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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
Making It Work Before The Movement: African-American Community And Resistance In 1940s And 1950s Portland, Maine, Justus Hillebrand
Making It Work Before The Movement: African-American Community And Resistance In 1940s And 1950s Portland, Maine, Justus Hillebrand
Maine History
African Americans in Portland, Maine, in the 1940s and 1950s made up less than 0.5% of the population. As a consequence, discourse on race was more subtle than it was in other parts of the country. The Portland black community, as in other small northern New England cities, lacked the numbers for broad public or political action. Instead, African Americans developed individual and informal strategies of resistance aimed at broadening opportunities in education, employment, and housing. African Americans “made it work” by congregating in their own church, persevering in their own educational goals, operating their own businesses, and owning their …
Elijah Lovejoy’S Oration On The Fiftieth Anniversary Of American Independence: An Essay Discovered, William G. Chrystal
Elijah Lovejoy’S Oration On The Fiftieth Anniversary Of American Independence: An Essay Discovered, William G. Chrystal
Maine History
On July 4, 1826, the American republic celebrated its fiftieth anniversary with great fanfare. In this research note, the author provides a transcript of an oration delivered in China, Maine on that day. The speaker was local schoolmaster Elijah P. Lovejoy, better known for his tragic death eleven years later. By then an abolitionist newspaper editor in Alton, Illinois, Lovejoy was killed in 1837 by a pro-slavery mob. Lovejoy’s 1826 oration, then, serves as both a compelling look at the celebration of America’s Jubilee in rural Maine and an early example of the ideological convictions which led Lovejoy to abolitionism. …
“Maine And Her Soil, Or Blood!”: Political Rhetoric And Spatial Identity During The Aroostook War In Maine, Michael T. Perry
“Maine And Her Soil, Or Blood!”: Political Rhetoric And Spatial Identity During The Aroostook War In Maine, Michael T. Perry
Maine History
The Aroostook War was a two-month standoff during the winter of 1839 between Maine and New Brunswick. Overlapping boundary claims had created a disputed territory rich in timber but lacking organization. Troops were mobilized, but war was averted when national leaders in Washington and London recoiled at the prospect of a third war between the two nations. The “war” has been dismissed by contemporary observers and historians alike because of the lack of shots fired. What has largely been overlooked, however, is the large body of political rhetoric churned out by Maine’s Democrats and Whigs during the dispute. In examining …
Henry Mowat: Miscreant Of The Maine Coast, Louis Arthur Norton
Henry Mowat: Miscreant Of The Maine Coast, Louis Arthur Norton
Maine History
This article follows the career of Captain Henry Mowat as he took charge of operations for the British Navy off the Maine Coast during the Revolutionary War. Mowat was involved in three decisive actions during this time: the dismantling of Fort Pownall at the mouth of the Penobscot River; the burning of Falmouth, or present-day Portland; and the defeat of the Massachusetts naval expedition to the British-occupied Bagaduce Peninsula on the eastern side of Penobscot Bay. The author asks the question: did this British officer deserve his reputation among Mainers as an “execrable monster?” Louis Arthur Norton is a professor …
"The Lion Of The Day": Diplomacy, States' Rights, And Party Politics In The Aroostook War, John A. Soares Jr.
"The Lion Of The Day": Diplomacy, States' Rights, And Party Politics In The Aroostook War, John A. Soares Jr.
Maine History
Historians typically dismiss the so-called Aroostook War as an insignificant event that unfolded in the uncivilized northeast frontier. Yet this seemingly minor conflict allows us to examine how both partisan politics and the growing debate over national and state authority dominated political and diplomatic affairs in the antebellum period. This political contest highlights the roles played by Winfield Scott, a Whig, and John Fairfield, a Democrat, in achieving an acceptable compromise between Maine and New Brunswick. Like many regional affairs of this time, the Aroostook War can only be fully understood within this national context. John A. Soares, Jr. is …
“They Lynched Jim Cullen”: Story And Myth On The Northern Maine Frontier, Dena Lynn Winslow York
“They Lynched Jim Cullen”: Story And Myth On The Northern Maine Frontier, Dena Lynn Winslow York
Maine History
James Cullen was born in 1846 in Peel, New Brunswick. In 1864 he applied for a grant of land and began a small farm near his father’s homestead. From there, events unfolded, as Cullen crossed the border, married Rosellah Twist, and became one of the most celebrated villains in Aroostook County history.
Producing Local History: An Essay And Review, Joyce Butler
Producing Local History: An Essay And Review, Joyce Butler
Maine History
Review Essay regarding the following books: Hodgdon, Maine, 1832-1982: Sesquicentennial Album by Geraldine Tidd Scott; History of St. Albans, Maine compiled by Gladys M. Bigelow and Ruth M. Knowles;
The Story Of General Wadsworth, Timothy Dwight
The Story Of General Wadsworth, Timothy Dwight
Maine History
This article is a detailed account of the capture of General Peleg Wadsworth and Major Benjamin Burton by British troops during the American Revolution and also describes their escape.
Maine In The Revolution: A Reader’S Guide, Maine Historical Society
Maine In The Revolution: A Reader’S Guide, Maine Historical Society
Maine History
A listing of selected books on Maine's history during the Revolutionary War
The Boston Boats: From Sail To Steam Part Ii, William A. Baker
The Boston Boats: From Sail To Steam Part Ii, William A. Baker
Maine History
This article is part two of an account of the history of sail and steamboats, primarily those serving sailing from various Maine ports and to Boston.