Working Waterfront

Human encounters are different here

Is it possible to write this column, titled “Reflections,” about the idea of reflection itself? Who knows. What I can say is that throughout my time as an Island Fellow in Washington County, one of the biggest components of my experience has been just that—reflection. Much of my day-to-day work… SEE MORE

Russ Tamblyn and Diane Varsi in a publicity still from Peyton Place.

Working Waterfront

Imagining coastal Maine, from ‘Peyton Place’ to ‘Murder She Wrote’

When I moved to Portland in 1988, I did not come alone: hundreds, perhaps thousands of images tagged along providing me with a vivid mental map of this place where place still matters. Rocky coasts, lighthouses, and lobster rolls, of course, but also quaint downtowns of white clapboard houses, shade… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

‘On the road’ to a life in music

Among my favorite summer activities is sitting by a campfire in my yard. My firepit backs up against several acres of woods and offers views over the house of the Big Dipper, North Star, and even the edge of the Milky Way on dark nights. I usually have music accompanying… SEE MORE

Joy Sprague in the golf cart she uses to pick up mail. PHOTO: COURTESY BARBARA FERNALD

Working Waterfront

Sprague doesn’t mail in the ‘Joy’ of her job

Her given name is Florence, but having arrived in the world five days before Christmas, her parents had the seasonal spirit when they gave her the middle name Joy. [caption id="attachment_32079" align="alignleft" width="500"] Joy Sprague in front of the Islesford Post Office. PHOTO: COURTESY BARBARA FERNALD[/caption] In a phone conversation,… SEE MORE

“Studio Still Life Tremont Avenue Bronx, NY” (1962) 35 x 48 inches, gift of the Ashley Bryan Center.

Working Waterfront

Ashley Bryan’s ‘Beauty in Return’ at Farnsworth

[caption id="attachment_32028" align="alignleft" width="400"] “Family Gathering, Tremont Avenue, Bronx, NY” (1962) 48-inches by 48-inches, gift of the Ashley Bryan Center.[/caption] The exhibition “Ashley Bryan: Beauty in Return” is now on display in the Farnsworth Art Museum’s Rothschild Gallery in Rockland through Dec. 31. The show recognizes the work… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

A dog life remembered

I was born ready, ready to love without condition. So simple were my needs that to be adopted 13 years ago by a human family represented complete fulfillment. Over the years I found a real home on this island. This is a real Dog Town. From the beginning I went… SEE MORE

Eben Salvatore, left, and Jeff Young, who are introducing the electric vehicles to Acadia and Bar Harbor. PHOTO: LAURIE SCHREIBER

Working Waterfront

Electric vehicles an option for Acadia visitors

A new rental fleet of small electric vehicles is winding its way around the streets of Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park—and it’s an option being pitched as having great advantages over gas-guzzler cars and taxis. “Instead of driving their Suburban from their hotel to the park, they can drive… SEE MORE

James Fitzgerald, “Saltin' Mackerel ca. 1960, oil on canvas, 30 by 40 inches. Monhegan Museum of Art and History, promised gift of Stephen S. Fuller and Susan D. Bateson

Working Waterfront

James Fitzgerald paints Fish Beach

During his life as a painter, James Fitzgerald (1899-1971) knew firsthand a number of working waterfronts. After completing his art studies in his home city of Boston, he took to the sea, shipping out of Gloucester, ostensibly to sketch and paint. On later trips to the Grand Banks aboard the… SEE MORE

Some of the cars featured at the Seal Cove Auto Museum would have been seen on the roads of Mount Desert Island in the early 20th century, much to the consternation of some residents. From left: 1912 Ford Model T, 1904 Knox, 1915 FRP, and 1910 Pierce Arrow. PHOTO: COURTESY SEAL COVE AUTO MUSEUM

Working Waterfront

Wiz chariots and sunken Broncos

“It's nothing but a big picnic ground for 'Elks,' and 'Spiritualists,' and 'Holy Ghosters.' The whole island is full of campers from Skowhegan, Bucksport, Rockland, and Ellsworth, that don't do nothin' but sit in front of their tents, eat bananas and read the Sunday papers.” —Arthur Train Mount Desert Island… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The finer points of protecting working waterfront

Most Mainers understand and appreciate the need to protect the working waterfront, those access points and infrastructure necessary to make a living on the water. But how, exactly, does it get threatened and how does it disappear? Imagine you’re a clam harvester who has an agreement with a local person… SEE MORE