McLellan House

October 26th around 2pm

Initial Notes: Technically, this house is connected to the Portland Museum of Art, but I consider it a separate entity because of the wealth of history it holds within itself. It is a beautiful three floor mansion that was donated to the Museum (we'll get into that more in the reaction part). Every time I go to the museum this is one of my favorite things to check out even though it does not really change at all. The architecture of the building is just so grand and different that I love walking around it. I especially love the, I guess you could call it, floating stair case in the entrance.

Reaction: In 1908, Mrs. Margaret Jane Mussey Sweat donated her three story mansion, the McLellan House, and money to the Portland Museum of Art to create a gallery in honor of her late husband, Lorenzo de Medici Sweat. The galleries within the mansion were designed by architect, John Calvin Stevens, and it opened to the public in 1911.

Post-Revolution Maine was an interesting place to be. The McLellan House is a product of this time in Maine’s history. The economy was given a boost and because of this Maine’s coastal towns and cities were booming and they used architectural means to show their social status, which explains why the McLellan House is so grand. These houses became symbols of people’s power and their status in the growing economy. The McLellan House was originally designed by architect, John Kimball Senior. It was designed for one of Portland’s shipping tycoons, Major Hugh McLellan. The house was considered one of Kimball’s biggest achievements and was the talk of everybody because of how immaculate and decorated and grand the house was and technically is. The house, even restored, shows the wear and use it endured and how the type of architecture of the 19^th century was designed to be beautiful, but last.

The McLellan House shows an entire time period and age of Maine. It was the golden age and a time when businesses and the economy were booming in Portland. The grandeur of the house seems to contradict Maine’s humble attitude until you begin to think more about the house. The house was built to last. It is sturdy and has endured years of use and is still standing today. So, even though it was used as a symbol of status and power, it was also reasonable in the sense that it was not just a showpiece, but someone’s house. Today, people show off and don’t think rationally about how the things will be used and that is not the case here. While showing off their success they are also being rational and Mainers at the same time. 

Portland Museum of Art

October 26th around 1pm

Initial Notes: I've been to the Portland Museum of Art more times than I can count. Field trips, for fun, for Art History courses, and all kinds of other reasons. For being an art museum in Maine its collection of artwork and other things is quite extensive. They always have incredibly interesting exhibits in the entry area of the museum which is always fun to look at. Also, being in Maine, their collection of Maine artists and art is incredibly large.

Winslow Homer: Incoming Tide, Scarborough, Maine

Reaction: The Portland Museum of Art is home to many of Maine’s finest paintings and pieces of artwork and to a lot of Maine artist’s works. It is located in the downtown arts district in Portland, Maine and was founded in 1882. It boasts being Maine’s oldest and largest public art institution. The collection of European art is the largest north of Boston, Massachusetts. The museum holds more than 17,000 pieces of art and the art dates from the 18^th century to present day. The exhibits that change in the entry area change about ten times a year. There are around 150,000 people who visit the museum per year – 12,000 of which are schoolchildren on field trips and other educational reasons.

Obviously, being an art museum in Maine there is an extensive collection of Maine artist’s work – especially Winslow Homer. What elementary age child has not seen one of Winslow Homer’s pieces of art while learning about basic Maine history? Other Maine artists included at the Museum are: Marsden Hartley, Rockwell Kent, John Marin, Louise Nevelson, and Andrew Wyeth.What is so great about the Museum of Art is how much they have to offer. Not only does it offer the visitors a look at Maine art and Maine artists, but there is the largest collection of European art there in Maine. It shows major artists from the Impressionism movement all the way through to the Surrealism movement with artists like: Pablo Picasso, Joan Whitney Payson, Rene Magritte, Claude Monet, and Auguste Rodin. The Museum is a place of culture and knowledge not only of our state’s contribution to art, but the world’s. There is also an extensive section on American art in general which includes artists: George Bellows, Alfred Thompson Bricher, and Jamie Wyeth. On top of all these pieces of artwork the museum also offers educational programs, family festivals, lectures, art classes, musical concerts, book groups, art camps, gallery talks, and many more things!

Having a place like this in Maine is so important. Not only does it educate our children and just citizens in general about Maine history through art, it also teaches everyone about American art in general and European and many other genres of art. It is such a useful tool for people to use and is so generous to the public in the things it offers them. Like any museum, it is a collection of historical objects that people can come and appreciate. Maine being Maine, obviously, takes pride in what it has offered to the world of art by having such a vast collection of Maine artists. Maine played a huge role in art because of its beautiful, untouched lands. Countless painters and artists traveled to Maine to capture its beauty that had not been ruined yet by cities and suburbia.

Monument Square - Our Lady of Victories

October 26th around Noon

Initial Notes: I have passed this monument a million times and never stopped to actually look at it and figure out what it is for. It is in the middle of Monument Square in Portland, Maine so it being a Saturday when we visited, it was quite busy. It is generally well kept, though there was some trash around which I found disappointing. The monument itself is gigantic. It really is quite impressive and a very beautiful monument to the people it is honoring.

