My Summer Favorites in the "Other" Maine

Since I reside in the Bangor area, summer is a completely different experience for me than it is for Mainers who live in the "other" Maine—the Maine south of Augusta. So when we go there, it's almost like visiting another state.

The town of Ogunquit is a wonderful coastal town known for hosting one of the largest  Patriot's Day celebrations in Maine. Patriot's Day, only celebrated in Massachusetts and Maine, is a big deal in the Ogunquit area where much of our U.S. history was born. Beyond it's historic significance, the town is blessed with culture. It's museum and theatre are both a testimony of that.

Sally Struthers has been one my all time favorite performers since the TV hit All in the Family. I know, that's dating both myself and Sally, however, age happens, and she happens to get even better with it. My husband and I  try to make a special trip to the "other" Maine just to catch her summer appearances at the Ogunquit Playhouse whenever our schedules permit us to do so. This year, my husband is using my birthday as an excuse to take us to see Thoroughly Modern Millie with Sally Struthers starring as Mrs. Meers. (So be looking for me Sally,  I'll be right up front with my nose almost on the stage with you.) A colorful history drenches the playhouse in the afterglow of the many stars who have graced the John Lane's Ogunquit Playhouse stage over the years. I always leave there feeling the actors have given it more than a hundred percent. It's truly "Broadway at the Beach" and the love of performance art is vibrant there.

 

Of course, since we'll be in the area, we'll have to eat at Joshua's, my favorite restaurant, just a little north of the playhouse at 1637 Post Road in Wells. Joshua's priority is freshness first; organic, natural, and local. Many of the vegetables served are grown at the Mather's own farm. Meals are slowly prepared and thoroughly enjoyed. Reservations are highly recommended, and keep in mind Joshua's is not an atmosphere younger children will enjoy. Adults, on the other hand, will relish the relaxing environment as part of Joshua's fine dining experience. 

We also enjoy little side trips to the the Kennebunks, York Beach and Nubble Light—plus, we have to do a little snooping in the Scarborough area. Through my maternal grandmother's side of the family, I'm related to many of the Scots and Englishmen who settled the area. I can find remnants of my 5th through 9th great grandparent's by the names of Alger, Okeman, Milliken, Wilmot, Allison, Banks, and Norman in structures and landmarks still present, such as the Lary House (ca 1700s) which was once known as Milliken's Tavern and originally owned by a grandpa Captain Mulbury Milliken. Captain Benjamin Milliken took over the tavern from his father, running it for a time before moving on to the other towns he settled in Maine. His life's journey ended in St. Andrews, N.B., Canada. It is pretty fantastic to ride on roads and visit points of land named after these ancestors, who were living livestyles I can only imagine. My love of touching my history takes me there again and again. But, if the history wasn't there, I'm sure the ocean breezes that kiss the shores of the "other" Maine would probably encourage me to visit nonetheless. 

This building was once Milliken's Tavern, Post Road, Scarborough, Maine
Circa 1700s

Blae wants dog owners to know he has a special place where he likes to stay in Kennebunkport, The Colony. It's a classic portrait of a historic Maine summer resort, inside and out, and pet friendly, too. The Colony even provides access to a pet friendly beach and well mannered pets can join their owners at mealtime, if they dine on the outside patio. Just down a short ways from The Colony on Ocean Drive you'll find the summer residence of President George and Barbara Bush and a fantastic Maine coast view.

Can't wait for my birthday! 

© Copyright Gail J. VanWart 2013 All Rights Reserved

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There's More to Discover in Bangor, Maine

Construction cranes dwarf
Bangor's Paul Bunyan statue.

Seems people have been discovering Bangor, Maine ever since the Portuguese mariner, Estavan Gomez, a captain in Magellan’s round-the-world fleet, sailed the La Anunciada up the Penobscot River in search of the legendary Northwest Passage to the Orient in 1525 under commission of King Charles V of Spain. French explorer Samuel de Champlain was also documented to discover the area in 1604. However, the city wasn’t officially incorporated until 1791 at which time it was named after an Irish Hymn, “Bangor”, by a pastor from Boston named Seth Noble. A healthy fishing and fur trade drew the earliest settlers to the area. Then Maine’s vast forests brought wealth beyond compare to the region making Bangor the lumber capital of the world and one of the busiest ports on the East Coast by the 1850s. Shipbuilding and shipping commerce thrived until the twentieth century when pulp and paper industries took their place. Since then, Bangor’s central location has grown into a social and economic center for the state and offers the region a wide selection of retail and service businesses, education and employment opportunities.

Recent development of Bangor’s waterfront along the Penobscot River has not only enhanced its beauty, its brought entertainment and cultural growth to the city in the form of the an annual Folk Festival, Waterfront Concerts, Hollywood Casino and Raceway, plus revitalization of it’s historic Opera House which houses the Penobscot Theatre Company. There are also a growing number of museums and galleries in the area, including Maine Discovery Children’s Museum and Cole’s Transportation Museum. Its history is very rich, especially in Bass Park, the home of the Bangor State Fair, one of the oldest in the country, and a raceway that’s featured harness racing since 1893.

Yes, there is definitely a lot to discover in and about Bangor, Maine. That’s the reason why a construction site on Main Street stretches all the way from Dutton Street to the corner of Buck Street and is changing the view of the entrance to historic Bass Park once again. Major changes to this block in my lifetime have included the 1955 opening of the now soon-to-be-demolished, v-roofed Bangor Auditorium. It was constructed behind an older auditorium, which preceded it, and was the second largest event center in New England at that time. The old structure was eventually torn down in 1967 leaving a nice park area behind the location where Bangor’s famous Paul Bunyan statue came to reside in 1959. The 31-foot, fiberglass and metal woodsman, which Bangor claims as its mythical son, was a gift to the city on its 125^th anniversary and has a time capsule enclosed in its pedestal that's slated to be opened in 2084. Do not think I'll live to see that, but I have witnessed Paul, the statue, in an oversized Shriner fez to promote a convention and a bandanna for a Willie Nelson concert in July 1986 (which I have fond behind-the-scenes memories of ). The Paul Bunyan statue has even been part of the Stephen King novel, It, and, I dare say, is possibly photographed more than Stephen King or his Bangor Italianate style mansion with its surrounding unique, but fitting, bat and spider motif wrought-iron fencing.

In recent years, Hollywood Slots, newly renamed Hollywood Casino, has taken up residence across from the Bass Park entrance, where older hotels and businesses once stood, and from its parking garage you can easily view construction of the brand new Bangor Event Center, which will replace the oddly shaped, v-roofed auditorium that stands like a shadow behind it. This new structure is reclaiming space where the original auditorium once stood and is scheduled to open in July 2013.

As I mentioned earlier, I have fond memories of the Bangor Auditorium. It’s where I first saw a circus, interviewed Ted Nugent without any film in my camera, listened to a Willie Nelson concert through a headset with his lighting director, and attended a grandson’s high school graduation. Now, I’m getting itchy to see what exciting memories this new arena might bring to the city of Bangor, and of course, me.

Click these links if you are interested in progress on the new Bangor Event Center, or visiting Bangor, Maine.

Photographs and "Nosing Around Maine" Blog Posts © 2012 Gail J. VanWart
All Rights Reserved

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