On Monday June 29, 1925, over 20 of the nations Governors arrived in Maine to attend the 7th annual National Governors’ Association convention that was held at the illustrious Poland Springs Hotel in Poland, Maine. Executives, their families, and their staff were welcomed at the Maine State Pier in Portland with “Guns, Whistles, and Trumpets”. The guns were fired from Ft. Williams, the horns came from the 5th Maine Infantry band, and whistles were from the steamboat Calvin Austin. Also waiting for the arrival of the Governors were hundreds of cheering and clapping citizens. The convention party only stayed in Portland for a brief visit and breakfast at the Congress Square Hotel before moving on to several days of meetings and activities at Poland Springs.
The fanfare and stellar national attendance for the convention was due to a concerted advertising “punch” that was made to showcase the states natural grandeur, recreational advantages and unparalleled hospitality to participants and their families. Because of this strategic effort the Maine Convention drew the largest amount of participants in the associations 17 year history. Governors from across the United States were excited to see what vacationland had to offer.
Participants were treated to a ride in the Navy Airship Shenandoah, which took them from Bar Harbor to Passamaquoddy Bay, to Mt. Katahdin, Moosehead Lake, Rangley Lake, as well as various other locations along Maine’s woodlands and coast. One of the most photographed events at the convention was a lobster bake and buffet held at the hotel.