Yesterday …

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(As reported in the Bangor Daily News)

10 years ago – Oct. 27, 1995

HAMPDEN – Early next year, Hampden will become a two-pharmacy town, which is one pharmacy too many according to the head of the pharmacy already in place.

Rumored for weeks, the showdown in this small town of nearly 6,000 people will pit Downeast Pharmacy, the last of the Maine-born and -bred private pharmacies, against Rite Aid, a large national chain with a reputation for being aggressive. Rite Aid has announced plans to convert the Future Foods grocery store on Route 1A into a super drugstore, dwarfing the Downeast Pharmacy next door.

Outgunned by Rite Aid’s national buying power, low prices and ability to absorb several financial hits to outlive the competition, Downeast founder Michael Fiori is hoping that customer loyalty will keep his business alive.

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ORONO – Jim Presbrey has overcome heat, blisters and windblown rain from Hurricane Opal as he travels across the country on a pair of in-line skates.

Presbrey, a 34-year-old athletic counselor from Orono, said he has always wanted to travel across the country. But he decided to do it on a pair of in-line skates to raise money and focus attention on the National Youth Sports program.

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ORONO – A little initiative on the part of merchants and landlords could go quite a way toward easing downtown Orono’s parking crunch, business owners and town officials agreed at a meeting about parking.

As many as 50 of the downtown’s 200 handiest parking spots that could be used by cash-carrying customers, are taken up by employees of downtown businesses and tenants of apartment units, observed one merchant.

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BUCKSPORT – The relatively staid candidates’ night crowd broke into applause when Town Council hopefuls said that too few town and school employees live in Bucksport.

Citing the high quality of life there, Bucksport native David Keene said he cannot understand why more administrators don’t live in town. A marine engineer who spent 16 years sailing tankers and freighters, Keene said he hopes to restore the town pride he has seen plummet in the past six years.

25 years ago – Oct. 27, 1980

GLENBURN – The three presidential “candidates” debated the issues that concern our nation in a forum complete with a panel of reporters and the moderator. Although the participants aren’t old enough to vote, the format could very well rival the real thing planned by the League of Women Voters.

Fourth-graders at Glenburn Elementary School staged a mock presidential debate to climax a timely class exercise on the electoral process. They’re proud to point out that theirs was a three-way debate – something the organizers of the real thing haven’t been able to do.

Both fourth-grade classes broke up into three parties – Democratic, Republican and Independent – to nominate their presidential candidates. The nominees were given five days to research six well-prepared questions on the Iran-Iraq war, the oil situation, appointing a woman to the U.S. Supreme Court and other issues that have come up in the real-life campaign

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BANGOR – The boys named after the facial tissues were in town, doing what they do best – a little singing, a little laughing and a whole lot of entertaining.

The Statler Brothers, pride of Staunton, Va., rolled into Bangor for a concert and showed why they are the perennial winners of the Country Music Association’s Vocal Group of the Year award.

More than 5,000 people [5,012 for purists] braved the wind and rain to see the Statler Brothers in concert at the Bangor Auditorium. Once there, the audience forgot the weather, sat back and made a fine old night of it.

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ORONO – The University of Maine Scuba Diving Club, supplemented by other certified underwater divers, successfully completed a world record marathon underwater backgammon game of 101 hours, eclipsing by 20 hours a record set by students at another university.

Organizers said that numerous obstacles had to be overcome in establishing the record, not the least of which was Mother Nature. The club faced snow, rain, wind and power outages during their assault on the record.

Power was knocked out and players in the tank had to play by underwater flashlight.

50 years ago – Oct. 27, 1955

BANGOR – The Air Force disclosed plans to meet the military housing shortage in the area through the construction of 685 family units under the revised Wherry Act program voted by Congress this year.

Col. Robert F. Layton, base commander, said that under the new Title 8 housing law, the average cost per house is limited to $13,500. This means that the housing for Dow Air Force Base will probably run about $9,247,500. Colonel Layton said this does not include cost of the land, which has not been determined because the property is only in the process of procurement.

The forecasted deficit of housing for Dow personnel is 783 family units, roughly 40-percent officer and 60-percent airman.

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BANGOR – Construction of the so-called Hammond Street “bulge” around the ends of the contemplated extension of Dow Air Force Base runways is progressing ahead of schedule and will be passable for traffic by the middle of next month.

The “bulge” leaves Hammond Street at the Queen City Motel and re-enters present Hammond Street at Silver Road. Route 2 in between these two points is to be discontinued.

The “bulge” makes a wide sweep for a distance of 2.18 miles and opens up an extensive area for development, particularly of a commercial nature.

100 years ago – Oct. 27, 1905

BANGOR – Another large crowd was in attendance at the Columbia Street Baptist Church and standing room only was available, with very little of that to spare. These are the closing services of the special series being conducted by Evangelist Green, and many are availing themselves of the opportunity for spiritual strengthening and uplift which the services offer. More than 60 people thus far have taken a definite stand in the Christian life, more than half of these being the men.

The solo by Miss Mable White, “Flee as a Bird,” was beautifully rendered, and the sermon from the parable of the Prodigal Son, preached by Evangelist Green, was one of the most effective yet given.

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OLD TOWN – “The Gay Matinee Girl” will be presented in Old Town City Hall and the management of the show promises an evening of laughter and enjoyment. A feature of the performance is the five dancing girls. Seats are now on sale at Mutty’s drugstore.

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BANGOR – A novelty that has never been presented in Bangor or the state of Maine will delight the big audience at the skating carnival at the auditorium. A football game on skates between two teams representing Bangor and Portland will be run off.

Two teams of football players, all of them on roller skates, will compete in a genuine football battle on the smooth surface of the auditorium. The teams will wear the crimson of Bangor and blue of Portland.

Since the Portland and Bangor high school football teams have been invited to attend the masquerade in a body, this game will undoubtedly prove an incentive to the rooters to let out a little of their pent-up enthusiasm, and the big hall will resound with the cheers of the rival factions.

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BANGOR – An occasion of unusual interest will take place at the First Parish Church, when a bronze tablet will be unveiled in memory of the Rev. Harvey Loomis, who was the first pastor of the church and minister of the town of Bangor.

An address on the early religious history of Bangor will be given by the pastor, the Rev. Charles H. Cutler.

Compiled by Ardeana Hamlin