritage, Re-Use, and Economic Development

A panel discussion presented in partnership with Greater Portland Landmarks

Thursday, May 24, 7pm

The Mysterious Penobscot Belle: Early Photography & A Forgotten Wabanaki Encampment in the mid-1800s

Speakers: Harald E.L. Prins & Bunny McBride, Kansas State University

Visit us online for a full schedule of

programs and events.

Public programs supported by:

Museum Store

SALE! 20% Off

Dressing Up exhibit-related items online and in the store

Our museum exhibit, Dressing Up, Standing Out, Fitting In: Adornment & Identity in Maine, is coming to a close this month. Exhibit related items in the museum store are 20% off. Select books have been marked down at our online store (note: the prices online reflect the sale price).

Visit us at 489 Congress Street in Portland. Museum store hours are Monday through Saturday 10am-5pm, Sunday 12-5pm.

Shop Online!

Maine Historical Society  489 Congress Street  Portland, ME 04101 (207) 774-1822
MHS e-Connection is your online source for news and events at MHS, e-mailed monthly.

Maine Historical Society | 489 Congress Street | Portland | ME | 04101

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Eason family on Malaga Island, 1911

AUGUSTA  “Malaga Island, Fragmented Lives,” the newest exhibition at the Maine State Museum in Augusta, opens to the public on Saturday, May 19, 2012.  The museum will be open free of charge all day.

The exhibition tells the controversial story of the poor, mixed-race community that lived on Malaga, a 42-acre island at the mouth of the New Meadows River in Phippsburg, Maine.  Archaeological artifacts, historical photographs, objects, documents, and news stories from the time help bring the story to life.

In 1912,Maine’s state government evicted the people who lived on Malaga Island.  The Maine State Museum exhibition and public programs explore the events that preceded and followed the eviction one hundred years ago.

“The Malaga Island community, numbering about 40, included fishermen, laborers, and their families.  They were caught in a time of great change for Maine in the early 1900s,” explains Museum Director Joseph R. Phillips.  “As fishing and shipbuilding economies declined along the coast, Maine officials looked to tourism as a new source of economic growth.  Not pristine or traditional, Malaga Island’s community did not conform to a marketable image of mid-coastMaine.  Racism, eugenics, and social reform also played a part in the resulting government-sanctioned effort to send people from their homes.  All traces of the community were removed, even the school and cemetery.”

“For nearly 100 years, Malaga Island was scarcely spoken of, except negatively,” adds Curator Kate McBrien, who developed the exhibition.  “Descendants and people in surrounding communities felt the need to hide the island’s painful past.  When archaeologists from the University of Southern Maine began excavations on Malaga, the long-missing fragments of peoples’ lives began to re-surface to provide a record of a multi-faceted, vibrant community.  These archaeological fragments form the core of the exhibit and, with historical photographs and documents, allow us to glimpse and understand more about Malaga Island’s people.”

The museum’s year-long exhibition about Malaga Island will include extensive educational programming, such as gallery programs for students, teacher training workshops, webcasts, and teacher and student materials.  These will all be available in the fall.

“The Malaga Island story is a rich one, full of educational potential,” comments Maine State Museum Chief Educator Joanna Torow.  “Teachers are already expressing great enthusiasm for using materials and programs about Malaga Island to explore civil rights, civic engagement, and the role of government in Maine, both past and present.”

The Maine State Museum has partnered with several organizations and individuals to develop and present “Malaga Island, Fragmented Lives,” including Malaga Island descendants, historians Allen Breed and John Mosher, NAACP Portland Branch, Maine Freedom Trails, Inc., University of  Southern Maine Departments of Anthropology and Environmental Science, and Phippsburg Historical Society.  Maine Coast Heritage Trust, which currently owns and manages Malaga Island as a nature preserve open to the public, is another key partner in the project.

“Malaga Island, Fragmented Lives,” is presented through grants to the Friends of  the Maine State Museum and the Maine State Museum from several foundations, including the 1772 Foundation, Davis Family Foundation, Emanuel and Pauline A. Lerner Foundation, Libra Foundation, and Maine Community Foundation’s Green Meadow Fund.

“Malaga Island, Fragmented Lives,” will be on view at the Maine State Museum in Augusta from May 19, 2012 – May 26, 2013.  Opening day activities will include gallery talks by University of Southern Maine archaeologists, the Maine State Museum’s curator, and a representative from Maine Coast Heritage Trust.  Educational activities for school-age children and their families will be available all day.  For more information, see the museum’s website, www.mainestatemuseum.org.

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Wyoming model unveiled Friday at special event

There was great anticipation in Sewall Hall Friday afternoon as dozens of invited guests gathered to be the first to see the Museum’s latest acquisition – a newly commissioned model of the world’s largest wooden sailing vessel, the schooner Wyoming. After a few words from Executive Director Amy Lent, Senior Curator Nathan Lipfert and the model’s builder Mark Wilkins, the crowd’s curiosity was satisfied as the drape was removed from the display case and the six-mast schooner model was revealed. An enthusiastic round of applause erupted as the guests saw the handsome model’s intricate workmanship for the first time. Compass Circle  events, like this one, are created for and open to the Museum’s strongest supporters. To find out how you can join this special group of Musuem friends contact Janice Kauer, Director of Development. The model will be on view to all visitors after May 13.

