HOLES-IN-ONE Dave Lewis HERMON – Dave Lewis of Hermon nailed a hole-in-one Wednesday on the par-3 12th hole of Hermon Meadow Golf Club. He used a 7-wood for the 210-yard shot which was witnessed by Tony Reynolds and Bill O’Rouke, both of Hermon. Read More
ORONO – Even with rap music blaring in the background, the grunts, cheers and sighs of University of Maine football players were audible with every attempted lift Tuesday night in the field house weight room. Perspiration soaked the gray T-shirts of the veteran Black Bear… Read More
When soccer and field hockey teams finally get going this fall, they’ll be the first teams to experience Maine’s open tournament. That doesn’t mean they have to like it – at least that’s what several girls soccer players from Houlton and Hodgdon think. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
HERMON – Brad Spratt of Hermon ended Andy Migliore’s domination of the Tiger Division with a victory in the feature event Wednesday night at Speedway 95. The event went from green to checker without a restart as Steve McLeod of St. Albans finished second and… Read More
Matt Lane’s Olympic wait will last at least another four years. Nick Rogers, the third-place finisher in the 5,000 meters at the U.S. Olympic Trials, secured his spot on the U.S. team by running faster than the Olympic “A” standard in a meet Saturday in… Read More
AUGUSTA — Two large sections of the Maine coast fail to comply with tougher clean-air standards the federal government is trying to put into effect, state environmental officials say. The Department of Environmental Protection said 39 communities, from Kittery to Phippsburg and from Isle au… Read More
STEUBEN — An electrical fire is believed to be the cause of a fire on the Smithville Road in Steuben on Wednesday afternoon. According to Steuben Fire Chief Adelbert Pinkham, the fire began in the laundry room of John and Charlotte Organes’ Cape house around… Read More
RANGELEY — The state’s top education board Wednesday voted unanimously to approve a $10 million increase in the debt ceiling for school construction. The board’s vote formally doubled the number of new building projects for this year to a total of 22. The board’s vote… Read More
AUGUSTA — The investigation into the crime spree of Linwood Steward in the remote areas of Somerset and Piscataquis counties last week is continuing, according to Public Safety spokesman Stephen McCausland. Police now are asking members of the public to assist with that investigation. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
One of many events celebrating Old Town’s riverfront revitalization project is planned for this weekend. The Canoe City Summer Festival, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 12, in downtown Old Town, is sponsored by several local businesses and organizations, according to Tom Thornton… Read More
When Bangor police officers were investigating a report of intruders inside a downtown building early Wednesday morning, a cloud of smoke drifted across Exchange Street, followed shortly by two men. The smoke came from one of two fire extinguishers that had been discharged inside the… Read More
BANGOR — Worried about health care, heating oil, education and social security, residents didn’t hesitate Wednesday night to tell U.S. Senate candidate Mark Lawrence their concerns. And that’s just the way he likes it. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var… Read More
ROCKLAND — A regional transportation panel is taking a closer look at alternatives to widening U.S. Route 1 in Warren and building a Wiscasset bypass. The regional transportation advisory committee talked with members of the Midcoast Alliance for Planning about the matter Wednesday. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
BANGOR — The crystal statue says so — the city of Bangor has been promoted from “Simply the Best” to the “Best of the Best,” according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The award — one of just 100 presented nationwide —… Read More
NEWPORT — The last thing Matthew Pimental, 20, of Garland remembers was seeing the white line on Route 7 on his left. “That meant he was in the ditch,” said Newport police Officer Larry Merrithew, who investigated an accident involving Pimental shortly before 7 a.m. Read More
CLINTON — The group working to create a town charter hopes to complete the document by the end of March, the board’s chairman said Wednesday night. During the first in a series of public forums, Donald Harrington, chairman of the charter commission, told about 20… Read More
BANGOR — A Boeing 767 on its way from Europe to New York made an unscheduled pit stop at Bangor International Airport on Wednesday afternoon when two of the passengers onboard became ill. A faulty indicator light, however, complicated an otherwise routine landing. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
FAIRFIELD — A Pittsfield teen-ager told police that four men picked him up hitchhiking, attacked him and then dumped him by the side of the road. Michael Gamblin, 17, was found along U.S. Route 201 in the village of Shawmut around 12:45 a.m. Wednesday. He… Read More
