Bangor - "The year I was born, the Titanic sank that year. That was bad news."

Carroll Oakes was born 100 years ago.

He'll tell you exactly how he feels to have lived for a century.

"I feel so lucky to be at this age, you know. My gravy, that's a big number! That is a big number."

Born in Cherryfield, Oakes moved to bangor at a young age.

"I remember when I was a youngster when the city of Bangor was in the horse and buggy stage."

You could pick up a book and read about the end of WWI, or let oakes tell you about when he found out.

"Yes, we have ended the war, and he said we will have and he said we will have a parade downtown, so you tell your mother to get a big pan and a stick because we want you on Main Street to make a noise! That was Armistice, World War I."

He was almost 30 years old when the U.S. entered WWII.

"I remember getting employed at the Dow Field and we were aircraft mechanics and we worked on B24's and 17's and 25's so they could fly over sea. That was a popular base, Dow Field."

One of Oakes' favorite childhood memories was at the standpipe in Bangor.

"It was open so we could go up and play in the standpipe on a hot, July day it would be cool with all of that water."

Oakes sums it all up nicely.

"I've had good health and good family around to help me, so it's been sort of easy. I think my life was laid out and allowed me to reach 100. Yeah. Everything just folded out like a book."

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