As Down East Books celebrates 50 years of great book publishing, it seems appropriate to reflect uponthe contributions Maine has made that have had significant cultural and historical impacts on both theUnited 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 wascreated by the Stanley brothers, who also invented a speed-record setting steam powered car and whosesister, Chansonetta, was a well-known photographer in her own right? Maxim’s machine gun foreverchanged the practice of warfare. The humble peavey is a simple tool well-known to any forester orlumberjack. The ubiquitous lobster boat, the microwave oven, earmuffs, and Monopoly—all came fromthe minds of Mainers. This book is a celebration of Maine’s creative ingenuity—from the very large, suchas Portland Head Light and the Penobscot Narrows Bridge to the very small, such as the toothpick and theBean boot.
