Margaret Chase Smith Library
Newsletter
A Newsletter for Friends of the Library
Vol. 38, No. 3
The staff of the Margaret Chase Smith Library is anticipating the upcoming school year as the weather cools, the leaves turn color, and field trip season begins! It’s been a few years since we have experienced the hustle and bustle of school visits, but we are all excited to welcome students back. We hope everyone continues to be safe and healthy as we continue to inch our way back to normalcy.
In this issue, you will learn about our recent library activities, educational opportunities, and various researchers and visitors. Each staff member has written what they have been doing over the last few months. Be sure to scroll all the way down. Also highlighted are some photographs of events, projects, educational materials, or people that have been to our facility recently. Finally, check out our up coming events section to see what’s on the horizon.
Directions
by David Richards
August 26 was a banner day, and not just because it was National Dog Day. Margaret Chase Smith Day was celebrated once again at the Library. It is at least the third iteration of such a celebration. The first one took place in 1977 to coincide with dedications of the Margaret Chase Smith Bridges over the Kennebec River and a Margaret Chase Smith rose garden at Coburn Park in Skowhegan. Over the years, the Skowhegan Community Action Group (SCAG) took over the event and kept it going until 2005. Along the way, the State of Maine proclaimed Margaret Chase Smith Days beginning in 1977 under Governor James Longley. The commemoration was codified as part of Maine Statutes a decade later during the administration of Governor Joseph Brennan.
Credit for the local revival of Margaret Chase Smith Day in 2022 goes to Evalyn Bowman. As a member of the Skowhegan Heritage Committee, she spearheaded the effort for the town select board to approve a proclamation and then worked with the Library staff to plan the event. Evalyn’s association with the Library goes all the way back to its origins. She attended the groundbreaking for the building in July 1981 and its dedication in August 1982. She was also one of the movers and shakers in SCAG.
As we cast about to select a date for the renewal of Margaret Chase Smith Day, we thought of the most important ones in her life. June 1st is when Senator Smith gave her historic “Declaration of Conscience” speech in 1950, but that is a busy time of year for the Library because of school field trips. December 14th is her birthday and the official commemorative date selected by the State of Maine in 1987. We used to host a celebration on that day, but the winter weather disrupted the plans on too many occasions to make it viable. We settled on August 26th, as it fell between the Skowhegan Fair and the start of school. More important, it is Women’s Equality Day, commemorating when the 19th amendment to the US Constitution gave women the right to vote.
Only later did I realize a second significance to the date. It turned out that August 26, 2022 marked the fortieth anniversary of the dedication of the Library. Reaching that milestone is a credit to a host of people: to Major General William Lewis, who as Senator Smith’s Executive Assistant had the vision to establish the facility after she left Congress; to NASA Administrator James Webb, who lent his support to the fundraising effort; to Merton Henry, who as the Senator’s personal attorney took care of the legalities of founding the Margaret Chase Smith Foundation and then served as its President for many years; to the co-founders of Northwood Institute, Gary Stauffer and Arthur Turner, who took on the building project and operation of the facility; to the staff members past and present, who have run the Library on a daily basis for the past four decades, and several of whom, Angela Stockwell, Joan Brown, and Lynnette King, were in attendance for the recent celebration; to the donors, who have lent their financial support over the years; and to the many friends, who continue to attend our events. Most of all, the Margaret Chase Smith Library is a credit to the life and legacy of its namesake. Many times this year, we have been reminded that Margaret Chase Smith’s achievements of opening doors for women, leading with conscience, supporting the exploration of space, and devoting herself to public service still have relevance today. May we continue to remember, and promote, those legacies until the next Margaret Chase Smith Day on August 26, 2023. Mark your calendars!
Evalyn Bowman at Margaret Chase Smith Day.
Margaret Chase Smith Library Dedication Plaque.
Former Library employees Joan Brown (far left) and Angela Stockwell (middle) at Margaret Chase Smith Day.
Communication Corner
By John Taylor
National History Day in 2023
Planning for the 2023 National History Day contest season has begun! I am excited for the potential return to in-person events. This will include both teacher workshops and contests. This year I hope to release a recorded introductory teacher workshop at the end of September. Then on November 4, NHD in Maine will host an advance teacher workshop at the Library for the very first time. The main focus will be on exhibit design and building, but will touch upon many aspects of the research process that can be applied to all NHD categories. This will include discussions on the 2023 NHD theme (Frontiers in History), the research process, how to dissect primary sources, the process of writing a concise thesis statement, and how to approach and work with librarians and archivists while conducting research. The goal is to give teachers many takeaways that can be implemented into the classroom.
This workshop is for teachers familiar with the NHD program and the contest format. During the day teachers will be taken through a truncated version of creating a NHD exhibit. They will be randomly paired together and assigned a topic on Senator Margaret Chase Smith's life and career. As a group of two, teachers will work on identifying a "frontier" connected to their topic and begin the initial research process using the archives within the Margaret Chase Smith Library. They will then be expected to create a "working draft" of an exhibit by the end of the day. A schedule of the full day can be found here, but is subject to change. A Google Form to sign up for the event will be sent to teachers in the near future and be available on our webpage.
As for the 2023 contests, the dates are set! Bruce Whittier Middle School will hold their regional contest in early February. The Lewiston Regional will take place on March 3 at Museuem LA and the Bangor Regional will be on March 25 at John Bapst Memorial High School. This will all culminate in a return to UMaine on April 29, 2023 for the State Contest. For more information you can visit our website or check out all our important dates and deadlines here.
