National History Day in Maine is sponsored primarily by the
Margaret Chase Smith Library and foundation

in Partnership with
The Maine Humanities Council, the University of Maine, and
the Maine Masonic charitable foundation

Contest sponsors include
the Osher map library smith center for cartographic education, John Bapst Memorial High School, and The Mark & Emily Turner Memorial Public Library.

2026 National Winners

What is National History day?

National history day in maine

A History Education Program for Grades 6-12

National History Day in Maine is a co-curricular academic program that fosters in-depth research and critical analysis skills for students in grades 6-12. Students select a topic relating to a national theme. Using primary and secondary resources, students research a topic and present conclusions in one of the following ways:

Research Paper: Traditional academic paper, complete with citations
Exhibit: Museum-style exhibit using images, text, and supporting resources
Documentary: 10-minute video combining images and analytical narration
Performance: 10-minute live performance using actual or composite character
Website: Web-based collection of interactive pages

Click here for national award winning examples from each category.

An academic challenge and high standards

Students may choose to enter their projects in the History Day event. This four-level competition includes classroom evaluations, regional and state competitions, and a national event. Students compete in either the Junior (grades 6-8) or Senior (grades 9-12) division. The program adheres closely to social studies standards in the areas of historical skills, literacy, and in-depth research by expecting historical quality, encouraging students to pose questions about topics in history, teaching thesis creation, defining and finding primary and secondary sources, using sources to draw conclusions, and presenting their findings to professionals in the field of history and education.

annual theme

2027 contest central

Registration Links

Registration fee is $15.00 per student
for the Northern, Central, and Southern Regionals
After registering at the link below, send a check or money order made out to the University of Maine to:

Margaret Chase Smith Library.
56 Norridgewock Ave
Skowhegan, ME 04976