100 Years Ago – April 26, 1923
Presque Isle man elected head of Royal Arcanum — At the 19th annual session of the Grand Council of Maine Royal Arcanum, held in Bangor, following a banquet which was held at noon, at which time the Bangor Council entertained, the Bangor Council opened with a continuance of the business meeting, and election of officers for the ensuing period, the following being chosen. Geo T. Noyes, Presque Isle, Grand Regent, and among other officers specified, R. H. Sprague, Presque Isle, Grand Guide.
75 Years Ago – April 22, 1948
Conference speaker — Alan C. Lloyd, managing editor of Business Education World, and assistant editor for the Gregg Publishing Co., was one of the speakers at the Northern Maine Career Conference for high school seniors, speaking before the students interested in business training.
Kenneth Colbath elected head C. of C. membership drive — Kenneth B. Colbath was appointed general chairman of the membership drive for the Presque Isle Chamber of Commerce launched after the annual meeting of the organization by vote of the board of directors at their last meeting. The by-laws of the Chamber were amended at a general membership meeting to change the dues structure of the organization. The basic rate for active membership was $25, and Executive Secretary Ellis E. Servant said the C. of C. planned a thorough review of the membership to establish equitable rates for sustaining memberships.
Bond chairman — Andrew J. Beck of Presque Isle was named Aroostook County Chairman of the U. B. Savings Bonds Committee. In making the appointment, Arthur F. Maxwell, State Chairman, highly commended Mr. Beck for his interest in civic and national affairs.
50 Years Ago – April 25, 1973
Seven girls named for Dirigo Honor — Each year, the Ray Goding Unit No. 88 of the American Legion Auxiliary and financial sponsors form Presque Isle send several outstanding girls from the junior class at Presque Isle High School to Dirigo Girls State. In 1973, Girls State was held at Husson College. The high school principal and a committee of teachers selected the girls on the basis of leadership, character, honesty, scholarship, cooperativeness and community participation. From the list of names submitted by the school, in accordance with the rules of Dirigo Girls State, the names of the delegates and alternates were drawn from sealed envelopes. Delegates and their financial sponsors chosen were Connie Michaud, American Legion Auxiliary; Donna Kierstead, Graves’ Red and White Supermarket; Paula Burnett, Northeastland Hotel; Necia McMannus, Aucoin’s Restaurant; Debbie Bither, Dead River Oil Company; Paula Kelley, First National Bank of Aroostook; Cathy Jarvis, Underwood Oil Company and Zayre Department Store.
Best representation — Bringing home the special trophy, awarded for the best sorority representation at the national convention in Bangor, were University of Maine at Presque Isle officers of Kappa Mu Sorority, Linda Pinkham, president, of Old Town; and Cynthia Bedard, vice president, of Auburn. Linda, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Linwood H. Pinkham Jr., was a senior at UMPI, majoring in Elementary Education. Cynthia, the daughter of Mrs. Dorothy Bedard, was a sophomore majoring in Behavioral Science.
25 Years Ago – April 29, 1998
Richard and Hoffses earned honors from the community — The Chamber of Commerce announced Steve and Lucy Richard as the citizens of the year, and Roger Hoffses as the recipient of the lifetime achievement award. The three were honored at a banquet at the Northeastland Hotel. The annual awards were sponsored by the Presque Isle Area Chamber of Commerce and the local Kiwanis group, Rotary organization, Lions Club and Elks Lodge. Former Presque Isle Citizen of the Year, Jim Ferland, was the speaker at the dinner, which began at 7 p.m.
Building donation — Larry Shaw, president and CEO of Maine Mutual Fire Insurance Company, presented Lionel Theriault, president of Northern Maine Fair Association, with a donation towards the Forest Education Resource Building construction fund. More than one-third of monies needed for the building construction were received and solicitation efforts continued.
Washburn and Central Aroostook won agriculture success honor — Central Aroostook High School and Washburn District High School were recognized as sites for educational success. This distinction is available to schools and their agricultural education programs through Local Program Success, a national initiative to build quality agricultural education programs. Kevin Grass, who taught agriculture at Central Aroostook High School, and Troy McCrum, FFA advisor at Washburn District High School, completed an in-depth training program held in the state as part of the initiative.
