Since the development of photography in the

mid-nineteenth century, the camera has been

used as a tool of both discovery and preservation.

Photographs bring alive our picture of the past and

can open a floodgate of memories and nostalgia or

inspire curiosity and a sense of history.

Both joined and separated by the Androscoggin

River, Brunswick and Topsham were carved

from the same land grant in 1715. Despite their

proximity, the towns developed separate identities:

Brunswick became a manufacturing, commercial,

and educational center, while Topsham combined

its farms with factories. This fascinating pictorial

history illuminates the daily lives of the residents

of the two towns, and reveals how life has changed

over the past 120 years.