Maine Photo Project fiscal manager

Early Maine Photography: Images of People and Places from 1840 to 1870
September 25, 2015-January 16, 2015

Within the short span of a quarter century, photography became an integral part of life in Maine. Between 1840 and 1860, photography in its various forms recorded the appearance of individual Mainers as well as Maine itself. A host of pioneer photographers left us a precious visual legacy of Maine people and places which so enriches our understanding of the state’s past. To celebrate the technological and artistic achievement of photography, and to better understand its impact on Maine, Maine Historical Society (MHS) is opening the Early Maine Photography, 1840-1870 exhibition on September 25. 

All images featured in Early Maine Photography are of Maine subjects or were made by Maine photographers between 1840 and 1870. The exhibition will explore the meaning of the images, and delve into the notion of how early photographs provide the background and context for the culture we live in today.  Earle G. Shettleworth, Jr., Director of the Maine Historic Preservation Commission and an authority on Maine photography, is curator of this exhibition. MHS holds the largest and most comprehensive collection of the earliest images of Maine, and its exhibition will provide a historic framework for the overall Maine Photo Project activities. 

To coincide with the exhibition, with Down East Books, MHS is co-publishing a new history of photography in Maine written by Shettleworth, Libby Bischof and Susan Danly to be released in late September.

When: September 25, 2015 to January 16, 2016 

Where: Brown Library second floor reading room, 489 Congress Street, Portland, ME 04101 

Tickets: Exhibition is open to the public during regular museum hours, and is included in regular museum