The biggest Mainebiz headlines in 2020 weren't just about COVID-19

File Photo / Renee Cordes One of the most popular Mainebiz Daily Report stories in 2020 was the January launch of Northeastern University's Roux Institute in Portland. The research and graduate studies center, focused on technology and life sciences, is backed by a $100 million gift from Lewiston native and entrepreneur David Roux, shown here talking with reporters at the launch event.

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By Staff

“Unprecedented” has become a cliche for describing 2020. But the past 12 months seem to have otherwise exhausted the English vocabulary.

Numbers can portray some of what made the past year historic and horrifying. More than 330,000 Americans dead from COVID-19, and nearly 20 million sickened. Tens of thousands of business closures nationwide. Double-digit unemployment rates.

But 2020 was a watershed for reasons beyond the pandemic. One example: An estimated 15 million to 26 million people across the country participated in public demonstrations in reaction to the killing of George Floyd, making the protests the largest in U.S. history.

Still, numbers like these only reveal part of what made 2020 like no other year.

To describe 2020 more fully, Mainebiz has taken a took a look back at the stories we covered — including not only headline-grabbers like the toll of COVID-19, but news that was positive or even quirky. We've compiled these stories in a series of Top 10 roundups that will appear over the next few days.

To start, here are the 10 Mainebiz Daily Report stories that were most widely read during 2020, as measured by our online analytics.