Welcome to our Online Collections Database!

Civil War Envelopes: The lifelines to and from home for many soldiers were carried in these envelopes. This correspondence give us massive insights into the daily life of people during the Civil War. What would also be included on many of these envelopes would be the inclusion of patriotic drawings and political cartoons. Among those contained in this collection are the state seals of all of the states at the time, as well as the state flags.

Quipus: The Quipus Society is a Bangor-area group that has participated in Bangor events for years. In 1999, the group gifted its clothing collection to the BHS. Spanning over 100 years, the Quipus Collection covers a vast array of fashion ranging from military jackets and petty coats; to hoopskirts and flapper dresses the collection covers a vast array of fashion. With the help of these pieces, we are able to give visitors to our exhibit’s appropriate imagery of clothing of the period.

Dow Air Force Base: What started out as Godfrey Field in 1927 grew into Dow AFB and drastically changed the landscape between Hammond and Union Streets. It wasn’t only the additions of the runways and hangers but also the additional housing for the men and families that would be spread around the region.

At its peak, Dow would be the home to over 5,000 people, about 20% of Bangor’s population.

Dow closed on April 5, 1968. When the last two planes, one a B-52, took off they flew over the Penobscot River and dipped their wings as a sign of respect to the city.

Medical Collection: Historical medical equipment and paraphernalia shows how far we have come as a society. Showcasing the tools of the trade not only to show the advancements we have made in the knowledge of the human body, but also shows how local many of these advancements helped our communities. Local pharmacies would package the medication in locally made bottles and spread their knowledge and expertise throughout the region. We are able to look back and see the treatments that were available to the masses both good and bad. Seeing the evolution of use of herbs and natural plant extracts, such as Rhubarb and Peppermint, to how more refined chemicals were added to the doctor’s tool box.

The evolution of medical instruments such as stethoscopes and basic scalpels show the increase of fine incisions in surgery and how it replaced the immediate amputation in many cases.

Matheson Glass-plate Collection: In the long lines of advancements in photography, glass-plate negatives were the next step in the 1850s through the 1870s. A photographer having several glass plates on standby when they went to photograph a scene or object, they could have a certain number of exposures known to them and use them until depleted.

The Matheson Collection of the BHS were all glass-plate negatives found in a Broadway home and donated to the society in 1996. The images depict Bangor and the surrounding communities circa 1895. Many of the images involve the Strickland family and their house on Broadway, shop downtown, and “camp” on Pushaw Lake.