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Fans of Gay M. Grant's Along the Kennebec: The Herman Bryant Collection will enjoy these more than 200 newly released images taken by gifted South Gardiner photographer Herman Bryant (1858-1937). Now part of the collections of the Maine State Museum, Bryant's work documents late-19th- and early-20th-century life in the Kennebec River region during its industrial heyday. New information about Bryant and his family reveals fascinating stories about the people and places captured in his photographs. From Augusta downriver to Bath and the coastal islands, Bryant's lens captured the mills, factories, icehouses, and other ventures that once lined the river's banks. Vessels of all types that once made the river the artery of the region's life and economy can be seen along with images of the railroads that revolutionized travel. Bryant's poignant portraits, photographs of homes, and even images of beloved pets bring to life the industrious Maine people who built thriving communities.

From the era of the indigenous Passamaquoddy people to the booming growth that led to its development as a 20th-century commercial hub, the history of Calais is distinctly American. Briefly settled by Europeans in 1604 when a French group that included Samuel de Champlain spent an ill-fated winter fraught with casualties, Calais's first permanent settlers arrived in 1779. As the lumber trade developed, the young city thrived in spite of its remote location. The first industrial railroad in the state was built in Calais in 1832 to fuel its development as the second-busiest port on the Eastern Seaboard, and soon, families like the Murchies and the Becketts were heavily involved in furthering local businesses. Lumber, shipbuilding, and granite quarrying each contributed to Calais's rise--as well as its gradual 20th-century decline as the respective industries collapsed. From a height of nearly 8,000 residents in 1900, Calais's population steadily dwindled to less than 3,000 today.

Far on the northeastern coast of Maine sits a small island whose size belies the depth of its storied past.

Over the course of its existence, Eastport has been a part of the ancestral homeland of the Passamaquoddy, seized from American hands by the British, who would occupy it for four years, and ground zero for the North American sardine industry. Its remote location and stunningly rugged environment make it appealing to a wide variety of people, from fisherfolk and sailors to artists and performers from all over the world. Once serving as the stomping grounds of Benedict Arnold (having gone from traitor to trader), it was later frequented by a young Franklin D. Roosevelt, who became enchanted by its coastal charms. Habituated to facing periods of strife and of runaway success alike, the story of Eastport is one that changes as steadily as its momentous tides.

Lura Jackson was raised in Eastport. She became an award-winning community journalist writing for the Quoddy Tides and the Calais Advertiser and developed a strong passion for local history after becoming involved with the St. Croix Historical Society. She holds a master's degree in peace and reconciliation from the University of Maine. Hugh French, director of the Tides Institute & Museum of Art, provides the foreword, while the institute provided dozens of rare photographs to the book's interior.

Portland Harbor is Peaks Island's front yard, providing islanders with water views and access to the city. Victorian beliefs about "healthy salt air" and newfound wealth combined to create a leisure class that flocked to the Maine seaside. Peaks Islanders replaced a hardscrabble life of fishing and farming with a tourism-based economy. They could not build fast enough. Dubbed the "Coney Island of Maine," Peaks Island at the turn of the 20th century boasted big hotels, grand theaters, posh restaurants, and a boardwalk full of amusements. The dawn of the motor age saw the pendulum swing once again toward austerity, as tourists abandoned the island to embrace automobile travel. Times were tough, and Peaks Island returned to a working-class neighborhood. Newcomers provided injections of life--the military in 1942, a wave of summer residents in the 1950s, and hippies in the 1970s. All fueled growth and left community organizations that survive today.

Discover the history of Rangeley through historic photographs and how the town continues to draw thousands of visitors annually.

Rangeley, Maine, was settled in 1817 when Luther Hoar brought his family from Madrid to a log cabin he had built on the shore of Rangeley Lake. Several others families soon arrived, cleared land, and began farming. It was a small farming community only until the 1850s though. Lumber barons had arrived in the late 1840s, built dams, and started logging the vast timberlands. Soon after, fishermen from Boston, Philadelphia, New York, and Washington arrived to fish the multitude of lakes, ponds, and streams. By 1900, Rangeley was a bustling town with several hotels and two railroad lines. The big hotel era ended after World War II, and secondary residences began to dominate the scene.

Gary Priest has been recording the history of the Rangeley region for over 25 years. He has served on the board of directors of the Rangeley Lakes Region Historical Society (RLRHS) since 1999 and is currently its treasurer. This is his fifth book on Rangeley's history. His other works include History of Rangeley Hotels & Camps, Mingo Springs Hotel: The Early Days, The Gilded Age of Rangeley Maine, and Rangeley through Time.