Take this great trip to Corinth – in the 1800s

Annals of Childhood is a wonderful look back to Corinth, Maine from the 1830s to 1900s, written by Abby Jones Goodwin in 1903.

I love history, and this is a very special trip to this very special place in our state. Goodwin was 68 when she wrote this series of stories, which feature reflections from her childhood.

The stories demonstrate the lessons and love of her family and community. It’s all about the rural life, something many of us value in Maine’s small rural towns.

Goodwin was the great grandmother of Jeanne Colette Collester who wrote a wonderful forward. Jeanne hooked me with a photo of grizzly bears in Alaska, a trip she took in 2008. Been there. Seen lots of bears there! And you will love Goodwin’s bear tales too.

Martin Brown’s photos put you right there in Abby Jones Goodwin’s Corinth, and I spent a lot of time enjoying them. Brown is a Maine guide who founded Sunrise Expeditions in 1973 and leads river adventures throughout North America and the world.

Elizabeth LaForge, President of the Corinth Historical Society, noted in her introduction that “Abby Jones Goodwin’s vignettes are historically accurate, experience affirming, and provide captivating insight into the character of the pioneer inhabitants of early Corinth.”

And LaForge is right when she says that this book “is a rare treasure for our town.” But it is also a rare treasure for all of us.

George Smith

About George Smith

George stepped down at the end of 2010 after 18 years as the executive director of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine to write full time. He writes a weekly editorial page column in the Kennebec Journal and Waterville Morning Sentinel, a weekly travel column in those same newspapers (with his wife Linda), monthly columns in The Maine Sportsman magazine, two outdoor news blogs (one on his website, georgesmithmaine.com, and one on the website of the Bangor Daily News), and special columns for many publications and newsletters. Islandport Press published a book of George's favorite columns, "A Life Lived Outdoors" in 2014. In 2014, George also won a Maine Press Association award for writing the state's bet sports blog. In 2016, Down East Books published George's book, Maine Sporting Camps, and Islandport Press published George and his wife Linda's travel book, Take It From ME, about their favorite Maine inns and restaurants.