July 21, 1957: Kenneth Roberts, known chiefly for his many historical novels, dies at the age of 71 in Kennebunkport, where he was born and where he lived for many years. Roberts’ best-known works include “Northwest Passage,” a French and Indian War-era tale that was published in 1937 and made into a 1940 movie starring […]
John Richardson
Posted inBicentennial, Local & State
On this date in Maine history: July 20
July 20, 1970: A fire of unknown origin destroys a B-52 Stratofortress bomber on the ground at Loring Air Force Base in Limestone. The $7.7 million (about $51.4 million in 2019) jet burns down to the tarmac in less than an hour. Small explosions occur when fuel tanks rupture and the plane’s tires burst. Two […]
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On this date in Maine History: July 19
July 19, 1969: A fire breaks out in the amusement area known as the White Way in Old Orchard Beach, destroying about two blocks and one-third of the town’s famous pier, from which many visitors are evacuated by ladder. The fire, striking at the height of the tourist season, inflicts severe burns on one person […]
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On this date in Maine history: July 18
July 18, 1864: Three men in civilian clothes walk into the Calais Bank in Calais. Just as they begin to draw revolvers to rob the bank, armed federal agents who have been tipped off about the plan catch the would-be robbers off-guard and arrest them. The ringleader, William Collins, is a Confederate army captain who […]
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On this date in Maine history: July 17
July 17, 1939: Twelve-year-old Donn Fendler (1926-2016), of Rye, New York, becomes separated from his family during a storm near the summit of Maine’s Mount Katahdin. Putting his Boy Scout skills to use, he survives nine days without food or proper clothing, then finds his way back to civilization in the town of Stacyville, having […]
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On this date in Maine history: July 16
July 16, 1915: Ellen Gould Harmon White, 88, a co-founder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church who was born in Gorham and raised in Portland, dies in California. Raised in the Methodist church, she suffered permanent disfigurement at the age of 9 when another girl threw a stone at her face and broke her nose. White […]
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On this date in Maine history: July 15
July 15, 1980: Cub Scout Todd Rogers draws the first winning entry from a giant rotating drum during Maine’s inaugural moose lottery at the Bangor Civic Center. The state was reviving moose hunting, which had been discontinued in 1935. The number of hunters authorized for 1980 was about 700 – less than one-fourth the total […]
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On this date in Maine history: July 14
July 14, 2013: Bill Warner, 44, of Wimauma, Florida, dies following a crash at the former Loring Air Force Base in Limestone while trying to set another motorcycle land-speed world record. His goal? To hit the 300-mph mark in less than a mile. His bike is clocked at 285 mph before the accident occurs during […]
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On this date in Maine history: July 13
July 13, 1658: Twenty-nine men in the town of Spurwink, now part of Portland, sign a document submitting to the authority of the Massachusetts Bay colony. Massachusetts authorities already seized Saco, Biddeford, Cape Porpoise and Kennebunk earlier. At this point, it has taken seven years for Maine to lose its autonomy. Maine won’t get it […]
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On this date in Maine history: July 12
July 12, 1896: Arthur Sewall of Bath is nominated for the vice presidency at the five-day Democratic National Convention in Chicago, running for election with populist and presidential nominee William Jennings Bryan. Sewall is a wealthy shipbuilder and industrialist, but the only elective office he ever held was that of alderman and councilman in Bath. […]