Sailing through Gotha A photograph on the wall of Wesley Rodstrom Jr.’s office at Consolidated Yachts on City Island in the Bronx, New York City, speaks volumes about this storied place: one of the two men in the picture is Sir Thomas Lipton, the British tea merchant who tried five times to win the America’s
Cranberry Report
When David Thomas came to Little Cranberry Island to teach in the Islesford School in August 1973, he rented a room from Cathy and Lucien Poulin before he rented Peter Bently’s house. He then lived in the Gifford house, moving to David and Audrey Mill’s little cottage on the ledges for the summer. After his
Thea Youngs, Chebeague Island fellow, at the center of activity
It’s a great feeling to be in the center of things. Thea Youngs is starting the second year of her Island Institute fellowship on Chebeague Island, where she works in the Chebeague Town Office. She says it’s a great place to be. “It’s the center of activity. I like the way you never really know
Art for the Sky project brings together Vinalhaven students
All dressed in blue and black, and giggling, the entire student body of Vinalhaven School huddled together on the baseball outfield on the morning of October 1. To an average bystander the students and staff may have looked like a disorganized mass, but from above one could see they formed the shape of a blue
Vinalhaven students explore island’s sustainability using technology
Vinalhaven middle school students are getting a very holistic approach to aspects of their education this year, and learning technology and about their community at the same time. For the past three years, students at the Vinalhaven School have been studying the question of whether the year-round community on Vinalhaven will be able to sustain
School design can help spark student curiosity
It isn’t just for the sake of doing business that architect Steve Blatt wishes there were lots of island schools off the coast of Maine. After designing the North Haven Community School, which opened this fall, he is now planning the renovations and new construction for the Islesboro Central School. That experience is making him
Remembering Mainers on board the USS Maine
On February 15, 1898 the battleship USS Maine was sunk in Havana harbor. The ship had been sent to Cuba to protect American interests during a period of intense local unrest against the Spanish government on the island. Most of the 266 men who died were crew members, sleeping or resting in the forward part
Island Institute launches climate change program
The Island Institute has launched a program to assess the potential effects of climate change on Maine’s lobster fishery; and has recently released a report of the preliminary findings. It is difficult for climate scientists to distinguish the effects of climate change from the naturally occurring variability that characterizes climate in our region. Nevertheless, based
Vinalhaven veteran: “My sacrifice was worth every second of missing home and fear of death”
Last November, in honor of Veterans’ Day, Vinalhaven resident and Working Waterfront writer Kris Osgood interviewed Sergeant Kenny Spalding of the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division. Spalding, the son of Lainey Young of Vinalhaven, served three tours in Iraq. The first began Dec. 4, 2004 and the last ended March 12, 2008. Spalding has left
Managing ourselves into oblivion
Sharing the Ocean: Stories of Science, Politics and Ownership from America’s Oldest Industry By Michael Crocker Tilbury House, 2008 Softcover, 160 pages, $20 “An Enormous, Immensely Complicated Intervention” Groundfish, the New England Fishery Management Council, and the World Fisheries Crisis By Spencer Apollonio and Jacob J. Dykstra E Book Time LLC, Montgomery, Alabama, 2008