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Roger Farnum

Roger Farnum came of age in Lewiston and Turner during the 1940s. After marrying, he began working in the shoe industry in Lewiston. He discusses his role buying materials from suppliers to sell to shoe companies, unions strikes, and explains how he was impacted when,...

Kyle Rancourt

Kyle Rancourt was born in 1984 to a family who had owned shoe businesses for generations in Lewiston. Kyle discusses his memories of his parents’ business from when he was a child, to now, as he’s followed in his their footsteps to work in the shoe industry. He...

David Quinn

Upon graduating from university, David Quinn was drawn to Maine’s natural beauty, and left his home state of Connecticut to teach tennis and work in a local mill in Augusta. Inspired by his childhood nostalgia for slipper socks, and with the help of Ted Johanson at...

Dick Courtemanche

Dick Courtmanche was born in Lewiston as one of 10 siblings to his parents who arrived from Canada. The family had a small farm on College Road in Lewiston with his dad working as a hand sewer in the shoe industry, with his children expected to follow in his steps. He...

Phyllis Rand

Phyllis Rand worked in the mills for two years. As a Black woman, she speaks about her experiences and the working conditions in the mills, as well as raising children in Lewiston and finding community within the place she calls home.