Dates on Exhibit Opening postcard are incorrect

Invitation postcards mailed to members last week for the opening of the upcoming exhibit Subdue, Seize and Take: Maritime Maine in the Unwelcome Interruption of the War of 1812 have two date errors.  The opening reception, to which all members are invited, will take place on Friday, May 25, from 5pm to 7pm in Sewall Hall. The exhibit will open to the public the next day, Saturday, May 26. Please make a note on your calendar of the correct dates. The October 26 ending date for the exhibit and the dates for the exhibit related events listed on the reverse side of the card are correct.

Special note about booking your passage aboard Museum’s 50th Anniversary cruise

Some members have already booked their space on the Museum’s special 50th Anniversary cruise from Quebec City, Canada to Portland, Maine, in September. As a result, it’s been discovered that the brochure mailed to Museum members and supporters by the cruise line, Travel Dynamics International, listed an incorrect phone number to call for reservations in several places in the brochure. The correct phone number is (800) 257-5767 x 511. When calling, be sure to inform the reservationist that you are with Maine Maritime Museum so that the Museum gets the benefit of your booking.

Voyage brochure view/download.

Traditional Japanese boat building is focus of next week’s Mug-Up! lecture series event

Boat builder, writer and researcher Douglas Brooks will discuss Japanese boatbuilding in, appropriately enough, the Museum’s Boatshop next Thursday, May 10, at 6:30 p.m. Brooks will share his experiences in learning the methods of traditional Japanese boat building when he apprenticed with five different boat builders during more than a dozen trips to various regions of Japan over the past 15 years. His presentation will focus on the techniques and design secrets of the craft – techniques that have been passed from master to apprentice with almost no written record. Part of the continuing series about boat building called Mug-Up!, this presentation is co-sponsored by the Japan America Society of Maine.

Make Your Reservations NOW!

Attention boat passengers! Here’s a course for you.

But hurry – registration ends Monday, May 7.

When boating are you usually a passenger? What would you do if a problem or emergency occurred, and you were Suddenly In Command. Could you get help? Could you get to shore? Would you make the right decisions? Learn essential boating information about what to do in critical situations in this two-session course. Both you and the captain will enjoy your outings more knowing you’re prepared for an emergency. All materials are included.
Register NOW.

Schooner Heritage – Business Partner of the Month

Built in 1983 along the lines of the schooners that navigated the waters off the Maine coast more than a hundred years ago, the schoonerHeritage continues the long historical tradition of Maine coastal schooners. Captains Doug and Linda Lee, who host each voyage, designed and built the Heritage themselves. Designed specifically with passenger comfort and safety in mind, she is a big, powerful, stable vessel, 95 ft long and 24 ft wide, with plenty of deck space for everyone.
Special offer: Book a cruise aboard Schooner Heritage departing June 5, June 10 or June 17 and Captains Lee will donate 5% back to the Museum. Have a grand time and support MMM at the same time.  Call207-594-8007 or email info@schoonerheritage.com for details. Be sure to tell them that you’re from Maine Maritime Museum.

Schooner Heritage Website

Other Events On The Horizon
(Click on an EVENT DATE to register online or to learn more.
Dates in BLUE do not require registration.)

May 12 – Spring Quartermaster’s Day at MMM.

May 12 – Third Annual Museum Yard Sale to benefit the Volunteer Program. (9 am to 1 pm)

May 15 & 17 – Suddenly in Command Boating Course
May 23 – Workshop: Varnishing Techniques

May 30 – Workshop: Fiberglass Repair

June 4 – Instruction: Navigating Mid-Coast Maine

June 14 – Lecture: Building a Viking Ship in Maine

Maine Maritime Museum preserves, studies, and celebrates Maine’s maritime heritage and culture to educate the community and a worldwide audience about the important role of Maine in regional and global maritime activities.

Our Business Partners

More About Us

Visiting Bath Info

Find us on Facebook

IN THE GALLERIES

Closes May 13

Port of Portland: A Ship-Shaped History

Sponsored by:

The DiMillo Family

R.M.Davis, Inc.

Port Harbor Marine

Shipyard Brewing Co.

William A. Lowell

BECOME A MEMBER

Museum and Store hours

9:30 am to 5 pm daily, except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day.

Maine Maritime Museum | 243 Washington Street | Bath | ME | 04530

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Digital History: Stories from Maine Memory Network

Way Back Ball, Northeast Harbor, ca. 1945

MMN Item #22255

Mainers love a party. Whether celebrating a milestone, raising funds for an important cause, impressing clients, or saying thanks, people have found creative ways to get together to celebrate in just about every possible place, and in every corner of the state. This week, MHS holds its annual gala which is part Mad Hatter affair, including hat parade; part Kentucky Derby party; and part festive fundraiser with dancing and a great auction. Click here to peruse party pictures shared by Maine Memory’s many contributors.

This Weekend!

The Mad Hatter Affair
with a special tribute to Richard D’Abate

Maine Historical Society’s annual fundraising gala

Last Chance: Get Your Tickets Now
Saturday, May 5, 5-11pm

The Woodlands, Falmouth

Join us for a cocktail reception and dinner, bid in our silent and live auctions, watch a live broadcast of the Kentucky Derby, participate in our hat parade, and dance the night away with the Tony Boffa Band! This year’s gala includes a special tribute to Richard D’Abate, who retires after 16 years of service as MHS Executive Director on May 31.Join the fun and support Maine Historical Society!

See Auction Items Online

For tickets and details, call 207-774-1822 or visit us online.

This Week

Friday, May 4, 5-8pm

First Friday Art Walk

Join us for the May Art Walk! On view in the lecture hall, Downtown: Portland, circa 1912. Last chance to see our museum exhibit–at no cost; Dressing Up, Standing Out, Fitting In: Adornment  & Identity in Maine closes on May 27.

