Category: Business

Island Journal

Fisheries From 1973 to 2023 — How We Got Here

I have been looking back at what fishing was like in 1973, the year I founded Commercial Fisheries News. The differences are stunning, even to someone like me who reported on those changes, sold ads for the new gear, was part of creating the new lobster laws in the 1990s, and tried to connect fishermen so that they could contribute to better science and better rules. SEE MORE

Island Journal

The Ebb and Flows of Maine’s Three-Port Strategy

Maine has a long and celebrated history of shipping by sea. It’s ingrained in our history, culture, and economy. Through the centuries, ships have transported granite, lumber, ice, shoes, canned sardines, and numerous other products from Maine to markets in the U.S. and around the globe. They’ve brought cargo to Maine as diverse as coal, cotton for our mills, guano for fertilizer, and even molasses for rum distilleries. SEE MORE

Island Journal

The Working Waterfront Wars

Karen Sanford on the shore in South Portland, looking westerly at Portland’s waterfront. Sanford was a leader in the effort to preserve working waterfront access after condominiums were built on a pier. PHOTO: TOM GROENING   Karen Sanford had a quiet life planned when she arrived in Portland in the mid-1980s.… SEE MORE

Island Journal

The Long Journey from Boat to Plate

Photos by Jack Sullivan It’s 2:30 in the morning and the wharf staff at Fifield Lobster Company in Stonington is preparing for the arrival of about 40 commercial fishing boats in the next few hours, with the vessels landing just long enough to load up on bait and fuel. The… SEE MORE

Island Journal

A Century Ago, Children Were Seafood Processors

Phoebe Thomas went running home down the busy Eastport street from the sardine cannery before the work shift was over. She was crying. It was an August day in 1911. Phoebe was eight, not quite as old as the century, and had sliced her thumb with a sharp knife while… SEE MORE

Island Journal

The Island’s Star

PHOTOS BY SHERI ROMER In 1933 while he was in the first grade, Robert Clark created a painting for a beloved teacher. Forty years later, after his iconic LOVE image swept, un-copyrighted and thus less fulfillingly than might have otherwise been the case, through the graphic world of publishing, television,… SEE MORE

Island Journal

An Island Helmsman

While roaming from one end of the labyrinth-like yacht yard that bears his name to the other, Gabe Pendleton checks in with employees as they work. He’s soft spoken, but Pendleton’s voice carries over the power tools—even while wearing a mask. Whether it’s boat yard logistics or a simple hello,… SEE MORE

Island Journal

Boosting our Small Businesses

When the pandemic shut down the state in March of last year, the impact on small businesses was immediate. The Island Institute knew it had to offer expanded support. For many years, the Institute has offered a professional development grant that helped small business owners get training—things like Quickbooks and… SEE MORE