McLellan House

The Visit: On April 24th, while visiting the Portland Museum of Art, I took a quick visit to the back of the building where the McLellan House is located. This post-revolutionary house represents the wealth of Major Hugh McLellan as an elite shipping tycoon during a booming maritime economy. Most of the rooms are open for viewing and have explanations of what each room would have been used for. One of the top floor rooms has now been turned into a small library where visitors can read, relax and look out the window down onto lower Portland.

Historical Significance: The McLellan House was built in 1801 for Major Hugh McLellan. He was the owner of Maine's largest shipping fleet as well as the founder of the first bank in Maine. The architect that built the house was John Kimball Sr., who moved to Portland in 1784. After McLellan lost the house due to the British trade embargo crippling, ownership of the resident exchange hands until in 1880 when the Sweats acquired the house. Mrs.Sweats past away in 1908 but before she did she deeded the  house to the Portland Society of Art, which now is the Portland Museum of Art. In 2000 construction began to restore the house and the section of the building where now most of the art is on display and by 2002 the museum had its grand opening.

Resources: McLellan House:http://portlandmuseum.org/about/facts/mclellan.shtml

Portland Museum of Art: Winslow Homer

The Visit: On April 24th, while visiting the Portland Museum of Art, I came across an exhibit dedicated to the life and work of Winslow Homer. The Portland Museum of Art sits proudly at Congress Square and is home to a large variety of paintings, sculptures, and other forms of artwork. The Winslow Homer exhibit not only displays some of his art, but also a diagram of his studio and his original watercolor paint box. Many of his paintings depict the romance of Maine's great outdoors and in turn he has become one of Maine's most famous artists.

Historical Significance:Winslow Homer was born on February 24, 1836 in Boston, Massachusetts to a long line of New Englanders. He gained his artistic talents from his mother and opened his first studio in 1859. He traveled all over America and spent two years in England before moving to Prouts Neck, Maine in 1883. During this time he painted the sea scenes that we most famously remember him for.These paintings, along with others, became widely known when Maine began to market itself as the "Vacation State". The intriguing shore lines and rustic appearance became the images on postcards and advertisements sent all over the country. His artwork translated into the idea that Maine will revive you and was a major factor in the increase of tourism. Today, the Portland Museum of Art holds an extensive collection of Winslow Homer's artwork in hopes it will expose and educate audiences on the heritage and impact of his masterpieces.

Resources: Winslow Homer at the PMA: http://www.portlandmuseum.org/exhibitions-collections/winslowhomer.shtml

Portland Museum Of Art: Blueberry Rakers

The Visit:On April 24th, my classmates and I visited the Portland Museum of Art. I often visit the museum during Portland's First Friday events and find the variety of art put on display to be quite wonderful. Each floor has a different theme and the one I found to be most interesting was the fourth floors exhibit on Blueberry Rakers by David Brooks Stess. These black and white photographs allow the viewer to step into the intimate lives of a group of Maine blueberry rakers in order to reveal a lifestyle and labor that has been lost to machinery. The exhibit closes on May 19 and I would highly recommend anyone with free time to stop by and allow themselves to momentarily step into the world of the Blueberry Rakers.

Historical Significance:David Brooks Stess spent more then two decades photographing the annual blueberry harvest in northern Maine. In doing so he captured both the labor and the social life of Native American Mainers and migrant field workers. The rawness of these pictures unmasks the realities of manual labor and the people who have dedicated their lives to it. Blueberries have been an important part of Maine's economy as well as a main ingredient in many traditional Maine recipes. In turn, blueberry raking has become a large agricultural business. Originally they were harvested by hand-rakers using aluminum rakes that swept through the low-lying blueberry plants, but that method quickly disappeared when mechanized ways of harvesting proved to be more profitable. Yet some Mainers still value the hard work that goes along with hand-raking and have created communities like the ones seen in David's photos. Some were born into the world of raking while others chose to join into a way of life that represented the values of hard work and tradition. People of all ages and backgrounds make up the communities of blueberry rakers and David's photographs capture the essence of these laborers and their fight in keeping their way of life alive.
Resources: Portland Museum of Art Exhibits: http://www.portlandmuseum.org/exhibitions-collections/current.shtml

