"The goal of Down East has always been to hold a mirror up to Maine — its storied past and lively present — and to celebrate its flinty, independent character and unhurried way of life. As Maine has changed with the times, however, so has Down East. Today the state has come to embrace its future as well as its past. Accordingly, the magazine now focuses more on contemporary Maine life and what the future might bring and less on historical background and quaint rusticity. Booming circulation and advertising gains demonstrate the wisdom of this editorial shift."
Portland Public Library's collection of Down East is complete, and begins with the first issue, August 1954. The hard copies are available in the Portland Room.
Submissions from 2016
Dooryard. Home: Quarry House, Virginia M. Wright and Erin Little, photographer
Dooryard. Home: The Sand Castle, Virginia M. Wright and Meredith Perdue, photographer
Dooryard. Home: This Old New House, Melanie Brooks and Meredith Perdue, photographer
Dooryard. Home: Thrifty (but Nifty), Virginia M. Wright and Megan Jones, photographer
Dooryard. Home: True to Form, Virginia M. Wright and Erin Little, photographer
Dooryard. Home: Wild, Wild Life, Joel Crabtree and Jared Kuzia, photographer
Dooryard. Light and Cozy, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Making it in Maine: Against the Grain, Joel Crabtree and Stacey Camp, photographer
Dooryard. Making it in Maine: All Grown Up, Edgar Allen Beem and Stacey Cramp, photographer
Dooryard. Making it in Maine: A Practical Application, Rob Sneddon and Alex Gagne, photographer
Dooryard. Making it in Maine: Fun Guys, Jesse Ellison and Michael D. Wilson, photographer
Dooryard. Making it in Maine: Granola Gurus, John Gross man and Sarah Rice, photographer
Dooryard. Making it in Maine: Legendary Scoops, Elizabeth Peavey and Pat Piasecki, photographer
Dooryard. Making it in Maine: Nothin' But a Gi Thing, Amber Kapiloff and Michael D. Wilson, photographer
Dooryard. Making it in Maine: On Their Feet, a Rejuvenated Quoddy Footwear Finds a Niche in the Maker Movement, Meadow Rue Merrill and Jared Lank, photographer
Dooryard. Making it in Maine: The Cool Hunter, Lorry Fleming and Cait Bourgault, photographer
Dooryard. My Maine: Awakening, Angela Waldron
Dooryard. My Maine: Christmas in the Boatyard, Martha White
Dooryard. My Maine: Deer Spotting, Mitch Sturgeon
Dooryard. My Maine: Earnest Goes to Camp, David M. Shribman
Dooryard. My Maine: Glow Babies, Beth Ayotte
Dooryard. My Maine: Midcoast Liveratti, Sandy Oliver
Dooryard. My Maine: Pardon My French, Charlotte Albright
Dooryard. My Maine. Taste Test, Lorry Fleming
Dooryard. My Maine: The Clam Digger, Jon Keller
Dooryard. My Maine: The Snow Globe, Ken Textor
Dooryard. On the Rocks: A Family Tradition Endures on the Pemaquid Penninsula, Meadow Rue Merrill and Cait Bourgault, photographer
Dooryard. Paddling with the Current, Joel Crabtree and Little Outdoor Giants, photography
Dooryard. Recipe: Bearing Fruit, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Recipe: Comfort in a Bowl, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Recipe: Earthly Delights, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Recipe: First Taste of Spring, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Recipe: November's Other Bird, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Recipe: Slow Food, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Recipe: Sweet and Tart, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Recipe: Three of a Kind, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Recipe: Yes, Peas!, Annemarie Ahearn
Dooryard. Room With a View, Franklin Burroughs
Dooryard. Room With a View, Franklin Burroughs
Dooryard. Room with a View, Franklin Burroughs
Dooryard. Room With a View, Franklin Burroughs
Dooryard. Room with a View, Franklin Burroughs
Dooryard. Room With a View: Divos of the Wetlands, Paul Doiron
Dooryard. Room With a View: Doc, Paul Doiron
Dooryard. Room With a View: Season of Myths, Paul Doiron
Dooryard. Room With a View: The Winter Excuse, Paul Doiron
Dooryard. Room With a View: Through a Glass Coldly, Paul Doiron
Dooryard. Room With a View: We Want to Believe, Paul Doiron
Endless Summer, Virginia M. Wright and Carl Tremblay, photographer
Evolving Dorr, Kathryn Miles