At the end of February, when my mother-in-law went off the island to do some errands, she discovered that all four of her car tires were frozen in ice, as firmly as bezel-set stones on a ring. With her car out of commission, she changed her plans, found a ride, and did some very local
Franklin USDA aquaculture center set to open
In Franklin, the University of Maine’s Center for Cooperative Aquaculture will soon have a new neighbor, as the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is poised to complete a National Coldwater Marine Aquaculture Center right next door. Together, the two will comprise one of the largest and most important coldwater aquaculture research centers in the United
Parallel 44: Why the Royal Navy burned Portland in 1775
Take a close look at the chandelier in Portland’s First Parish Church, just up the street from City Hall: there’s a cannonball hanging from the end of it. Poke around under the pews and you’ll find more ordnance plucked from the walls of the Old Jerusalem Church, a wooden structure that stood on the site
Cranberry Isles passes all articles, defeats petitions
Bright skies and warm temperatures welcomed community members to the Cranberry Isles annual town meeting on March 12. Those arriving by boat happily walked the more than half-mile from the dock to the Great Cranberry Fire House where the meeting was held. Residents and non-residents from four of the five islands in the town were
Field program lets students “try out” ocenaography
“What a difference,” said Sheryl Gilmore of her students: “kids that want to be here.” She was talking about kids from 12 to 18 who are so determined to be marine scientists they get recommendations from their science teachers and talk their parents into letting them try it out by attending a one- or two-week
Keep it coming
To the editor: Please keep your great Working Waterfront coming. I look forward to it. Joan J. Sheldon Knox, ME 04986
Swan’s Island debates law enforcement, family subsidy
The Swan’s Island School gym was packed as townspeople convened to hold an annual Town Meeting on March 5 to approve over $1,400,000 in town expenditures. The citizens voted on 34 articles and debated an unofficial 35th article on affordable housing. They also elected new and returning officials. Nancy Carter returns for a second term
Coastal grower’s goal is year-round fresh vegetables
It is mid-morning on March 6, and the thermometer has moved up about 10 degrees from its early morning reading of two degrees Fahrenheit. The record-breaking month of cold is still hanging on. Even so, when Christopher Hahn picks up an end of a row cover in his greenhouse, a surprising mass of bright green
Thanks from an Island Post Office
To the editor: I would like to thank all of the people who have placed stamp-by-mail orders with me since I took over as Postmaster for Matinicus four years ago and also thank the Island Institute for taking the space in their newspaper, The Working Waterfront, to continually point out how important stamp sales are
Compass Project receives $30,000
The Compass Project received funding of over $30,000 in the last quarter of 2006. “These grants strengthen our organization and allow us to continue offering experiential boatbuilding programs to youth facing social and academic challenges,” said Patricia Ryan, Executive Director of the Compass Project. “Every day in our boatbuilding shop we see that hands-on programs