Next Week 

Thursday, May 10, 7pm
Saving Second Nature: The Environmental Movement in New England

Speaker: Dr. Richard W. Judd, Professor of History, University of Maine

Join us to learn how the pastoral landscapes of New England–the valley farms, familiar woods and fishing ports–became iconic symbols of New England beauty. Judd is a preeminent Maine historian, and an editor of the journal Maine History. This program is MHS’s annual Olmsted Lecture, given this year in honor of Helen Koulouris.

To see a full list of upcoming programs, please click here.

Public programs at MHS are sponsored, in part, by the Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust.

Support Your History

Give to the Annual Fund

Donate a Historic Item

Friends of Collections

For more ways to give, visit us online or call 207-774-1822 ext. 206.

Visit Us Online

Maine Historical Society Maine Memory Network Maine History Online

Vintage Maine Images Longfellow Website Museum Store

Online Museum Catalog MHS Library Catalog

This Week at MHS is your online source for exhibits, programs, and events.

Maine Historical Society  489 Congress Street Portland, ME 04101   info@mainehistory.org

Please “LIKE” The Valley Voice on Facebook at the bottom of this page. Thank You for your support!

From Portland to Paris: Mildred Burrage’s Years in France

On view through July 15
Learn more…

“In France, Burrage met Claude Monet and her chief influence was that of French Impressionism, the infatuation with ‘broken color’ and qualities of light that led to the liberation from naturalistic color and eventually to freedom from imitation altogether.” --Yankee Blog

Visit the Museum’s blog to watch an interview with co-curators of From Portland to Paris: Mildred Burrage’s Years in France, Margaret Burgess, Associate Curator of European Art, and Earle Shettleworth Jr., Maine State Historian.

Events at the Museum this Week

Architalx 2012
Simon Wood: Making
Thursday, May 3

6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Tickets: $8 online/$10 at the door. Tickets available online at www.architalx.org. Seating is limited; overflow seating with video feed is available. Learn more…

What Do You Think?

Self-Portrait at School ‘Typical Wheeler Girl’ by Mildred Burrage

Thursday, May 3

11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Free with Museum admission.  

This group meets monthly to study and discuss one piece on view in the galleries.  Learn more…

Gallery Talk

Degas: Realist or Impressionist? 

by Jacqueline Bucar 

Saturday, May 5

1 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.

Free with Museum admission. 

Join our Docents for casual and informative discussions of works in the Museum. Learn more…

Save the Date

Artist Intervention: Karen Gelardi

Friday, May 11

5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Free admission.

Visit the galleries on select Free Friday Evenings to participate in “happenings” planned by PMA’s new team of Maine artists. Learn more…

Parlor Talk: Collaboration

Friday, May 11

5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Free admission.

Come hear Museum staff and local design agency Might & Main talk about collaboration across disciplines and mediums, followed by a short discussion and reception. Learn more…

Poster Sale at the Museum Store

Come into the Museum Store during April and May for great deals on our expansive selection of art posters!

Movies at the Museum

Dinner and a Movie! Enjoy a light dinner before a movie! Visit theMuseum Café by Aurora Provisions for seasonally inspired soups and salads, gourmet sandwiches, and creative entrées. Beer and wine served. No admission required to dine. Free Wi-Fi. Menu changes daily.

OSS 117: Lost in Rio 

Friday, May 4, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 5, 2 p.m.

Sunday, May 6, 2 p.m.

NR

The further adventures of the pride of French intelligence, Hubert Bonisseur de la Bath–code named OSS 117. Bonisseur has a new mission that takes him to the Bossa Nova Brazil of the 1960s.

Click here for complete movie listings

Quick Links

Visit Us

Exhibitions

Programs and Events

Membership

Museum Store

Portland Museum of Art | Seven Congress Square | Portland | ME | 04101

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Maine Historical Society Names New Executive Director

The Trustees of the Maine Historical Society announcedtoday that effective June 1, Stephen Bromage will become the organization’s new Executive Director. Assistant Director of MHS since 2006, Bromage was chosen after a lengthy and rigorous national search.”He’s the very best choice,” said Katherine Pope, President of the Board, “he has played a vital and integral role in the success and growth of MHS over the last ten years.  We have ambitious goals and Steve has the vision and creativity to lead MHS into the future.”

Steve has been responsible for the extraordinary growth of the MHS audience, both live and virtual. He has planned and implemented all public programs at MHS, increasing numbers and diversity through better communications and partnerships with many Maine cultural organizations. Steve has been instrumental in the success of Maine Memory Network–the Society’s statewide, online collaborative museum–raising more than $3 million in grants and designing new, innovative programs, such as the Maine Community Heritage Project, to help promote the role of history in creating community awareness and identity. A participant in the statewide development of the Maine Learning Technology Initiative, and a frequent presenter at national conferences, Steve is now a recognized leader in the field of digital history and community development.

Bromage received his B.A. in English from the University of Richmond (VA) and his Masters in American History from the University of Massachusetts (Amherst), where he focused on 20^thcentury U.S. cultural history. He has served as a regular grant reviewer for the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the National Endowment for the Humanities, and has served on the board of the Willowbrook Museum Village in Newfield Maine. Before coming to MHS in 2001, Steve served as the Associate Director of the Disability History Museum and Learning Resource Center, a project of Straight Ahead Pictures (a non-profit media and education center in Massachusetts).