I am looking forward to the tenth season as the State Coordinator for NHD in Maine. I truly believe this will be our best year yet!
Changes to Our Timeline Exhibit
New updates have been made to our museum timeline. They include a new temporary exhibit space used to host small traveling or loaned exhibits and provide a place for one NHD in Maine student to highlight their research each year. Curator of Collections Nicole Potter and myself have also added a space showing off Senator Smith’s fashionable accessories including purses, hats, jewelry, and a shoe rainbow! Come by and see the new changes!
Taken at the last in-person NHD in Maine Teacher workshop at the Osher Library in November, 2019. We hope to build upon what we learned at the time to create an all immersive experience for teachers at our upcoming workshop this year.
Our new fashionable exhibit case!
Taken during our last in-person NHD state contest award ceremony in 2019! We all hope to make similar memories again in 2023.
learning Lounge
by Kim Nelson
Community Partnerships
The slime program was tons of fun with over 75 in attendance. Slime in a variety of colors was created and taken home and only some of it ended up on the lawn. It is fantastic to be able to partner with the Skowhegan Free Public Library and other organizations within the community. I am looking forward to more events - slime programs included. However, no one escapes glitter. I found a little dolphin shaped glitter on my office floor the day after the event.
Collections Management
The cataloging of the collection in Past Perfect is slowly proceeding. While not as fast as we would hope, every bit forward feels great. As someone who loves to catalog, there is nothing quite as satisfying as putting as much information into a record as possible. I am aware that I am building on the work of previous individuals who have all added information from Senator Smith’s staff in Washington to various others including Vanessa Caron, Sheri Leahan, and of course, Angie Stockwell. The hard work of previous individuals makes my job easier. I know at some point someone else will carry on the task that Nicole and I are doing. As anyone who catalogs knows, there is always another update and database around the corner.
Library Milestones
The 40th Anniversary of the Library celebration in conjunction with Skowhegan’s Margaret Chase Smith Appreciation Day was a success. Prior to the festivities, one hundred straw rocket kits were created for kids to take home and assemble. During the event, packets of coloring pages from numerous moments in Senator Smith’s life were out for those who wished to color them. I am grateful to the Giffords Scoop Shack for selling their outstanding ice cream during our event and for the donation of the cornmeal blueberry desserts donated from Maine Grains. A special thank you to 1890 Primitives, the Bankery, and the Heritage House for their donations which provided us wonderful door prizes.
We had fun hosting a slime party and we value our partnership with the Skowhegan Free Public Library.
Dolphin glitter still being found!
The MCS Library’s 40th Anniversary!
Research Roundup
by Nicole Potter
Big things have been happening at the Margaret Chase Smith Library. Events, exhibition updates, and in-person researchers - oh my!
Community Scan Day
First - in-conjunction with Margaret Chase Smith Day, the Library co-hosted the first Community Scan Day in Skowhegan. The event was in partnership with the Skowhegan Public Library and Skowhegan History House. Community Scan Day is an opportunity for community members to have their family photos and documents digitized, at no cost, in an effort to preserve local history.
Community members were encouraged to bring material related to the history of Skowhegan and/or the state of Maine. They were asked to bring no more than three items for digitization and the items cannot be larger than 12" x 17". Digitization is limited to photographic materials and paper documents. Participants received their scans via email after the event. With participants' permission, the scanned materials from this event may be hosted on the Maine Memory Network and included in a future temporary exhibition at the Margaret Chase Smith Library.
We were thrilled with how many community members took us up on our offer and participated in the first Community Scan Day. A second one will be held at the Skowhegan Public Library on Friday, October 21st. We hope many more community members join us then!
New William C. Lewis, Jr. Section in the Museum
Second - I have been working alongside Museum Assistant John Taylor to update a portion of the Museum’s permanent exhibition. The section in question covers the life and impact of Major General William C. Lewis, Jr. (1912-1982). Lewis was Senator Margaret Chase Smith’s Executive Assistant. During his tenure, he maintained detailed records, managed her office, helped with legislation, worked as a strategist for her campaigns, and served as her closest confidant. He was instrumental in establishing the Margaret Chase Smith Foundation and Library.
While previously Lewis was highlighted at the end of the timeline, right where the building transitions from the museum to Senator Smith’s historic house, his materials have been moved to a more centralized location close to the entrance to the facility. A new panel outlining Lewis’s life and his lasting contributions is currently being designed and will be placed on display later this autumn.
More Researchers
Third - and final, the Library is delighted to host several in-person researchers this fall. This includes Dr. Neal Allen, Associate Professor of Political Science, Wichita State University, and A. Brad Schwartz, Princeton University. Allen is currently researching citizen opinion about firearms policy in the 1960s. Schwartz is working on his dissertation about Edward R. Murrow. We are looking forward to assisting both in their research and seeing how their respective projects turn out.
Picture with the informational form patrons filled out during Community Scan Day.
MCS and Bill Lewis in Margaret’s living room, 1975.
Dr. Neal Allen from Wichita State University.
Upcoming events
The MCSL is an EEO/AA institution and does not discriminate on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, transgender status, gender expression, national origin, citizenship status, age, disability, genetic information or veteran’s status in employment, education, and all other programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Director of Equal Opportunity, 101 Boudreau Hall, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469-5754, 207.581.1226, TTY 711.