Houlton is located in far northeast Maine at the terminus of
Interstate 95 on the western border of New Brunswick. As you sit there reading this post, you are probably asking yourself, "What's going on
right now in Houlton, Maine?". As a public service (and just because that's the way I roll), I present to you a
live webcam of what's happening as we speak in downtown Houlton. You can thank me in the comments. :)
Houlton, population about 6500, was first settled by Aaron Putnam and Joseph Houlton in 1807, when Maine was still part of Massachusetts. The city holds the distinction of being involved in two pretty cool "firsts". From Wikipedia : "Houlton was the location of the first transatlantic
Radio Intelligence Station installed by the
U.S. Army MI-8 Radio Intelligence Service in
World War I. The Houlton Radio Intelligence Station intercepted
German diplomatic communications primarily from its
Nauen high power radio station. The Radio Intelligence Service (R.I.S.) was created during World War I by MI-8 using selected
Signal Corps personnel for the sole purpose of supporting strategic intelligence through radio intercept. Houlton was the first unit of its type built by the US intelligence services, and its success helped to lay the foundation for many more US long range radio intercept stations." On January 7, 1927, AT&T intiated the first TransAtlantic service with the AT&T Transoceanic Receiver Station located on the west side of Houlton. If you'd like more info on Houlton and some of the stuff going on the area just click
here. Looks like I've got another spot to add to the Shoemaker Family Summer Tour '10 agenda - Houlton, Maine.