History of the Long Island Historical Society - Long Island, Maine

Islanders first tried to start a historical society in the 1970s, but it wasn’t until the fall of 1995 that the Long Island Historical Society was formed. Long Island Civic Association members worried that the island was losing the generation with firsthand knowledge of its early 1900s history, and that their stories needed to be preserved while there was still time. Kim Chase, Ruth Knecht, and Meredith Sweet were the driving forces that formed the Historical Society.

The first meetings were held in a private home on the island. By January 1996, the Society had incorporated as a non-profit and elected officers, with help from the Chebeague Island Historical Society, which shared its experience in running a society. That summer, an exhibit called Now and Then opened at the VFW Hall. It lasted only four hours, but it was a huge success and showed how much islanders wanted a historical society of their own.

After Long Island seceded from Portland and became its own town in 1993, the Town purchased the Community Building at Mariner’s Wharf and set aside space for the Society’s museum. The community later raised funds to demolish the old building and build a new Long Island Community Center, funded entirely by island donations. In 2017, the Society moved into its new exhibit space there. An archives room in the basement of the Long Island Learning Center provides stable, temperature-controlled storage for the growing collection, and grants have allowed the Society to purchase computers and equipment to record and protect its objects.

Today, the Society presents summer exhibits, lectures, and field trips, and welcomes visiting groups and families researching their roots on the island.

LIHS is a member of Maine Archives & Museums.