Reaction: Not many people think about Maine when they think about the Civil War. Before I started taking this history class I never really considered the fact Maine may have actually played a more significant role in history than high school and elementary history classes may have led us to believe. Maine was one of the most eager states in the Union and contributed more manpower to the war than any other state in the Union, though, Maine came in second for amount of Navy members (Massachusetts came in first). Hundreds of civilians also helped by being nurses, doctors, relief workers, and agents. Maine supplied military manpower, supplies, ships, arms, and political support during the Civil War. It was also the first state in the Northeast to be aligned with the new Republican Party. This alignment was due in part because of Abraham Lincoln choosing Maine’s Hannibal Hamlin as his first Vice President. Harriet Beecher Stowe, of Brunswick, is also considered a big influence in the Civil War because of her book Uncle Tom’s Cabin. It is rumored that when Lincoln met Stowe he said, “so this is the little lady who made this big war”.

The monument dedicated to the soldiers and sailors of the Civil War is located in the middle of Monument Square in Portland and is called, Our Lady of Victories. The monument was officially dedicated to the Maine

soldiers and sailors on October 28^th 1891. It is made of granite and bronze, which is fitting because Maine at one point was known for its granite. The granite part of the statue was designed by Richard Morris Hunt of New York, while the bronze sculpture was by Franklin Simmons. It is inscribed with, “Portland/To Her Sons Who Died/For The Union”. The Lady of Victories stands fourteen feet tall, atop the already looming monument. She is a symbol of unity and around the monument below her there are bronze soldiers and sailors. She is holding a sword wrapped in an American flag in her right hand and in her left hand is a branch of maple leaves. Atop Our Lady of Victories’ head is a crown of leaves and she is dressed in classical garb.

Maine played a huge role in the Civil War, which I feel is unfortunately ignored by historians that teach younger ages and even high school age students. This class has shown me that though Maine is stereotyped as an “insignificant” state when it comes to historical events, it really is not. Maine is one of the states in the Union who gave the most in lives and supplies and support during the war. One could even argue Maine started the war because of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel. The monument really shows how much Maine appreciates and honors the men who gave their lives to the cause because it is a really hard monument to miss. I mean, the entire area is named Monument Square! 

The Great Lost Bear

October 21st @ around 7pm

Initial Notes: This place is a super hipster hang out and I love it. The walls are covered in cool and interesting things. There are funny road signs, posters, old pictures of Maine and people from Maine. It is a very quirky, weird, and interesting place to get a bite to eat. They also have a bajillion beers on tap, so Zack was quite happy. The menu itself is also quite quirky. Their nachos are piled high and delicious, they have a burger with a fried egg on it (so freaking good), and just everything is awesome.

Reaction: The Great Lost Bear is not the first thing you think of when you’re told to find awesome site in Maine, but I believe it is a notable site visit. It is a quirky restaurant that is friendly to the Portland hipsters, the middle class working man, families with small children, and every other type of Mainer that may happen to wander in. Wander in is exactly what Zack and I did and it turned out to be an awesome place with equally awesome food (I suggest the cheeseburger with a fried egg on it and their award winning Snicker’s pie for dessert).

The Great Lost Bear opened in 1979 and has been a go to spot for anyone and everyone living in Maine and visiting Maine ever since. The atmosphere is really unlike any other restaurant I have ever been to and it’s a place where you have to go and experience it firsthand. The staff there are really chill and super awesome (plus our waiter had a Breaking Bad shirt on which instantly meant he was going to get a good tip). The walls are plastered with all kinds of really cool stuff, mostly Maine related. It is like a cool, hipster museum of Maine artifacts and you get to eat and drink while checking it all out.

Interesting fact time! There is a mystery writer, John Connolly. He is best known for his series starring Detective Charlie Parker who works out of Scarborough, Maine and is often found walking around the streets of Portland. Connolly’s character even ends up becoming a bartender at The Great Lost Bear in the novels! Many of the characters Parker works with in the series are not made up and are actual people who work at The Great Lost Bear. I think that is pretty freaking cool.

So, while this may not be the most contemporary site visit for this project, I think The Great Lost Bear is an important part of Portland, Maine. It is a gathering spot for everyone in Portland. People who do Reddit meet ups for this area always choose The Great Lost Bear. It is just a really cool, interesting place to meet that is unlike any other. Kind of like how Maine is unlike any other state to visit. The Great Lost Bear is incredibly unique and was a site visit I’ve now gone to a ton. I think this is an important site visit because it has become a staple for everyone who lives in the area and for people who visit Maine. They even have a part on their website where they take time to show off where people have come from to eat and drink at their establishment. Some people have traveled from way up Maine just to visit their restaurant. 

