100 years ago, 1918
Chief Petty Officer John Banks of Auburn has been at his home for a few days, taking much-needed rest from the strain and worry of doing duty on naval transports. When interviewed by the Lewiston Journal prior to his leaving for duty again, Officer Banks spoke of his work and the war in a general way, but guardedly. Twice he has been across and back on these big transports, once being 26 days on the voyage over, on account of storm after storm, and once on the way back going far out of the course, towing a disabled government vessel to the West Indies group.

50 years ago, 1968
Emile O. Cloutier of Lewiston has been selected Maine’s “Driver of the Year.” Cloutier has been driving for St Johnsbury Trucking Co. ten years. and has received a seven-year safety award from that company. He drives approximately 100,000 miles per year. In addition to his driving record, Cloutier demonstrated his safety consciousness last July 19 when he came upon the scene of an accident on the Maine Turnpike, and through his quick thinking was able to prevent further accidents and injuries. Rather than attempt to get to the scene of the accident — where several people had already stopped to help — he ran back to the crest of the hill waving a lighted flare, and although one rear-end collision had already occurred, he was able to prevent further accidents.

25 years ago, 1993
The Lewiston City Council unanimously approved a new loan program that will make about $2 million available to low-income families purchasing apartment buildings in the heart of Lewiston. The Lewiston LOANS Program is a co-operative venture of the Community Development Department and nine local banks. A spinoff of the city’s Homeownership Assistance Program, it also partially fulfills the banks’ Community Reinvestment Act requirements. According to LOANS’ income eligibility guidelines, a single person with gross annual income up to $18,400 could apply to buy a home; as could a four-member family with up to $26,600. The program was designed to stabilize central city neighborhoods by increasing owner occupancy. It is also intended to reduce density in large tenements by reconfiguring several small apartments into fewer but bigger ones during building rehabilitation.

The material in Looking Back is reproduced exactly as it originally appeared, although misspellings and errors made at that time may be corrected.

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