It is only January, but it is shaping up to be an exciting and historic year. This year is the 200th anniversary of Maine’s statehood on March 15. It is also the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage resulting in the right to vote for women, with the 19th Amendment passed by Congress on Aug. 18, 1920.
The state has chosen three dates for celebration and the Presque Isle team will observe those dates plus add a few more. On March 14, if you are planning to mail a letter, go into the Presque Isle Post Office counter and ask for the envelope to be hand-cancelled so that the letter will bear Presque Isle’s Pictorial Postmark for the Bicentennial. In addition, for the month of March, events are being planned to involve students of all age groups in field trips, essays, trivia contests and more.
Presque Isle Historical Society’s Maysville Museum, located at 165 Caribou Road, will open for the 2020 season on Saturday, May 20. This year, there will be two new exhibits – a bicentennial display and one on quill pens. On opening day, visitors can view all of the museum’s exhibits as well as sample Moxie, the Maine state drink, and try a whoopie pie, Maine’s state treat. Visitors can also try writing with a quill pen. Admission to the museum is free and hours are from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Although Presque Isle cannot take part in Tall Ship Week in July, since we are inland and not coastal, it is important to remember that we would not have had tall ships were it not for the tall trees from Aroostook County used to make masts and build the ships. This contribution will be celebrated on July 18 and 19.
At some point during the year, there will be other events such as blueberry recipe and whoopie pie cooking contests and fireworks. The state will celebrate its grand finale on the long weekend of Oct. 10-12. The Historical Society will be celebrating that weekend as well with “Heritage Days,” featuring demonstrations of various old-time skills, many of which will allow visitors to Maysville Museum to participate.
The City of Presque Isle and Presque Isle Historical Society are teaming up to celebrate this historic year with a great roster of events being planned.
Did you know that Maine is the only state that shares its borders with only one other state? Maine is also the only state in the US whose name has only one syllable. Interested in learning more about the history of Maine in a fun and interesting way? Go to www.maine200.org/maine-stories and scroll down the page. There, you can view numerous 30 second videos of historic stories from around the state.
The Bicentennial Committee is hard at work planning great events to celebrate the year. A full schedule of events will be available soon on the websites of the city, Presque Isle Historical Society and Maine 200, so stay tuned.
For more information, contact the Historical Society at (207) 762-1151 or by email at pihistoricalsociety@hotmail.com.
Kimberly Smith is the resource development and public information officer for the city of Presque Isle. She can be reached at 760-2722 or via email at ksmith@presqueisleme.us.
