Do you have ancestors from Maine or an interest in the history of Maine? We are pleased to announce the addition of new papers from Lewiston, Portland, Augusta, Waterville, and Brunswick to our archives.

Lewiston Evening Journal – April 2, 1917

This year the Sun Journal in Lewiston celebrates its 175th anniversary! From its humble beginnings as Lewiston’s first weekly paper in 1847, the Sun Journal moved to a daily publication in 1861 as the Lewiston Daily Evening Journal. The Journal merged with competitor The Sun in 1989, and today the Sun Journal has a daily circulation of 12,500, making it one of the leading dailies in the state. Our archives date back to 1861, just five days after President Abraham Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers to enlist in the Civil War. The paper reported on the feeling of unity as citizens volunteered by the thousands.

The Androscoggin River runs right through Lewiston, and in the mid-1800s, workers (many of them Irish immigrants) built a system of canals that powered textile mills. Young women from the surrounding countryside moved to Lewiston to supply the labor that operated the mills. They were known as “Yankee mill girls.” The mills helped Lewiston transition from an agricultural village to Maine’s leading textile center. When the Civil War broke out, Lewiston’s textile mills continued to prosper, thanks to early business leaders who had anticipated war and stockpiled vast amounts of cotton. The mills helped supply uniforms to Union soldiers.

Rules of the Sun Journal’s Sandman Club -1916

The pages of the Sun Journal contain fascinating stories that capture a snapshot of time in the history of Lewiston. One example is the Sun Journal’sSandman Club.” In 1916, the paper formed a club and published nighttime stories to connect with its young readers. To join the club, children had to follow the rules, including promises to obey parents, be truthful, and be kind to animals. In return, club members received an enamel pin and hundreds of stories intended just for them. Sandman Club activities soon expanded beyond reading to include parties and trips to the theater. In July 1916, a thousand young children joined the Sandman on a march through Lewiston on the Fourth of July. Later the Sandman Club’s activities shifted to include service. When WWI began, the Red Cross extended an urgent call to collect peach pits. Government scientists had discovered that peach pits helped produce a charcoal substance used to make gas masks. In response, the Red Cross Stone and Shell Committee held a contest and offered prizes to the girl and boy from the Sandman Club that collected the most pits.

Young boys from Lewiston collect peach pits. Sun Journal – October 26, 1918

The Sun Journal has chronicled 175 years of history in Lewiston and the surrounding area. You can make new discoveries in all of our new Maine papers from the following cities:

Lewiston:

Sun Journal 1861-2022

The Lewiston Daily Sun 1893-1989

Lewiston Falls Journal 1862-1863

Portland:

Evening Express 1971-1991

Portland Press Herald 1835 – 2022

Evening Express 1887-1971

Augusta:

Kennebec Journal 1870-2022

Kennebec Journal 1825-1913

Waterville:

Morning Sentinel 1904-2022

Maine Say 1989

Brunswick:

The Times Record 2018-2022

Explore nearly 200 years of history in these new Maine papers today on Newspapers.com™!

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18 thoughts on “New Maine Papers!

  1. But I guess better late then never as the old saying goes? ‍♂️. “I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today!”

    1. All the economic pointers don’t show favorable signs. I don’t think much will be added to this site. I look at the new and updated section and it rarely ever changes at least as far as new additions go. The ones with NEW are green.

  2. Would really love some info from Lovell, Maine. My great grandfather moved from there to Coaticook, Quebec, in the 1860’s and would love to know more about his family.

  3. Thanks so much for your professionally digitizing these important safe freedoms of the press in the State of Maine! Many years ago, I worked as a reporter for a summer at the Maine Times in Topsham, Maine in 1971. The Maine Times Newspaper, then many years later, moved up to Bangor, Maine. Has “The Maine Times” been digitized? It has great articles appealing to summer tourists, with great appreciative respect for the many great natural places and tourist destinations of The State of Maine

  4. Please add the Bangor Daily News. So much of the surrounding areas is recorded for generations.

  5. For those doing research on their Family names yes these newspapers are definitely a good war to learn of their Family!
    It does not help me on my research about my Family!

  6. Do any of these papers cover far northern Maine such as Aroostook County? (I may not have spelled that right.) My husband’s ancestors and relatives moved back and forth between Quebec and Aroostook/northern Maine.

    1. I think it’s too expensive for the site to go there. Gas prices are high and about to get even worse with OPEC doing it’s weird things. A whole lot of crap is about to go down. This IS the great reset. It’s not ‘about to come if we don’t vote correctly’ it’s here!

  7. I wish you had either The Plain Dealer or The Cleveland Press or before that The Cleveland News.

    1. With gas prices so high I think newspapers dot com is practically done. Unless we can all give them 1,000$. It’s now 80$ in gas to do a day trip now and in some places of California it’s even HIGHER! Good thing I don’t live there! OPEC has stopped even more supplies from coming in so expect this to be 1970s on steroids.

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