Down East magazine, has been publishing since August 1954, and continues as one of Maine's most prominent monthly magazines. Their web site's history page provides the following description:

"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.

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Submissions from 2013

Trattoria Athena., Elizabeth Peavey

Up and at 'Em, Will Bleakley

Urban Safari, Elizabeth Peavey

What's in a Picture?

What's in a Picture?, Will Bleakley

What's In a Picture?, Will Bleakley

What's in a Picture?, Will Bleakley

What's in a Picture?, Will Bleakley

When Pigs Fly., Kathy Gunst

Where's the Fire?, Robert Sneddon

Where the Wild Things Are., Kim Ridley

Submissions from 2012

Account of the writer May Sarton during the time she lived at Wild Knoll in York, Deborah McDermott

A description of the author's 40-mile journey along the Sebago Lake Canoe Trail,, Donnie Mullen

A guide to historic sites along the coast from Kittery to Eastport that were of, Larry Glatz

Although laws prohibiting home beer brewing and wine making were abolished quite, Al Diamon

An account of the War of 1812 and its impact on the District of Maine. Although, Joshua M. Smith

Article about Nathaniel Gordon, a Portland native and the only person to be exec, Ron Soodalter

Articles describing the history and development of Route 1 in Maine that can be, Edgar Allen Beem

Author's account of a dinner party that she unexpectedly held for Hilton Kramer, Sharon L. Hobson

Brad Wright and his seven co-workers at Shaw & Tenney, a factory in downtown Oro, Virginia M. Wright

Brief book review of Van Reid's Moss Farm, the sixth book in his comic series fe, Virginia M. Wright

Brief profile of Don McLean, the singer and songwriter whose "American Pie" topp, Michael D. Burke

Brief profile of Lost Valley in Auburn. Includes longtime visitors' fond memorie, Will Bleakley

Description of the author's experiences visiting several sugarhouses on Maine Ma, Elizabeth Peavey

E.B. White's granddaughter, Martha White, is preparing a new edition of the writ, Charlotte Albright

Excerpt from Little's new book about the artist Francis Hamabe. Hamabe moved to, Carl Little

Excerpt from the recently published Fairy House Handbook, in which the author su, Liza Gardner Walsh

Excerpt from The Wicked Good Book: A Guide to Maine Living on how to split firew, Stephen Gleasner

Excerpts from the author's book "Moxie: Maine in a Bottle", about Moxie soda, cr, Jim Baumer

Facts about the blackfly, including how she finds her human victims and what you, Virginia M. Wright

Food vendors at the Common Ground Country Fair in Unity manage to use locally so, Will Bleakley

Fred and Hope Angier have built a house in Hope where everything appears old. Th, Edgar Allen Beem

Highlights from the trip taken along all of Route 1 in Maine between Kittery and, Virginia M. Wright

Humorous essay about the author's first-time purchase of a boat with an old, and, Mark Gartside

In 1959, Bowdoin College professor Lawrence Sargent Hall wrote a short story cal, Edgar Allen Beem

"Inside Maine" book piece on "Somalis in Maine: Crossing Cultural Currents", edi, Agnes Bushell

"Inside Maine" dining piece on the Portland restaurant, David's, located on Monu, Michaela Cavallaro

"Inside Maine" dining piece on two Portland restaurants owned by chef Masa Miyak, Kathy Gunst

Kyle Murdock, now 22, was the subject, at age 10, of Jamie Wyeth's painting, Dea, Diane Sternberg

Maine's 10 prettiest villages, in the words of Down East readers. From Camden, v

,Maine's once active eel fishery is now limited to 400 licenses per year, partly, Susan Hand Shetterly

"Making it in Maine" piece about Cuddledown, manufacturers of down comforters. T, Cindy Michaels

"Making it in Maine" piece about mason Pat Manley. Manley has designed and built, Michaela Cavallaro

"My Maine" piece by author Ted Gup who describes with tenderness and humor his m, Ted Gup

"Newsmaker" piece features the transcript of an interview with Jim Gerritsen, an, Virginia M. Wright

Overview of the oyster farming industry in Maine and the opening of new raw bars, Virginia M. Wright

Photographs and a brief essay about the spectacular views of Acadia's mountains, Will Bleakley

Piece about Winslow Homer and the newly restored Prouts Neck studio where he cre, Deborah Weisgall

Piece on a 1903 Peaks Island cottage, owned by Liz and Tim Williams, that was r, Meadow Rue Merrill

Piece on the organizations in Maine that work together to rescue and rehabilitat, Cynthia Anderson