“The Past Before Us: Maine Labor Stories behind the Labor Mural”

Lecture Set for March 31 at Maine State Museum

Augusta, Maine - University of Maine historians Carol Toner and Mazie Hough will present a free lecture at the Maine State Museum on Monday, March 31 beginning at 6:30. 

The talk, “The Past Before Us: Maine Stories behind the Labor Mural,” highlights several scenes portrayed in the Maine Labor Mural, now on display in the museum’s atrium. Specific scenes to be discussed include pre-industrial artisans, women textile workers, labor reformers, women who worked in defense industries in World War II, child labor history, and the Jay strike of 1987-88. The presentation will include the "voices" of these workers, as found in written documents and interviews.

The talk presented by Toner and Hough is the first public event in the museum’s “Working Maine” project. The privately funded effort will provide public programs, staff development, and educational enhancements related to the museum’s Made in Maine exhibition and the Maine Labor Mural.

"There are direct connections between the stories depicted in the Maine labor mural and Made in Maine," notes Museum Director Bernard Fishman. "Made in Maine is one of this country's finest museum installations addressing the history of American industry, and shows a variety of home, shop, mill, and factory settings where Maine products were made. The labor mural provides human faces and stories related to this kind of work and focuses on the people who actually worked in those environments. The "Working Maine" project, launched by Dr. Toner and Dr. Hough's talk, will conceptually link the two exhibits so that our staff can better use the museum's excellent displays to present new and updated educational information, as well as connect visitors to the personal dramas that will help make history come alive."

"We have an ambitious three-phase plan for "Working Maine". If fully-funded, this plan will allow us to present multi-dimensional, web-based audio tours of Made in Maine and the Maine labor mural, as well as other popular museum exhibits," said Director Fishman. "The fund-raising effort for this first phase, sponsored by the Friends of the Maine State Museum, is being energetically led by the law firm McTeague Higbee."

The Maine State Museum is located at 230 State Street in Augusta. For more information, contact the Maine State Museum at (207) 287-2301 or visit the museum’s website: www.mainestatemuseum.org.