Working Waterfront

A card for you

Among our many interesting island traditions is one that’s wonderfully functional. Before one of our favorite institutions, The Paper Store, closed, whenever an islander died, or someone with an island connection—a seasonal resident for example or even the mainland relative of one or the other—a little basket appeared on the… SEE MORE

“We aim to create a true community newspaper, delivering news about our schools, businesses, local government…”

Working Waterfront

Peaks Island launches newspaper

The goal, according to the website PeaksIslandNews.org, is to provide “objective reporting, focusing on the issues that matter most to our community.” SEE MORE

Shaun Haskins, left, and Kara McCrimmon serve as co-directors of the Cobscook Institute. PHOTO: LESLIE BOWMAN

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Place-based collaborations buoy Downeast communities

Cobscook Institute and The Community Caring Collaborative are two Washington County nonprofits that center their work on social connection and collaboration. SEE MORE

Peter Ralston was named American Lighthouse Foundation’s 2023 “Keeper of the Light.” From left, the foundation’s Nick Korstad, Alan Ells, Bob Trapani, Jr., Ralston, and Jeremy D’Entremont.

Working Waterfront

Peter Ralston honored by Lighthouse Foundation

The American Lighthouse Foundation recently presented Peter Ralston with its Keeper of the Light award during the organization’s year-end gala at the Nonantum Resort in Kennebunkport. Ralston was recognized for his efforts in helping create and guide the Maine Lights Program on the 25th anniversary of its successful completion in… SEE MORE

The inside cover includes Bertie’s hand-written name.

Working Waterfront

Dear diary: 140-year-old journal returns home

Bertie married Fred Hatch and moved to East Boston, where she had three children: Grace, Robert, and Seth Parker. Fred passed away around 1895 due to “phthisis pulmonalis,” known today as tuberculosis. SEE MORE

Matthew Powell, left, and George Trinovitch own and operate the Pentagöet Inn in Castine. PHOTO: COURTESY PENTAGÖET INN

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Welcoming tourists, joining the community

The lodging trade group Hospitality Maine named Powell and Trinovitch its innkeepers of the year for 2023. SEE MORE

The dam on the St. Croix River. PHOTO: JACK SULLIVAN

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Indigenous, U.S., Canadian efforts restoring fish run

Ten years ago, the run of alewives in the Skutik (St. Croix) River hovered around 16,000. Though that’s more than the 900 fish from a decade earlier, it was not a great total for a river that once held millions of fish. It was, however, the beginning of what many… SEE MORE

Judi Sandrock of MaxIQ Space, left, with Terry Shehata, executive director of the Maine Space Grant Consortium during November's Maine Space Conference. MaxIQ creates Space STEM education materials used in K-12 classrooms. PHOTO: COURTESY MAINE SPACE 2030

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Maine coast could host ‘space economy’

[caption id="attachment_39553" align="alignleft" width="300"] Michael Kincaid of NASA, left, and MSGC director Terry Shehata. PHOTO: COURTESY MAINE SPACE 2030[/caption] Maine’s rocky coastline isn’t only beautiful, it’s the driving force behind some of the state’s most historic, lucrative industries, like shipbuilding, fishing, and tourism. Maine’s south-facing coastline could also become the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The sad tale of a religious charlatan

He must have been charismatic. He must have been passionate. And he must have been persuasive. The open question is whether or not his faith was sincere. The late 19th century was an era now known by religious scholars as the Third Great Awakening, a period when Christians expected the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Navigating 2024

What challenges will 2024 bring to the Maine coast, and how will leaders respond? SEE MORE