“In the past decade,” says Steve, “we have seen the vibrant role that Maine history can play in the lives of diverse audiences throughout the state. History is becoming active, participatory, representative, and more integrated into civic life. There are exciting possibilities ahead, and heightened expectations for the role that MHS can play in Maine. I look forward to leading MHS as it continues to grow and evolve, and as we build a dynamic, sustainable foundation for the future.”

This Week 

Tuesday, April 24, 7pm

Gateways to Portland: Rebuilding Veterans Memorial and Martin’s Point Bridges

Moderator: Sally Oldham

Speakers: Joyce Taylor, Director, Project Development, Maine Department of Transportation; Patrick Costin, Martin’s Point Bridge Advisory Committee; Theo Holtwijk, Director of Long Range Planning, Falmouth

The bridges that connect Portland to the interstate and surrounding communities are critical thoroughfares, gateways to the city, and a defining characteristic of its landscape. Two of Portland’s most important and heavily trafficked bridges are currently or will soon be rebuilt. Hear from stakeholders about the issues that affect planning, and how the design of a bridge shapes the landscape and heralds entry into a city. In partnership with Greater Portland Landmarks.

Support Your History

Give to the Annual Fund

Donate a Historic Item

Friends of Collections

For more ways to give, visit us online or call (207) 774-1822 ext. 206.

Visit Us Online

Maine Historical Society Maine Memory Network Maine History Online

Vintage Maine Images Longfellow Website Museum Store

Online Museum Catalog MHS Library Catalog

This Week at MHS is your online source for exhibits, programs, and events.

Maine Historical Society  489 Congress Street Portland, ME 04101   info@mainehistory.org

Please “LIKE” The Valley Voice on Facebook at the bottom of this page. Thank You for your support!

Digital History: Stories from Maine Memory Network

Enemies At Sea, Companions in Death

MMN Item #131

Maine’s coastline and proximity to British Canada made the state a target during the War of 1812, as it had during previous conflicts. On September 5, 1813, the U.S.S. Enterprise, which was patrolling the East Coast, chased the English Brig HMS Boxer off the coast of Maine. The British, and especially the Boxer, had been harassing Maine coastal towns. This online exhibit tells the story of the two captains who faced off, and died, in this famous battle. Click here for more.

This Week 

Thursday, April 19, 7pm

The Civil War of 1812

Speaker: Dr. Alan Taylor, Professor of History, University of California, Davis

This year marks the bicentennial of the War of 1812, a formative moment in both Maine and U.S. history, and the subject of Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Alan Taylor’s new book. Taylor will tell the riveting story of a war that redefined North America. In the early 19th century, the British and Americans renewed their struggle over the legacy of the American Revolution. In this second confrontation, soldiers, immigrants, settlers, and Indians fought to determine the fate of a continent. Would revolutionary republicanism sweep the British from Canada? Or would the British contain, divide, and ruin the shaky republic? Taylor will tell us about an often brutal (sometimes comic) war and help illuminate the tangled origins of the United States and Canada. Alan Taylor, a Portland native, is one of the foremost historians of early America.

Purchase Dr. Taylor’s Book in the Museum Store and online.

The Richard D’Abate Lectures: Conversations About History, Art, and Literature (Program 5 of 7) Series details.

Next Week 

Tuesday, April 24, 7:00pm

Gateways to Portland: Rebuilding Veterans Memorial and Martin’s Point Bridges

In Partnership with Greater Portland Landmarks

Moderator: Sally Oldham Speakers: Joyce Taylor, Director, Project Development, Maine Department of Transportation; Patrick Costin, Martin’s Point Bridge Advisory Committee; Theo Holtwijk, Director of Long Range Planning, Falmouth

The bridges that connect Portland to the interstate and surrounding communities are critical thoroughfares, gateways to the city, and a defining characteristic of its landscape. Two of Portland’ most important and heavily trafficked bridges are currently or will soon be rebuilt. Hear from stakeholders about the issues that affect planning, and how the design of a bridge shapes the landscape and heralds entry into a city.

To see a full list of upcoming programs, please click here.

Public programs at MHS are sponsored, in part, by the Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust.

Get Your Tickets Now!

Join us for our annual fundraising gala on May 5th

The Mad Hatter Affair

with a special tribute to Richard D’Abate.

For tickets and details, call 207-774-1822 or visit us online
See Auction Items Online

Support Your History

Give to the Annual Fund

Donate a Historic Item

Friends of Collections

For more ways to give, visit us online or call (207) 774-1822 ext. 206.

Visit Us Online

Maine Historical Society Maine Memory Network Maine History Online

Vintage Maine Images Longfellow Website Museum Store

Online Museum Catalog MHS Library Catalog

This Week at MHS is your online source for exhibits, programs, and events.

Maine Historical Society  489 Congress Street Portland, ME 04101   info@mainehistory.org

From Portland to Paris: Mildred Burrage’s Years in France
On view April 21 through July 15

This exhibition will focus on Portland-born artist Mildred Burrage (1890-1983), who as a young aspiring painter traveled in the early 1900s to Giverny, France. Learn more…

From Portland to Paris: Mildred Burrage’s Years in France
Catalogue: $18.95
Available at the Museum Store.

Events at the Museum this Week

Family Voices on Vacation

Tuesday, April 17
Wednesday, April 18
Thursday, April 19
11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Free with Museum admission.

