medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
On Thursday, December 3, 2009, at 12:55 pm, Meg wrote:
> As I recall Maine is supposed to be "down east" (I'm not sure from
> where, and stand ready to be corrected)
Until 1820 Maine was part of Massachusetts (which latter circumstance, for those of us interested in feasts, is at the origin of Maine's celebration of Patriots' Day, the originally Massachusetts-only holiday commemorating the battles of Lexington and Concord). Almost all ports in Maine lie to the east of the ports in Massachusetts.
The more troubling part of the phrase "down east" is "down". My assumption is that the reference is nautical, with Maine being downstream (in terms of Atlantic currents) from Massachusetts.
Best,
John Dillon
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