| | 20 YEARS AGO
June 22, 2003
One of the most popular attractions in the Bangor area, the Orono Bog Boardwalk, opened to the public 20 years ago this week via its entrance in the Bangor City Forest. The bog walk, a project two years in the making, takes visitors on a nearly 1-mile loop through the unique ecosystem of a northern peat bog, where you can spot species including carnivorous plants, orchids and other unusual plant life, as well as turtles, frogs and many varieties of birds. Hundreds of volunteers helped construct the boardwalk between 2002 and 2003, marshaled by University of Maine professor Ron Davis, who wanted to bring accessibility for the registered national natural landmark to more people, including disabled folks. Read the BDN front page for June 22, 2003. |
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| | 40 YEARS AGO
June 20, 1983
The closest Maine ever got to a royal visit was when Prince Charles — now King — and Princess Diana made a royal visit to Canada in June 1983, that included a stop at St. Andrews in New Brunswick. It’s less than one geographical mile across Passamaquoddy Bay from the Maine border, although in reality it’s a 30-minute drive from the border crossing in Calais. The BDN was there to take photos and write a story of the royal couple’s visit, but most people turned out just to catch a glimpse of Princess Di. Read the BDN front page for June 20, 1983. |
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| | 50 YEARS AGO
June 22, 1973 Here’s a selection of some of the entertainment happenings in eastern Maine over the weekend of June 22-24, 1973. You could catch Clint Eastwood in “High Plains Drifter” or Bruce Lee in “The Chinese Connection” a.k.a “Fist of Fury,” hear jazz bandleader Woody Woodman at the Lucerne Inn in Dedham, or sip a cocktail at the poolside bar at the Keg Lounge at the Stable Inn in Brewer. At the Lakewood Theatre in Madison, future “Newhart” star Tom Poston and longtime TV sitcom staple Marian Mercer paired up for a production of “Lovers and Other Strangers.” And it still kind of blows our minds that not only were X-rated films advertised in the BDN, but that they also were shown at drive-in movie theaters. Read the BDN front page for June 22, 1973. |
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| | 60 YEARS AGO
June 18, 1963 This week in the BDN (that’s 2023, to be clear), reporter Julia Bayly fascinated and grossed us out with her story about lumpy squirrels suffering from squirrel pox. Sixty years ago, BDN reporter Marie Sullivan took a rather more adorable tack, writing about 16-year-old Billy Nadeau of Bangor who found a baby squirrel in his backyard and made it his pet. Apparently the squirrel “loved” to travel around in Billy’s pocket, and drank from a doll’s baby bottle. Do you think the squirrel loved it when Billy took him on a two-hour car ride to Lewiston? Read the BDN front page for June 24, 1963. |
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100 YEARS AGO June 20, 1923
A hundred years ago this week, it was officially announced that a group of investors in the Bangor area would purchase the former McNulty Farm, a 140-acre tract near the Orono-Veazie line, with plans to build a golf course there. The future Penobscot Valley Country Club was designed by Donald Ross, the legendary Scottish-American golf course architect, and it opened in time for play in the summer of 1924. Today, PVCC’s in-house restaurant is named for Ross. Read the BDN front page for June 20, 1923. |
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