100 years ago: 1918

Farming operations on quite an extensive scale are being carried on at the big place of Calvin Irish on the North River Road in Auburn. The farm contains over 200 acres of land and eight horses are kept to do the work and the lumbering done in winters. To feed the big herd, silage is raised as one of the principal crop’s. “The season has been too hard a one to say much about my crops,” said Mr. Irish. “If it had not been for so much wet weather I should have had a good harvest.” From one piece of early potatoes, he sold $150-worth and from another $100. Other crops were 14 acres of sweet corn for the factory, 12 of which were for the factory, two acres of beans, two of wheat, and some garden truck. “It was a poor season for corn with me” said Mr. Irish. The greatest asset for the work was silage the fodder being in with corn at the same time. While hauling corn to the factory, cobs were brought back and cut up with the other silage. The big silo was filled to the brim which Mr. Irish states will hold over 100 tons.

50 years ago: 1968

State Rep. Louis Jalbert of Lewiston is going for broke with the new Lewiston-Auburn Bridge campaign. The veteran legislator is blanketing the state with literature and making so many speeches that he’s getting hoarse. He says that he won’t stop stumping until the Nov. 5 election polls are closed. The $4.5 million bridge project is one of several referendum questions on the November election ballot and Jalbert is getting messages to both Democrats and Republicans pointing out that the leadership of both parties is solidly behind the proposal. In addition, he’s mailed literature to every newspaper, radio and TV station in the state.

25 years ago: 1993

Walmart received Planning Board approval Thursday for a 102,087-square foot store on Route 26 in Oxford. The Bentonville, Ark., company still must receive approval from the state before it can build. However, engineer Alton M. Palmer, of Deluca Hoffman Associates Inc. in South Portland, said the state’s approval should be granted this fall and the store built by August and open by next Halloween. “We expect to break ground around the first of December.”

The material used in Looking Back is reproduced exactly as it originally appeared, although misspelling and errors may be corrected.