BELFAST — If the City Council is waiting for direction from its zoning task force on reviewing land targeted for development by Wal-Mart, it could be a long time coming. The best that members of the council’s Route 3 Task Force could do Tuesday night… Read More
AUGUSTA — Seeking to settle a complaint and clarify some legal murkiness, state election overseers ruled Wednesday that two organized labor groups were required to publicly report the costs of circulating election endorsements among their members earlier this year but faced no accelerated deadlines for doing so. Read More
FRENCHTOWN TOWNSHIP — A Harpswell man died after his sport utility vehicle was crushed by tree-sized logs falling from a tractor-trailer truck that collided with his vehicle Wednesday morning north of Greenville. The accident happened about 10 a.m. on the Spencer Bay Road about one… Read More
SOMESVILLE — Margaret Manter’s sea witch scarecrow looms up over long rows of gladioluses and sunflowers, perfectly at home mothering the flock of chickens that peck among her fluttering black streamers. “My mother has always made scarecrows,” said her daughter, Nancy Manter, on Wednesday. “My… Read More
ELLSWORTH — Police arrested a man and a woman after a traffic stop early Wednesday on felony charges of possessing about $450 worth of heroin. But the woman wasn’t suspected until a police video of the traffic stop showed her tossing something into roadside bushes… Read More
PORTLAND — Maine’s supreme court has reversed its 4-month-old ruling that allowed workers to hold bosses responsible for discrimination on the job. The decision spawned lawsuits against supervisors around the state. Maine Supreme Judicial Court justices reversed their decision after an appeal to reconsider it… Read More
EXETER — Police suspect that a motorist fell asleep at the wheel shortly before the car he was driving swerved across the road and killed a bicyclist earlier this month. Terrence Cossar, 46, was riding a bicycle on the Exeter Road about 6:15 p.m. Aug. Read More
CAPE ELIZABETH — A 17-year-old was killed here Wednesday when the car he was driving slammed into a stonewall and a utility pole off Old Ocean House Road around 1 a.m., police said. Police Chief Neil Williams said the investigation was continuing, but that speed… Read More
BANGOR — The abrupt departure this week of the county’s longtime roads and mapping manager and Emergency Management Agency director appears to be linked to a copy he produced of a nonexistent deed. The Penobscot County commissioners continued this week to maintain their silence about… Read More
FOR COMPLETE TEXT OF HOME FURNISHINGS TRENDS & STYLES 2000 ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT, SEE LIBRARY MICROFILM. Read More
“Stand by to give way.” Coxswain John Worth calmly waited for the command to register with our motley crew. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length;… Read More
ROCKLAND — The North Atlantic Folk Festival, a sister event to the North Atlantic Blues Festival, will be from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 13, at Harbor Park. The second annual Folk Festival will feature a diverse offering of both local and national artists,… Read More
I wanted to spend this weekend casting flies for trout, or fishing for togue on West Grand Lake, but a few chores around the house kept me close to home. But, I was able to finish thumbing through the pages of last week’s report from the Department of… Read More
In theaters SPACE COWBOYS, Rated PG-13, 123 minutes, directed by Clint Eastwood and written by Ken Kaufman and Howard A. Klausner. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i… Read More
PATTEN — This northern Peonobscot County town will celebrate summer this week as the annual Patten Pioneer Days continues through Sunday, Aug. 13, with a variety of events for young and old. The event was first held in 1983 by the town’s recreation department to… Read More
PATTEN — The logging industry has played a major role in the development of this northern Penobscot County town of 1,200 people, where pine trees for ships’ masts were once cut and shipped downriver to Bangor. Trucks loaded with logs still rumble through the center… Read More
Renting a video? NEWS film critic Christopher Smith can help. Below are his grades of recent releases in video stores. Reindeer Games C+ Princess Mononoke A Romeo Must Die C- Whatever It Takes B The Beach D+ Drowning Mona C- Magnolia A- Angela’s Ashes B-… Read More
I just returned from a two-week trip to Maine, where I was visiting family. I spent much of the time watching my parents die. They are not suffering from any terminal disease; they were not the victims of some industrial accident. My parents are dying from fear and… Read More
