Working Waterfront
A photographer who captured artists
Peggy McKenna was one of the artists who was drawn to this part of the state in the 1970s. She settled in Montville along with other artists and “back to the landers.” SEE MORE
- Community
- People
- Opinion
- Environment
- Inter-island News
- Marine
- Business
- Columns
- Arts
- Education
- Book Review
- Climate Change
- Cranberry Report
- Salt Water Cure
- Journal of an Island Kitchen
- Reflections
- Op Ed
- Observer
- Field Notes
- Fathoming
- Essay
- Rockbound
- Energy
- Editorial
- Letters to the Editor
- In Plain Sight
- Wrack Line
- Dispatches from World Ocean Observatory
Category: In Plain Sight
Working Waterfront
Coastal steamers were gateway to Maine woods
The crossing of the Piscataqua River Bridge on I-95 or the aerial descent over Portland Harbor to the jetport signify arrival in Maine for most present-day visitors to Vacationland. Before the development of automobiles, highway systems, and commercial airlines, coastal steamers were the primary mode of travel for visitors from… SEE MORE
Working Waterfront
The Jacob Pike, a victim of January’s storms
In 2022, The Penobscot Marine Museum acquired a collection of several thousand Jim Moore’s maritime-related negatives SEE MORE
Working Waterfront
Centuries-old infrastructure laid bare
Coastal Maine continues to reel from the effects of back-to-back January storms that caused long-lasting damage to working waterfronts, homes, areas of leisure, as well as cultural heritage sites. By nature of their location, lighthouses and their supporting structures are especially vulnerable to the destruction caused by extreme winds, surf,… SEE MORE
Working Waterfront
Steamboat days in Stockton Springs
Three young women pose nervously for the camera in our image this month. They are dressed for an outing and are holding parcels, maybe containing their lunch. Their chaperon, a spinsterly-looking character, is clearly not amused at the spectacle they are causing on the busy steamboat wharf at Sandy Point… SEE MORE
Working Waterfront
Beyond destroyers and Liberty ships
Maine’s role in the nation’s effort during the World War II is most frequently discussed in terms of destroyers and Liberty ships built, military fortifications sprinkled throughout Casco Bay, and the influx of naval personnel swarming the city of Portland on shore leave from warships patrolling the Atlantic. However, there… SEE MORE
Working Waterfront
From weir to can
In 1951, the Maine Sardine Council hired Finnish American Kosti Ruohomaa to document the sardine industry. The Maine Legislature created the council that year to promote high standards for the sardine industry and made it responsible for grading and inspections as well. The sardine industry was complex; one photo could… SEE MORE
Working Waterfront
Shipbuilding legacy strengthened by unions
Maine’s proficient, hardworking, and regionally low-paid laborers helped to secure a competitive edge in the shipbuilding industry of the 19th century, contributing to the state’s significance as a center of American shipbuilding and fleet ownership. Like many historic narratives, this shipbuilding prominence has often been examined through the lens of… SEE MORE
Working Waterfront
Orr’s Island’s forgotten attraction
Harriet Beecher Stowe is renowned for her influential 1852 novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin, which played a pivotal role in shaping national perspectives on slavery. During her husband's tenure as a professor at Bowdoin College, Stowe penned this significant work while residing in Brunswick. Her impact on the historical fabric of… SEE MORE
Working Waterfront
Ready to serve ‘people from away’
The staff of the Penobscot Park dining room and lunch counter in Searsport meet the gaze of the Eastern Illustrating & Publishing Co. photographer’s camera in the accompanying photo. Their serious faces are frozen in time on a glass plate negative. The tables are set and the shelf behind the… SEE MORE
