Women sort rags to be used in the paper-making process inside the Eastern Fine Paper Mill in Brewer, Maine, early twentieth century. This image is one of the many available on the Maine Folklife Center’s DVD, “The Writing on the Wall: Oral Histories of Eastern Fine Paper Company Workers.”
“My foreman at the time was a very good fella, but he didn’t quite know what to do with me because I was a woman… And so he put me sweeping the floors. I s’pose he figured, well, that’s what women do. But eventually they got to figure out that I could do just about anything the rest of those guys did.”
– Dola Hinckley, interviewed in “The Writing on the Wall”; hired in 1974, and the first woman to work on the mill floor at Eastern Fine Paper
In 2006 & 2007: 159 MHC grants were awarded, reaching more than 100 towns and thousands of Mainers.
The Maine Humanities Council began life in 1976 as a granting organization, redistributing funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities to nonprofits statewide. Since then, the MHC has expanded its work, creating and implementing the many programs described in this report. Since 1976, the MHC has invested more than $4,000,000 in grants to Maine communities—with amounts ranging from $500 to $5,000 (averaging $1,000).
Small grants can make a difference. For many nonprofits, the simple application and rapid turnaround of the MHC’s rolling deadlines fills an important niche. Funded projects include historical exhibits, lecture series, book discussions, school-based programs, and cultural presentations, each helping to enrich communities across the state, especially in rural areas.
The Eastern Fine Paper Company’s mill in Brewer began as a single brick paper machine built in 1895, and operated until 2004. Shortly after the mill closed, Dr. Pauleena MacDougall, Director of the Maine Folklife Center, toured the abandoned space with engineer Richie Smith, Brewer city official Drew Sachs, and photographer Bill Kuykendall. MacDougall admired the machinery, but as a folklorist, she was even more intrigued by the signs, pictures, and graffiti on the walls—vestiges of the human side of a century of labor. Therein, MacDougall saw the potential for an oral history project to preserve the rich knowledge and heritage of the paper workers.
“As I began planning the oral history project,” MacDougall says, “I seized upon the phrase ‘the writing on the wall’ as a title, partly because of the pictures and partly because many former Eastern employees said they ‘could see the writing on the wall,’ fearing that the mill would soon close.” Their instinct was reasonable, based on the nationwide trend of out-sourcing manufacturing jobs.
When a factory closes, there is a narrow window of opportunity in which to capture the stories of workers with specialized experience before they are retrained into general, service-related industries. The Folklife Center received a planning grant from the MHC in 2005 that allowed MacDougall to seize that opportunity. She formed a partnership with the City of Brewer and held an initial meeting with eighteen former mill workers.
In 2006, MacDougall and her colleagues received a major grant from the MHC to expand the project. By the middle of that year, they had recorded oral history interviews with 40 mill workers and scanned more than 500 historic photographs.
As the project grew, the grant from the MHC helped the Folklife Center leverage other funding. A “Women in the Curriculum” grant from the University of Maine led to a special project and online book, Women in Maine’s Paper Industry, 1880-2006. A “Save Our History” grant from The History Channel allowed Brewer Middle School students to take a field trip to the mill, conduct video interviews, and make their own “Mill Town” DVD.
All of the mill buildings have since been razed, so the stories preserved in the student work, online book, and “The Writing on the Wall” documentary DVD are all that remain. But in 2007, the Folklife Center prepared a promotional video for Cianbro Corporation’s new business at the mill site, using historical photos collected during the project. They are currently working with WBRC architects in Bangor to add historical content from the mill project to renovations of Brewer City Hall. The work continues.
MHC Grant Sampler
What follows is a small sample of the 159 grants awarded to Maine organizations by the MHC in 2006 and 2007, arranged by town. (Visit the MHC web site at www.mainehumanities.org for a complete list.) Many of these projects were made possible in part by the MHC’s funding partners: the Maine Arts Commission and the Betterment Fund. The MHC is grateful for the support of these funding partners who allow us to extend our resources into an increased number of Maine communities.
BUCKSPORT
Film Screening with Karen Shopsowitz
$500: Northeast Historic Film celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2006. In celebration, Toronto filmmaker Karen Shopsowitz screened “My Father’s Camera,” her Peabody Award-winning documentary on the cultural history of home movies. Shopsowitz conducted research for this project, which looks at how amateur movies engage the audience differently than professional films, at NHF. She writes, “One of the things that I look at is the way history creeps into the frame inadvertently and becomes really interesting in terms of the context that it takes on.” Excerpts from NHF’s newest footage—early color film of Gandhi, Senator Cohen on NSA phone wiretaps in the 1970s, and old Portland commercials—were also screened.
Over 100 people attended the screening in May.
Northeast Historic Film
CALAIS
One River, Two Cities, One Story
$1,000: The St. Croix Historical Society collaborated with the St. Croix River Valley Arts Council, Charlotte County, the New Brunswick Museum, the Calais Free Library, the Calais Fire House Restoration Committee, Friends of the Observatory, the Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge, and Friends of the Moosehorn to create One River, Two Cities, One Story. This community-wide exhibit of historic images, art, and artifacts portrayed the unique and closely woven past of Calais, Maine and St. Stephen, New Brunswick—located on opposite sides of the St. Croix River. The primary exhibit location was Calais; a satellite exhibit was located at the Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge.
