In the early days, several small family-owned grocery stores provided goods for local families. They were located downtown along Penobscot Avenue. Old local newspapers tell the stories of three of these businesses. In 1928, a small building constructed about 1899 became the location for the Millinocket Fruit Store. Early on, the building had housed Hayden’s Photo Studio and later another business (possibly automobile sales). In 1928, David Drago (from Castine) pur

“Millinocket Area Residents to Get Advanced Look At Magnificent New Hospital Today” reads the BDN headline on the story of the opening of the new Millinocket Community Hospital in 1955. The story continues, “Positive proof that dreams can come true stands on the hillside just off the Brownville Road overlooking the town of Millinocket and people of the area behold the realization of their dream for a much- needed community hospital.” Four years prior (1951), the original corp

The museum received its first artifact related to the trapping business in the Katahdin area. It is a steel trap that belonged to Vernon G. Haines along with some of his trap tags and two photos. Also, there is a well-written piece about Haines and the trapping business in the area through the years. The piece was written by Haines’s daughter Janelle Haines Cyr. It is too good not to share with readers as the museum has little information on the subject. “Vernon G

The cookhouse/eating space in GNP’s logging camps was usually a separate building, close to the bunkhouse and about the same size. The cook and his helpers (cookees) were among the most important workers in the early wood’s camps. If the men weren’t fed well, they did not work well! John E. McLeod, in his seven-volume history of GNP, The Northern, The Way I Remember, describes what these cookhouses looked like in some of the camps. Most cookhouses with combined k

The Millinocket Memorial library became a reality in 1919 when the town voted to raise $2,500.00 “to establish a free library to be dedicated to the memory of those who had died for their country.” In addition, Great Northern Paper Company added $1000.00 and Emma Schenck, wife of Garrett Schenck, GNP president, added $200.00. Local individuals donated numerous books for this first library. The library was located in the Gonya Block next to the Corner Drug Store and faced Cent

“Four Hundred A Day” is the caption and story accompanying a photo in a March,1953 Millinocket newspaper. Four hundred what, you ask? Well, it refers to 400 doughnuts a day being made by a local housewife! Mrs. Bryant Jenkins took over Joe’s Bakery in the 1940’s. A small establishment, she ran it for two years, then took over Hobb’s Lunch Cart (also known as Joe’s Diner). This was located next to the original MFD building (torn down & in 1951 became site of Millinocket Muni

Young and old line the streets to watch a parade in their local town and Millinocket is no exception! Memorial Day, the 4th of July, town birthdays, Union groups, the Santa Claus Parade and more…citizens and various town groups have shown up through the years to participate and/or view the parades. With another parade time upon us, it seemed appropriate to check the Millinocket Historical Society collection for parade memorabilia. Among the oldest photos in the collection i

Some older Millinocket residents (70+) may remember the days when hoboes (or tramps as they were sometimes called), were seen walking into town. These wanderers, (generally men), were most often seen during the warmer months. They might have “hitched” a ride on the train or walked and/or hitchhiked by road. They might do odd jobs for residents in exchange for a meal. The number of hoboes in the U.S. tended to increase after the Civil War when discharged veterans i

Getting from one place to another in and around early Millinocket and the surrounding area usually meant walking! Excerpts from early 1900 letters help tell that story. One letter (prior to October, 1903, from a man in Millinocket to his grandmother contains the following. “Sunday walked down to North Twin and Norcross – the only way to get there is by the single track railroad. The scenery does not amount to much going but there is an interesting dam half finish

In Millinocket’s early days, Fred W. Gates took on the role of police chief and fire chief in the rapidly growing town here in the woods. It appears that things tended to be a bit chaotic as the population grew, more businesses opened, more homes were being built and the town government was organized. Fred Gates became the town’s first fire chief in 1902 and continued in that position until 1936. MFD, a volunteer fire department, was organized after a May 1901 tow

In the 1920’s, Penobscot Avenue was a busy place. Other locally owned businesses and services could be found on other close-by downtown streets. Everything you needed, from coal to heat your home, school clothes for your children, a spinal adjustment…it all could be found along Penobscot Avenue or nearby. The following tells of a few of those businesses. Information is from the April 16, 1924 issue of The Old Town Enterprise. F. O. Daisey & Company were dealers i

Odds and Ends From The MUSEUM! By Trudy Wyman, Curator, Millinocket Society Museum Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States for honoring and mourning the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. From 1868 to 1970, it was observed on May 30 no matter what day of the week. Originally called Decoration Day, since 1971, it is observed on the last Monday of May and known as Memorial Day. A long

“You can’t get there from here!” might well had been said often in Millinocket’s early days. Millinocket’s location was very different from many New England towns which were often situated on roads leading to nearby villages. Millinocket’s location, surrounded by woods, was serviced only by the B & A Railroad which passed nearby on its way to Aroostook County to haul potatoes to points south. The early logging operations of GNP were reached by a woods road that followed Milli

Magic City Becoming Famous As One of Vacation Centers reads a 1932 caption in the local newspaper. Sub headlines read: IS NEAR KATAHDIN and Good Fishing and Hunting Abound Near Town – Good Facilities. The article (found in a Chamber of Commerce secretary’s repot book) has the name Frank H. Speed handwritten on it. Speed was secretary of the Chamber at that time. The article highlights some of the area’s attractions and that the town “is fast becoming a recreation

The Millinocket Insurance Agency closed recently after many years of conducting business on Penobscot Avenue. The museum has recently received items from the business from third generation owner Robert Speed. From the beginning of town, Millinocket Insurance was the place to purchase railroad tickets. One item, a Bangor & Aroostook Railroad Time Table from 1907, has many rules and regulations “for employees only.” It outlines the movement for trains and includes

New housing areas continued to develop between the 1920’s and 1950’s and the older areas saw changes. Some of the Italian immigrants had paid off their debts for passage to America and built their own homes across the stream from the mill. Medway Road, the old tote road to Medway and the Penobscot River and the only route out of town at that time, saw homes built on the town end. Many of these small homes had mill wrapper paper on the inside and tarred paper plus

Millinocket’s housing story began with shacks on the mill site for Italian workers and tenement houses and boarding houses near the mill. Over the years, different areas were developed (Little Italy, across the tracks, The Flats, Tin Can Alley, The Pines, etc.) and are still known by the names they were called by early town residents. McLeod in Story of the Great Northern Paper Company quotes an ad in the Bangor Whig and Currier (July, 1899) asking for responsible

A National Guard Company was first established in Millinocket prior to WWI. Some information about Company E and Company I of the 3 rd Maine Regiment has been included in earlier writings. Company E met and drilled at the former Union Chapel building near the mill gate and eventually people referred to the building as the Armory. Company E members served in WWI in Europe. In later years, Company I members trained at the “new” armory on Spring Street and many of

On Jan. 6, 1928, a bronze memorial plaque on the front of the GNP administration building was unveiled in honor of Garret Schenck. The unveiling took place on the day of his funeral in Weston, Massachusetts. The plaque reads “To Garret Schenck, Founder and for Thirty Years President of the Great Northern Paper Company. He Planned and Constructed the Paper Mills at Millinocket, East Millinocket, East Madison and Madison, adding Much That Was Original in the Development of the

Odds and Ends From The MUSEUM! By Trudy Wyman, Curator, Millinocket Society Museum Millinocket, Penobscot County Maine, population 2500, January 1904. This information is on page one of a map book by the Sanborn Map Company of New York. This book and three more are in the collection of the Millinocket Historical Society. The 1904 book shows the layout of the downtown area with street names and information regarding water facilities and fire protection.