News from the Director
Steve Bromage
I am delighted to announce that Maine Historical Society, in partnership with the Maine State Library, has just been awarded a National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum & Library Services. (See MHS News below.) Our project will put individuals at the center of their own online museum experience. Their personal interests--whether in history, their place(s), Maine, research, genealogy, or a wide array of topics and events--will be the basis for their participation as they explore, participate in, and contribute to Maine history.We are thrilled. Stay tuned for more details.
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October Hours
Longfellow House & Garden
Monday - Saturday, 10am - 5pm; Sundays 12 - 5pm. Call for tour times: 207-774-1822
Museum & Store
Monday - Saturday, 10am - 5pm; Sundays 12 - 5pm
Brown Library
Tuesday - Saturday, 10am - 4pm
Columbus Day Weekend:
Library closed Saturday;
Store, House, and Museum open Monday, Oct. 14
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Spotlight
Wadsworth Longfellow House Guide, Judie Percival
When Portland native Judie Percival was nearing her 10th birthday, the only gifts she asked for was bus fare and a ticket to tour the Wadsworth-Longfellow House. She got her wish and has been a Longfellow enthusiast ever since! Judie is in her 16th season as a guide--her 14th occupation (and last, she notes). Judie had a "Stevens Ave. Education"--that is, the schools she attended, from elementary to college were all located on Stevens Avenue. When she retired, she joined the ranks of house guides and is known for her delightful tours. "I can't say enough about what an uplifting position this is for me; I love working with the public and providing a history of Longfellow's life and family through the context of this fabulous house," says Judie. Judie splits her time between her 100-year-old cottage on Crystal Lake in Gray, and Naples, Florida. Have you been on one of Judie's tours? Write your review on our TripAdvisor page.
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Support the Annual Fund
We could not present any of these programs or preserve any of these collections without your support! Please help us by making a gift to the annual fund right now. Our fiscal year ends at midnight tonight! Thank you.
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Online Exhibit: Moosehead Steamboats
 | Steamboats Rebecca and Fairy of the Lake, Moosehead Lake, ca. 1890
MMN #79296 |
Steamboats on Moosehead Lake opened the great Maine woods for those who came to harvest the timber, for those who traveled to fish and hunt, and for those who sought the beauty of forests, mountains, and clean waters.
This new online exhibit by the Moosehead Historical Society and Museums is the story of those boats and the enterprise they made possible.
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Maine Historical awarded a National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum & Library Services
Under this grant, MHS will develop and implement My Maine History: Using Digital Participation to Build 21st Century Skills, a statewide program that encourages individuals to become active participants in the history of their place(s). The three-year project builds on and continues development of the Maine Memory Network, our nationally recognized digital museum. Working closely with local libraries, historical societies, and schools throughout Maine, MHS staff will develop and pilot tools, resources, and an outreach program that give individuals the ability to participate in, and contribute to, Maine Memory.
The project will utilize Maine Memory's network infrastructure--most importantly its 270 Contributing Partners--to explore how cultural organizations in Maine can use a range of recent technologies in a focused, purposeful way to further their work and enrich life in our communities, across the state, and online.
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Featured Program
The Coming Storm: The Civil War and American Art
Wednesday, October 2, 4:30pm
LOCATION: Kresge Auditorium, Visual Arts Center, Bowdoin College
Co-sponsored by Maine Historical Society and Bowdoin College Museum of Art
Speaker: Eleanor Jones Harvey, Senior Curator, Smithsonian American Art Museum
 MHS is pleased to partner with Bowdoin to present a talk by Smithsonian Curator Eleanor Jones Harvey, whose acclaimed exhibition, The Civil War and American Art is now at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The exhibition opened in late 2012 at the Smithsonian to high praise. It examines how America's artists--such as Winslow Homer, Eastman Johnson, and Frederic Church--represented the impact of the Civil War and its aftermath. The New York Times calls it a "gripping show... that sheds light on how the nation experienced its fratricidal conflict." Harvey's book, The Civil War and American Art, which serves as an exhibition catalog, is available for purchase at the MHS Museum Store or the Museum Store Online.
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October Programs & Events
Click on the event title for details
Saturday, October 5, 9:00am - 12:00pm
Researching Military and Civil War Records: A Genealogy Workshop  Join us for an in-depth look at researching your ancestors' military records and service. The workshop covers resources related to soldiers in general, and also focuses on Civil War veterans. Registration required, call 207-774-1822.