Under pressure from the attorney general, the Maine Educational Loan Authority on Thursday will reconsider its decision to pay a bill of $204,000 submitted by its administrative agency, Maine Educational Services. The money was used by the private MES to lobby against legislation to reform the state’s tangled… Read More
AUGUSTA – Attorneys for Trooper John O’Hara confirmed Wednesday they will file suit against the Maine State Police for administrative actions leading to alleged violations of the New Sweden officer’s civil rights. Bangor attorney Warren Silver said he plans to file a complaint against the… Read More
MONROE – A mother Wednesday credited a speedy response from passers-by with saving the life of her 10-year-old daughter, who gouged her leg and severed an artery when her bicycle went careening out of control on a Waldo County road. Rachel Martin was riding with… Read More
“Songs for a Summer Night”, Opera Maine’s title for the program presented Tuesday evening at Oceanside Meadows Inn at Prospect Harbor, suggests music that is enchanting and perhaps light-hearted, but not quite as serious or substantial as concert fare. Enchanting the evening certainly was. Lighthearted? More often than… Read More
In 1995, the European Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, known as SOHO, was launched carrying 12 different instruments to probe everything from the sun’s hellish interior to the solar storms raging on its surface. After a rocky start, when it looked as if the spacecraft might be lost, it… Read More
Seeing and hearing the supply boat approach, the seals of Mount Desert Rock slipped gracelessly into the ocean. A few seasoned adults stayed perched upon their sunning rocks, waiting to see what happened next. The rest of the remote outcropping’s seal population seemed content to… Read More
CASTINE – These are not your grandmother’s quilts. They weren’t made to keep you warm on cold winter nights or to go in some young maiden’s hope chest. Nor do they feature any familiar colorful pattern such as the wedding ring, saw tooth, sunbonnets or girls clutching bouquets. Read More
Figure the odds. Not one air traveler of 14 who were destined for Maine during a recent five-day period made the trip without layovers, delays or rerouting to other airlines and other states. The trip or the return trip, that is. In fact, the joke… Read More
Mainers who have Firestone tires that have been recalled will not be first in line to have them replaced free of charge. Bridgestone-Firestone Inc. announced Wednesday that the voluntary recall will be done in three phases, starting with Arizona, California and Texas, followed by a… Read More
While the current arrangement provides for access into the woods, there is a fee involved and not all recreational activities have been treated equally. Ranking low on the list of priorities has been hiking. I have bushwhacked a number of different mountains in order to climb their abandoned… Read More
In the Norridgewock area the gas price is $1.45 while in Milo it’s $1.62. Why the variation in price? The oil companies are really ripping us off. If the two “big oil men,” Bush and Cheney, are elected, it will probably get worse. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
Each of us will leave this world in an individual manner, be it sudden or lingering, whether it be accompanied or not by an immeasurable degree of pain and discomfort. It is now proposed that each of us be granted the legal liberty, based upon our own judgment,… Read More
The Maine North Woods is an American crown jewel. It encompasses the headwaters of the Allagash, Aroostook, Kennebec, Penobscot and St. John rivers; Moosehead Lake and hundreds of back-country lakes and ponds. Add to that the majestic, old and second-growth, forest expanses, wildlife, landscapes shaped by glaciers, water… Read More
The Clinton-Gore administration has been boasting about the huge federal surplus. We’ll not have it long if Al Gore is elected president. He has big spending plans. His prescription drug benefit program will cost $200 billion. His retirement savings plan another $250 billion. Government health… Read More
The marvel of the last legislative session was the deft way in which Gov. Angus King ushered through his “Laptops for Lunchboxes” proposal. The idea of equipping every seventh-grader with a laptop computer was met with nearly statewide derision upon its unveiling early last spring. It was pronounced… Read More
FALMOUTH — Benjamin Nicolay is a long way from home working at a relatively new job, and he’s loving every minute it. Especially since he is tied for second after the first round of the 82nd Wendy’s Maine Open Golf Championship. googletag.cmd.push(function () { //… Read More
Wildfires are ravaging almost every Western state. With months to go until the snow falls, this already is the most damaging summer since 1988. With every day and every new fire, a new record is set. Blame prolonged drought and high winds, conditions that are… Read More
PROSPECT HARBOR — The Maine St. Andrew’s Pipes and Drums will perform at the Schoodic Arts Festival today. The Ellsworth-based band will play at 7:30 p.m. at the Women’s Club. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var… Read More
