BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 1, 2024
A little over 100 years ago — on Jan. 1, 1922 — then-Gov. Percival Baxter issued a resolution outlining a vision for a more charitable Maine. In Maine, timber and paper were economic drivers, but concerns had emerged about the rapid pace of timber harvesting. The advent of marine engines was changing the state’s fishing industry and the communities that relied upon it. Most Mainers in the early 1920s still lived in rural parts of the state, although the growth of manufacturing drew people to the state’s cities, as was happening around the world. “Rusticators” were welcomed for their economic contributions to the state, but also viewed unfavorably as being “from away.” Against this backdrop, Baxter’s words at the dawn of 1922 sounded a hopeful message of trust, cooperation and tolerance.