St. Croix Historical Society
CHEBEAGUE ISLAND
Schooling on Chebeague: The Relationship of Community and Island Schools
Desks from the old District 9 School House featured in the 2007 Chebeaque summer exhibit.
photo: Carly Knight
$1,000: The 2007 summer exhibit at the Museum of Chebeague History was entitled “Island Schools: Sustaining our Community from the 1750s into the Future.” Through teacher grade books, textbooks, class photographs, town records, teaching certificates, transportation information, graduate lists, newspaper articles, report cards, and oral histories, the exhibit revealed how its schools contributed to Chebeague Island’s vitality and—most recently—independence. The museum is located in the District 9 Schoolhouse and is open through August 2008.
Chebeague Island Historical Society
HINCKLEY
Gerd Heinrich: 20th Century Explorer, Collector, and Writer
$1,000: The L.C. Bates Museum presented an exhibit and accompanying programs dedicated to the unique life story of Gerd Heinrich (1896-1987). Heinrich was an explorer, collector, and writer who grew up in Germany and later traveled worldwide from his home in Wilton, Maine. The exhibit used natural history materials, illustrations and translated excerpts from Heinrich’s writings (including his autobiography), and interviews with family members to document his collecting trips. Raffael Scheck, a professor of history at Colby College, devoted significant scholarly support to this project. Scheck spoke, along with members of Heinrich’s family, at the exhibit’s opening in September 2006. The successful exhibit was extended through April 2008.
L.C. Bates Museum
NEW GLOUCESTER
The Human and the Eternal: Shaker Art in its Many Forms
$5,000: Since the late 1700s, the Shaker Society at Sabbathday Lake in New Gloucester has adapted to many changes, yet preserved its self-sufficiency, spirituality, and communal life. As the only remaining active Shaker community in the United States, Sabbathday Lake is committed to educating the public about the Shaker tradition. Every summer, its Library and Museum welcome over 12,000 tourists and dozens of researchers to its collections and permanent exhibitions. Its first major new exhibition in more than twenty years, The Human and the Eternal: Shaker Art in its Many Forms, opened in May 2008 and will remain on display through October, then re-open for the 2009 season. Examples of needlework, furniture, paintings, rugs, embroidery, boxes, and baskets (many made in Maine) will offer insights into Shaker life over the centuries, and provide visitors with a better appreciation of contemporary Shaker culture. For information on visiting the museum, please visit www.shaker.lib.me.us/museum.html.
United Society of Shakers
NORWAY
One Book, One Community
$1,000: The Oxford Hills region’s second One Book, One Community program featured Suburban Safari by Maine author Hannah Holmes. Like the previous year’s program, which focused on Ernie’s Ark by Monica Wood, local librarians and volunteers worked together on a series of events and discussions to promote reading and dialogue in the community. The theme of the book lent itself to discussions about the natural resources of the area and the importance of stewardship. The program drew the interest of the many outdoor and conservation groups in the area, including the Oxford Hills Nature Club and the Western Maine Citizens for Clean Air and Water. The year-long program started with a kick-off event in February, with book distribution and an appearance by the author.
Norway Memorial Library
PORTLAND
Romeo & Juliet
An actor in the Long Creek Youth Development Center’s production of “A Hip-Hop Romeo & Juliet” receives instructions from director Caitlin Shetterly.
photo courtesy of the Bangor Daily News
$5,000: Beginning in January 2006, 10-15 boys at the Long Creek Youth Development Center worked on interpreting and staging Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet under the guidance of Caitlin Shetterly of the Winter Harbor Theatre Company. Their intensive study used hip hop culture, immensely popular with Long Creek residents, to translate the play into contemporary language. At the culmination of the program in March, the ensemble performed for 200 of their peers, invited guests, families, and staff.
The Winter Harbor Theatre Company
PRESQUE ISLE
Presque Isle and its Main Street
$1,000: With help from University of Maine at Presque Isle history scholars and students, the Presque Isle Historical Society (PIHS) created an exhibit chronicling the development of the town and its Main Street. Six movable panels cover such events as the construction of the B&A Railroad, the fire at the Braden Theatre, and the Centennial Celebration in 1959. The panels were unveiled on University Day in April 2006, then displayed in the university library and at the Mark & Emily Turner Public Library in Presque Isle, and will be kept at PIHS on 3rd Street.
Presque Isle Historical Society
SOUTH PARIS
McLaughlin Garden Visitor’s Center
Kristin Perry, McLaughlin Garden’s Director of Horticulture leading a workshop on lilacs at its annual Lilac Festival.
Photo: Moose Pond
Arts + Ecology
$500: The famous McLaughlin Garden in South Paris opened a new educational exhibit for visitors in May 2007. A permanent installation at the welcome point for visitors showcases the story of this historic site. Printed materials detail the history and horticultural significance of the 20th-century garden as well as the architectural features of the 19th-century farmhouse and barn. To plan a visit, call (207) 743-8820 or visit www.mclaughlingarden.org.
McLaughlin Garden
WEST BALDWIN
Snapshots of Change: The Cornish Historical Mural Project
$1,000: Fourth, fifth, and sixth graders at Cornish Elementary School spent February and March researching local history through field trips and interviews with older residents. Based on their research, students designed and created a permanent mural for the school’s multipurpose room. They were guided in this project by experienced educators, local historians at the Cornish Historical Society, and graphic artist Laurie Downey. The murals, painted on five wooden panels, were unveiled in a public presentation at the school on April 26, 2007.
MSAD #55
