Events at Member Institutions

June 9 –Peter Hagerty, Porter, farms with horses - tilling, haying, logging. He is author of “Out Watering Horses”. Joint with Soldiers Memorial Library at Great Ossipee Museum of Hiram Historical Society, 20 Historical Ridge, Hiram, ME 04041. FMI 2076254762.

The Maine Innovation Expo celebrates creativity, spirit, ingenuity and innovation in Maine. It brings local and state-wide businesses together with talented students to showcase the wide range of innovative work and play across the state. 2018 will be second year of this event, following a successful and well-attended pilot year in 2017. 

Exhibitors and entertainers come to the Bates Mill to show their inspiring work. The event is both fun and educational, with interactive activities and exhibits for all ages. There is no cost to attend, though we will have online registration available in advance.

The Expo provides a platform to connect generations, inspiring our young to explore careers that will strengthen our community and state. Many Mainers believe that their children need to leave the state to get a good education and a good job in the fields of science, technology, design and manufacturing. The Maine Innovation Expo shows families the organizations, schools, and businesses who do exciting work right here in Maine.

LOCATION: Museum L-A, Bates Mill Complex, 35 Canal Street, Lewiston, Maine

TIME: 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM

COST:  Free admission

CONTACT INFO:  207-333-3881 or info@museumla.org

Visit www.museumla.org for more information!

"Go and set the world on fire" was St. Ignatius of Loyola's famous call to the Jesuits to preach the gospel to the far corners of the world. Fr. Sebastian Rale followed the call of his order's founder and left France in 1689 to give his life to caring for the souls of native Americans. This he did for thirty years in a small mission village amidst the Abenaki people far up the Kennebec River. The village was called Narantsouack (i.e. Norridgewock.)

But this peaceful mission was not to last. In those few decades, Fr. Rale’s little village got caught in a blaze of controversy that ended in the mission being burned by a Massachusetts militia and its pastor being shot.  Joseph Moreshead, a seminarian for the Roman Catholic diocese of Portland, will discuss the origins of this conflict between Fr. Rale, the New England colonists, and the Abenaki people and how competing interests among the three parties led to such a tragic end.

Joseph Moreshead is a native of South Portland, Maine and a current student at the Catholic University of America, studying to be a Catholic priest in Maine.  A graduate of Cheverus High School and Fordham University, Moreshead was educated for eight years by Jesuits like Fr. Rale.  After extensive research on the Jesuit Relations, he led a pilgrimage to Fr. Rale’s grave last August.  He holds a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy and classical language.

The Kennebec Historical Society’s May Presentation is free to the public (donations gladly accepted) and will take place on Wednesday, May 16, 2018, at 6:30 p.m. at St. Mary’s Church located at 41 Western Avenue in Augusta. ​ 

When it comes to quirky energy, Augusta has it in spades!  A capital city with a schizophrenic personality, this little town by the Kennebec sits in one of the most beautiful valleys in all of Maine.  Filled with gossipy neighbors, charming merchants, down and out vagabonds and smartly dressed bureaucrats, there’s no other place in the state that can quite match it.  A small town with big city issues, and hearts bigger than the sturgeons that splash along its waterfront; it’s a place both simultaneously confident and insecure.  Self-aware enough to know its limitations, but clueless enough to fully realize its potential, it remains the last place in Maine that has yet to be claimed by hipster and tourist, alike.  This book is your guide to everything that makes Augusta so …Augusta. From a calendar of local holidays to a profile on area neighborhoods to really weird history, as well as personal stories from local movers and shakers, this is your glimpse into one of the most intriguing places around.  So welcome to Augusta, the best little city in New England. Seriously.

Michael Hall is the Executive Director for the Augusta Downtown Alliance, a member of the Main Street Maine program. A native of Florida, Michael moved up to Augusta in the winter of 2016 to realize his goal of working in a historic, urban setting.  With a Bachelors in History from Centre College, a Masters in Communications from Rutgers University and a Masters in Architectural Conservation from the University of Edinburgh, Michael feels fortunate to live and work in an environment where he gets to utilize all three of his degrees.

A big fan of Maine, and an even bigger fan of Augusta, Michael takes full advantage of everything both places have to offer including the mountains, coast, rivers and lakes.  In his spare time, Michael enjoys reading Stephen King novels, getting out on the water, working with his Board of Directors and volunteers and socializing over a beer.

The Kennebec Historical Society’s April Presentation is free to the public (donations gladly accepted) and will take place on Wednesday, April 18, 2018, at 6:30 p.m. at the Viles Arboretum located at 153 Hospital Street in Augusta. ​ 

Have you ever wanted to learn how to digitize and scan historical documents, but were not sure how to go about it?   This is the subject of workshop being offered at the Lincoln Memorial Public Library in Dennysville on Wednesday, April 11 from 10 a.m. to twelve noon.  Al Churchill, Esq., will be demonstrating how he has preserved thousands of documents and images for the St. Croix Historical Society using a simple flatbed scanner and portable computer.   In addition to preserving a digital copy, using simple Adobe applications, older texts have been rendered legible and searchable.  “The process is relatively simple,” says Churchill, “it is largely a matter of getting used to it.”  While the seminar is designed for local historical societies and archivists, the public is welcome to participate, space permitting. 