John Ford Memorial

The Visit: On the warm afternoon of April 24th, I visited the site of John Ford's Memorial in downtown Portland. Located on the corner of a four way intersection, this monument is frequently passed by those either going down to the docks or up into town. Unfortunately, it is a difficult site to get to with ease unless you come across it on a day with little traffic. With that said, the memorial seems to be well maintained and the small garden behind it acts as a lovely background in completing the scene of John Ford sitting on his stone directors chair. Around the statue of Ford are 6 markers which represent the 6 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Oscars that he received. And, on each marker is a small explanation of the work and the inspiration behind it. The site itself is part of the Maine Irish Heritage Trail and is the 26th out of 58 sites found in Portland.

 


Historical Significance: John Ford was born as John Martin Feeney in 1894 in Cape Elizabeth. His family moved to Munjoy Hill shortly after and attended Portland schools growing up. Once he graduated he followed his brother to Hollywood and, as they say in show biz, the rest was history. He directed some of the most famous movies, including "The Grapes of Wrath", "Rio Grande", "The Battle of Midway", and "December 7th." Several years later, a women named Linda Noe Laine whose father was a friend to Ford, visited Portland and was shocked to find that there was no memorial to him. So in May of 1996, she donated $10,000 dollars towards the building of this memorial and was revealed in July of 1998 with a memorial service to properly honor him, his accomplishments, and the town he grew up in.
As I mentioned before, this memorial is part of the Maine Irish Heritage Trail. The Irish immigrated to Maine very early on, creating communities, mills, occupying roles in government, and organizing churches.The Feeney's, John Ford's family, were of Irish decent and made money off of the selling of alcohol,  but often got into trouble for doing so during a time when there were so many prohibition laws in Maine. None-the-less, he used his Irish heritage as inspiration for several of his movies and therefore  became a good representation of how determined and successful Irish Mainers could be.
Today we honor John Ford's success in transforming from a local Portland boy into an award winning director. The popular bar Bull Feeneys is named after the nickname he received as a successful high school football player, "Bull", and his name is known by almost all Maine residents. Though he never returned to Maine, his accomplishments will always be remembered and his roots will always start right here in Portland.

Resources: Maine Irish Heritage Trail: http://www.maineirishheritagetrail.org/john-ford-statue_026.shtml
John Ford: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ford#Influence

The Maine Lobsterman

The Visit: On Thursday, April 24th, I visited The Maine Lobsterman monument in downtown Portland. Located in front of the Nickelodeon movie theater, this bronze sculpture sits proudly in the center of a small park surrounded by benches allowing for a nice relaxing sit on a warm spring day. To my satisfaction the site had almost no litter around it, making it a very noble looking monument. I could tell how accustom the locals had become to this statue being a part of their town because when I took pictures, those who were use to it gave me weird looks and those who were tourists quickly followed in my lead to see what I was looking at. The label on the bottom indicates that it was sculpted by Victor Kahill for the World's Fair in 1939 and a replica was placed in one of Portland's public squares by the city council in 1977. The sculpture its self is of a very common occurrence found all along the Maine coast. Historically lobstermen have occupied a large sector of the workforce in Maine and the lobster has become the defining symbol for this northern New England state. This monument is a handsome representation of a true Mainer at work.

