Yesterday

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25 years ago – June 21, 1979

STETSON – John A. May wasn’t in Stetson two weeks before he noticed it – a small, weather-beaten gazebo with a lot of potential.

Its condition was decaying, but “if you stood back and looked at it, it had beautiful lines,” recalled the retired Connecticut educator. Located on the grounds of the Clark Hill Cemetery, the turn of the century structure looks considerably better these days because May “hated to see it go.”

Last summer he and his son began the work of restoring the eight-sided gazebo. At the time its condition was so bad that brush was growing up through its rotten wood flooring, its walls, seats and the roof were in need of major repair, and much of the latticework was broken or missing.

As he worked in the quaint structure, May became intrigued by its origin and purpose. He learned from Myrtle Hartwell that the gazebo builder, B. Pratt Hubbard, was married to Aurilla Clark. She was the daughter of Thomas Clark, the grandson of Isaac Clark who moved to Stetson from Danville in 1813. Mrs. Hartwell believes the gazebo was built about 80 years ago.

Because the gazebo sits on the gravestone of George W. Jordan, who died in 1879, some felt it may have been built by the Jordan family.

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BANGOR – Still misty from her just won victory in the Miss Maine Scholarship Pageant, Jill O’Brien, clutching a bouquet and erratically acknowledging the congratulations of family and friends as best she could, good-naturedly fielded questions backstage at the John Bapst auditorium.

As to the inevitable, “How do you feel?” she replied – laconically – “I don’t know.” One got the distinct impression that here was one girl who was not about to compromise her integrity by gushing out sentiments not fully examined.

Since moving to Bangor, she attended the Thomas School of Dance, where she is now an instructor, helping out with the lecture-demonstration and regular classes, and a member of the Maine State Ballet. It was the immensely persuasive Polly Lynch Thomas, director of the school, who helped precipitate her into the pageant.

50 years ago – June 21, 1954

BREWER – A colorful pre-race parade will open the biggest Soap Box Derby in Maine history in Brewer.

Two bands, gaily dressed baton twirlers, motorcycles, horses and countless other marching units will combine to give the 1954 Derby a big send off. The parade, which has become a customary feature of the big day during the past few years, will be bigger and better than ever before in keeping with the biggest Derby in the seven-year history of the event.

More than 370 youthful contestants from virtually every community in the northeastern section of Maine will swell the marching units in their colorful safety helmets and official Derby shirts.

Riding in a separate car will be Paul Reynolds of Houlton, the 1953 Maine Derby champion, who will cut the ribbon for the start of the first heat.

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BREWER – Mrs. Miriam Pierce of 269 North Main St., Brewer and Washington, D.C., had a pleasant surprise when she had a call from her brother. Capt. C.A. Oeikle of Miami, Fla., whom she had not seen in 30 years.

Capt. Oeikle was accompanied by his son and daughter-in-law, Dr. and Mrs. Freeman Oeikle of Miami. The party was en route to Nova Scotia where Dr. Oeikle will gather material for a book on the land of Evangeline.

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BANGOR – Charles F. Bragg II was re-elected president of the Northern Conservatory of Music at its annual business session at Symphony House.

The annual report shows that the conservatory has completed the 24th year since the school was founded in 1929. Never in the history of the school has there been such a demand for graduates.

All graduates with bachelor of music degrees are teaching or following music, professionally, in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and other states, with the exception of one who is in the Air Corps. There have been 361 students in attendance with all age groups represented. An increase in the number of preparatory students from outside Penobscot County had been noticeable with about 15 towns represented. Most of these students were from northern and eastern Maine.

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BANGOR – This is a story about wheels.

Few people are aware of the tremendous scope of an Air Force motor vehicle squadron. The many vehicles seen operating on and off base are often taken for granted with little thought as to how much work and planning goes into their operation and maintenance.

Capt. William S. Carpenter, commanding officer of the 506th Motor Vehicle Squadron at Dow Air Force Base, defines briefly the squadron’s mission as a “combination taxi-trucking service and garage for the base.”

In its care, the squadron has a transportation section, a motor pool, a driver’s school and several hundred military vehicles ranging in size from the quarter-ton jeeps to tractor-trailers capable of hauling loads up to 121/2 tons. A part of these vehicles is assigned or dispatched to various organizations on base for official use, and all these vehicles average a total of 100,000 monthly.

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ORONO – The first session of a three-day conference being conducted at the University of Maine on electron tube research, attended by more than 250 scientists from all over the world, got under way with Dean Ashley S. Campbell giving the welcome address.

Though being off the record due to the up-to-the-minute nature of the subjects, some of the highlights being presented at the 12th annual conference include such subjects as traveling wave tubes, backward wave oscillators and magnitones.

Most of America’s top colleges and universities that specialize in electron tube research are being represented during the conference. These include University of Illinois, University of California, California Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Ohio State College, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Organized by the Institute of Radio Engineers, the conference also is being attended by scientists from England, France, Egypt and other foreign countries.

Some of the prominent men attending the conference were Dr. Rudolph Kompfner, inventor of the traveling wave tube; Dr. J.R. Pierce, author of the text books, “Electron Beams” and “Traveling Wave Tubes;” Professor Ginston and Professor Marvin Chodorow, who built the linear oscillators that are used for breaking atoms; Dr. W.E. Wilshaw of England who present material on magnatrons; Professor W.G. Dow, author of “Vacuum Tubes;” and P. Guenard of France.

100 years ago – June 21, 1904

BREWER – Miss Jennie Densmore and Miss Lucy Lank of this city started on a trip to the St. Louis exposition Thursday morning. Miss Densmore, it will be remembered, was the winner in the recent glove sale contest held by the E.C. Nichols Co. of Bangor, which entitled her to a free trip to the exposition.

Compiled by Ardeana Hamlin