Working Waterfront

A reliable winter harvest fueled local economy

This time of year, Mainers look forward to the thaw and the coming of warmer weather. It is a time to look ahead to the opportunities that a Maine summer provides, a time when waterfronts are buzzing with seasonal industries and activities in comparison to the stalling effects of a… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Music to be melancholy by

Whenever I can listen and do whatever else I’m doing simultaneously, I tune in to "At the Hop" on WERU-FM (89.9) on Saturday afternoons. Host Rick Foster’s regard for the music and for those of us he supposes are listening, his ironic consideration of the mood and the music, are… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

An apology and an explanation

I wrote a column for this, the April issue of The Working Waterfront, a column about the absence of meaningful political discourse, particularly among elected representatives, the people we expect will indulge in such deliberation on our behalf. The column contained this: “I was expected to cultivate and sustain a… SEE MORE

The view from Little Deer Isle. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Finding Maine

Editor’s note: In our last edition, a letter writer suggested that islanders other than the four who write regular columns for us might contribute to our coverage of life in places surrounded by water. Challenge accepted here! I arrived here in Maine three years ago on May 1. More accurately,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Maine delegation can lead to climate safety

Both my wife and I grew up in Maine, but it wasn’t until we married that I adopted her family’s tradition of buying pounds of wholesale Maine shrimp and spending New Year’s Day (my mother-in-law’s birthday) shelling and freezing them for the coming months. It was an annual ceremony straight… SEE MORE

Landscape with Drying Sails, Stuart Davis

Working Waterfront

Jazz harbor: Stuart Davis in Gloucester

Located 25 or so miles northeast of Boston on Cape Ann, Gloucester is among the busiest fishing ports on the East Coast. An important shipbuilding center dating back to the early 1700s, over time the town became the hub for a fishing fleet that frequented the Grand Banks. Gloucester was… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Circulation, temperature data reveals future

Before COVID, this time of year would see the fishing and marine science community gearing up for the annual Maine Fishermen's Forum. It's a venue to share information about the Gulf of Maine—pretty much everything that helps and hinders those who rely on it to make a living. This will… SEE MORE

The offices of Deering Lumber in the Lafayette House today. PHOTO: COURTESY KYLE H. NOBLE

Working Waterfront

Biddeford’s Lafayette House dates to 1798

We published a 1936 photo of Biddeford’s Lafayette House, shot by Dominic Avanzato, in our December/January issue, and asked readers if the building were still standing. Here are some of the responses we received: “I can say with certainty that the Lafayette House still exists as the office for Deering… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Our readers write: Street people, pinch-hitting, and Mueller

Street people thoughts To the editor: I just wanted to thank you and all the other writers (Cranberry Report columnist Barb Fernald is a friend) for your continued hard work on The Working Waterfront. I just finished reading your Rock Bound column, "Who do we want to see on our… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

A Maine island take on Candlemas

On Feb. 2, many Americans look to Pennsylvania to see if the groundhog Punxsutawney Phil emerges to see his shadow or not. If he does, it means there are six more weeks of winter. Folks, on Feb. 2, there will be six more weeks of winter no matter what. Some… SEE MORE