An aerial view of Camden’s waterfront shows Montgomery Dam. PHOTO: TODD ANDERSON

Working Waterfront

Camden’s dam problem

In June, voters in the town of Camden will decide the fate of the iconic Montgomery Dam, located in the coastal community’s bustling downtown just above where the Megunticook River empties into Camden Harbor. Camden citizens will weigh the environmental, economic, flood risk, historic preservation, and aesthetic pros and cons… SEE MORE

Minna Page, a cannery worker, inside Stinson's Cannery in Belfast in 1990. PHOTO: PEGGY MCKENNA COLLECTION/PENOBSCOT MARINE MUSEUM

Working Waterfront

When the Maine coast was ‘Sardineland’

In the mid-20th century, there were some 75 sardine canneries operating along the Maine coast, so calling the region “sardine land” wouldn’t be hyperbole. The Penobscot Marine Museum in Searsport is diving into the history of that once robust sector of the marine economy in its spring exhibit, “Sardineland: Boom,… SEE MORE

A house in Gouldsboro for sale at $499,000.

Working Waterfront

Hancock County housing report a complex picture

A study of housing in Hancock County turned up what one would expect—too few houses available for entry level buyers and a dearth of rental housing for the same population. But the 250-page “Hancock County Housing Needs Assessment” contains a wealth of data about individual areas. The report was compiled… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Preserving our island and coastal history

Ideally, you should be able to pick up an Island Journal from 15 years ago and find something interesting to read. Early in my tenure editing the magazine, I leaned too heavily on stories that were newsier, and I heard from some readers that this was not their preference. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Lobster landings dip, but price was up

Lobster harvesters earned $528.4 million in 2024, with an average per-pound price of $6.14, according to data released by the state Department of Marine Resources. The so-called boat price, that which is paid to lobstermen, was up last year from the 2023 value of $464 million. The price is the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

It’s time for an honest conversation about aquaculture

In the last few years we have watched the promise of an innovative and dynamic seafood industry be picked apart by groups flying a false flag of environmentalism or “fishing heritage.” SEE MORE

Pauline Inman's “Fisherman’s Boots,” 1943, wood engraving, edition eight of 40. COURTESY TIDES INSTITUTE AND MUSEUM OF ART, EASTPORT

Working Waterfront

Pauline Inman engraves Downeast shore

Inman belongs to a diverse and exceptional line of printmakers who have found inspiration in Maine, from Frank Benson, Ernest Haskell, Rockwell Kent, Stow Wengenroth, Carroll Thayer Berry, and Peggy Bacon to Thomas Cornell, Marvin Bileck, Holly Meade, Alison Hildreth, Susan Groce, and Siri Beckman—to name (quite) a few. SEE MORE

A boat arrives at the Monhegan pier. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Building higher on Monhegan

Facing the community now is the decision of how to move forward—forward toward a response to the increasingly powerful winter storms and the growing summer traffic. The main thing I am considering is how the changes will last for generations and affect the function of the island in every season. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

A poor report card from Maine’s ocean

Arctic warming and accelerating ice melt are leading to changes in global ocean circulation. With a northward shift of the Gulf Stream and a retreat of the Labrador Current, more warm, salty, low-nutrient Gulf Stream water is entering the Gulf of Maine. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Remembering trees

It began with my younger brother stumbling across a photograph of a beautifully decorated Christmas tree—stunning in fact. It was taken in 1954 but was entirely typical of the many nearly identical and similarly breath-taking trees I’d enjoyed by then for ten Christmases and he for eight and our still… SEE MORE