“Out with the old and in with the new” has been an optimistic New Year’s slogan for many generations. A look back at New Year’s Eve celebrations in Lewiston-Auburn show many moods as world events and weather extremes played central roles at different periods of his tory.

Here’s what was going on in this area between 1900 and the 1950s.

Families in the Twin Cities had to deal with sons going off to war on a worldwide scale in World War I and again during World War II. Although the horrors of World War I were on everyone’s mind at the end of 1916, it was the “Frost King” who grabbed the Lewiston Evening Journal headlines.

Androscoggin County was “held firmly in the grip of the Frost King,” the headline read. “It was the coldest Sunday in 15 years and there seems no prospect of immediate relief.”

Lewiston registered a low temperature of 27 below zero, and Farmington reported a chilling 42 below. Early in the morning on Dec. 31, Lewiston Mayor Lemaire issued orders that City Hall was to be opened to the public “so that those suffering from the cold may take advantage of the city’s heat.”

“A thousand human interest stories, from light comedy to near-tragedy, might be written of last night,” the evening newspaper said.

Many families struggled to maintain as much heat in their homes as possible. Fuel was in short supply and citizens held an emergency meeting at which a proposal was made to save fuel by closing the theaters and churches, with church services to be held at a few union meetings.

The idea wasn’t popular. Citizens said they would take care of each other until the frigid weather broke.

Despite the cold, New Year’s Eve of 1917 held plenty of options for festivities. Lewiston City Hall took care of the frozen populace during the day, and the building hosted a Roller Polo event on the auditorium’s large hardwood floor in the evening.

Of course, there was no television on which to watch the famous ball drop in Times Square, a tradition that began in 1907. The event took place every year except 1942 and 1943, when wartime blackout regulations kept New York City in darkness.

World War II was heavy on the minds of L-A families on Dec. 31, 1943. The front page Lewiston Evening Journal carried the complete text of lengthy New Year’s messages from two of the communities’ religious leaders.

The Rev. F.M. Drouin, pastor of the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, wrote, “The official Christmas messages delivered by our religions and temporal leaders, in this dark hour of strife, have stirred new hopes in the hearts of all who feel the impact of this present global war. By setting aside New Year’s Day as a solemn and public day of prayer and recollection, the chief executive of this country has reasserted our faith in divine providence and taken us back to the basic principles of our American way of life.”

On New Year’s Day, the Rev. John F. Stearns, pastor of the High Street Congregational Church in Auburn, said 1944 “will probably be the most sacrificial year Americans have ever known.” And, he continued, “1944 can be America‘s greatest year — on the one condition that we keep faith with these young men who will be over there in the forefront of the fighting.”

For local New Year’s Eve revelry on the night before 1944, the choices included dancing from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. to the Lloyd Rafnell Orchestra at Lewiston City Hall. Admission was 75 cents for the general public and 55 cents for servicemen. Joy Inn at 20 Lisbon St., Lewiston, offered a gala New Year’s Eve party, gala floor show and dine and dance for $3.25. That included a full-course dinner, novelties, favors and noisemakers with dancing until 2 a.m.

Just a few years after the end of World War II, there was again armed conflict on a New Year’s Eve. This time, it was the Korean War in 1952. In the Twin Cities, holiday parties included an event billed as “Maine’s Biggest Celebration” at the Lewiston Armory with “the music of that new sensation, Georgie Lane and his orchestra.” At Lewiston City Hall, the annual dance featured George Fenton and his orchestra. The Nighthawks Orchestra was playing from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. at Joe Libby’s, Route 106 off the Lewiston-Augusta highway.

Dave Sargent is a freelance writer and a native of Auburn. He can be reached by sending email to davidsargent607@gmail.com.

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