"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 2010
"The Talk of Maine" piece on "Tracing the Fore," a tax-payer-funded $100,000 ins, Edgar Allen Beem
"The Talk of Maine" piece with a profile of Roxanne Quimby, founder of Burt's Be, Michaela Cavallaro
The U.S. National Toboggan Championships weekend at the Camden Snow Bowl is a fu, Elizabeth Peavey
"Trips" section, featuring 45 autumn adventures in Maine and a selection of cult, of Down East Editors
Until the turn of the 20th century, woodland caribou or American reindeer roamed, Virginia M. Wright
Wayne Newell, Passamaquoddy elder and director of bilingual education at the Ind, Susan Hand Shetterly
"What's in a Picture?" piece on a 1927 photo of Leonhard Seppala and his prized, Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on a paparazzi photo snapped of John F. Kennedy Jr., Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on a photo by Charles R. Coombs of Belfast, of his, Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on a photograph by Charles E. Moody of Saco, showin, Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on a photo of a bread man standing in front of his, Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on a photo of nine members of the Coastal Air Patro, Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on a "radome" built in 1962 in Andover, by AT&T, Be, Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on chicks being weighed at the Poultry Sciences Dep, Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on Peter Jongeleen tattooing his wife Yvonne Jongel, Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on the Mount Zircon House just south of Rumford whi, Joshua F. Moore
"What's in a Picture?" piece on the wreck of the "Oakey L. Alexander," which ran, Joshua F. Moore
Wiscasset's location on the Sheepscot River once made it a gateway to Maine, but, Virginia Wright
Submissions from 2009
A brief history of the Casella Waste System's Maine Energy Recovery Co. trash in, Sara Donnelly
A brief overview of the Maine Women Writers Collection, housed in a wing of the, Kathleen Fleury
A cancer diagnosis impelled John Tynan and Bettina Doulton to leave executive po, Kathleen Fleury
Across Frenchman's Bay from Bar Harbor lies Schoodic Peninsula, a 2,366-acre sec, Virginia Wright
A description of the Wabanaki food year, detailing what was eaten in what months, Kerry Hardy
A list of eight outstanding seafood markets along the Maine coast., Kathleen Fleury
A look at several green houses in Maine, with information on the energy-saving d, Virginia Wright
A look at some of the stores along Portland's rev, Ellen London
A look at the Endless Summer Flower Farm in Camden, where Karen and Phil Clark h, Rebecca Martin Evarts
A look through time at the enduring appeal of Paris Hill, birthplace of four Mai, Edgar Allen Beem
An article on the Carver Hill Gallery in Rockport, co-owned by Jana Halwick and, Joshua F. Moore
An in-depth look at Hannibal Hamlin of Paris Hill, on the bicentennial of his bi, Matthew Simmons
An interview with Paul Mayewski, director of the Climate Change Institute at the
A photo essay on Maine's ten prettiest harbors, including, in descending order:, of Down East Editors
A primer on whales that swim in the Gulf of Maine and details on whale-watching, Joshua F. Moore
A sample of chocolates from 14 Maine chocolatiers., Kathleen Fleury
"A selected history of sustainability in Maine," from 1952, when Helen and Scott, Joshua F. Moore
A special section on a Maine education, with articles on why the state's communi, of Down East Editors
A special section on autumn trips in Maine, with articles on transportation opti, of Down East Editors
A special section on Rockland, a blue-collar town that has become a sophisticate, of Down East Editors
A "time travel" guide into the past, including the Maine Ice Age Trail, Maine ca, of Down East Editors
"Best of Maine 2009," with recommendations for travel and adventure, food and dr, Joshua F. Moore
Bill Mackowski, of Milford, a former wildlife biologist, sees snowshoes as imbue, Wayne Curtis
Camp Sunshine in Casco, a year-round retreat for children with life-threatening, Cynthia Anderson
Conservative activist turned conservationist Linda Bean, the granddaughter of th, Colin Woodard
Descriptions of four weddings that took place in each of Maine's four seasons, w, of Down East Editors
Despite the stereotype of Mainers, only 64 percent of residents were born here a, Colin Woodard
"Down East how to" piece on dealing with unwelcome wild animals, with an intervi, Aurelia C. Scott
Down East "how to" piece with an interview with therapeutic riding instructor an, Meadow Rue Merrill
Edgar Allen Beem examines why painter Andrew Wyeth was revered by the general pu, Edgar Allen Beem
Educator, botanist, and photographer Wanda Garland brings Maine's native wildflo, Kim Ridley
Frye Island in Sebago Lake, which seceded from Standish 11 years ago, shuts down, Virginia Wright