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Over 130 years of preservation and study of
Kennebec County history (1891-Present)
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KHS will have TWO programs in November!!
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KHS/MSL Special Program
"Silent Films in Maine - Part II"
November 13, 2024
Edna May Sperl & Ben Hendricks with the Douglas Orchestra
From 1919 to 1921, Augusta was home to a movie production company founded by Edgar Jones and local businessmen. His goal was to make “North Woods” films. He chose the Augusta area because of the Kennebec River, surrounding lakes and
forestland, and its four seasons. Jones brought in a company of actors and a film crew, who all lived together at 129 Sewall Street. Jones used locals as extras in the films.
The films premiered at the Colonial Theater in Augusta. Jones worked with local writer Holman Day to adapt many of Day’s stories for the films. In 1921 Day and local businessmen took over the company, ousting Jones. Day soon bankrupted the company.
Six of the dozens of two-reel films from this era are known to survive. Four are
archived at the Library of Congress in various collections, and British Film Institute donated a pair to Northeast Historic Film in Bucksport. Digital scans of the original 35-millimeter films, with new music scores added, were screened in 2023 at the Colonial.
KHS presenter Ed Lorusso showed two of the films, Caught in the Rapids and
Cupid, Registered Guide, back in August. At this presentation, he will show two
different films, Border River and A Knight of the Pines, roughly 25 minutes each.
As before, Lorusso will provide commentary, then answer questions after the viewing.
Lorusso has been restoring silent films since he retired. Six of his projects have been licensed by Turner Classic Movies, including The Enchanted Cottage (1924), which
aired in late September. His projects have been screened at various theaters and silent
film festivals across the country. He’s also the author of The Silent Films of Marion Davies and is working on a book about filmmaking in Maine during the silent era.
The Kennebec Historical Society presentation is co-sponsored by the Maine State Library free to the public (donations are gladly accepted) and will take place at
6:30 p.m. Wednesday, November 13, at the library’s temporary location, 242 State Street in Augusta. If you have questions about the program, call Scott Wood, executive director, at 622-7718.
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KHS & the Maine State Library presents:
“The Murder of Mattie Hackett and the Trial of Elsie Raymond”
On Thursday evening, August 17, 1905, the town of Readfield was shaken by the
murder of 17-year-old Mattie Hackett, a student at the Maine Wesleyan Seminary & Female College at Kents Hill. Within a few days of the murder, law enforcement suspected Mrs. Elsie Raymond of the crime but was unable to secure an indictment.
Six years later, a candidate for Kennebec County attorney promised that if elected, he would bring the perpetrator to justice. He was elected and the case was re-opened and reinvestigated, subsequently resulting in the indictment and trial of Raymond.
In the Kennebec Historical Society’s lecture for November, “The Murder of Mattie Hackett and the Trial of Elsie Raymond,” speaker Peter M. Pettingill will review the timeline of the murder and trial, the Kennebec County characters involved, and the dynamics at work involving the press and the politics that drove a case to trial that
many at the time considered politically motivated.
Pettingill, who credits his family with having instilled in him a love of Maine
genealogy and history, is an amateur genealogist and historian from New Hampshire
who holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the State University of New York. He retired in 2022 from a 36-year insurance career. Since then, he has written three historical novels, including two that take place in Kennebec County.
The lecture, co-sponsored by the Maine State Library, is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. November 20 at the library’s temporary location, 242 State Street in Augusta.
Donations are gladly accepted.
For more information, call the society at (207) 622-7718.
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Discovering, preserving, and disseminating
Kennebec County history
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KHS is located in Maine's Capital City ... in
historic Kennebec Valley at
Henry Weld Fuller, Jr. House
107 Winthrop Street
Augusta, ME
Click the "donate" button below to join KHS or make a donation. Please be sure to explain what the amount is for in the "Add special instructions to seller" section.
Thank you!
READING ROOM
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
10am-3pm
Tuesday through Thursday
APPOINTMENTS PREFERRED
If unable to visit during our open hours, please call for an appointment.
Phone:
(207)
622-7718
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 5582
Augusta, Maine 04332-5582
Those unable to visit us may send questions to our email:
kennhis1891@gmail.com
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