Come in during April Vacation week to try out the new Family Voices Cell Phone Tour and experiment with Looking Guides, Stop and Look stations, and other new materials that help families see the Museum together. Learn more…

Architalx 2012
Mikyoung Kim: Now in Production
Thursday, April 19

6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Tickets: $8 online/$10 at the door. Tickets available online at www.architalx.org. Seating is limited; overflow seating with video feed is available. Learn more…

Gallery Talk

Painting Light: French Impressionistsby Sy Epstein

Saturday, April 21

1 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.

Join our Docents for casual and informative discussions of works in the Museum. Learn more…

Movies at the Museum

Dinner and a Movie! Enjoy a light dinner before a movie! Visit theMuseum Café by Aurora Provisions for seasonally inspired soups and salads, gourmet sandwiches, and creative entrées. Beer and wine served. No admission required to dine. Free Wi-Fi. Menu changes daily.

Lost Bohemia

Friday, April 20, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 21, 2 p.m.

Sunday, April 22, 2 p.m.

NR

“A poignant, homemade documentary of corporate ‘arts’ predators tossing artists to the curb, Lost Bohemia renders the recent history of Carnegie Hall Studios as both a painful, personal case history and a metaphor for the power of mammon over the muse.” -Slant Magazine

Click here for complete movie listings

Quick Links

Visit Us

Exhibitions

Programs and Events

Membership

Museum Store

Portland Museum of Art | Seven Congress Square | Portland | ME | 04101

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The Maine Squeeze Band

Saturday, April 14

11:00 a.m. The Maine Squeeze Accordion Ensemble – Join the Maine Squeeze for foot-tapping music from around the world.  How about a polka, a tarantella, or a line dance?  Sing along to old-time favorites or listen to much-loved French Canadian, Cajun, and Zydeco tunes.  Participation encouraged.  Free museum admission all day!

Tuesday, April 17

9:30-1:00 Book Signing & 11:00 Reading of Children’s Book “Baxter in the Blaine House – Baxter is a Jack Russell terrier who lives with Gov. LePage and his family in the Blaine House. Find out more about Baxter’s adventures, meet the author Paula Benoit, and get your book signed. Books will be for sale in the Museum Store.

10:00-12:00 History Touch Cart – The History Touch Cart is full of artifacts to be handled and explored with the help of the museum’s educators. Examine historic tools, clothing, and personal items.  Some are recognizable, others are a mystery!

2:00-4:00 Textile Touch Cart – Learn how to card wool, see a drop spindle in action, and examine how a loom works. The Textile Touch Cart is full of wool, cotton, flax, and if you look really hard you may even find a silk worm cocoon! These fibers, fabrics, yarns, and much, much more are available to be handled and examined with the guidance of the museum’s educators.

Wednesday, April 18

10:00-12:00 & 2:00-4:00 Curator’s Corner – Join the museum’s history curators in exploring a variety of historicMaine artifacts. Or bring in your own mystery object from your attic, basement, or barn and they will try and identify it for you.

Thursday, April 19 & Friday, April 20

10:00-12:00 At Home in Maine Attic Games – Families are invited to explore the At Home in Maine exhibit, relax in the attic, and play some old-fashioned and classic games.

Paper Quilts: Flower Garden Patterns – Take a closer look at the latest quilt on view in the At Home in Maine exhibit, “Memory Bouquet Variations” made in 1923 by Annie Mason Bates ofDexter,Maine. This quilt is full of spring flowers! After viewing this beautiful quilt, design your own flower garden quilt out of paper.

12:00-3:00   THURSDAY ONLY Book Signing & 1:00 Reading of Children’s Book “Baxter in theBlaine House – Baxter is a Jack Russell terrier who lives with Gov. LePage and his family in the Blaine House.  Find out more about Baxter’s adventures, meet the author Paula Benoit, and get your book signed. Books will be for sale in the Museum Store.

2:00-4:00 History Touch Cart – Our History Touch Cart is full of artifacts to be handled and explored with the help of the museum’s educators. Examine historic tools, clothing, and personal items.  Some are recognizable, others are a mystery!

The Maine State Museum is open Tuesday through Friday 9am-5pm, Saturday 10am-4pm. Admission is $2 for adults; $1 for senior adults over age 62 and children 6-18 years of age; children under 6 free.  Maximum charge for families is $6.  For more information please call 207-287-2301, or visit the Maine State Museum website: www.mainestatemuseum.org

Please “LIKE” The Valley Voice on Facebook at the bottom of this page. Thank You for your support!

Memorial to the Passengers of the Portland, 1898  

MMN Item #13808

One of the most notable Maine-related shipwrecks was the sinking of the SS Portland in November 1898. In the late nineteenth century, steamship travel was still an important means of transportation for passengers and freight along the coast of New England, providing quick and efficient travel between many coastal cities. The Portland, which served a regular route between Portand and Boston, sank in a severe early winter storm. While the sole passenger list went down with the ship, officials determined that 192 passengers and crew were lost. Portland’s African-American community was particularly hard-hit: at least thirty crew members and passengers were from this small but vibrant community. Click here to view other items related to Maine shipwrecks.

This Week 

Tuesday, April 10, 12pm

The Titanic: A Survivor’s Story

Speaker: Dr. Karen Lemke, Professor of Education, St. Joseph’s College

Join us to recognize the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic. Lemke’s talk will focus on the story of eight-year old Marshall Drew who survived the sinking. Lemke spent extended time with Drew in 1986 for a story for the Bangor Daily News, and captured many of his vivid memories.

