Millinocket's Little Italy

Maine has only one "Little Italy"—established in 1899 to house the families of immigrants imported to build the Great Northern paper mill.

Italian immigrants coming to the area were unfamiliar with the land and the language. Fred Peluso was working as a clerk for John Merrill, and he was appointed to watch over the new workers. Peluso saw to their every need by placing them in jobs, providing them with food, acting as translator, and helping them start their homes. Peluso built a substantial home with some outbuildings that become known as Peluso's Square, and it was complete with cobblestones. He started a store that catered to the homesick Italian immigrants and provided traditional Italian foodstuffs that could be purchased on credit. As more immigrants arrived, they settled in an area that ran along the Millinocket Stream just across from the mill. The small settlement was to become known as Little Italy, and Peluso was called the padrone or king of Little Italy. [Link]

Of Millinocket's 1,002 residents in 1900, 432 were natives of Italy.

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235-Year-Old Elm in Yarmouth To Be Felled

Frank Knight was not able to save a centuries-old American elm in Yarmouth.

The elm on the corner of Yankee Drive was magnificent, a local treasure high upon a hill above the harbor, among the oldest and the largest elm trees in New England. So Knight, the volunteer tree warden in Yarmouth, made it his mission to save it.

"They said you can’t save the tree if it’s diseased," Knight said. “But it was such a big, beautiful tree, I said, 'I'm going to try.'"

He kept the elm alive for 50 years, the two of them slowly growing older side by side. But next month, the caretaker, now 101 years old, and the tree, estimated to be 235, will finally part ways. After a valiant, decades-long battle with Dutch elm disease, the beloved elm, known affectionately as "Herbie," is set to be cut down Jan. 18. [Link, via]

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Androscoggin Riverlands State Park

Maine is planning its first new major state park in more than a quarter century.

These lands include 2,258 acres along the west shore in Turner, and 330 acres along the east shore in Leeds, known collectively as the Androscoggin Riverlands.

The land includes significant wildlife habitat; river shore, lakeshore and upland natural communities; historic landscapes; scenic vistas; and an existing recreational trails network.
This property is already widely-used for both motorized and non-motorized land and water recreation. There are presently 15 miles of multi-use trails that follow old roads on the property; and about 8 miles of hiking trails. [Link]

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