UPCOMING EVENTS
Program Starts February 26
The Portland History Docent Program (PHD) is a collaborative effort by Greater Portland Landmarks, Maine Historical Society, Tate House Museum, Victoria Mansion, the Maine Jewish Museum, the Fifth Maine Regiment Museum, Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse, Spirits Alive at the Eastern Cemetery, the Maine Irish Heritage Center, Friends of Evergreen Cemetery and Stewards of the Western Cemetery.
Each spring, these organizations join forces to provide a ten-week training program for new and prospective volunteer guides at each organization's respective museum site.
Upon graduation, PHD participants become eligible to volunteer at the site(s) of their choice. Specific site training is scheduled on an individual basis. Please be prepared to commit to a full year of time post graduation.
Unbeknownst to many of its current residents, Portland was one of the United State’s major transportation hubs following the American Revolution. Its significance in U.S. commerce began to wane around the turn of the 20th century as larger cities like New York began to dominate trade. In the 1800s, imports like sugar from the West Indies and Canadian wheat entered the city alongside waves of immigrants. These new arrivals contributed to the ethnic diversity and urban development of Portland in profound ways. The South Portland Historical Society’s Seth Goldstein will share the history of the city’s waterfront and how the transformation to commercial center led Portland to become a 19th century cosmopolitan Atlantic World port.
Images: Collections of Maine Historical Society/MaineToday Media, left #12575, right #104859; Maine Historical Society, center #12087
Exhibit now Open!
Discover how Portland's identity has been carved by the routes we've traveled. From maritime commerce that built a bustling port city to the streetcars, railways, and highways that connected neighborhoods and spurred growth, transportation has been the invisible architect of Portland's landscape. Watch as neighborhoods took root near wharves and rail yards, clustering around the workplaces that sustained them, then follow the transformation as trolleys and automobiles unlocked suburban expansion and reshaped the boundaries of community.
MORE PROGRAMMING TO COME!
cHECK bACK TO lEARN MORE ABOUT THESE UPCOMING lECTURES
The Modern Mile: Forest Ave’s Transportation Transformation w/ Phil Morse and Myles Smith
Type: In Person
Date: Thursday, March 26, 2026
Time: 5:00 PM
Location: Rines Auditorium, Portland Public Library
The Evolution of Casco Bay Transportation and Tourism w/ Donna Damon. An illustrated discussion of how mid 19th century Portlanders' excursions to the Casco Bay Islands evolved into regular steamboat transportation that transformed isolated island communities into tourist destinations and contributed to the islands' long term sustainability.
Type: Lunch and Learn
Date: Thursday, March 12, 2026
Time: 1:00 PM
Location: Online via Zoom
Redlining and Portland’s Jewish Community w/ David Freidenreich
Type: Lunch and Learn
Date: Thursday, April 15, 2026
Time: 1:00 PM
Location: Online via Zoom
