Settled in 1762, its name derives from Blue Hill just north of the town’s main settlement. Blue Hill Falls and East Blue Hill are other settlements. Jonathan Fisher House, on the National Register of Historic Places, is one of the town’s major assets. Blue Hill was the original site in 1986 of Northeast Historic Film.
includes Damariscove Island, an early fishing outpost, providing critical food (fish) to the starving Pilgrims. Harvesting the sea is still a significant occupation. Now the Boothbay region is a center of summer tourist activity, with the Boothbay Playhouse and the Railroad Museum. See photos and video.
Pemaquid Neck hosts the village of New Harbor, along with Pemaquid Beach and Pemaquid Light. The area, visited by Europeans by 1569, is said to be the home of the Indian Samoset, who greeted the Pilgrims in 1621 in English. New Harbor is a departure point for Monhegan Island. See video and photos.
in Hancock County, incorporated in 1817. Its Cape Rosier recalls James Rosier who accompanied George Weymouth in explorations of 1605. Brooksville boasts one of the best harbors for small boats: Bucks Harbor. Helen and Scott Nearing lived here. See photos.
in eastern, coastal Washington County and named for the French port, was briefly settled in 1604 when a French expedition arrived on St. Croix Island. Today it features late 19th century historic brick structures, modern state and federal buildings, and a visitor center. Home to Washington County Community College. See video and photos.
The Bay contains about 200 islands (depending on what one counts as an “island” but only about 138 “good sized” islands). The Bay is bounded by Cape Elizabeth in the south and Cape Small in the north. Halfway Rock is about half way between the two capes which are about twenty miles apart, and about…
Clippers were built in Maine in the 1850’s, with 54 having been constructed from 1851 to 1854. Depending on how you define “Clipper,” William Hutchinson Rowe counts ninety from 1850 to 1856. Since some very fast ships were known as “clippers,” regardless of some technical features, Rowe declares, “And so casting close definition and technical…
The Coastal Studies Center of Bowdoin College is located on Orrs Island in Harpswell. In 1981 Irma and William Thalheimer gave the 118 acre property, including the farmhouse and barn, to Bowdoin “to be protected in its natural environment and used as a research and teaching resource for faculty and students.”1 It offers low stress…
The Gulf of Maine extends from Cape Cod in Massachusetts, to the coasts of New Hampshire, Maine, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick, and to Cape Sable, Nova Scotia. An important part of the Gulf is Casco Bay, which supports substantial varieties of marine life, but is in the midst of the highest concentration…
Harpswell Sound is a body of water that flows from Casco Bay at Little Mark Island ten miles to the Ewing Narrows Bridge, then two miles on to Long Reach and finally merges with the New Meadows River. Casco Bay has been reported as a significant warming water body. This may be contributing to…
Maine has thousands of islands. Many have had an interesting history in the discovery of Maine by Europeans, to granite quarrying, sheep raising, tourism, and summer cottages. Here is a tour of some of the more substantial islands, from Downeast to the southern coast. Hover over the green to find your island, then click…
Lasell is a private island in Penobscot Bay off shore in Knox County, near North Haven Island. It has long curving beaches with stunning views of the Bay. The small building is also private.
Once bearing the name Hog Island, Little Diamond has overcome its past and has been a respectable community of the City of Portland for decades. Few people make it their year-round home, even though there are 50+ homes and cottages on the Island. A major reason is that the City turns off the water supply in…
Inhabited since 1762, the island has many historic structures, such as the 1855 Meetinghouse and 1900 Chapel, that have survived the test of time. Part of the town of Harpswell, it is home to the Coastal Studies Center of Bowdoin College, on the shore of Harpswell Sound near Casco Bay. Several wooded walking trails offer ocean views.