Baxter State Park and Katahdin
By John W. Neff, Howard R. Whitcomb
Images of America Series
128 pages/ softcover; $21.99

The newest addition to Arcadia Publishing’s popular Images of America series is “Baxter State Park and Katahdin” from local authors John W. Neff and Howard R. Whitcomb. The book boasts more than 200 vintage images and memories of days gone by.

The character of Baxter State Park and the mountain at its heart can be conveyed through two words: forever wild. The mountain was known as Ktaadn, or  “the greatest mountain,”  to native people who first frequented Maine’s interior northern forest, according to a new release. They were followed by colonial adventurers who explored its cirques and massive granite walls, by those who studied its geology and flora and fauna, and later by loggers who came to extract the virgin timber from nearby valleys.

Finally, recreational climbing and camping led to an effort to protect the rugged beauty of these mountains, lakes and valleys. When calls for preservation went unheeded, former governor Percival P. Baxter, beginning in the 1930s, purchased some 201,000 acres during a period of 30 years and gifted them to the state.

Today, Baxter State Park is the guardian of this vast wilderness area for all to enjoy. “Baxter State Park and Katahdin” draws on rich collections of archival images dating back to the 19th century.
The book is available at area bookstores, independent retailers and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at www.arcadiapublishing.com or (888) 313-2665. 

Neff, a Katahdin historian, has served as president of both the Maine Appalachian Trail Club and Friends of Baxter State Park. Whitcomb, a retired professor, is a published authority on Governor Baxter and the park’s creation.ꆱ