MEDDYBEMPS — For more than half a century, it was the home of toxic waste. Now, it may turn out to be an archaeological gold mine. Last year’s discovery of artifacts at the former military storage dump next to Meddybemps Lake indicates that the area… Read More
BREWER — The City Council Tuesday night gave its stamp of approval to a tax-increment financing package aimed at creating new living and health care options for area senior citizens. Lon Walters, president of the Woodlands Inc., is poised to construct two new facilities here,… Read More
OWLS HEAD — There was agreement on the concept, but apparently not on the method. For the past several years, various Owls Head residents have been concerned about the growth in traffic at the Knox County Regional Airport, and the noise that comes with it. Read More
MAPLETON — Great leaders are great because of what they don’t have, according to one of the numerous speakers this week at the annual Aroostook Teen Leadership Camp. Like the characters in the children’s classic, “The Wizard of Oz,” not all leaders have brains, hearts… Read More
NEWPORT — Durham Bridge is falling down. Fortunately for Newport taxpayers, the rate of deterioration appears to be slow — but steady. Last week, selectmen voted to enter into an agreement with the Maine Department of Transportation to conduct an engineering survey for an assessment… Read More
ROCKPORT — It may be the largest fund-raising goal ever in the Camden area, admitted Bob Daigle, president of Camden National Bank. But Daigle and others who are working to build the new Penobscot Bay YMCA off Union Street in Rockport were optimistic Wednesday morning… Read More
BAR HARBOR — Art historian Stephen May will offer a slide presentation titled “Revisiting Old New England: Art of the Region 1865-1945” at College of the Atlantic. This is the final lecture in the Museum of Natural History’s summer series. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define… Read More
GUILFORD — The SAD 4 board of directors voted Tuesday night to hire an interim superintendent and honored Norman E. Higgins, who will retire Aug. 31 after 30 years with the district. A former teacher and principal, Higgins has served as superintendent for the past five years. He… Read More
To paraphrase somebody who once paraphrased Mark Twain, everybody talks about the business climate but nobody does anything about it. Nobody until MERI. MERI is the Maine Economic Research Institute. From its ivy-covered cubicle in the Augusta headquarters of the Maine State Chamber of Commerce,… Read More
BAR HARBOR — Former Sen. George Mitchell and U.S. Rep. John Baldacci will lead a reception for the Hancock County Democratic Committee this weekend. The event will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 12, at the Atlantic Oaks by the Sea. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
FORT KENT — Major construction projects at four of five schools in SAD 27 will be completed in time to allow classes to begin on schedule next week. Three elementary schools at Fort Kent, Wallagrass and St. Francis had complete roof replacements, and a two-year… Read More
ROCKLAND — The first day for taking out nomination papers for one three-year City Council seat drew interest from two residents. Incumbent Councilor Elizabeth Gifford Stuart, whose term will expire, could not be reached Wednesday for comment on whether she will seek re-election. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
PLEASANT POINT — Called the Spirit of 2000, the Sipayik’s 35th annual Indian Day Celebration begins Friday. It will begin with the arrival at Pleasant Point of the warrior canoeists from Indian Township, followed by a pageant at the ball field on Route 190. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
CARY PLANTATION — About 30 frustrated and angry people gathered Tuesday night at the Smith School to learn more about what they already knew: When it comes to septic-waste spreading, they have little say in what will happen in their town. “It’s wrong for the… Read More
BANGOR – Many people think author Stephen King was the first to revolutionize the publishing industry by putting his latest works online. Instead, he may have been the first to popularize this form of publication. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]];… Read More
WASHINGTON – Hopes for a speedy resolution to a four-day strike by 87,200 Verizon Communications phone workers slipped further Wednesday as contract talks languished. The walkout has left the company scrambling to process 82,000 repair requests, more than twice the number from this time last month. Read More
BANGOR – Pride, the world’s largest producer of golf tees, is cutting back 27 positions and consolidating its shift operations in Guilford. Company president Randy Ellis said sales are meeting expectations but the company is overmanufacturing its tees and other wood products. The focus is… Read More