Maine Memory Network

William Sentner Home, Monson, ca. 1900

Contributed by: Monson Historical Society Date: circa 1900 Location: Monson Media: Photographic print

George Merrill Home, Weld Street, Dixfield, ca. 1910

Contributed by: Dixfield Historical Society Date: circa 1910 Location: Dixfield Media: Photographic print

Ray property, Natick Street, Peaks Island, Portland, 1924

Owner in 1924: Clyde Ray Use: Summer Dwelling

77 Newbury Street, Portland, 1924

Owner in 1924: Raffaele Frascone Use: Dwelling - Single family

The Checkley House, Scarborough, 1895

Contributed by: Maine Historical Society Date: circa 1895 Location: Scarborough Client: unknown Architect: John Calvin Stevens

Waterford Library, Waterford, 1937

Contributed by: Maine Historical Society Date: 1930–1937 Location: Waterford Client: unknown Architect: John Calvin Stevens and John Howard Stevens Architects

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.

Away at School: Letters Home

Young men and women in the 19th century often went away from home -- sometimes for a few months, sometimes for longer periods -- to attend academies, seminaries, or schools run by individuals. While there, they wrote letters home, reporting on boarding arrangements and coursework undertaken, and inquired about the family at home.

Home: The Wadsworth-Longfellow House and Portland - Researching Your Home

"As early as 1850 the house was recognized as a historic site. Over the years many people have described the house and left a record of their…"

Early Maine Photography - Art

"An ambrotype copy of an early nineteenth century silhouette of an unidentified young woman was made by T.R. Burnham of Bangor in the 1850s."

In an Old, Abandoned Island House, I Found my Mentor and my Muse
by Robin Clifford Wood

An aspiring writer finds inspiration and a mentor from the past in an old island home.

My father's world - the old farm in Richmond, Maine
by Donald C. Cunningham

A story about my father and our family.

Teddy Roosevelt, Millie, and the Elegant Ride Companion Curriculum

Grade Level: 3-5, 6-8 Content Area: Social Studies
These lesson plans were developed by Maine Historical Society for the Seashore Trolley Museum as a companion curriculum for the historical fiction YA novel "Teddy Roosevelt, Millie, and the Elegant Ride" by Jean. M. Flahive (2019). The novel tells the story of Millie Thayer, a young girl who dreams of leaving the family farm, working in the city, and fighting for women's suffrage. Millie's life begins to change when a "flying carpet" shows up in the form of an electric trolley that cuts across her farm and when a fortune-teller predicts that Millie's path will cross that of someone famous. Suddenly, Millie finds herself caught up in events that shake the nation, Maine, and her family. The lesson plans in this companion curriculum explore a variety of topics including the history of the trolley use in early 20th century Maine, farm and rural life at the turn of the century, the story of Theodore Roosevelt and his relationship with Maine, WWI, and the flu pandemic of 1918-1920.

Longfellow Studies: The Elms - Stephen Longfellow's Gorham Farm

Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12 Content Area: English Language Arts, Social Studies
On April 3, 1761 Stephen Longfellow II signed the deed for the first 100 acre purchase of land that he would own in Gorham, Maine. His son Stephen III (Judge Longfellow) would build a home on that property which still stands to this day. Judge Longfellow would become one of the most prominent citizens in Gorham’s history and one of the earliest influences on his grandson Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's work as a poet. This exhibit examines why the Longfellows arrived in Gorham, Judge Longfellow's role in the history of the town, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's vacations in the country which may have influenced his greatest work, and the remains of the Longfellow estate still standing in Gorham today.