Feb. 21, 1885: The Washington Monument, built with a core of granite quarried in Maine, is dedicated in Washington, D.C. Construction on the monument began in 1848 but was suspended for 23 years for a variety of reasons, including the Civil War. Maine also supplied granite used in many other prominent late-19th-century construction projects, including […]
This Day in Maine History
Posted inBicentennial, Local & State, News, Uncategorized
On this date in Maine history: Feb. 19
Feb. 19, 1988: In the final two minutes of the Eastern Maine Class B boys basketball championship game at the Bangor Auditorium, Ellsworth High School senior Tim Scott scores 13 points in 58 seconds, leading the Eagles to a 65-64 victory. The fourth-seeded Eagles’ opponent is third-seeded Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln. After Scott’s 13-point run, […]
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Posted inBicentennial, Local & State, News
On this date in Maine history: Feb. 17
Feb. 17, 1927: “The King’s Henchmen,” an American opera written by Deems Taylor and Rockland native, poet and playwright Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892-1950), opens successfully at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City and becomes popular in book form as well. Feb. 17, 1952: A 36-hour blizzard powered by high wind begins to envelop […]
Posted inBicentennial, Local & State, News
On this date in Maine history: Feb. 17
Feb. 17, 1927: “The King’s Henchmen,” an American opera written by Deems Taylor and Rockland native, poet and playwright Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892-1950), opens successfully at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City and becomes popular in book form as well. Feb. 17, 1952: A 36-hour blizzard powered by high wind begins to envelop […]
Posted inBicentennial, Local & State, News
On this date in Maine history: Feb. 16
Feb. 16, 1804: In a maneuver masterminded by Navy Commodore Edward Preble (1761-1807) of Portland, a group of sailors stage a surprise attack and set fire to the frigate USS Philadelphia, which had run aground the previous year off Tripoli and had been captured by Barbary pirates. President Thomas Jefferson put Preble in charge of […]
Posted inBicentennial, Local & State, News
On this date in Maine history: Feb. 15
Feb. 15, 1898: The armored battleship USS Maine explodes in the harbor at Havana, Cuba, killing 266 of its 354 crew members and accelerating the decline in U.S. relations with Cuba’s parent nation, Spain. The U.S. goes to war against Spain later that year. The ship, commissioned in 1895, was the first U.S. Navy vessel named […]
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On this date in Maine history: Feb. 14
Feb. 14, 2008: Bath Iron Works wins a $1.4 billion contract to build the first ship in the U.S. Navy’s newest class of guided-missile destroyers. The Zumwalt, or DDG 1000, is expected to be delivered in 2014. The contract is expected to help BIW avoid layoffs when construction of Arleigh Burke-class destroyers is complete. The […]
Posted inBicentennial, Local & State
On this date in Maine history: Feb. 20
Feb. 20, 1797: The Massachusetts legislature votes to partition the Maine town of Hallowell, with the northern part being incorporated as the town of Harrington, named after an English nobleman. Immediate dissatisfaction among residents prompts the selectmen to petition the Boston authorities for a name change. The legislature bows to the people’s wishes, and on […]
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On this date in Maine history: Feb. 13
Feb. 13, 2019: The town of Skowhegan and the Main Street Skowhegan organization receive confirmation from Guinness World Records that their community set the world record for moose calling on June 9, 2018. On that date, registered Maine guide Robert Lambert led 1,054 people in a thunderous moose call that lasted 30 seconds during the Skowhegan […]
Posted inBicentennial, Local & State
On this date in Maine history: Feb. 12
Feb. 12, 1959: A group of builders from New York gives the city of Bangor a 31-foot-tall Paul Bunyan statue in commemoration of the city’s 125th anniversary of incorporation. The statue is placed in Bass Park on Main Street. Feb. 12, 1834, also is supposed to be the fictional Bunyan’s birth date. The city clerk’s […]