Before & After: Congress at Casco Street

This amazing "before" photo comes from a post by Clyde Chapman in the Facebook group known as "Portland Maine Encyclopedia of the 1960's, 70's & 80's." It's from the corner of Congress Street and Casco Street, looking west:

And here is my interpretation of the photo, taken yesterday morning:

Portland Now & Then: Deering Oaks Pond

A view of the pond at Deering Oaks from 1941 on the left and a present-day (2013) view on the right. The old photo is from the Portland Maine History 1786-Present Facebook group. 

Portland Now and Then: Part 2

In case you missed it, part one can be viewed here. These two photos were created by merging historical photos from the Portland Maine History 1786-Present Facebook group with current photos taken by me this past month. 

Looking down Exchange Street from Middle Street

Congress Street in front of Portland City Hall

Portland Now and Then

Here are a few photos from the ever-growing archives of the Portland, Maine History 1786-Present Facebook Group mixed in with my photo from the present day:

State Theater Building

Congress Street

511 Congress Street

Kennebec and Elm Street

Before & After: Trains on the Eastern Prom

The "before photo" was taken in 1966 and is from the Portland, Maine History 1786 to Present Facebook Group. This valuable strip of land along the Eastern Promenade Trail may once again be used for rail transportation in the future according to some proposals to re-connect Portland and Lewiston (and other towns) with regular passenger service.

Before and After: Thomas Brackett Reed House

Today's Before & After shot is of the Thomas Brackett Reed residence (1888), a National Historic Landmark, on the corner of Deering Street and State Street. Mr. Reed was a prominent political figure in his day and served two nonconsecutive terms as the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. 

Here is the house circa the early 1900's, image from the Library of Congress :

And here it is circa July 2012:

Bonus fact - President Theodore Roosevelt visited this location when he was visiting Portland in 1902.

Before and After: Maine Medical Center

For this entry in the Before & After series we shall take a look at Maine Medical Center. The hospital was opened in 1874 and is located along the scenic Western Promenade. The top photo below was taken in the 1900's and is from the Library of Congress website. As you can see in my photo, the bottom one, much of the main structure is still in use. The hospital continues to expand, so it will be interesting to see if this particular view is much different a hundred years from now. 

State Street Sidewalk - Summer/Winter

One of the few snowy scenes from last winter (top) and the same spot from a couple weeks ago. 

Before and After: JFK on Park Avenue

The scene as of September 2012. The HP Hood plant is just to the right of this photo.

Senator John F. Kennedy heading into Portland on September 2nd, 1960. Here is the text of the speech he gave in town later that day. Photo via Portland Maine History 1786-Present Facebook group. 

Before & After: Union Station

Portland's Union Station is the subject of this "before & after" post. This beautiful train station, made even more attractive based on what currently stands in its place, was built in 1888 and demolished in 1964. A positive outcome of this was the creation of Greater Portland Landmarks, which:

"...Promotes preservation and revitalization of historic buildings, neighborhoods, and landscapes and encourages high-quality new architecture to enhance the livability and economic vitality of Portland and surrounding communities"

Before photo via the Library of Congress website. 

Before and After: Baxter Library Building

Here's a before and after set of Congress Street, looking West from Congres Square:

Photo via the Library of Congress website. 

From a similar spot, taken by me. 

I love the plentiful street trees and the trolley system present in the before photo. The ornate brick building on the right is the Baxter Library building. It was built in 1900 and housed the main branch of the Portland Public Library system until the late 1970's when it moved to it's current location in Monument Square. The Joanne Waxman Library, part of the Maine College of Art, occupied the building from the 70's until 2000 when it consolidated with the rest of MECA in the Porteous building.  Upon completion of a beautiful restoration project in 2010, the Via Agency moved into the building and is still going strong.

Before & After: Jordan's/Hampton Inn

Here's a before and after set with two of my own photos. The before is from April 2010 and shows the old Jordan's Meat factory on the corner of Franklin and Fore Streets. The after photo was taken this month and shows the Hampton Inn (plus Sebago Brewing Co. on the ground floor) that now occupies the space. 

Before and After: Congress Street

Here's a before and after set of Congress Street, near Portland City Hall. The "before" photo is from the 1910's and is from the website of the Library of Congress. 

And this "after" photo is from last week. Not taken from exactly the same spot, but close.

Before & After: Longfellow Square

The 'before' picture comes from the Maine Memory Network website, here, and is circa 1900. 

The after picture is circa February 2011. The crowd in the above picture was due to a parade of some sort. It's nice to see that the Longfellow Statue is still standing/sitting tall. 

Before & After: Gorham's Corner

Here's a little before & after action in the Gorham's Corner neighborhood, near the corner of York and Danforth Streets.  The old photo comes from the Maine Memory Network, and is circa 1904. The new photo is from me and is from a couple of days ago:

Before & After: Grand Trunk Railroad

The Grand Trunk Railroad used to have quite a presence along the Eastern Waterfront back in the day. The main terminal, pictured to the  right, was at the corner of India and Fore Streets. Most of this site is now a dirt lot that may someday be home to a residential and/or hotel development. 

[Image source]

Pictured below is the site as of today. There is some sort of water/sewer pumping station where the terminal once stood.

Before & After: Barber Shop

Here's a before from 1952, via mainememory.net, This is on Congress Street, right by Longfellow Square. :

And today, the barber shop still lives on:

Before & After: Seeing Portland 1970-1984

Today's before & after post is also an advertisement for a show currently happening at Zero Station, called "Seeing Portland 1970-1984." Check out the show's site here for more information and read an article about it at the Press Herald. The show runs until May 1st, check it out! I would love for someone to dig up my photos in a few decades and find them as interesting as I find the photos in this show.

This is 181 Bracket Street in 1970, by C.C. Church

And this is 181 Bracket Street in 2010 by C.R. Templeton (me)

Before & After: Atherton's Furniture

For this installment of Before & After, here is the building at the corner of Free and Center Streets which used to be a home furnishings store. This photo is from 1938 and comes from MaineMemory.net.

If I knew I was going to use this for a before and after post I would have lined this up better but you get the idea. The building is pretty much identical in appearance and has been offices for quite some time. This is the building that has the blueprint mural on the side of it (The Phoenix has a picture here).

And to answer yesterday's question, that was indeed the weather vane at the top of City Hall. I was expecting more comments, but good work Kate from Blueberry Files!

Before & After: Power Plant

Did you know that there used to be a power plant on this patch of land on the South Portland waterfront? This view is from the bridge looking towards South Portland.

Here's a few from a similar perspective, from mainememory.net, circa 1940:

Mainememory's descritpion of image: "The power station in Portland Harbor was owned by Central Maine Power Company. Originally this was the site for a major drydock facility. The Portland and Cape Elizabeth Railroad had its direct current generating plant neaby, which then became part of the Portland Street railway, and eventually taken over by the Central Maine Power for AC power generation."

I'm not sure when it was torn down, but it has been gone for quite some time.