Historical Significance: The 1939 World's Fair was held in New York City and had over 44 million people attend. This particular World's Fair was based on the future and its slogan was "Dawn of a New Day," encouraging visitors to "look at the world of tomorrow." One of the many zones found along the fair ground was the Government Zone where the Court of States consisted of exhibits for each American state. Maine's exhibit allowed for visitors to feel as if they were actually on the shores watching the cold ocean waves or in the mountains experiencing rushing rivers run through the forests. Maine residents acted as tour guides to their state, answering the questions of the people passing through. The Maine Lobsterman statue, which sat proudly in the exhibit, was created in hopes that it would show the world what Maine was about and its contributions on the global food supply. Many of the fair's visitors had probably never heard of Maine before, let alone known anything about its economy or beautiful landscape. This statue, along with the entire exhibit, exposed Maine to the world in a way the would open the door for new opportunities and intrigue the travelers who longed for the "real outdoors" experience.
In the mid 1970's the Maine Legislature allowed for money to be spent on creating three bronze replicas of the statue to be placed in Portland, Augusta, and near to Bailey's Island. About a year later the Cundy's Harbor Camp Fire Girls raised enough money to move the statue near Bailey's Island to Washington D.C. where it now sits as a tribute to the Maine lobstermen who devoted their lives to the sea. This statue, that was originally built for the World's Fair of 1936, now proudly represents Maine, its economy, its lobstermen, and the significance they have on Maine's history.


Resources: 1939 New York World's Fair: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1939_New_York_World%27s_Fair
1939 NY World's Fair: http://www.1939nyworldsfair.com/worlds_fair/wf_tour/court_of_states/maine.htm
Maine Lobsterman Memorial to Remain on Washington D.C. Waterfront: http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Maine-Lobsterman-Memorial-to-Remain-on-Washington-DC-Waterfront/14801/

Portland Headlight

The Visit: On April 2nd I visited Portland Headlight in Cape Elizabeth. Located on the corner rocks of Fort Williams, this world famous lighthouse sits trash free and proud. When I visited it was a bit cold and very windy so I didn't venture too much around the park. But being there many times before I can say that it is a beautiful place to visit and the magnificence of the lighthouse is not one to be missed.
Historical Significance: Built in 1791, Portland Headlight is the oldest lighthouse in Maine. Constructed under the command of George Washington, the lighthouse was to be built using materials from local fields and shores so that the cost would not be too high. Throughout its many years of being in service it has gone through numerous reconstructions and keepers. One of the most famous lighthouse keepers being Joshua Strout, who was Maine's oldest keeper
 when he retired at 79 years old. Today the lighthouse has an automated light instead of a whale oil lamp so the job of lighthouse keeper is no longer a necessity. But it still acts as a vital protector of the harbor and has been visited by countless people from all over the world.

Resources: Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portland_Head_Light,   Portland Head Lighthouse History: http://www.lighthouse.cc/portlandhead/history.html,   

Jews In Maine

The Visit: On March 14 I attended the Maine Jewish Film Festival at the Maine Historical Society in Portland. The Film I saw was "Jewish Soldiers in Blue and Gray" and it discussed the role of the Jewish community as fighting members of the Civil War. Though the film mostly touched upon the Jews who fought for the confederacy, the overall theme of the movie was that they fought because they wanted to prove to the anti-Semitics that they valued America as their home and would do anything for it. The Film Festival was very well attended and I would recommend anyone who is interested in Jewish films to check it out.
Historical Significance: So far there have been 7 Jewish fighters found in the Maine Civil War records. But beyond their dedication to the war, Jewish immigrants found Maine to be a good place to make their new homes because of the state's natural and cultural environment. Bangor built the state's first synagogue in 1849 and by 1930 there were about 5,500 Jewish Mainers. Many found jobs in businesses, for example in retail, where they became major contributors to the downtown economies like Portland and Bath. They also became involved in the junk business, which was a precursor to the modern day recycling business. Maine was not always accepting of the Jewish community and in the 1950's two-thirds of Maine's resorts refused to have Jewish guests even though they contributed to the state through being elected officials, civil servants, and philanthropists. Today there are about 14,000 Jews in Maine and have fully integrated into Maine's economic and cultural society.

Resources: The Jews Of Maine: http://www.mainememory.net/sitebuilder/site/1888/page/3104/display?use_mmn=,   Maine Jewish Film Festival: http://www.mjff.org/