Andy Wyeth and the hearse in question being moved off Louds Island. PHOTO: KOSTI RUOHOMAA COLLECTION/PENOBSCOT MARINE MUSEUM

Working Waterfront

A misheard word led to iconic photo

A working waterfront is loosely defined as critical access to coastal waters for people engaged in commercial and recreational fishing, seafood processing, boat building, aquaculture, and other water-dependent businesses. The accompanying photograph of the pier on Louds Island pushes that definition a bit, but it was in fact a water-dependent… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Our ocean’s troubling plastic problem

As I stood on the Rockland breakwater, trying to pry a piece of Styrofoam from between two boulders, my Island Institute co-workers scoured the beach, picking up trash as part of the Maine Coastal Cleanup Program. With teamwork, we finally freed that stubborn piece of plastic and I felt a… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The best things in life are…

“The best things in life are free,” the saying goes. It’s true, in my experience— good friends, nice weather, positive experiences, great memories, the beauties of nature. I could go on, but you should draw up your own list of freebies. Boats are an exception, you might think. They can… SEE MORE

DOT Commissioner Bruce Van Note speaks at the ceremony. PHOTO: ALEX ZIPPARO

Working Waterfront

New Matinicus boat commissioned

The new ferry is named after a heroic Maine veteran and member of the Penobscot Nation who served as a combat medic during the D-Day invasion of France in 1944. Private Shay saved many lives on Omaha Beach and was awarded the Silver Star and French Legion of Honor... SEE MORE

Sara Rademaker, left, and Anne Langston Noll, winners of the Phyllis Wyeth Visionary Award.

Working Waterfront

Herring Gut center honors Rademaker, Langston Noll

In August, Herring Gut Coastal Science Center honored two women active on the coast with an award named in honor of Phyllis Wyeth, founder of the educational center based in Port Clyde. The Phyllis Wyeth Visionary Award was given to Anne Langston Noll and Sara Rademaker. Langston Noll, as associate… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

My passion for paddling

We are inexorably drawn to water. We embrace a quiet swim in a remote pond on a hot summer afternoon, revel in a dive into a pool. A soak in a hot tub or even a hot shower on a chilly morning can be sublime, and a winter’s walk on… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Developer wants ‘mixed use’ at Cushing’s Point

The plan by a California land developer to convert the former shipyard at Cushing’s Point where Liberty ships were built during World War II into a 30-acre “mixed-use neighborhood” including as many as 1,000 residential units is creeping forward in the face of substantial opposition from many in the South… SEE MORE

Fishing off Stonington. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

‘Blue economy’ expert makes bold predictions

Speaking at the state’s top lobster-landing port, Charlie Colgan had a harsh prognosis for the fishery. But he also offered hope for a future for the community in which it might still rely on a thriving blue economy. Colgan, a former state economist and director of research for the Center… SEE MORE

David Dewey working on site in Rockland. PHOTO: COURTESY OF ARTIST

Working Waterfront

David Dewey’s Rockland

As a painter of light, Dewey explains, watercolor is a natural medium. “It is all about light through the transparent layering of color pigments on white paper,” he writes. SEE MORE

The Waldoboro Custom House, circa 1890s. PHOTO: MAINE MARITIME MUSEUM

Working Waterfront

Former federal buildings are maritime commerce relics

Scattered across the coast of Maine are the remnants of a network of federal buildings that were once the center for documenting maritime commerce. The activities of custom houses included recording the arrivals and clearances of vessels, examining cargoes, collecting duties, and listing passengers and crew. For a large chunk… SEE MORE