Coastal Senior College (CSC), serving lifelong learners in midcoastal Maine from Wiscasset to Camden, openedregistration on Aug. 12for its 16 fall courses set to begin the week of Sept. 15. 

Current and new members of the College are offered 10in-person courses in locations throughout both Lincoln and Knox counties.An additional six courses are offered on Zoom,available to members of the 17-location Maine Senior College Network statewide.

Of particular interest for Maine history buffs is “The Quest for Quebec: Benedict Arnold’s March Through Maine,” set for four consecutive Wednesdaymorning sessions beginning in mid-October.   

Instructor Jayne Gordon first encountered the Quebec debacle when reading the novel “Arundel.”  

In the first year of the American Revolution, exactly 250 years ago this fall, a bold plan to attack the British-held stronghold of Quebec was put into action. The leader of the expedition was Benedict Arnold and the route went right through the District of Maine. The bateaux to be used were built and launched into the Kennebec next to the Colburn House, now a State Historic Site in nearby Pittston.  

If Quebec fell, French Canadians, defeated only a dozen years before, would naturally join with the colonists against their old enemy. What could go wrong?  

This four-session coursewill examine why the plan to storm that fortified citadel was proposed; how, when, and where it was carried out; and why it took such a disastrous turn. Long-term consequences of the failed mission for the American colonists will be discussed as well as the impact on Arnold himself. The course will include a visit to the Colburn House. 

Information about CSC and registration for the fallcourses may be found at coastalseniorcollege.org.