Maine
The Pine Tree Trail was supposed to be Maine’s answer to Route 66
Onerous Telling Not Understanding every week tries to reply your burning questions on why issues are the best way they’re in Maine — particularly about Maine tradition and historical past, each way back and up to date, giant and small, necessary and foolish. Ship your inquiries to eburnham@bangordailynews.com.
This week’s query initially got here from a man within the township of Molunkus, who discovered a rusty outdated highway signal on his property and ended up uncovering an almost 85-year-long thriller.
Why does nobody learn about Maine’s 500-mile Pine Tree Path?
Because the late nineteenth century, Maine has been a trip vacation spot for folks from all around the world — nevertheless it solely formally turned Vacationland in 1936, when the nickname was added to Maine’s license plates, and commenced showing on official state tourism bureau materials.
To capitalize on Maine’s new branding, the Maine Legislature in 1937 handed An Act to Designate a Route from Portland to Fort Kent because the Pine Tree Path — an car path that lawmakers hoped would compel vacationers to discover as a lot of the state as attainable, particularly the inland areas, away from the favored coast.
The act was handed. Street indicators had been made up. Maps had been printed. After which, after World Battle II, Maine’s state highways had been modernized, new roads had been constructed, the interstate freeway started to creep up the coast, and the Pine Tree Path was all however forgotten for the following seven a long time.
Quick ahead 75 years. In 2012, Nathan Nipula, a resident of the Aroostook County township of Molunkus, discovered a rusty outdated highway signal discarded amid a pile of filth and rocks on his property. He didn’t know what “Pine Tree Path” meant, however he brushed it off, tossed it in storage and didn’t take a look at it once more for an additional seven years.
In 2019, Nipula and his fiancee, Roberta McKay, pulled the signal again out and determined to strive to determine what the Pine Tree Path was. Their search led them to Maine’s then-Secretary of State Matt Dunlap, who did a little analysis and shortly found the signal’s origins — and that the 1937 act that created the path was very a lot nonetheless on the books.
Over the previous three years, Dunlap, Nipula, McKay and state officers and legislators have been working to recreate the Pine Tree Path, together with elevating cash for 100 highway indicators to be put in alongside the path’s size, in addition to future occasions, maps, journey guides and different efforts. An internet site, pinetreetrail.com, was launched earlier this yr.
“Within the day, it was Maine’s model of Route 66. Possibly it may be once more,” Dunlap stated, referring to the well-known western U.S. route that turned an iconic highway journey vacation spot within the Nineteen Thirties, 40s and 50s, earlier than its decline within the Nineteen Sixties.
The “new” route largely follows routes 100, 2 and 1, north from Portland, by means of Augusta and Waterville to Bangor, after which north by means of Houlton, Mars Hill, Presque Isle and Van Buren earlier than ending in Fort Kent — or beginning in Fort Kent, if you happen to’re coming from the opposite route. There are two alternate routes at two factors within the path — one the place Route 2 and Route 2A break up off between Macwahoc and Houlton, and once more when Route 1 and Route 1A break up off between Mars Hill and Van Buren.
A variety of the brand new highway indicators have already been put in in Aroostook County, and all of the indicators might be put in statewide by the top of October. Companies and organizations may sponsor a Maine Division of Transportation-approved signal, with a number of companies in Aroostook and Penobscot counties already signed as much as sponsor.
“From a tourism perspective, this checks all of the packing containers of our initiatives to unfold guests across the state, encourage the exploration of extra locations, and work with Maine communities to broaden and create extra various and sturdy tourism product choices for guests and residents alike,” stated Hannah Collins, deputy director of the Maine Workplace of Tourism.