BDN Back Then takes a fun, informative and quirky look back at this week in Maine history, through the pages of the Bangor Daily News archive, which is accessible through a Bangor Daily News complete digital subscription.
Some BDN subscribers may have previously read BDN Back Then as an email newsletter, which came out on Sunday mornings. We’re now running this as a regular BDN column, which will appear weekly on the website. Other than that, however, the format remains the same.
20 YEARS AGO
July 17, 2004
One of the most famous residents of Mount Desert Island is Martha Stewart, who has owned a Seal Harbor estate, Skylands, for decades. Island residents had plenty to say about Stewart being sentenced to five months in prison and five months of house arrest after being convicted of insider trading. According to the BDN, they mostly thought she got a “raw deal.”
Read the front page for July 17, 2004
30 YEARS AGO
July 16, 1994
There once was a time where you could call anywhere in the state by simply punching in seven numbers. Three decades ago that changed when Maine telephone operators announced you had to dial the full 10 digits to call outside of your local area. Now, of course, you have to do that regardless. And long distance doesn’t exist anymore.
Read the front page for July 16, 1994
40 YEARS AGO
July 14, 1984
What makes you feel older — that “The Karate Kid” came out 40 years ago this week or that “Ghostbusters,” “Purple Rain” and “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” came out 40 years ago this summer?
Read the front page for July 14, 1984
50 YEARS AGO
July 16, 1974
“No longer the busy center teeming with young people, ‘street people’ and hippies that Mercantile Square in downtown Bangor used to be, the banked pool and fountain is now an occasional resting spot for the very young, the very old and those in-between. The restlessness and rebellion that peaked out two years ago seems to have worked itself out and is exemplified by this peaceful photo. BDN file photo by Jack Loftus.”
Read the front page for July 16, 1974
100 YEARS AGO
July 16, 1924
We’re looking at a repeat of a major world event that happened 100 years ago: the opening of the Summer Olympics in Paris. Then, as now, swimmers will compete in the open waters of the Seine River. Back then, the river was incredibly polluted, but this time, Olympic and city officials have spent millions and millions of dollars to clean it up.
Read the front page for July 16, 1924
