The “Historical Atlas of Maine” was formally released to the public on Thursday, December 11, in a launch event held at the Buchanan Alumni House.
The event was introduced by President Susan J. Hunter, who considered the release “a truly historic occasion” and “the most significant humanities project to Maine.” She also noted that she “would’ve liked to say that the release was meant to coincide with the University of Maine’s 150th anniversary, but in reality it was merely fortuitous that it did.”
The atlas, published by the University of Maine Press, is the product of 15 years of geographical and historical research on the part of 33 contributing scholars on the University of Maine staff, detailing the changes to Maine’s geography over the course of 13,000 years, spanning from the end of the last Ice Age to the year 2000, using over 700 original and historical maps, charts, and images.
In addition to geographical changes, the atlas describes the history of the state, with highlights including the lifestyles of the native peoples, European settlement, the American Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, and the more recent movements in environmental awareness.
UMaine professor and editor Stephen J. Hornsby also spoke on behalf of the work that went into making the lifetime endeavor of a project a reality.
“Canada and New Zealand have both created similarly grand atlases in the past,” Hornsby said. “Our original goal was to create an atlas that could stand with them. What we didn’t know was that those projects had financial support from their governments and enormous teams of researchers to create them. This new atlas has no peer at the state level.”
Senior cartographer Michael J. Hermann, the man responsible for all the original maps and charts created for the atlas, was the last to speak.
“It is a cultural and statistical atlas,” Hermann said, “the end result of synthesizing statistical data that would be un-absorbable otherwise, and putting it on a map for people to read. I hope that you all enjoy it.”
The atlas was then made officially available to the public. Preordered copies were distributed, and those involved remained for signing.
The initial vision to create such an extensive record of Maine history is attributed by all involved to the late UMaine professor Burton Hatlen, who led the project until his death in 2008.
Funding was primarily covered by Maine State Legislature, offering $160,000 during the project’s beginning in 1999, and a $293,500 grant from the National Endowment for The Humanities in 2003.
Editor Richard Judd also held a lecture regarding the atlas on behalf of the Maine Historical Society at 489 Congress St., Portland on Dec. 9. The atlas was launched in a sister event held on Dec. 10 at Osher Map Library at the University of Southern Maine in Portland, as well.
The Historical Atlas of Maine is available for order at the University of Maine Press Online Store.