NRCS History Display

cultural resource specialist Gary Shaffer stands next to Maine’s NRCS 70th anniversary exhibit

In fall 2005, Maine NRCS State Conservationist Joyce Swartzendruber envisioned celebrating the agency’s 70th anniversary by asking cultural resources specialist Gary Shaffer to produce a permanent exhibit depicting the history of the agency.  So with help from public affairs specialist Elaine Tremble and 20 other employees who obtained and situated the six-foot-wide glass case, provided display items, and researched historical information, Gary completed the exhibit last month.

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Tools, photographs, and documents from the past are grouped by the agency’s three main areas of activity – soil survey, conservation planning, and engineering construction.  Signs identify items ranging from 1910 soil survey publications to a 60-year old dynamite detonator.  The display also features descriptions of how the equipment was used over the years and improvements in technology that have helped NRCS conserve Maine’s natural resources.
Your contact is Elaine Tremble, NRCS public affairs specialist, at 207-990-9569.