100 Years Ago: 1925

Within three or four days the new ski tower in Pettengill Park, Auburn, will be completed, work having progressed rapidly under the direction of Building Inspector Briggs. It won’t be long now before the youngsters are enjoying this exhilarating sport.

50 Years Ago: 1975

The new year 1975 was welcomed by many in the Twin Cities in various ways.

A large number gathered at the Kora Temple for a party sponsored by the Androscoggin County Shrine Club.

Dancing occupied the evening and refreshments were served. Francis Buchanan was chairman of the party, and assisting him were Charles Earle, house committee; Everett McEachern, ticket committee; Roy Gove and Ralph Lewis, publicity.

Another large gathering was staged at the Lewiston Memorial Armory by the Auburn-Lewiston Kiwanis Club. Gaily colored crepe paper formed a false ceiling over the dance floor and along the sides of the hall, and over the stage was a “Happy New Year” greeting. At midnight, balloons were released from nets suspended from the ceiling. A. K. Sharma was general chairman of the party and Stanley Bixby was assistant chairman.

Sixty couples attended the private dancing held at the Jewish Community Center, where an attractive setting with  false walls and ceilings had been arranged. Dancing was enjoyed from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m., when dessert was served. Mrs. Stanley Tetenman had charge of arrangements.

Cutouts of Old Father Time (1974) and 1975 in the form of a baby dominated the decorations at the dance given New Year’s Eve by the Parents, Friends and Teachers Association of Holy Cross parish, at the parish hall. There were streamers, winter scenes on the walls, and balloons which were released at midnight.  An orchestra provided music. A luncheon was served at 1 a.m.

25 Years Ago: 2000

From East to West and North to South, the world welcomed the new millennium in a shimmering tapestry of song and light that rippled around the globe.

Along with choreographed spectacle came high drama, reminders Friday in Russia and Asia of the turmoil of the dying century.

Woven together by satellite TV, the world’s nearly 200 countries, in their 24 time zones, became a jamboree of disparate cultures – South Sea islanders singing Handel’s  “Hallelujah” chorus, Buddhist monks praying for peace in Japan, a German choir singing in a church in Nazareth, Israel, and a huge French-made bell tolling a welcome in Newport, Ky. for each time zone entering 2000.

From the harbor in Sydney, Australia, to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, fireworks exploded across the world.. They lit up the skies over Rome, where Pope John Paul II gave thanks for humanity’s triumphs and asked forgiveness for its sins. “What suffering, what dramatic events!” the frail 79-year-old pontiff said of the 1900s. “But, also, what incredible achievements.”

The material used in Looking Back is produced exactly as it originally appeared although misspellings and errors may be corrected.