Maine Places to Love: Deering Center

It has been noted that the fortunate residents of Deering can acquire a fine education, from kindergarten through college, without even leaving the neighborhood. The heart of this Portland district is Deering Center, a walkable area of schools; services such as the Burbank Branch Library and the Portland Vet Center; restaurants and shops; and appealing, leafy residential streets that illustrate why Deering was dubbed “A City of Homes” in 1897.

Feb. 6, 1899: After being incorporated as a city in 1892, Deering is annexed by Portland, swelling the city’s population by 7,500. (Wikipedia; “Creating Portland,” Joseph Conforti.)
Dozens of tongues: Students at Deering High School speak more than 50 languages at home, and come from more than 30 countries. (dhs.portlandschools.org.)
‘City of Homes’: The Odd Fellows published this pamphlet on Deering in 1897. (“Deering: A Social and Architectural History,” by William David Barry and Patricia McGraw Anderson.)
5th annual, coming up: Porchfest, which features musicians playing on a number of neighborhood porches, is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 9, from 1-5 p.m.
Since 1929: Roy’s Shoe Shop on Stevens Avenue has been rehabbing shoes.
Rings, but no ring: The Gothic-design 1902 Wilde Memorial Chapel in Evergreen Cemetery is available for weddings, but the bell cannot be rung. (portlandmaine.gov.)
1937: Saw the opening of Maine’s first osteopathic hospital, at the corner of Pleasant Avenue and Matthews Street. The 1910 building is now condominiums.
29.5 acres: In 1946, Gov. Percival Baxter presented Portland with Baxter Woods, named for his father, former mayor James Phinney Baxter.
‘Crowds of 10,000’: Presumpscot Park, which was behind today’s Deering High, was a trotting track that opened in 1875 and had a “base-ball grounds in the center.” (“Deering: A Social and Architectural History,” by William David Barry and Patricia McGraw Anderson.)
Local buzz: In the spring, The Honey Exchange offers three-pound packages of Russian hybrid queens. This year’s bees have sold out, though. (thehoneyexchange.com.)
$60 million (est.) man: Born in Italy, Donald Della Valle opened a tiny “beer parlor” at Woodfords Corner in the early 1930s, the start of the Valle’s Steak House chain. He died a wealthy man in 1977. (“Deering: A Social and Architectural History,” by William David Barry and Patricia McGraw Anderson.)

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