10 years ago – Aug. 9, 1997

(As reported in the Bangor Daily News)

BANGOR – The agenda is out for the City Council meeting and the I-Man won’t be on it.

Martha Dudman’s request to dress Paul Bunyan in a “Welcome to Bangor, Mr. Imus” T-shirt for the Oct. 21 broadcast of the Don Imus radio show from the Bangor Civic Center has been postponed.

Dudman brought her request to the city’s municipal operations committee on behalf of Dudman Communications. The company and WWMJ radio are bringing Imus to Bangor, with proceeds from the $5 tickets to the taping to benefit Camp CaPella.

.

BUCKSPORT – Andy Lacher should know better, say skeptics. As a veteran manager of Mr. Paperback and the now defunct Booksource in Bangor, he is all too aware of book biz trends favoring behemoths such as Borders over their bite-sized counterparts.

Call it quaint, but Lacher believes there’s no substitute for the convenience of a community bookshop such as BookStacks, the 1,500-square-foot store he recently opened on Bucksport’s Main Street.

A wiry, amiably intense fellow, Lacher has coveted the red brick building and its big bay windows for a decade. When he learned the site, former home of Grant’s Gifts and Garments, had become available, he decided the time was ripe.

A self-described former hippie, the Utah native earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism at Arizona State University, and served in the U.S. Navy before moving to Maine in 1983. Lacher was an unemployed father of two with a half-built house in Winterport when he hired on as a clerk at Brewer’s Mr. Paperback one year later.

.

BANGOR – The Rev. Joe Hunt invites members of his congregation in Athens, Tenn., to go fishing every summer. Then, once they’ve packed their gear and climbed aboard the church bus, he takes them north of the Mason-Dixon line to help construct new churches. This summer he and 30 members of Athens’ First Baptist Church traveled 1,300 miles to help build an addition to Penobscot Christian School in Bangor.

25 years ago – Aug. 9, 1982

BANGOR – Some 100 Bangor area residents were at Kenduskeag Stream Park to remember the Japanese civilians killed 37 years ago in the atomic bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Those who attended, many active in the Nuclear Freeze campaign, watched as a smaller group on the banks of the stream set lighted “candle boats” adrift on the water. Several members of the group played guitars and sang peace songs during the observance. Most remained silent and watched the 10 candle boats float away as darkness fell.

50 years ago – Aug. 9, 1957

BANGOR – Steps are being taken to put Bangor’s urban renewal program in action. City planner Hans Klunder has prepared what is called a Workable Program for Urban Renewal, which is in fact evidence the city has met the seven requirements necessary before a municipality is qualified to receive federal aid. Urban renewal has been defined as the total approach to the problem of city decay.

In Bangor the areas being considered for urban renewal are Stillwater Avenue, Hancock Street, First Street and Curve Street.

.

BANGOR – The Bangor Drive-in Theatre is showing “Between Heaven and Hell,” in Cinemascope, starring Robert Wagner. The film is billed as being “from the best-selling novel of young love in war!” The co-feature of the evening is “Four Boys and a Gun.”

.

BREWER – E.M. Loew’s Brewer Drive-in has two features on tap: “The D.I.,” starring Jack Webb, and “At Gunpoint.”

.

OLD TOWN – A newspaper in this community had a brief history, opening with its first issue Wednesday and closing with its second on Friday, but the publishers, artists, editors and reporters had a wonderful time anyway.

The newspaper, a one-page mimeographed sheet named the Fun Club News, was put out by local youngsters participating in the YMCA summer Fun Club program. It carried stories by various youngsters complete with bylines, several illustrated by the drawings of Brenda Myers. Editor-in-chief was Barbara Sevengy.

Reporters and articles included Everett Johnson, “Nature Hike;” Betty Jean McCarthy, “We Visit Chief Poolaw;” Harvey Bowley, “Archery,” Hollis Fowler, “Gym is Popular,” and Everett Johnson, “Lanyards Made by Fun Clubbers.”

.

OLD TOWN – Infectious Dutch elm disease, which caused the destruction of six trees in Old Town already this year, was found in a tree inspected in Stillwater this week, City Manager John Bibber reported.

The tree, which will be taken down, is on Bennoch Road near the Stillwater Federated Church.

However, Bibber said that elm shade trees in the Old Town and Stillwater section now have all been visually inspected with no others infected at this time.

100 years ago – Aug. 9, 1907

BANGOR – Hon. I.K. Stetson left Bangor Thursday in his touring car for Blue Hill. Now, autos are not supposed to be allowed in Blue Hill, any more than in Bar Harbor; but as a big gas-machine recently ran through the sacred thoroughfares of the famous summer resort, so Colonel Stetson, it is understood, intends to ignore the law, regulation or whatever it may be called passed by the inhabitants of Blue Hill.

Before leaving Bangor, Colonel Stetson held a long conversation by telephone with Judge Chase, who is said to have advised him to come to Blue Hill with his auto if he desired to. Colonel Stetson’s position is that the law is unconstitutional in that no public highway can be closed to any recognized vehicle of transportation.

.

GLENBURN – The heavy rains of the past week have been quite damaging to the hay crop. Many of the farmers have a large quantity nearly ready for the barn.

.

DIXMONT – The parade committee of the Centennial anniversary cordially invite all soldiers who wore the blue to fall in with Post 60, G.A.R., with or without uniforms, to touch elbows for the Centennial march.

.

BRADFORD – E.N. Pickering of Boston, who was injured in the Bar Harbor express wreck on June 29, has been under treatment at Dr. H.K. Richardson’s home during July and August.

The Bradford Independent Agricultural Society will hold its cattle show and fair on Sept. 11.

.

OLD TOWN – Billy Jones of this town, now playing center field on the Bangor baseball team of the Maine League, recently received a good offer to join the Lowell club of the New England League.

Jones has been playing a fast fielding game and his batting has helped to win many games for the Bangor aggregation. Jones does not intend to accept the offer as he thinks he can do about as well in Bangor as any place.

All who have seen Jones play are confident that he will one day be a great ball tosser. He is a good runner, a good hitter, a good fielder and possesses a good strong character.

.

CASTINE – Our streets yesterday at times presented a lively appearance with the large excursion from Bangor added to our own people and the number of summer guests.

The excursion arrived at 11 a.m., the most of them finding their way to Fort George where their picnic dinner was indulged in and a number of sports run off, including a ball game. In the afternoon, Emerson Hall was hired and they danced until 5 p.m., at which time they left for home.

Compiled by Ardeana Hamlin