Saturday, November 14, 2015

Architecture in Augusta

Augusta, Maine’s Capital, has the unfortunate reputation of being a nothing-town. When I told Mainers I was passing through Augusta they stuck their tongues out. All of them. That would likely be my reaction if a tourist told me they were passing through Oregon’s capital, Salem, so perhaps I should have minded their reactions.

Six years ago, in September of 2009,  I bought bus tickets from Boston to Augusta. I was flying to Boston to visit and old friend, and I had a fantasy of going north and getting lost in Maine. I'm not sure why I picked Augusta as my terminal bus stop. Perhaps I assumed that the capital of a state must be a good place to start. I had never heard of Portland, ME and did no research whatsoever. Strangely, I had to cancel my trip to Boston that year. I paid to change my plane ticket to the follow year, but the money I spent on the Greyhound bus was lost. I was left wondering if the bus driver called out my name in Boston, waited, then left without me.

I passed through Augusta in September of 2015. All it needs is a pass through, a few hours, nothing more. One pleasant surprise was the historic architecture, far more beautiful than the larger cities of Portland or Bangor.  The only sad thing is that most of these building are inaccessible to the public, either because you don't want to go there (courthouse) or were under construction (library) or close at a ridiculous 2:30pm (Vickey Café).  


The Capitol building

Lithgow Public Library, sadly closed and under construction while I was there

Kennebec County Courthouse


Govener's Mansion

U.S. Post Office

Vickey Cafe

Blaine House

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