Sometimes the most beguiling questions about Maine reveal as much in the asking as in the telling.

Essays by Gerald Talbot, William Pope .L, Ashley Lauren Kerr, David Hodgkins, Paul S.  Schonewolf, William David Barry, Rattanaphorn “Pom” Boobphachati, Bill Burke, Gary Lawless & Jeff McBurnie

One of our editors was traveling in Virginia in a taxi recently. The driver, stuck in traffic, turned around to make conversation.

“I’ve never been to Maine before,” he said shyly. “Would you mind terribly if I asked you…are there any black people in Maine?”

Eureka, our inspiration for this story. How can we answer such big questions without being tongue-tied? How might historian, activist, and legislator Gerald Talbot or performance artist, activist, and educator William Pope.L answer in a way that succinctly describes Maine’s black experience? How might other Innocent Questions about Maine best be answered? What’s your IQ?

Are there any black people in Maine?

Gerald Talbot, Maine’s former state legislator who marched with Julian Bond at the 1963 March on Washington (Talbot is also coauthor of Maine’s Visible Black History), replies: 

At the age of 80, as a black man, born and raised in the state of Maine, that seems like a ridiculous question; the kind of illogical thinking that’s been embedded in people’s minds for centuries.

Of course there are blacks in Maine. We’ve been here since the Colonial era.

My family has roots in Maine dating back to 1816. My grandfather and uncles worked as loggers down the Penobscot and Kennebec rivers, and they worked as redcaps for the railroad. My father was hired, then promoted to head chef, at the Bangor House, one of the nation’s most prestigious hotels. Guests included Teddy Roosevelt, Jack Benny, Bette Davis, and Duke Ellington. It was at the Bangor House where I have the fondest memories of my father. Black women also had vital roles in the community, by owning their own catering and cleaning businesses.

During the 1940s and ’50s, many black men were drafted into the armed forces. Upon their return, they experienced discrimination regarding housing, education, and employment. Although several families left the state because of limited opportunities due to racism, there still was a strong, vibrant black community. This was the foundation for political and social action.

I graduated from Bangor High School, served in the US Army, and retired after working 25 years for Guy Gannett Publishing. My wife (of 57 years) and I raised our four daughters in Portland. So yes, there are black people living in Maine.

We are here and we want credit for helping build this state from one end to the other. For example, there are the Stewarts, who own a car and towing company; the Richardsons, who owned a cleaning business; James Johnson, an inventor and educator who was a founding member of Maine Vocational Technical Institute, currently known as Southern Maine Community College; and the Most Rev. James A. Healy, the first black Catholic bishop in the country. Then there are people like James Sheppard, a Tuskegee Airman; Victoria Rowell, a renowned actress and dancer whose foundation [The Rowell Foster Children’s Positive Plan] gives emotional and financial support to foster children; John Jenkins, mayor and first black state senator; and me–I helped reorganize the Portland chapter of the NAACP in 1964, became the first black legislator in the state, and coauthored the first historical depiction of black history in Maine. There are also other proud and successful black Mainers who work hard and have the same aspirations as my ancestors and me.

Increasingly more and more black families are relocating to Maine because of its rich history and inspiring rocky coast. Maine has a lot to offer, so why wouldn’t black families want to live here? I was taught how to fish, build a campfire, and pitch a tent. I learned the importance of my family’s history and a sense of community. Even though I have traveled all over the world, I love to call Maine my home.

William Pope.L, artist and former lecturer at Bates College, replies:

For the longest time there was only one black person in Maine. Me, yours truly! It was lonely being the only one of my kind. I talked to the lobsters. I talked to the trees and the giant puffy white clouds you see in the summer, but it wasn’t very satisfying.

One day I began to pretend all the people at Walmart, The Lobster Shack, the county fair, the liberal arts college, and the methadone clinic were black. Yes, I know, I know–it was very childish of me to make every person in Maine black– but they seemed to like it. A lot! And I didn’t make everybody black. I made some people Thai and a few others Somali. They seemed to like that too.

Aren’t the women of Maine too…outdoorsy?

Ashley Lauren Kerr, fashion entrepreneur and designer from Old Orchard Beach, replies:

Who’d think of former Waynflete student Liv Tyler as too outdoorsy? She wears Givenchy. Liv’s grandmother, Falmouth resident Dorothea Johnson, founder of The Protocol School of Washington, is a leader in etiquette training and appears on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

Not that we can’t shift gears from girly girls to athletes: Ashley Underwood, Miss Maine 2009 and a professional basketball player, had a successful run on Survivor. Her comfort in nature was a great benefit.

My company, ASHLEYlaurenKerr, brings international beauty pageant contestants to Old Orchard Beach to train, and let’s just say they’re all intrigued by the L.L. Bean boot. Maine women set the trend for grace, style, beauty, and fashion. Maine’s natural beauty sets the stage for women to project their inner beauty and to be comfortable in any surrounding.

