September 2024: USM Certificate and Photo

As the leaves begin to change colors and the new school year begins, we introduce September’s object of the month: a certificate of attendance from the USM facility in Beverly, Massachusetts from 1981. Above the certificate is a picture of Roland Landry (listen to his...

August 2024: Great Falls Balloon Festival

In anticipation of this year’s Lewiston-Auburn Balloon Festival, our objects of the month are photographs from the first Great Falls Balloon Festival, held on August 20-22, 1993. The festival attracts tens of thousands of spectators each year, eager to see the...

July 2024: Lewiston-Auburn Lions Club Ornament

Christmas in July? This month we highlight an ornament commemorating the 200th year anniversary of the Lewiston-Auburn Lions club. We share this in anticipation of Soiree en Blanc, happening on July 26th. Join us for the second annual night of music, food and dancing...

June 2024: Lake Grove Park Postcard

  Happy Summer! This June we highlight a postcard from our collection. You may recognize this sunny scene to be Lake Grove Park in Auburn, a popular spot for lounging since 1909. A woman by the name of Julia sent this postcard to Worcester, Massachusetts in care of...

May 2024: Soldier’s Uniform Jacket

In honor of Memorial Day this month, our object for May is a soldier’s uniform jacket. While textile factories like Bates chiefly produced bedspreads along with a variety of other household linens, Lewiston’s industries also played a role in multiple war...

April 2024: The Creation of a Woven Bedspread

  Our April object of the month is this Bates educational poster titled “The Creation of a Woven Bedspread.” Most likely from the 1950s, the poster provides a step-by-step guide to the intricate process of producing a bedspread from raw cotton. It...