Portland, a Bang Up July 4th in 1866

First stop on the coast was the city of Portland, Maine. I wanted to see how it changed since I wrote a piece for GN. I had to call in to Around the World Travel Radio anyway. While structurally the same, a bit of umph seems missing. Could be the economy or perhaps it is just me. I did learn a little something new that pertains to July 4th also. Love the little facts. On July 4 1866, Portland had a great fire that burned 1500 buildings down. The fire was started when a little boy threw a firecracker on a pile of wood shavings. At the time poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow said the remains of the city reminded him of the ruins of Pompeii. Hope a better fourth for everyone.