Weymouth, George

Weymouth Cross on Allen Island in the Georges Islands group in St. George (2006)

Weymouth Cross on Allen Island in the Georges Islands group in St. George (2006) Weymouth, sometimes spelled “Waymouth,” was an early English explorer of the Maine coast. In 1602 he led an expedition of two vessels for the newly formed East India Company, to find a northwest passage to India.  He did enter the Hudson…

Economy, Current Issues

Tree stand in T8 R10 NWP

Maine’s economy represents 0.4% (less than half a percent) of the U.S. national economy. With a slow national pace, Maine is likely to have slow growth as well. The important forest products sector has been blunted by the recent events, including a slowdown in construction and the transition from printed media (newspapers, magazines) to digital…

Signs of Maine

Sign for the U.S. Customs Inspection Station on Route 167 in Fort Fairfield

When John Steinbeck was traveling the country in 1960, he noted that states had interesting differences expressed in their signs: The New England states use a terse form of instruction, a tight-lipped, laconic style sheet, wasting no words and few letters. . . . I am an avid reader of all signs, and I find…

Monhegan Island

Chairs on Monhegan Overlooking the Harbor (2007)

Attractive to artists since the late 19th century, its first draw was fish. See video and photos. After early European explorers passed by (Cabot in 1497, Weymouth and Champlain in 1605), the abundance of fish soon became apparent. Botanists have identified over six hundred varieties of wildflowers on the island. Monhegan Light was commissioned on July 2, 1824.