WISCASSET — Lincoln County Historical Association will present an illustrated lecture by Michael Chaney on the work of E. Joseph Leighton, a photographer who recorded life in Lincoln County in the early part of the 20th century. The talk will begin at 1 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 28, in the Communications Building, on U.S. Route 1, according to a news release from the association.

Michael Chaney, executive director of the Frances Perkins Center in Damariscotta, chose the work of Leighton as the subject of his master’s thesis in history, which he received from the University of Connecticut in 1985. At that time, he made poster-size enlargements of about 25 prints from glass plate negatives. The framed prints were exhibited throughout the state and Chaney later donated them to the association.

In the lecture, The Photography of E. Joseph Leighton, 1884-1957 in Lincoln County, Maine, Chaney displays images of work, family and community life in Lincoln County during the first three decades of the 20th century. He also explores work in the woods, on the river, and on the farm through a dozen oral history interviews conducted in the 1970s with people who knew Leighton or the work he documented.

Leighton’s glass plate negatives, now at the Maine State Museum, were initially organized and cared for by the Lincoln County Historical Society in the 1960s. The collection is a record of life before automobiles and electricity, according to the release.

Admission to the winter lecture series is free. A donation of $5. is suggested. Coffee and pastries will be served. For more information about the lecture, call Christine Hopf-Lovette at 522-6397.

The association is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization that provides stewardship for the 1754 Chapman-Hall House in Damariscotta, the 1761 Pownalborough Court House in Dresden, and the 1811 Old Jail and Museum in Wiscasset.

For a complete listing of 2015 Winter Lecture Series presentations, visit www.lincolncountyhistory.org.


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