$25/ members, $35/ non-members
Wednesday, October 9, 12:00pm
Intro to MHS: Library Catalog Instruction
MHS Research Librarian Jamie Kingman Rice provides in-depth instruction of our library catalog, Minerva, including recent interface changes, how to search and access records, as well as other databases available for research.
Thursday, October 10, 7:00pm
The Shadow and the Substance: Civil War Photography
Speaker: Libby Bischof, Associate Professor of History, University of Southern Maine Photography was still in its infancy during the Civil War, but it was artfully employed as a new and powerful tool to tell the story of the battlefields and beyond. Bischof delivers a visually-rich presentation about the impact of this new technology on American perception of war and death.
Wednesday, October 16, 12:00pm
Intro to MHS: Museum Collections: Recent Acquisitions and PastPerfect Online
 MHS Museum Registrar Holly Hurd-Forsyth provides a show-and-tell of recent or topical museum collection items, discusses how accessions are researched and processed, and trains participants how to search and use the PastPerfect Online database.
Thursday, October 17, 7:00pm
Book Event: Another City Upon A Hill
Speaker: Joseph Conforti, Distinguished Professor of American and New England Studies Emeritus, University of Southern Maine
 Conforti joins us to give his first talk in Maine about his recently published memoir, Another City Upon a Hill. The book is both a personal story and a portrait of a distinctive New England place--Fall River, Massachusetts, once the cotton cloth capital of America. He shares the multi-generational story of immigrant groups making their way in a once mighty textile city that had fallen on hard times beginning in the 1920s. A book sale and signing will follow the talk.
Tuesday, October 22, 12:00pm
In partnership with Maine Audubon
Speaker: Andrew Barton, Professor of Biology, University of Maine at Farmington
Using a diverse range of historical and ecological evidence, Barton will discuss the past, present, and future of the Maine Woods. He will read narrative selections from his recent book, The Changing Nature of the Maine Woods, and highlight the natural and human-caused changes over the past 15,000 years.
October 24, 25, 26, 29, 30, tours from 6-7:30pm
Longfellow's Haunted House  Don't miss this unique evening tour of the Wadsworth-Longfellow House in the week leading up to Halloween! Based on Longfellow's poem, "Haunted Houses"-- "All houses wherein men have lived and died / Are haunted houses" --the 90-minute tour will be led by seasoned guide James Horrigan. It will bring to life the various family members that died in the Wadsworth-Longfellow over its long history.
Tour times, admission, and details online.
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From the Collections
 | | Detail of 1862 letter formalized M. D. L. Lane's appointment as Consul of the United States at Vera Cruz. Coll. 188 |
John and Mary Lane of Hollis had a large family. Their children were given names common in New England at the time: Stephen, Charles, Rebecca, Susan, Ellen, John, Mary, Marquis de Lafayette...
Marquis de Lafayette?
Continue reading the intriguing story of M. D. L. Lane and his appointment by President Lincoln in this blog post written by MHS Registrar Holly Hurd-Forsyth.
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Seen at MHS
200th Anniversary of the Boxer and Enterprise Week
September 5, 2013, was the 200th anniversary of the battle of the HMS Boxer and the USS Enterprise during the War of 1812. MHS hosted several events to commemorate the anniversary, including a graveside service, exhibit reception, and historians' roundtable. View photos on our Facebook page.
Apple Talk with John Bunker,
Thursday, September 26  Apple expert John Bunker delighted the capacity crowd with his talk on Maine's heirloom apples and how the history of the state and the region can be told through these diverse apple varieties. A tasting of about 10 varieties followed the talk. Meanwhile, John spent a half-hour examining apples attendees brought along to be identified.
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Museum Store
Maine-inspired Candles
Welcome Autumn into your home with our scented candles.
State of Maine 26 oz. candle jar scents:
Blueberry Pancake and Citrus & Sage ($19.95)
Wadsworth-Longfellow House 16 oz. candle jar scents:
Buttered Maple Syrup and Balsam Fir ($15.95)
Candles available online or at the Museum Store 489 Congress Street, Portland, Maine MHS Members receive a 10% discount on all store orders!
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