ExploringMaine.com

One interesting destination for a rainy day, of which we have had many this summer, is the MuseumLA in Lewiston. It offers exhibits that last for several months, plus it has permanent presentations that reflect life in the mills and the shoeshops

Its current exhibit is "Portraits and Voices: Brickyard Roads," and it chronicles the once-booming industry of brickmaking in central Maine. Earlier, it had hosted "Weaving a World: Portaits."

Here is a photo of Annette Vance Dorey, education director at the museum, with a photo from the weaving exhibit. The museum is worth a visit, especially for those whose ancestors worked in the mills and yards.

In both exhibits curators present photos of workers in their youth, and update them with pictures and personal memoirs of workers, now retired.

The museum, headed by executive director Rachel Desgrosseilliers, has big plans for the future including moving from the old Bates Mill at 35 Canal St. to a new, self-contained building that will provide greater access.

My upcoming book is "The Franco-Americans of Maine," and strictly speaking, not all of the millworkers and brickmakers were of French-Canadian heritage. But so many were that I hope to use some of the museum's evocative photos for my book. The one Annette is holding looks like a good candidate.