ELLSWORTH – The Maine Humanities Council awarded $30,755 in grants to nonprofit organizations during May and June. Nine of the 26 grants were awarded jointly with the Maine Arts Commission to fund projects that combine the arts and humanities. Area grants ranging from $275 to $3,000 were presented as follows:

Documentary Educational Resources, Casco: Mother Ann, $3,000. Pre-production support for a one-hour documentary on the life and work of Mother Ann Lee who founded the Shaker faith in America in 1774.

Old Fort Western, Augusta: 250th Anniversary Distinguished Speakers Series, $3,000. Twelve nationally recognized historians will present a series of discussions on the world of 1754 as part of the year-long observance of the 250th anniversary of Fort Western.

Portland Harbor Museum, South Portland: After the Storm: Exploring Our Maritime Heritage Through the Loss of the Portland, $3,000. A symposium to explore the ethics of marine archaeology, with special concentration on the sinking of the steamer Portland in 1898.

University of Maine at Farmington: The United States and Europe: A Troubled Partnership, $2,000. A three-day conference to examine issues in the troubled partnership between Europe and the US, with an emphasis on the different perspectives of international affairs. Internationally known scholars will lead discussions.

University of Southern Maine, L-A College, Lewiston: Making Home: A Photographic Documentary of Somali Immigration to Maine, $500. The project will photographically document a group of Somali families as they make their home in Maine, with an eye toward their impact on the state’s culture and economy.

Bethel Historical Society, Bethel: Transportation in Maine: 2003 Lecture Series, $400. A lecture series focusing on Maine’s changing forms of transportation from the 19th to the 21st Century.

Raymond Village Library, Raymond: On Hawthorne, at the Hawthorne House, $300. A lecture presented by Dr. Helen Riesenberg about Nathaniel Hawthorne’s experiences in Rome and ttheir influence on his later writings.

University of Southern Maine, Gorham: Maine Self-Taught Artists Planning Grant, $350. A planning grant for a fall exhibit of Maine self-taught artists at the USM Art Gallery. There will be related programming, including academic research, studio visits and the building of a network of contacts.

Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance, Bath: Alliance 2003 Fall Retreat, $500. A public evening program of readings and interpretations by faculty members at the annual retreat of the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance.

Charlotte Hobbs Memorial Library, Lovell: Lovell Community Art Program, $1,430. Awarded jointly with the Maine Arts Commission. A children’s summer art program, part of a larger community art initiative, incorporates history, literature, culture and the arts into two artistic experiences: a “deep map” and a “community quilt.”

Town of Jay: Terre pis Ciel: Festival France de Jay/Livermore Falls, $1,000. Awarded jointly with the Maine Arts Commission. Support for the Festival France de Jay et Livermore Falls, a community festival focused on local history and culture.

For more information on the council, visit www.mainehumanities.org or call toll-free 1-866-MEreader.

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