Maine Memory Network

World War I and the Maine Experience

With a long history of patriotism and service, Maine experienced the war in a truly distinct way. Its individual experiences tell the story of not only what it means to be an American, but what it means to be from Maine during the war to end all wars.

Picturing Henry

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's popularity in the 19th century is reflected by the number of images of him -- in a variety of media -- that were produced and reproduced, some to go with published works of his, but many to be sold to the public on cards and postcards.

Rum, Riot, and Reform - Quenching the Thirst

"… Home: Birds Eye View of Togus Beck and Pauli, Lithographers, 1878 Lithograph Collections of Maine Historical Society As a Federal installation…"

Rum, Riot, and Reform - Temperance Membership

"1850 Kellogg & Comstock, NY Handcolored lithograph Courtesy of the Charles E. Burden Collection In the early days of the temperance movements, female…"

Rum, Riot, and Reform - Business as Usual

"… X Frank Jones Brewing Company Poster Lithograph, ca. 1900 Portsmouth, New Hampshire Courtesy of The Great State of Maine Beer Book, Will…"

Rum, Riot, and Reform - Neal Dow

"1865 Published by John Russell Hand-colored lithograph Collections of Maine Historical Society; purchased with funds from the Edward Foley Memorial…"

Writing Women

Published women authors with ties to Maine are too numerous to count. They have made their marks in all types of literature.

The Mainspring of Fashion

The mainspring of fashion is the process whereby members of one class imitate the styles of another, who in turn are driven to ever new expedients of fashionable change.

Maine Streets: The Postcard View

Photographers from the Eastern Illustrating and Publishing Co. of Belfast traveled throughout the state, especially in small communities, taking images for postcards. Many of these images, taken in the first three decades of the twentieth century, capture Main Streets on the brink of modernity.

Home: The Longfellow House & the Emergence of Portland

The Wadsworth-Longfellow house is the oldest building on the Portland peninsula, the first historic site in Maine, a National Historic Landmark, home to three generations of Wadsworth and Longfellow family members -- including the boyhood home of the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The history of the house and its inhabitants provide a unique view of the growth and changes of Portland -- as well as of the immediate surroundings of the home.

Dressing Up, Standing Out, Fitting In

Adorning oneself to look one's "best" has varied over time, gender, economic class, and by event. Adornments suggest one's sense of identity and one's intent to stand out or fit in.

Designing Acadia

For one hundred years, Acadia National Park has captured the American imagination and stood as the most recognizable symbol of Maine’s important natural history and identity. This exhibit highlights Maine Memory content relating to Acadia and Mount Desert Island.

Begin Again: reckoning with intolerance in Maine

BEGIN AGAIN explores Maine's historic role, going back 528 years, in crisis that brought about the pandemic, social and economic inequities, and the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020.