Jeanne Dilworth interview

Jeanne Dilworth has lived in Connecticut her entire life. She grew up in Manchester during the Great Depression, and moved to Portland with her husband almost 60 years ago. Her interest in the town’s community and natural resources has led her to a career in teaching, and later to a position as president of the Brownstone Quorum. Until the 1930s, Portland’s quarries supplied brownstone to architects in New York, Boston, and around the world. The Brownstone Quorum was founded in 1997 to preserve the quarries, which were designated as a National Historic Landmark in 2000. Today, Jeanne and the quorum work to protect their town’s history, as well as envision new means to utilizing the quarries as an endless educational resource. Throughout the interviews, we learned how Jeanne’s story has intertwined with Portland’s history. We heard about her family life, from her relationship with her grandparents to her relationship with her grandson. Since her childhood, she has exhibited impressive personal values that translate into her public interests; principally, a love for family, friends, and neighbors, as well as an immense passion for nature and the outdoors. Her everlasting sense of curiosity led her to first visit the quarries, which have become a cherished part of her life. She now works to spread that curiosity to future generations of Portland students.