Celebrating Mainers' Amazing Ingenuity
As Down East Books celebrates 50 years of great book publishing, it
seems appropriate to reflect upon
the contributions Maine has made that have had significant cultural and
historical impacts on both the
United States and the World. Did you know that the caterpillar tread,
common on bulldozers and tanks,
originated from the design of Lombard's steam log hauler; or that the
dry plate photographic process was
created by the Stanley brothers, who also invented a speed-record
setting steam powered car and whose
sister, Chansonetta, was a well-known photographer in her own right?
Maxim's machine gun forever
changed the practice of warfare. The humble peavey is a simple tool
well-known to any forester or
lumberjack. The ubiquitous lobster boat, the microwave oven, earmuffs,
and Monopoly--all came from
the minds of Mainers. This book is a celebration of Maine's creative
ingenuity--from the very large, such
as Portland Head Light and the Penobscot Narrows Bridge to the very
small, such as the toothpick and the
Bean boot.