I am gratified by the response to my post last week about John McKee and Bunganuc and am compelled to share what I have learned in its aftermath. A Bungonucker’s listicle.
As I am not an influencer I may have a genuine understanding of when my posts on this blog or on the socials actually please people. Clicks on the website and analytics that track them to their source are great….sometimes. The biggest bang for my buck usually comes from a school connected activity: sports photography, whether posted to my own accounts or via the Facebook Page of RadioMidcoastWCME usually travel well. Cultural events, such as last week’s presentation of The Great Gatsby by the BHSPlayers generate huge spikes and wander far and wide as grandparents and other relations at great distances check in. The man behind the curtain at WCME told me that my photos of the bridge construction adjacent to the Frank Wood Bridge were viewed more than 11,000 times in two days.
But on top of clicks, John McKee has generated a visceral interest.
So in the spirit of click-baiters, SEO mavens, and influencers everywhere, here are the five things I learned (so far) since posting about John McKee last week:
1) John McKee’s property is in a conservation easement owned by the Brunswick Topsham Land Trust so his property and what it means to me and others will continue to hold this meaning. Perhaps one day I will walk this stream.
2) A quick look at look at the Cumberland County registry of deeds leads to the inference that John McKee has been instrumental in conserving other properties in his neighborhood on the Highland Road.
3) Fellow faculty brats and current faculty members (not just those related to me) have fond memories and strong feelings. One told me of John’s early work with the Board of Maine Coast Heritage Trust, one told me of his dog Pi, and another told me of her regular visits with John McKee.
4) His neighbors have the same strong feelings about the area: one, whose family was instrumental in conserving the Town of Brunswick’s Maquoit Bay Conservation Land, is a proud Bungonucker, one told me of walking the stream in snow shoes from Pleasant Hill Road to the stream’s opening as a creek at Maquoit Bay, a third told me story about John’s decision to purchase his land being driven by the quality of its well water for the photographic process.
5) I now own four copies of As Maine Goes. I bought the three listed on ABEbooks to be sure I got a decent copy this time.
I made this photo the same day I made the photo of the can of PBR that reminded me of John McKee. It shows construction on the new bridge crossing the Androscoggin River between Topsham and Brunswick. It will replace the Frank J. Wood Bridge, a 1930s PWA project known as The Green Bridge.