The workshop is free, but participants are asked to register by Friday, April 6^th, by contacting Colin Windhorst at cjcw@myfairpoint.net, or calling 726-3905 with any questions

Association for Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums

New England Regional Conference, Spring 2018

Sharing Preservation and Presentation of New England History

April 13, 14, 15^th -- Central Maine 

at Freeport Historical Society's Pettengill Farm, the Washburn-Norlands Living History Center in Livermore, and the Vaughan Homestead in Hallowell

To Register and for the Conference Schedule: visit

http://www.alhfam.org/event-2779123

For more information email:ashellenbean@strawberybanke.org

Poetry Reading and Conversation: An Evening With Richard Blanco at Colby College

Join us on Tuesday, February 27 at Colby College!

5:00pm, Public Reception, Colby College Museum of Art, Williams D. Adams Gallery

6:00pm, Poetry Reading, Bixler Art Building, Given Auditorium 

The Colby College Museum of Art's Lunder Institute of American Art welcomes Richard Blanco, artist-in-residence and presidential inaugural poet. Blanco will read and discuss selections of his work centered on the meaning of home, including poems from his latest book, Boundaries, a collaboration with landscape photographer Jacob Bond Hessler. The poems and photographs investigate the boundaries of race, gender, class, and ethnicity and challenge the dividing lines - both historic and current - that shadow America.

For more information please visit   https://www.facebook.com/events/1810109582386797/ or contact Jordia Benjamin, Mirken Coordinator of Academic and Public Programs, jordia.benjamin@colby.edu, 207.859.5613

Born in Sangerville, Maine in 1879, Harry Oakes's life experiences took him to six continents, earned him a knighthood as well as a personal fortune rivaling all others, but also tragically ended in a brutal 1943 murder that remains unsolved.  Portrayed by Gene Hackman in one of the actor's least memorable endeavors, Sir Harry's actual career, fortune and death garnered world-wide attention, even though he never forgot his Maine roots.  He is buried in the bucolic beauty of the East Dover Cemetery.

KHS Speaker David Leigh's career in Maine education spanned 31 years as a teacher, high school principal and community college instructor.  In retirement, Leigh has continued to direct the TIME/NEWSWEEK Cover Project.  Begun with his students in 1972, the collection now includes over 1,100 autographed news magazine covers, some dating as far back as 1938.  In addition, he has presented enrichment lectures on cruise ships to the Canadian Maritimes, the Caribbean and to Great Britain.  He and his wife Ann own and manage a 62-acre tree farm in Belgrade.

The Kennebec Historical Society’s February Presentation is free to the public (donations gladly accepted) and will take place on Wednesday, February 21, 2018, at 6:30 p.m. at the Emmanuel Lutheran Episcopal Church located at 209 Eastern Avenue in Augusta. ​  

Spring Open House
Thursday, February 15, 4:30- 6:30 p.m.

Join us for a celebration of our spring exhibitions with a reception, guided tours, and hands-on activities for families!
Opening Exhibitions:
Hernan Bas: The Paper Crown Prince and Other Works (February 13 to May 3)
City of Ambition: Photography from the Collection (February 15 to August 26)
Yoshua Okón: Oracle (February 15 to May 1)

https://www.facebook.com/events/1818974874840245/

Followed by...

Palentine's Day at the Museum

Thursday, February 15, 6:30-8:30p.m.

Bring a pal and enjoy drinks and snacks while participating in partner-oriented crafts and activities around the Museum. Open to the student body as well as members of the Maine community. Cosponsored by the Museum's Student Advisory Board.

https://www.facebook.com/events/163622497736645/

For more information visit the Facebook links above or contact Jordia Benjamin, Mirken Coordinator of Academic and Public Programs, jordia.benjamin@colby.edu or 207.859.5613

Come for a ride through 150 years of history in Waldo County.  Chartered in 1867, the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad has survived two world wars, the construction of highways, the collapse of the poultry industry in Waldo County and survives today as a tourist railroad and historic relic of days gone by.  This presentation by author and railroad historian Joey Kelley outlines the history of this unique railroad and gives you a summary of his book on the subject - the very first book ever written on the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad.

Our speaker, Joseph T. “Joey” Kelley, is a railroad historian, photographer and volunteer with the Brooks Preservation Society.  He has been involved with the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad on and off since 2004 and was once a paid employee of the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad Preservation Society.  His other passions include photography, motorcycles and restoring antique equipment.

The Kennebec Historical Society January Presentation is co-sponsored by the Maine State Library and free to the public (donations gladly accepted) and will take place on Wednesday, January 24, 2018, at 6:30 p.m. at the Maine State Library located at 230 State Street in Augusta. ​