Next Week
Thursday, April 19, 7pm
The Civil War of 1812

Speaker: Dr. Alan Taylor, University of California, Davis

This year marks the bicentennial of the War of 1812, a formative event in both Maine and U.S. history and the subject of Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Alan Taylor’s new book. Join us to learn more! This program is part of the Richard D’Abate Lectures: Conversations About History, Art, and Literature. Series details.

To see a full list of upcoming programs, please click here.

Public programs at MHS are sponsored, in part, by the Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust.

Support Your History

Give to the Annual Fund

Donate a Historic Item

Friends of Collections

For more ways to give, visit us online or call (207) 774-1822 ext. 206.

Visit Us Online

Maine Historical Society Maine Memory Network Maine History Online

Vintage Maine Images Longfellow Website Museum Store

Online Museum Catalog MHS Library Catalog

This Week at MHS is your online source for exhibits, programs, and events.

Maine Historical Society  489 Congress Street Portland, ME 04101   info@mainehistory.org

Winslow Homer Studio Campaign

“He [Homer] represented the best that his country had to offer. That which was American also was Winslow Homer.” –The Maine Sunday Telegram

Learn more about the Winslow Homer Studio Campaign…

Are You Really My Friend?

Tanja Alexia Hollander: Are You Really My Friend?
On view through June 17 

“It’s a terrifically successful work of relational art, an interdimensional project that examines the ‘natural’ social fabric by purposely disturbing it, and folding that disturbance into the artistic process itself.” – The Portland Phoenix
This week’s blog features a video discussion between Tanja Hollander and the Bowdoin College Photography Club. Watch here!

Architalx 

Stuart Wood: Making
Thursday, April 12
6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Tickets: $8 online/$10 at the door. Tickets available online at www.architalx.org. Seating is limited; overflow seating with video feed is available. Learn more…

Save the Date: Family Voices on Vacation

Tuesday, April 17
Wednesday, April 18
Thursday, April 19

11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Free with Museum admission.
Come in during April school vacation week to try out the new Family Voices Cell Phone Tour and experiment with Looking Guides, Stop and Look stations, and other new materials that help families see the Museum together. Learn more…

Movies at the Museum

Dinner and a Movie! Enjoy a light dinner before a movie! Visit theMuseum Café by Aurora Provisions for seasonally inspired soups and salads, gourmet sandwiches, and creative entrées. Beer and wine served. No admission required to dine. Free Wi-Fi. Menu changes daily.

Meek’s Cutoff

Friday, April 13, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 14, 2 p.m.

Sunday, April 15, 2 p.m.

NR

The year is 1845, the earliest days of the Oregon Trail, and a wagon team of three families has hired the mountain man Stephen Meek to guide them over the Cascade Mountains. Claiming to know a short cut, Meek leads the group on an unmarked path across the high plain desert, only to become lost in the dry rock and sage.

Click here for complete movie listings

Quick Links

Visit Us

Exhibitions

Programs and Events

Membership

Museum Store

Portland Museum of Art | Seven Congress Square | Portland | ME | 04101

Please “Like” The Valley Voice on Facebook at the bottom of this page. Thank You for your support!

Maine Egg Producers, Scarborough, ca. 1960

MMN Item #31430

From the 1940s to 1970s, the poultry industry was an important part of Maine’s economy. Belfast was known as the “Broiler Capitol of the World,” and major farms in various parts of the state raised chickens for meat or to produce eggs. The plant shown in this photograph, state of the art when it opened in 1956, collected, processed, and packaged eggs from area poultry houses. To learn more about this plant and what is there today, click here. For a great overview of the rise and fall of Maine’s poultry industry, read this 2010 article, “The Last of the Chicken Farmers,” from the Bangor Daily News.

In This Issue

Current Exhibits

Spring Hours

What in the World?

Support MHS

Maine Memory Network

MHS Gala

MHS News

Programs & Events

Museum Store

Current Exhibits

Museum

Dressing Up, Fitting In, Standing Out: Adornment & Identity in Maine (through May 27, 2012)

Lecture Hall Gallery

Downtown: Portland, Circa 1912 (through June 30, 2012)

Showcase Gallery

Student art work from our Local History/Local Schools program

Spring Hours

Museum & Museum Store: Mon-Sat 10am-5pm. Starting May 6th, Sundays 12-5pm.

Brown Library: Tues-Sat 10am-4pm

The Wadsworth-Longfellow House is open for tours beginning on May 1.

What in the World? 

What-in-the-WORLD?-Wednesday is our popular weekly guess-the-artifact contest on Facebook. Above is the image we’ll be posting this Wednesday morning. If you’re on Facebook, you can post your guess on our page. If not, feel free to email your guess to us anytime before 4pm on Wednesday. We’ll post the answer–along with several of the most creative guesses–in a blog post late Wednesday afternoon.Annual Fund  

The MHS e-Connection provides a window into all that MHS does–preserving historic treasures, offering unique exhibits, presenting important educational programming, providing a community-based digital museum experience, and maintaining the Longfellow House and Garden. We cannot do it without you!

Please take this moment to support the MHS Annual Fund with an online gift.

Thank you in advance!

Stay Connected

Visit Us Online
Maine Historical Society
Maine Memory Network
Vintage Maine Images
Longfellow Website
Maine History Online
MHS Museum Store
Online Museum Catalog

Digital History from
Maine Memory Network

Don’t Miss

MHS Annual Gala: The Mad Hatter Affair

May 5, 2012, 5-11pm

The Woodlands, Falmouth   

Please join us for one of the most fun and exciting events of the year, and an important MHS fundraiser.
The festive evening includes a reception and dinner, a hat parade, a live broadcast of the Kentucky Derby, an amazing auction, and dancing with the Tony Boffa Band. This year’s event includes a special send-off for Richard D’Abate, who is retiring after 16 years as the MHS Executive Director.

