In: Children, Maine History, News, Resources, Teens

Free online resources from Maine cultural institutions, including virtual exhibits, interactive maps, games, lesson plans and more!

Abbe Museum

Educator Hub | Downloadable classroom and reference materials including lesson plans designed to bring Wabanki history and culture into the classroom.

Interactive Maps | Changes in the Dawnland, Languages and Landscapes, Stories of the Dawnland, and Wabanaki Today.

Colby College Museum of Art

Colby Museum @ Home | Hands-on art projects, audio & video recordings, jigsaw puzzles, virtual exhibitions and more.

Hudson Museum

Online Exhibits | View the museum’s exhibits online.

Resources for Teachers | Find websites, books and videos on Wabanaki history and culture.

Web App | Explore material culture traditions central to the Native Peoples of Maine through interviews, games, and animations.

YouTube Channel | Watch videos showcasing Wabanaki artists talking about basketmaking, birchbark and carving traditions, and more.

Maine Historical Society

Maine Memory Network | Access to thousands of historical items, lesson plans, and online exhibits.

Maine State Museum

Lessons & Resources | Lesson plans, primary source sets, and other resources to connect students with Maine State Museum exhibits and collections.

Osher Map Library

Gallery Exhibits | Virtual re-creations of Osher’s popular gallery exhibits.

Map Play 4 Kids | Slideshows, trivia, geomatching, scrambler, and links to other fun geography games.

Teach | Social studies lessons using maps, charts, and atlases as well as worksheets, board games, and other activities for K-12 students and teachers.

Penobscot Marine Museum

Online Exhibits| Take a tour of PMM’s paintings, photographs, and museum artifacts.

Penobscot Bay History Online | Educational site where students, teachers, and researchers can learn about maritime history and culture.

Story Map | Travel with Ernest W. Perkins from Boston to Buenos Aires through his diary written in 1892. Includes activity prompts.

In: Maine History, Movies

Join us on Tuesday, November 12 at 5:30 pm for a short film and talk in honor of Veterans Day.

Dennis Lyford, from the Dover-Foxcroft Historical Society, will share his film Small Town Heroes, which tells the story of soldiers from Piscataquis County who fought in the First World War.

In: Community, Events, Maine History, Movies

Join Helping Hands with Heart, SeDoMoCha, and the Thompson Free Library at Center Theatre on Sunday, October 20th at 2:00 pm for a free screening of the Emmy Award-winning documentary film Dawnland. A discussion facilitated by Maine-Wabanaki REACH Programming Director Barbara Kates will follow the film, and light refreshments will be provided.

About the film:

“In Maine, a historic investigation—the first government-sanctioned truth and reconciliation commission in the United States—begins a bold journey. For over two years, Native and non-Native commissioners travel across Maine. They gather testimony and bear witness to the devastating impact of the state’s child welfare practices on families in Maliseet, Micmac, Passamaquoddy and Penobscot tribal communities. Collectively, these tribes make up the Wabanaki people.” – Adam Mazo / Ben Pender-Cudlip

The feature-length documentary Dawnland follows the TRC to contemporary Wabanaki communities to witness intimate, sacred moments of truth-telling and healing. With exclusive access to this groundbreaking process and never-before-seen footage, the film reveals the untold narrative of Indigenous child removal in the United States.

View the Dawnland trailer: https://vimeo.com/227346667

In: Community, Maine History, Resources

Tracing your family tree has never been easier!

Join B.J. Jamieson, the genealogy specialist at the Maine State Library, at the Thompson Free Library on Tuesday, June 25 at 1:30 pm to learn how to get started finding your family’s stories.

You’ll learn about the free digital resources available through the new Digital Maine Library, including Ancestry and MyHeritage, and have plenty of time to ask questions.

In: Community, Maine History

You’re invited to join our community oral history project! This month’s theme is Moms & Proms. Looking for something special to do for Mother’s Day? Come to the library with your mom to interview her and help preserve her memories. Or, bring a friend and share your prom stories! We will provide recording equipment and suggested questions to help guide your interview. We will also provide scanning equipment for photos. With permission, your recording and images will be become part of the Voices from HOME oral history archive.

Voices from HOME is a community-based oral history project coordinated by the Thompson Free Library and funded by a grant from the Maine Community Foundation. Our project partners include The Commons at Central Hall, the Dover-Foxcroft Historical Society, University of Maine Cooperative Extension Piscataquis County, and other participating organizations and community members. Each month, Voices from HOME will host a recording event on a different theme at locations around the Heart of Maine region.

For more information, please contact Greta or Michelle at the library.