I thoroughly appreciate your powerful online photo gallery “Dilapidated Portland: Historic photos of ‘shocking conditions’ ” (Aug. 8). However, I was somewhat shocked by the description under the first photo of “Shanty Town … built on the Back Bay dump.” Perhaps the description was the original that came with the photo, but I doubt it. Why? Because there is no Back Bay in Portland!

The Press Herald has been around long enough to know this. Back Bay Tower is annoying enough, and so is the Grill and all the other Back Bay stuff popping up over the years. We have to draw the line. We can’t have our beloved paper joining in and spreading the untruth.

Oh, and who came up with the name “Bayside”? Come on! I can tell you it was not a native Portlander.

Personally I began noticing the name creeping in with the mass arrival of people from away (mostly from you know where) in the 1970s. Nice folks, for the most part. They began infiltrating every aspect of society, including City Hall, while confusing our cove with their bay. They also brought milfoil and horrendous driving behavior, but that’s for later.

Now, we have to save Back Cove before it’s too late. To start, I have one suggestion, and that is to put a big map of Back Cove on the wall of every classroom in every school in Portland and leave it there. Maybe right behind Old Glory. The kids would be able to pledge allegiance to both. As it is, Back Cove is headed the way of cursive, and we can’t have that.

Roger McKinney

Old Orchard Beach

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