View the auction items online. For more information, click here. Please call (207/774-1822 x206) or email Elizabeth Nash to purchase dinner tickets, or for information about becoming a Patron or Corporate Sponsor.

MHS News

New Photography Show to Open this Week

Downtown Portland, Circa 1912

Join us this Friday, April 6 from 5-8pm for the opening of our newest photography show in the Shettleworth Lecture Hall. The photographs capture businesses, buildings, and the hustle and bustle of Congress Street 100 years ago. This opening is part of Portland’s First Friday Art Walk.

April Programs
This Week

Tuesday, April 3, 12pm

Perspectives on Maine History:
Maine at Work, 1860-1900

Speakers:

Earle G. Shettleworth, Jr.and William Bunting

Shettleworth and Bunting willshare selections from Maine Historic Preservation Commission’s large collection of stereoviews, focusing on images of Mainers at work.

Thursday, April 5, 7pm

The Nature of Lost Things

Speaker:

Rosamond Purcell, photographer

Rosamond Purcell wrote Owls Head: On the Nature of Lost Things(2003) in order to understand how and why thirteen acres of scrap intermingled with antique machinery and historical ephemera had taken over the landscape. The answers came from William Buckminster, owner of this culturally over-charged place who, one day, in passing, mentioned that the only person he would like to have acquire the two-centuries-old brass foundry that he had found in a pile of hay would be MHS Director Richard D’Abate, who, based on a recent magazine article, “seems like a decent sort of fella.” Join us to hear about the connections between Buckminster, Purcell, and MHS. Purcell is a reknowned photographer whose work was featured in a New York Times article just last week.

Also happening this month

Tuesday, April 10, 12pm

The Titanic: A Survivor’s Story

Speaker: Dr. Karen Lemke, St. Joseph’s College

Thursday, April 19, 7pm

The Civil War of 1812

Speaker: Dr. Alan Taylor, University of California, Davis

Tuesday, April 24, 7pm

Gateways to Portland: Rebuilding Veterans Memorial and Martin’s Point Bridges

A panel discussion presented in partnership with Greater Portland Landmarks

Visit us online for a full schedule of 

programs and events.

Public programs supported by:

Museum Store

Spring Training

Spring is in the air!  What better way to get us ready for spring and baseball than this great new book on the legendary Ted Williams.  A treat for all ages!

Available in our Portland store and at our online store. $16.99 plus tax & shipping when applicable.

Visit us at 489 Congress Street in Portland. Museum store winter hours are Monday through Saturday 10am-5pm.

Maine Historical Society  489 Congress Street  Portland, ME 04101 (207) 774-1822
MHS e-Connection is your online source for news and events at MHS, e-mailed monthly.

Maine Historical Society | 489 Congress Street | Portland | ME | 04101

Making Faces: Photographic Portraits of Artist and Actors
On view through April 8

“Our culture demands photographs of important things, events and people. This puts photographers in direct contact with the most noteworthy happenings and humans. They are the surrogate witnesses of our culture. It is through them that we see modern history.”
- The Portland Press Herald
Learn more…

Doisneau: Portraits of the Artists

$65

Robert Doisneau gained remarkable access to the artists working in Paris from 1937 onwards. He visited their studios and caught them in various private moments: working, reflecting, and even playing with their children. This book shares Doisneau’s intimate view on the work and lives of these artists.
Available in the Museum Store.

Events at the Museum this Week
Architalx
Paul Endres: Lightness is in the Details

Thursday, April 5
6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Tickets: $8 online/$10 at the door. Tickets available online at www.architalx.org. Seating is limited; overflow seating with video feed is available.

Gallery Talk with Tanja Hollander and Mark Bessire

Thursday, April 5
12 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Free with Museum admission.

Artist Tanja Hollander and Museum Director Mark Bessire will be in the fourth floor gallery answering questions from gallery visitors and via livestream.

What Do You Think? Cantilever Porphyryby John Newman

Thursday, April 5

11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Free with Museum admission.

Say what you think and learn what others have to say–it may change the way you see.

Degas: The Private Impressionist by Kirsten Larsson-Turley
Saturday, April 7
1 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.  

Free with Museum admission.

Join our Docents for a discussion of works in the Museum’s current exhibition Edgar Degas: The Private Impressionist.

Learn more about our events.

Movies at the Museum

Dinner and a Movie! Enjoy a light dinner before a movie! Visit the Museum Café by Aurora Provisions for seasonally inspired soups and salads, gourmet sandwiches, and creative entrées. Beer and wine served. No admission required to dine. Free Wi-Fi. Menu changes daily.

The Salt of Life

Friday, April 6, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 7, 2 p.m.

Sunday, April 8, 2 p.m.

NR

In The Salt of Life, a middle-aged retiree has become invisible to all distaff Romans, regardless of age or relation. Watching his “codger” friends snare beautiful younger women on the sun-kissed cobblestones of Trastevere, Gianni tries his polite, utterly gracious best to generate some kind of extracurricular love life–with both hilarious and poignant results.

Click here for complete movie listings

Quick Links

Visit Us

Exhibitions

Programs and Events

Membership

Museum Store

Portland Museum of Art | Seven Congress Square | Portland | ME | 04101

Digital History: Stories from Maine Memory Network

Waiting for the Bus, Swan’s Island, ca. 1955 

MMN # 67666

Some images are timeless. This photograph was recently uploaded to Maine Memory Network by the Swan’s Island Educational Society which is participating in MHS’s Maine Community Heritage Project this year. Their website dedicated to the Island’s history will launch on Maine Memory in May. Stay tuned! Click here to see the ninety items they have put on Maine Memory so far.

