KENNEBUNKPORT — Bright orange shirts, enthusiastic pointing and lots of fizzy soda pop: It must be Moxie Festival time.

Most natives know that the official soft drink of Maine is celebrated each July with a festival in Lisbon Falls, home of the “Moxie store” Kennebec Fruit Company. What they may not know, however, is that Moxie also has a York County connection.

The Seashore Trolley Museum has been hosting the annual meeting of the New England Moxie Congress since the group formed in 1991. The Congress, founded by 22 Moxie enthusiasts, is billed as “the ultimate fan club” for those who fancy the iconic soft drink in one way or another.

“People either love the soda, love the history or are into the collectibles,” said NEMC historian James Jansson, of Connecticut.

Moxie was created by Dr. Augustin Thompson of Union back in 1876 as a nerve medicine, according to the Moxie Festival website. It went on the soft drink market in 1884 as “Beverage Moxie Nerve Food,” according to the site, and was the first mass-marketed soft drink in the U.S. Flavored with gentian root, the drink is known for its bitter taste.

“It is different,” said NEMC Vice President Rick Seferian, “it’s an acquired taste.” And while he’s found that most people can’t tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi, he said, “No one can mistake the flavor of Moxie.”

While the drink’s unique taste is a calling card for some, Jansson said that some members don’t even like Moxie. For him, it’s the history that makes the mystique around Moxie. Since 2002, Jansson has become known for dressing up as the pointing Moxie Boy from the soft drink’s early 1900s advertisements, and marches in the Moxie Festival parade along with Ryan Bender, who portrays the more modern version of the Moxie Boy in a bright orange suit.

“There’s really a lot of Americana around it,” said Jansson, noting that Moxie was the first to use automobiles and show business personalities in its advertising.

Congress members take part in the Moxie Festival events every summer, on the second weekend in July, and close out the weekend with their annual meeting at the museum on Sunday morning. About 30 of the congress’ more than 200 members generally show up for the meeting, said Jansson, to elect officers, plan for the year ahead and get a report from a company representative about product plans.

In the past, the congress had actually met onboard a trolley ”“ one of two open Connecticut bench cars in the museum’s collection ”“ which they rode out to the end of the line, said Seferian, but now they meet inside the museum. Seferian said the practice ended because members felt they were held captive in the streetcar, worried about leaving their wares unattended, and eventually tired of the mosquitoes and black flies, too.

While a southern Maine museum dedicated to trolley preservation might seem an unlikely spot for the NEMC meeting, Seferian said it’s actually the perfect location: Moxie is sold in the drink machines and gift shop; the only sign affixed to one of the museum buildings is a “What this country needs is plenty of Moxie” sign, he said; and an earlier incarnation of the Moxie company even donated money to get its namesake on part of the museum’s office wing. And that’s not to mention the obvious: Orange is a traditional color for streetcars.

“Most of us are up in years, so the good ol’ days and nostalgia play a part,” said Merrill Lewis, current NEMC president, adding that the museum is “a setting that reflects that nostalgic feel.”

As a member of the museum since 1980, Seferian was instrumental in setting up the formative meeting of the Moxie fan club at the museum, and the annual meeting has been held there ever since.

“There’s always been a very symbiotic relationship with the museum and the congress,” said Seferian, of Gorham.

The meeting is one of many stops the NEMC members will be making in addition to the festival, from Moody’s Diner in Waldoboro to a tour of a Moxie bottling plant in Bedford, N.H.

At the museum on Sunday, the Moxie enthusiasts will set up a historical exhibit and sell some memorabilia items after their meeting concludes, sharing the drink’s mystique with locals who may not have made it up to the festival.

“There have been some really nice collectibles that have passed hands at the trolley museum,” said Jansson.

Free samples of the soda will be given out and Seferian is expected to bring his model railroad featuring Moxie trains. Another member plans to bring an old-fashioned calliope to play music, and a Moxie horsemobile is expected to be on site as well, he said.

“If you’re into Moxie at all, or curious, a lot of things an be picked up (at the museum,” said Jansson. “Anybody you talk to is more than happy to explain anything to anybody about Moxie.”

Regular trolley service and exhibits will be open on Sunday alongside the Moxie memorabilia, said museum Executive Director Sally Bates, and she noted that the Kennebunkport museum is now dog-friendly. Ned’s Bakes and BBQ will be selling lunch on site.

“(Visitors) can do all the Seashore things and enjoy all the Moxie products, memorabilia and atmosphere,” said Bates.

Visit seashoretrolleymuseum.org for information about Moxie Day at the museum, and moxiefestival.com for information on the events in Lisbon Falls.

— Kristen Schulze Muszynski can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 322 or [email protected].