Allagash Brewery Tour

October 11th - 3pm to 4pm

Initial Notes: This brewery is beautiful on the outside. There is a huge walk way with beautiful wooden archways leading into the brewery and it is really well taken care of. Which was a bit surprising because the area it is located is set back from a kind of empty street. The entry room where they sell all their merchandise is equally beautiful with stained wood floors and tables. Almost everything is made of all wooden bourbon barrels which is super cool and the bar is really nice and there are four beers on tap which you get to taste at the end of the tour. The actual brewing area is insanely huge and intense. The guys working just blare metal music which is pretty funny. It was really interesting to see how they brew beer and the learn about the process.

Reaction: Zack loves craft beers and anything and everything to do with the process of brewing beer, so naturally we had to go to the Allagash Brewing Company tour they do pretty much every day of the week. The drive there was interesting because while it is in Portland it is not in the city. It is out on some back road in a little neighborhood that does not seem like it should be home to one of the biggest breweries in the state of Maine.

Allagash Brewing Company started in 1995. It was a one man operation on the outskirts of Portland, Maine started and operated by Rob Tod. Rob Tod had worked in brewing companies before and had visited Germany for a while and realized there was a lack of good Belgian beer in the United States. So, Tod felt that the United States needed to have a wider selection of Belgian beers and started a fifteen barrel brewhouse that he used to create his first beer, Allagash White, modeled after traditional white Belgian beers. He sold his first batch in the summer of 1995, but as we learned on the tour it did not do well for many, many years. Over the last several years, Allagash has become one of the most popular brewing companies in the entire United States and Allagash White is its most well-known and best selling beer. They have six year round beers in its portfolio, seven yearly releases, and numerous one-offs and keg only releases. One of the rarer beers on tap while we were doing our tour is called Curieux and is a beer that is aged in old bourbon barrels Tod gets from a friend who works at a bourbon making company. It ended up, personally, being the only beer I enjoyed at the end of the tour. I’m not much of a beer person, but I am a bourbon/whiskey/scotch person, so it was a perfect beer for me!

Allagash Brewing Company started as New England’s ONLY original Belgian-Style brewery and over many years of hard work has turned into one of the most well-known and respected breweries in the country. What I find so interesting and exemplifies the ideals of Maine is the fact Rob Tod started this as a one man operation. He had a very tough beginning and did not find success for many years after starting the company. Maine is a state that has had very rough beginnings and has had to work insanely hard for the things it has and needs. Maine is not a state where one can be lazy and not try. I know this doesn’t completely relate to the beer industry, but Tod exemplifies the hardworking, humble attitude of a Mainer when it came to getting his company going and off the ground in the face of literally no success for a lot of years.

Not only does the start of the company relate to Maine’s ideals and identity, the company itself is bringing very positive attention to the state! Who would think one of the most well-known and best selling beers would have started in Portland, Maine? The beer industry and food industry as well is a booming thing in Maine, Portland especially. Craft beer stores and brewing stores can be found all throughout Portland and the community is thriving. Mainers are people who create things for themselves and this feeds into the idea that Mainers are individualistic and capable of surviving on their own without the help of “people from away”. 

The Maine Lobsterman

October 6th 2013 around 3pm
(Just happened to also be going to Nickelodeon Cinemas to see Gravity that day)

Initial Notes: Not many people were in the area that day. It was quite cold and rainy, so it wasn't the usual scene of bustling people shopping and tourists taking pictures. Myself, Zack, and our friend Maeve were the only people in the square when we took the picture before going into the warm movie theater where we bought cookies and hot chocolate.

 Reaction: What I found most interesting about the Maine Lobsterman statue in Portland is the fact it is situated smack dab in the middle of one of the busiest plazas. There is literally no way not everyone who comes to spend the day in Portland can miss it. It is also quite large, I did not realize it would be as big as it was when I visited it. Also, for being in the middle of such a busy plaza it is in relatively good condition whereas I would have thought it would be pretty beaten up. I guess that is just me being biased against the young people of Portland. I’ve lived on a college campus for so long with young people who disrespect everyone else’s belongings that I would have figured the statue would be worse for wear.

 To get to the nitty gritty details of the site and its importance, the statue is situated on the corner of Temple and Middle streets in Portland in the middle of a cobblestone plaza. The sculpture was made by Victor Kahill and is officially called, The Maine Lobsterman (hard to believe, right?). It was originally created by Kahill in 1939 for the World’s Fair and was exhibited in the Hall of States. The version situated where I visited is a bronze version made in 1977. There are two other bronze versions in Harpswell, Maine and Washington, DC.

What makes this site so interesting and important to Maine, Portland in particular, is how important Lobstermen are to the state. One of the many things Maine is known for is lobster. One of the ways Maine makes most of its money is through lobster fishing. Portland is right on the water, so it would only make sense that the statue dedicated to the job most Mainers have would be on the water. Not only does it show what Maine is known for and what most Mainers do for a living this was shown at the World’s Fair in 1939. That means in 1939 when everyone was showing off about their states and their achievements, Maine was being shown as a hardworking state that makes its living off of resilient, tough lobsters.