The city seal of Portland bears the image of the phoenix, the mythological fire bird that symbolizes rebirth, and the Latin motto Resurgam (meaning “I will rise again”). Both elements of the seal, which was adopted in 1786, capture the spirit of Portland—a city that has come back from tragedy and overcome threats time and again. From bloody colonial battles with neighboring Native Americans and the British, to the Great Fire of 1866, to offshore threats from German submarines during World War II, the City by the Sea has suffered and endured enough to fill volumes.
Despite its troubles, Portland’s citizens have remained dedicated to the land along Casco Bay. They have returned to rebuild the ruins of the city after it was destroyed by violence and fire, and have redefined its personality with each rebirth. Portland has been home to brazen Revolutionaries, rowdy sailors, a famous prohibitionist who made Portland the first “dry” city in the nation, and countless generations of immigrants from all over the nation and the world who continue to move here in droves, changing Portland’s culture and helping to make it one of the most tolerant and unique spots in the nation.
The Portland Room in the Portland Public Library at 5 Monument Square is a great resource for books, periodicals, and photographs about Portland past and present. One interesting title is Creating Portland (2005), edited by University of Southern Maine professor Joseph Conforti. You can also learn more about Maine’s history at the Maine Historical Society’s Research Library at 489 Congress Street, behind the Longfellow House. For more information, call (207) 774-1822.