Does everyone in Maine wear L.L. Bean?

David Hodgkins, owner of David Wood Clothiers in Portland, replies:

Maine is not a fashion wasteland as some from away might perceive it. I think there’s as much style and fashion awareness per capita as in Boston or New York City. Testimony would be four fine, independent menswear retailers right here in Portland: David Wood, Joseph’s, Peter Renney’s, and Bertini. There’s not that many in Boston.

I’d also mention (at the risk of blowing our horn) that David Wood was recognized by MR Menswear Retailer for excellence in retail menswear. This speaks to the sophistication that exists in our market.

Will my Wi-Fi work up there?

Paul S. Schonewolf, area vice president of Time Warner Cable New England, replies:

Not only will your Wi-Fi work up here, but Time Warner Cable pioneered high-speed Internet in Maine. In fact, Presque Isle had access to high-speed Internet service (courtesy of Time Warner Cable, of course) before it was available in Boston. How cool is that?

Since then, we’ve continued to invest in our network in the Pine Tree State. In Maine alone, Time Warner Cable owns more than 13,000 miles of coaxial and fiber-optic cable providing high-speed Internet access to more than 600,000 homes and businesses in 270 cities and towns, from York to Madawaska.

Last month we boosted Internet speeds for all customers and launched new speed tiers of up to 50 Mbps downstream and 5 Mbps upstream.

Whether you’re playing games online from Long Lake, downloading video to your iPad on North Haven, or telecommuting from Arabica Coffee in Portland, you should find plenty of Wi-Fi in Maine to meet your needs.

Maine…What state is that in?

William David Barry, cultural mercenary and author of Maine: The Wilder Half of New England, replies:

From July 4, 1776, to March 15, 1820, the correct answer was, “Maine is a District of the State of Massachusetts.”

Maine first started as a colony of its own in 1635, with Downeasters developing unique attitudes before Puritans gobbled up their towns in the 1670s and made Maine a province (later district) of the Bay Colony. This unnatural union came undone beginning in 1819, when citizens voted for separation, and as a result of the Missouri Compromise, Maine became the 23rd state.

Are there only white people in Maine?

Rattanaphorn “Pom” Boobphachati, restaurateur, replies:

Why don’t you come out to my four Thai restaurants, each with a different location and different clientele: Thai Taste on Cottage Road near Cape Elizabeth; Pom Thai on Western Avenue near the Maine Mall; Pom’s Noodle House on Congress Street in the Arts District; and Top Thai by Pom on St. John Street–and see for yourselves!

It’s too bad there aren’t any professional sports in Maine, right?

Bill Burke, chairman of the Portland Sea Dogs, replies:

We do have professional teams in Maine, and they provide some of the most exciting, affordable, and accessible sporting events around. With the Sea Dogs, Pirates, and Red Claws, fans have a chance to see some of the finest athletes around–skilled professionals who are hungry and working hard to get to the next level.

At Hadlock Field, for less than it costs to go to the movies, fans have a chance to see future big leaguers, up close and personal. Future all-stars like Josh Beckett, Jacoby Ellsbury, Adrian Gonzalez, Jon Lester, Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis, and many others have passed through our hometown ballpark.

The presence of the Sea Dogs, Pirates, and Red Claws led the Sports Business Journal to rank Portland as the 5th best out of 241 minor league cities in America, and it’s yet another reason why Maine is such a great place to live.

Is Stephen King the only writer in Maine?

Gary Lawless, poet and co-creator of Gulf of Maine Books, replies:

Maine and America on bookshelves all over the world. Sometimes he’s joined by Tess Gerritsen, Richard Russo, Richard Ford, and Anne Beatty, but Stephen King is different. He’s from Maine. He grew up without much money, went to Maine schools and a state university, and has become one of the best selling authors in the history of the book. This gives younger Maine writers hope and inspiration.

Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance has a long list of contemporary Maine writers, as well as a long historical chronology of writers– from Longfellow and Hawthorne to the present vital and exciting writing scene. It may seem to the world that Stephen King is our only writer, but he’s the tip of the iceberg, and our writers shine as they move through the light and the waters of contemporary literature.

Do all Mainers use outhouses?

Jeff McBurnie, president of Maine Wastewater Control Association, replies:

Despite the popularity of these structures at campgrounds, much of Maine is served by “indoor comfort facilities,” municipal wastewater treatment plants, and engineered subsurface disposal systems (septic tanks and leach fields).

Mainers like open space and remoteness from neighbors; we also like our creature comforts. Billions of dollars worth of treatment works and collection systems have been created to afford us this convenience as well as to protect public health and the environment.

There are 164 Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTWs) in Maine; these facilities not only provide service to the communities they represent, but also manage discharges from commercial businesses and industries and receive materials collected by companies that clean septic tanks. As Maine goes, so goes the nation, and we go inside!