"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 2023
North By East: Are We There Yet?, Will Grunewald
North by East: Beak Outlook?, Mary Pols
North by East: Bridging the Gap, Will Grunewald
North by East: Candid Cameras, W. G.
North By East: County Kid, Michael Colbert
North by East: Fairy Tale Ending, Will Grunewald
North by East: Flight Risk, Jesse Ellison
North by East: From Africa with Love, Virginia M. Wright
North by East: Getting the Birds Back Together, Michele Christle
North by East: Hitting Rewind, Joel Crabtree
North by East: Illustrated Man, W. G.
North by East: In from the Cold, Will Grunewald
North by East: In with the New, Will Grunewald
North By East: It's a Small World, Nora Saks
North by East: John, Mayor, Brian Kevin
North by East: Map Quest, Michele Christle
North by East: Need We Say Nor?, Brian Kevin
North By East: Pond Scrum!, Joel Crabtree
North By East: Pumpkinhead, Will Grunewald
North By East: Raising the Anchor, Edgar Allen Beem
North by East: Reinstallment Plan, Jesse Ellison
North By East: Rolling Back the Years, Joel Crabtree
North by East: Shucking Champ, Nora Saks
North by East: Sincerely, the Governor, Will Grunewald
North by East: Staying in her Lanes, Teresa Versteeg
North by East: The Life Aquatic, Will Grunewald
North By East: The Sky is Falling, Mary Pols
North by East: The Sounds of Silence, Nora Saks
North By East: Time Lapse, Michaela Cavallaro
North by East: Under the Weather, W. G.
North By East: Wooly and the Wild, Jesse Ellison
Not Just a Ski Town, W. G.
Rambles with Rover, Aislinn Sarnacki
Rescue Mission, Alix Morris and Tristan Spinski [photos]
Roads Less Traveled, Will Grunewald, Jesse Ellison, Sarah Stebbins, Kat Englishman, Adrienne Perron, K. E., Brian Kevin, and B. K.
Room With a View: An Everyday View, Mary Pols
Room With a View: A Wander in the Wetlands, Philip Conkling
Room With a View: Barter and Bread, Mary Pols
Room with a View: Cellarhole Melancholy, Philip Conkling
Room with a View: Family Tree, Mary Pols
Room With a View: Keeping it Working, Philip Conkling
Room with a View: Natives and Transplants, Philip Conkling
Room with a View: Still With Us, Philip Conkling
Room with a View: Swimming with Unease, Mary Pols
Room with a View: The Long Arc of Maine's Coastal Economy, Philip Conkling
Room with a View: Timber, Coal, Oil and Wind, Philip Conkling
Season Unseen, Ann Pollard Ranco
She Took to the Woods, Sara Anne Donnelly
Still Feisty, Brian Kevin
The Best of Maine, Down East staff writers