- March 25, 2022
Did you know that Champions, Corporate Leaders, and Major Benefactors of Patten Free Library can request personalized research conducted by the Archivist & Special Collections Librarian? For this year of Now You’re Cooking‘s business sponsorship they requested a building history of the Bank Block (49 Front Street) and we were thrilled to dive into the ...
Read more… - November 8, 2021
by Jack Martin, Reference Librarian
Ever wondered just what it is we keep in all those boxes? The answer is a lot more interesting than you probably imagined.
Truthfully the History Room’s collections cover a lot of ground— most of it related to genealogy & local notables of ages past. There are a few pieces though that ...
Read more… - October 18, 2021
In his article for Pacific Northwest Quarterly, “Machine of Manifest Destiny: The USS Massachusetts, 1845-1863,” Michael “Tug” Buse uses the diary of Theodore Brooks Trevett as a stand-in for a lost logbook of the USS Massachussets (1845). The diary chronicles Trevett’s time as a clerk aboard the Navy vessel on a voyage to the Oregon ...
Read more… - September 27, 2021
How to Use NewspaperArchive’s Free Resources
Have you ever noticed that search results from NewspaperArchive.com appear in Google searches, but you can’t access them without a subscription? It’s frustrating to researchers—but it’s also a useful feature! Our newest How-To Guide explains…
How to use NewspaperArchive as an index for physical newspaper collections.
How to read plain-text versions of ...
Read more… - August 13, 2021
John Hayden (1808-1892)—jeweler, mariner, one-time mayor of Bath, grandfather of Emma Eames and John Sedgwick Hyde—was said to be a writer of “considerable historical matter,” according to his obituary in the August 20th, 1892 issue of the Bath Enterprise. Some of his works are cited in Parker McCobb Reed’s History of Bath and Environs.
Though the ...
Read more… - June 24, 2021
During his education as a librarian and archivist, reference librarian Jack Martin researched the existence of Queer history (or LGBTQIA+ history) in archives and collecting institutions like the History Room. We like to share items from our collections that relate to current events and national observances, but we found ourselves coming up short for Pride ...
Read more… - April 20, 2021
Irene Drago, local author and a trustee of Sagadahoc Preservation Inc., asked us to share this message about the third and final virtual tour offered by SPI this spring.
Dear Supporters of SPI,
Sagadahoc Preservation Inc. is delighted to offer Tour #3 of Opening Doors in Historic Bath for a $10 donation. We’re able to extend this offer ...
Read more… - March 25, 2021
March is Women’s History Month! We shared items and collections from the History Room that illuminate women’s history in our communities in each issue of the library’s email newsletter (sign up here). See each week’s story below!
Old Ladies’ Home
The Old Ladies’ Home collection (MC 009), includes information about how the charitable institution was founded in ...
Read more… - February 11, 2021
Historic building enthusiasts will be happy to learn that Sagadahoc Preservation Inc., our neighbors at Winter Street Center, will celebrate their 50th anniversary by offering virtual house tours in March.
Sagadahoc Preservation, Inc., kicks off the celebration of its 50th anniversary this year with a series of online guided tours of historic homes and landmarks in ...
Read more… - January 8, 2021
Announcing the 17th Annual Town History Series
The Sagadahoc History and Genealogy Room announces the seventeenth annual Town History Series!
Speakers from Patten Free Library’s five member communities will present on aspects of their town’s history on five Saturday mornings in January and February.
On January 16, Nathan Lipfert will present Two Centuries of Working for Bath Customs. ...
Read more…
