Bailey Island in Harpswell
[BAY-lee iland] The island is in the town of Harpswell on Casco Bay. For over two centuries of European settlement, Bailey Island was unconnected from the mainland. Though proposed as early as 1872, a bridge…
Bangs Island
East Shore of Bangs Island (2015) On Casco Bay in the town of Chebeague Island, narrow Bangs Island is just short of a mile long. It is owned by the Maine Department of Conservation and was managed by the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife in 2013. An aquaculture lease for suspended culture of blue…
Beals Island
is a town in Washington County, located primarily on Beals and Great Wass Islands, along with more than a dozen others. The Great Wass Archipelago nature preserve, in Beals and Jonesport, is managed by The Nature Conservancy.
Campobello Island
[cam-poo-BEL-loo] is an island in Canada, joined by a causeway to Lubec in Washington County. Acquired by FDR’s father James Roosevelt in 1883, the house was ready for the family in 1885. It became the summer retreat of Franklin D. and Eleanor Roosevelt, even before he became President of the United States. Franklin spent most…
Chebeague Island
[shuh-BEEG-iland] is a town in Cumberland County, incorporated on July 1, 2007 after separating from the mainland town of Cumberland. In doing so, it joined its neighbor Long Island as another new town in Casco Bay. The 2000 census recorded the population at 356; in 2010 it was 341. The town consists of…
Cranberry Isles
in Hancock County, incorporated 1830, requires ferries or water taxis to access. The 200 acre cranberry marsh on Great Cranberry Island influenced Governor Bernard in 1762 to name the town as it is. Little Cranberry hosts the Islesford Historical Museum; The Baker Island and Bear Island light stations provide navigation assistance near Acadia National Park. See map.
Curtis Island
[KUR-tis ISLAND], known for many years as Negro Island, is located in Camden Harbor in Knox County. Established in 1835, a light at the station was first lit in 1896 and was automated in 1972. White with a black “lantern” holding a 300 millimeter solar powers lens, the concrete tower stands 25 feet in height.…
Damariscove Island
Just south of Booth Bay, the island was one of the earliest places along the Maine coast inhabited by Europeans. Even before the Pilgrim’s Mayflower arrived, fishermen from England, France, Spain and Holland caught and dried cod, which was shipped to Europe. By 1605 the English were fishing near the island. In 1622 when the…
Deer Isle
John Steinbeck on Deer Isle: “There is something about it that opens no door to words.” Deer Isle-Sedgwick Bridge links the island to the mainland. See photos. The town, in Hancock County and incorporated 1789, includes nature preserves and 77 coastal islands. .
Dix Island
[DICKS ISLAND] is located three miles off shore from the town of South Thomaston in the Muscle Ridge Islands group of about fifteen islands and a fair number of ledges and reefs. Dix Island Harbor lies to the southeast of the island among ledges and several other islands. For most boaters, the north shore with…
Frenchboro
Settled in the early 1800s, the island had a population of 19 in 1820, when fishing and some logging sustained the community. Other than for a period of pulpwood harvesting, few roads were constructed outside Lunt Harbor. See amateur film, video and photos. While many Maine islands struggle to maintain a critical mass of population, Frenchboro experienced a substantial reversal of three decades of decline when the 2010 U.S. Census confirmed sixty-one people as resident.
Georges Islands
Allen Island with the Weymouth Cross; Benner Island at Right (2006) The Georges Islands are about four miles south southwest of Port Clyde in Knox County. They include Allen, Benner, Davis, Burnt and Little Burnt islands. According to The Maine Island Trail 2000 Stewardship Handbook and Guide (p. 125), “In the 1800’s, fishing and…
Goslings, The
Two Islands These two small islands, in the town of Harpswell, are in Middle Bay, a major inlet off Casco Bay. A popular destination for boaters, they lie just off the southern tip of Lower Goose Island. Each has campsites with a strict carry-in carry-out policy. Maine Coast Heritage Trust is the owner and steward.…
Great Diamond Island
Great Diamond, home to Fort McKinley, is just northeast of its neighbor Little Diamond Island, linked only by a sandbar at low tide. The island has a limited network of roads, used primarily by golf carts and bicycles. Access is by about a half hour ferry ride from Portland Harbor, with two landing sites. Landing site…
Haskell Island
Haskell is an island in the town of Harpswell, not accessible by land. It lies at the edge of Casco Bay on the south end of Merriconeag Sound. A summer home to seasonal residents, the island retains many features of its earlier history. Once known as New Damariscove Island, then Pulpit, it was finally named…
Hope Island
This mile-long, 89-acre island is near the southwest shore of Great Chebeague Island. It has been a part of the City of Portland, the Town of Cumberland, and the Town of Chebeague. In 1935 Hope Island, then part of the City of Portland, was owned by Howard S. Eckels and Josephine H. Eckels. The photo…
Islands
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…
Isle au Haut
Samuel de Champlain apparently named it in 1604 from the French for “high island.” About half the island is incorporated into Acadia National Park. Isle au Haut is both a lobstering community and a retreat for seasonal cottage owners. It has also been home to author-fisherman Linda Greenlaw.
Islesboro
is the marker for dividing East Penobscot Bay from West Penobscot Bay. It includes North and South Islesboro connected by a narrow segment of land, See chart and photo. Seven Hundred Acre Island, Job Island. The 129 acres of forested Warren Island hosts a state park with a dock and moorings. Grindel Point Light Station in Gilkey Harbor on Islesboro was established in 1850.
Lasell Island
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.