Museum Roundup
News & Updates from the Maine State Museum
August 2021
Footprints in the Museum

As we on the museum staff busily prepare the exhibits for the building renovation, it feels strange to not hear conversations, laughter, and horns honking in “Cars and Boats.” The museum has hosted decades of field trips, family outings, and solo explorations.

Just as museum artifacts and stories leave their mark in our visitors’ minds, visitors in turn leave their mark on this space. In this issue, we’re exploring the legacy of some mischief-makers at the museum!
The Latest...
Eating Maine History - Sunset Salad
Mayonnaise and Jello, anyone? Join Maine State Museum staff for a fun cooking show that features historic Maine recipes and foods.
Maine educators are invited to join us for a free online series designed to connect students with national issues and events through a local lens. This 2021 workshop series provides an interactive exploration of some great (and free) resources for Maine-based documents, images, and artifacts.
Miss the Quilt Book Launch?
The recent launch of the Maine State Museum’s newest publication, Maine Quilts: 250 Years of Comfort and Community, lives on! This video recording of the June virtual event features museum curator and author Laurie LaBar sharing the dynamic story of some of Maine's fascinating historic quilts.
What's in Floyd's Pocket? 
Are you a 32-40-year-old who grew up in Maine? Were you a troublemaker back in the day? It’s possible that you made a special contribution to the Maine State Museum on a field trip in the ‘90s. In recently preparing some long-standing exhibits for renovation, we found a few surprises in the pockets of “Floyd,” the red-headed mannequin in the museum’s granite display.

With long arms or some creative climbing, determined visitors apparently reached over the exhibit barrier and stuck things into the rear pocket of Floyd’s denim overalls. (Bent over to drive spikes into a block of granite, Floyd never seemed to notice!) There we discovered some loose change, the tag from a toy, a Maine State Library receipt from 1995, and a movie stub from 1998.
The movie ticket, purchased in August 1998 from Augusta’s Hoyt’s theater, cost $5.75. Close inspection and some internet searching proved this to be a ticket for “Halloween H20: 20 Years Later,” a slasher film starring Jamie Lee Curtis. It was released the week before to decent reviews. We can guess that a teenager likely bought the ticket to this R rated movie. Could it have been you?

Museum artifacts like these overalls have been on public display for decades. Now, interactions with visitors become a part of their story.

Fire at the Hotel Velvet
What do this sugar bowl and postcard have in common? The postcard features a scenic view of the Hotel Velvet in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. The sugar bowl was used at the hotel and is engraved with the word “Velvet.”

According to the person who donated these items, her relative worked at the hotel for a summer in the 1890’s. A fire damaged the building and the hotel’s silver was distributed among the staff.

The postcard was sent in 1906, one year before the entire hotel was destroyed in yet another fire. It reads: "Aug. 25 1906 / Come for a Ride. / A.U. B."
Sugar bowl: MSM 70.111.1

Postcard: MSM 70.111.2
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