In its earliest days, Pembroke offered abundant fishing and lush forests for its Native American inhabitants. Starting in the 1640s, European colonists began turning the town from a farming community into a successful hub for shipbuilding. Pembroke's long history is colored by remarkable stories. Atop the old Pembroke Public Library rests a bee sculpture designed by Pembroke artist Richard Edlund, representing the spelling bees held each spring at the library since 1875. The Pembroke Monument Association first met in 1879 to discuss the purchase of a Civil War soldiers' monument for the town, yet it was nearly a decade before the monument was erected. In this collection of articles from her Pembroke's Past column, Karen Cross Proctor captures the spirit of the community.

Karen Cross Proctor has lived with her family in Pembroke for three decades. For twenty-eight years she was the research director of the Pembroke Historical Society. For twenty years she wrote local history columns for the Pembroke Mariner and the Pembroke Express.