Just Seen!

MHS featured in NBC’s Who Do You Think You Are?

The MHS Research Library played a starring role in the episode of NBC’s hit genealogy program Who Do You Think You Are? that aired last Friday. Actress Helen Hunt visited Portland to research the history of her great great grandmother Augusta Hunt, who was president of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. Click here to read a recap of the episode; click here to view the episode. The show also featured an interview with local historian and MHS friend Herb Adams, and a visit to the Neal Dow House.

Helen Hunt in the MHS Library’s Reading Room

This Week

Tony Horwitz and other historians to be featured
at Maine Festival of the Book

Tony Horwitz
Photo credit: Randi Baird

The 2012 Maine Festival of the Book, held this week in Portland, has much to offer folks interested in history. On Friday night, Tony Horwitz, author of Confederates in the Attic, will deliver the keynote address. His riveting new book, Midnight Rising, explores the story of abolitionist John Brown and the raid on Harper’s Ferry. On Saturday at 11am, Horwitz, Portland-based Colin Woodard, and Michael Willrichwill participate in a panel discussion, “New Takes on Past Connections,” that focuses on how these writers use history to help us understand contemporary American culture, politics, and identity. The panel will be moderated by MHS Assistant Director Steve Bromage. For more information on the festival, please visit Maine Reads‘ website.

Next Week!

Tuesday, April 3, 12pm

Perspectives on Maine History: Maine at Work, 1860-1900

Speakers: Earle G. Shettleworth, Jr., Maine State Historian; and William Bunting, historian, author, and master storyteller

Thursday, April 5, 7pm

The Nature of Lost Things

Speaker: Rosamond Purcell, photographer and author

Both of these programs are part of the Richard D’Abate Lectures: Conversations About History, Art, and Literature. Series details.

To see a full list of upcoming programs, please click here.

Public programs at MHS are sponsored, in part, by the Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust.

Coming Soon!

Tuesday, April 10, 12pm
The Titanic: A Survivor’s Story
Speaker: Dr. Karen Lemke, Professor of Education, St. Joseph’s College

Join us, one hundred years ago to the day (April 10) that the Titanic set sail from New York on its fateful voyage. Lemke’s talk will tell the story through the eyes and experience of eight-year old Titanic survivor, Marshall Drew.

Support Your History

Give to the Annual Fund

Donate a Historic Item

Friends of Collections

For more ways to give, visit us online or call (207) 774-1822 ext. 206.

Visit Us Online

Maine Historical Society Maine Memory Network Maine History Online

Vintage Maine Images Longfellow Website Museum Store

Online Museum Catalog MHS Library Catalog

This Week at MHS is your online source for exhibits, programs, and events.

Maine Historical Society  489 Congress Street Portland, ME 04101   info@mainehistory.org

Please “Like” The Valley Voice at the bottom of this page. Thank You!

The Museum is closed Friday, March 30 for a private event.

Final Days
Youth Art Month
On view through April 1

This year celebrates the 32nd anniversary of Youth Art Month Exhibitions in Maine and the 18th annual exhibition at the Museum. The exhibition showcases more than 100 works of art by students throughout the state, from elementary school through high school.

Edgar Degas: The Private Impressionist

On view through May 28

“…you are in for a treat.” -The Portland Press Herald

Degas and the Nude

$65

Degas and the Nude explores the artist’s treatment of the nude figure from his early years in the 1850s and 1860s, through his triumphs in the 1870s and 1880s, all the way to his last decades when this theme–in paintings, pastels, drawings, prints, and sculpture–reigned over his artistic production.
Available in the Museum Store.

Save the Date

Architalx 2012

Architalx is an annual lecture series that showcases leaders in the architecture and design fields, and provides the opportunity for inspiration and dialogue with the Maine creative community and the general public.

Thursday, April 5: Paul Endres: Lightness is in the Details
Thursday, April 12: Stuart Wood: Making
Thursday, April 19: Mikyoung Kim: Now in Production
Thursday, April 26: Bradley Samuels: Interoperate

Tickets: $8 online/$10 at the door. Tickets available online atwww.architalx.org. Seating is limited; overflow seating with video feed is available.

Movies at the Museum

Dinner and a Movie! Enjoy a light dinner before a movie! Visit theMuseum Café by Aurora Provisions for seasonally inspired soups and salads, gourmet sandwiches, and creative entrées. Beer and wine served. No admission required to dine. Free Wi-Fi. Menu changes daily.

All In–The Poker Movie

Saturday, March 31, 2 p.m.

NR

This documentary weaves the quest for the American Dream, the ability to take risks, and the celebration of entrepreneurship with a game that began with conmen on riverboats nearly two centuries ago.

Advanced tickets on sale until Thursday, March 28.Click here to purchase.

Tahaan

Sunday, April 1, 2 p.m.

NR

Tahaan is a stunningly shot, fable-like story set in scenic but strife-ridden Kashmir. The story is of an eight-year-old boy who tries to get back his beloved pet donkey that has been sold along with his family’s possessions to pay the family’s debt.
In Hindi with English subtitles.

Tahaan is screened in collaboration with the Portland Children’s Film Festival.

Click here for complete movie listings

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Portland Museum of Art | Seven Congress Square | Portland | ME | 04101

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