Project Types: Examples
There are many ways to contribute to Maine Memory Network (MMN), depending on your interests and the material your organization, team, and/or community wants to share. The examples on this page illustrate how some other communities are using and contributing to MMN.
Is your organization considering getting involved? Have a look at the examples below, and spend some time exploring the material on Maine Memory—currently including nearly 20,000 individual items contributed by 210+ organizations, more than 200 online exhibits, and many community websites. Feel free to Contact MHS staff to discuss your ideas. We'll help you determine how to get started.
Digitization Projects
Fryeburg Historical Society
Oxford County
147 Items
Fryeburg, the oldest town in Oxford County, sits along the Saco River and is home to the private preparatory school Fryeburg Academy, and the hugely popular Fryeburg Fair, which takes place in October and attracts about 300,000 visitors annually. A wide variety of historical images and artifacts from these and many other important events, individuals, and eras in Fryeburg's history make up the western Maine town's robust collection on Maine Memory.
Patten Lumbermen's Museum
Aroostook County
333 Items
Established to document Maine logging history by preserving the heritage and accomplishments of early inhabitants of the state of Maine, exhibits at the Patten Lumbermen's Museum include some of Maine's most notable contributions to the early mechanization of logging, including the Lombard Steam Hauler, Lombard Gas Hauler, and the Peavey Cant Dog. Its rich collection on MMN includes primarily photographs—of lumbermen at work, at rest, and interacting with one another at logging camps, of logging tools and machinery, and of the formidable Maine woods.
North Yarmouth Historical Society
Cumberland County
73 Items
North Yarmouth Historical Society features several distinct primary sources in their MMN collection—photographs, but also an intriguing Civil War collection of letters and artifacts related to two brothers, as well as a map, transportation-related ephemera, and miscellaneous other unique items. While this collection is smaller than the other two highlighted here, the items are well-cataloged and chosen to showcase important components of the town's history.
Search for any Contributing Partner organization, topic, or keyword.
Online Exhibits
John Bapst High School
Text by Evangeline Hussey
Images from John Bapst Memorial High School
This exhibit on Bangor's once-Catholic, now non-sectarian, private high school—built in 1926 on Broadway Street—features a plethora of school ephemera, architectural details about the construction of the classical building, history of school leaders, and fun anecdotes.
Le Théâtre
Text by Donat Boisvert
Images from Franco-American Collection
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the immigrants in Lewiston's thriving textile industry had brought with them more than their able bodies from their Canadian homeland. They also brought a foreign language and culture, which, among other things, they developed into their own musical and theatrical traditions in their new home. This exhibit explores that colorful tradition in 24 captivating images and accompanying text.
Save the Skowhegan Grange & Granges in General
Text by Eric Axelman (8th grade student)
Images from Skowhegan History House
With the assistance of local experts and collections from the Skowhegan History House, students at Skowhegan Area Middle School researched and wrote about area grange halls. Their interest in the subject quickly moved from the realm of history into civics when they learned that the Skowhegan Grange building was owned by a local bank and likely would one day face demolition. As you will read, the students felt passionately about that possibility.
For More:
Exhibits can be found in several places on Maine Memory:
- The primary Exhibits Archive will allow you to search alphabetically through the 120 or so exhibits created by MMN curator Candace Kanes and others from around the state. More are being added all the time!
- Maine History Online, unveiled in 2010, features many additional fascinating exhibits organized by time period and theme.
- More than 100 exhibits can be found within the community websites created as part of the Maine Community Heritage Project. See if your community has participated in this exciting endeavor!
Community Websites
Biddeford History & Heritage Project
Maine Community Heritage Project, 2009-2010
The Biddeford Team consisted of McArthur Public Library, a longtime MMN Contributing Partner (with 504 items currently online!), the Biddeford Historical Society, and a dozen Project Aspire students from Biddeford High School. The resulting website is beautifully laid out, features a well-written and well-organized narrative history of the city, has five substantive and dynamic exhibits, and gets all the other parts picture-perfect, too. These include a gracious thank-you page, a cogently coded resources list, and an "About Us" section on which the partners share their experiences about the project. The Project Aspire students worked one-on-one with the adults on the team throughout the entire project year. They did everything from scanning and photography, to writing catalogue descriptions, to researching Biddeford during the Civil War era. Their hard work is evident on the site.
Historic Hallowell
Maine Community Heritage Project, 2009-2010
The Hallowell Team consisted of a large number of community organizations and individuals in Maine's smallest city—many of which had worked together on history projects before. Led by the Hallowell Area Board of Trade and including main partners Hall-Dale Middle School and Hubbard Free Library, the team also brought in representatives from key organizations like The Row House and The Vaughan Homestead Foundation to serve the project. City officials were supportive of the project from day one and spoke at the closing event. The Hallowell website is notable for its multiple layers and the creativity and uniqueness of its exhibit topics. "A Good Night's Sleep and Other Abodes," "In Sickness and In Health," and "Disasters—Natural and Manmade," are but a few of the intriguing titles. "Disasters…" is the student topic and is it itself incredibly multi-layered and creative; the 60 students who participated did so for more than half the year and learned all aspects of contributing to the building of the site.
For More:
Visit the Community Websites page.
To learn more, please contact the Community Partnership Coordinator at lvpicard@mainehistory.org or call 774-1822 x215.