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 Bangor man ends 40-year run remembering the USS Maine Posted by:  T0SHEA
N 44° 47.843 W 068° 46.430
19T E 517888 N 4960467
Battleship Maine Monument is within the Davenport Park located at the NW corner of Main Street and Cedar Street. The mysterious sinking of the Maine in Havana Harbor, Cuba, sparked the Spanish-American War. You can visit at any time.
Waymark Code: WMV3M0
Location: Maine, United States
Date Posted: 02/18/2017
Views: 2
One man has gone to greater lengths than any other in remembering the USS Maine. Since 1970 he has been organizing Bangor’s “Remember the Maine” ceremonies each year, but deteriorating health finally forced him to turn over the torch to others in 2010. The Bangor Daily News picked up on the story at the time and published the article reproduced in part further below.
Dedicated in 1922; Shield and Scroll of USS Maine is one of the most outstanding displays in Maine and accompanying the memorial are two plaques honoring those who served in the Spanish-American War and World War II.
Bangor man ends 40-year run remembering the USS Maine
By Eric Russell, BDN Staff
Posted Feb. 15, 2010, at 8:15 p.m.
BANGOR, Maine — Forty years ago, World War II veteran and Bangor native Paul Colburn had an idea to place a lone wreath at the base of a monument in Davenport Park.
The monument memorializes the USS Maine, a naval ship that exploded and sank in Havana Harbor on Feb. 15, 1898, killing 267 Americans and sparking the Spanish-American War. Remnants of the ship are incorporated into monuments throughout the country; its bow plate is right here in Bangor.
Colburn has been organizing Bangor’s “Remember the Maine” ceremonies since that first solemn wreath-laying in 1970. This year was his 40th event — and his last. The 85-year-old said his health has deteriorated to the point where he decided to turn over the planning to someone else.
“I enjoy doing it,” he said early Monday afternoon after a brief event commemorating the 112th anniversary of the ship’s sinking. “I think it’s important to remember.”
The event has changed during Colburn’s 40 years. The monument at the corner of Cedar and Main streets has been restored and refurbished, thanks in large part to the efforts of Colburn, other VFW members and the Battleship Maine Centennial Committee, which organized several events during the 1998 anniversary.
Now, instead of a handful of old veterans, the event draws dozens of past and present service members, community leaders and, this year, the Bangor High School band...
...The USS Maine, a new and premiere battleship of its time, was patrolling in supposedly peaceful waters of the Caribbean Sea during the Cuban revolt against Spain. The ship exploded and sank, prompting U.S. officials to blame the Spanish. War was declared about two months after the ship sank.
Although an investigation into the ship’s sinking didn’t reveal how it happened — some experts believe it was simply spontaneous combustion of coal — the event nevertheless rallied U.S. forces at the time with the battle cry, “Remember the Maine, to hell with Spain.”
From the Bangor Daily News
Type of publication: Newspaper
When was the article reported?: 02/15/2010
Publication: Bangor Daily News
Article Url: [Web Link]
Is Registration Required?: no
How widespread was the article reported?: regional
News Category: Society/People
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