Presque Isle area From our Files – Week of September 1, 2021

3 years ago

75 Years Ago –   Aug. 29, 1946

Garcelon Merchandise manager at Green’s — The management of H.B. Green & Sons announced that Mr. Frank Garcelon joined the firm as general merchandise manager for the men’s, boys’ and work clothes departments.

Mr. Garcelon, a former resident of Caribou, had a wide experience in the clothing business having worked for over 11 years in such retail establishments as Wakem’s and J.C. Penny Co. in Caribou. He also spent three years covering Maine for the Willis M. Bates Co., Portland wholesale clothing distributors, before entering the service, and had been with the Caribou Woolen Mills since May. Mr. Garcelon was discharged in May of the current year after three years service with the Marines. Mr. and Mrs. Garcelon moved to Presque Isle.

Arthur Dame State Theatre manager — J.W. and L.H. Bridgham of Dover, New Hampshire, owners of the State Theatre, Presque Isle’s new entertainment center, announced the staff, all of whom with the exception of the manager had been selected from Presque Isle, as follows: Manager, Arthur K. Dame of Concord, New Hampshire, who had 16 years experience in theatre management; projectionist, Sid Thompkins; police officer, Ralph Wing; cashier, Mrs. Vaughn Craig; janitor, Leonard F. Shaw, assisted by Miss Florence Halfkenny; head usher and poster man, Roger Paul; assistant ushers, Richard Hodgkins and Jack Pawqual; candy counter, Miss Betty Dumas. The new State Theatre is one of the state’s finest and the management planned to bring the very best in motion picture presentation in a theatre that is both attractive and comfortable.

50 Years Ago –  Sept. 1, 1971

Local 4-H’ers took reds and whites — A group of 4-H young people from Central Aroostook participated in the State Dairy Show held in Winslow July 31. The five 4-H’ers were members of the Aroostook Valley 4-H Dairy Club and included Stewart and Steven Smith and Dena and Jeffrey Winslow of Mapleton and Calvin Lund of Caribou. They exhibited five Holstein heifers in the junior yearling competition. As a result, Lund, Winslow and Miss Winslow won red ribbons and the Smith boys took white ribbons. Approximately 600 animals were entered for the adult and 4-H competition. The Central Aroostook people traveling to the State show report a good time in spite of the wet, rainy weather. Besides the five young people exhibiting in the show, others journeying to Windsor included Carl and Wilma Winslow, and son, Willie, and Sidney and Maralee Smith, and daughter, Stacey.

Red Cross aided by Miss Whittaker — Miss Rose Lee Whittaker of Westfield had been assisting the Central Aroostook Chapter of the American Red Cross with their annual fund drive. Miss Whittaker, a junior at Presque Isle High School, organized and conducted the drive in her community as a summer project. Other than attending camp for a few days, she had also been responsible for the care of younger brothers and sisters.

25 Years Ago –  Aug. 28, 1996

Crooks named chair of United Way fundraising campaign — Patti Crooks, general manager of the Aroostook Centre Mall, was appointed by the board of directors of the United Way of Aroostook to serve as chairperson for the 1996-97 United Way Fundraising Campaign. Crooks’ previous commitments to community service have included state chairwoman of the Media Committee for Project Assist since 1993; state communications chairperson for the American Cancer Society from 1992-1995; and the board of directors of the Leukemia Society of America from 1990-1994. The United Way board also set an aggressive campaign goal at $275,000. This was a substantial increase over the previous year’s goal of $250,000. The Campaign’s official kick-off event was the Maine Mutual-United Way Scramble Golf Tournament, played at the Aroostook Valley Country Club in Fort Fairfield. The current year’s tournament was already a financial success, with over $15,000 committed by sponsors.

Bell named bank officer for People’s Heritage Bank — Nathan D. Bell, originally from Mars Hill, joined People’s Heritage Bank as an officer in the bank’s Trust and Investment Group located in Bangor. Formerly a trust administrator at FCB’s federal bank in Dayton, Ohio, Bell became responsible for the administration of trust accounts for mid-coast, down east, central and northern Maine. He was a 1989 graduate of Cedarville College in Ohio and earned his law degree from Capital University Law School in Columbus, Ohio. Bell was also a member of the American Bar Association.