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As the season gears up, it's been exciting to hear more little voices around campus and see families engaging with our exhibits and programs. As our calendar makes clear, we are focusing even more on being a welcoming and exciting space for our youngest visitors. New weekly programs, week-long summer camps, and our long-standing hands-on exhibits are at the core of this effort.
We are excited to announce that this work will now receive a boost from a grant from the Frances R. Dewing Foundation. These funds will enhance our weekly Junior Adventurers program and add more kid-focused interpretation throughout PMM. Watch for more programs and hand-on experiences to get all generations learning more about Maine's rich maritime culture, and be sure to stop on by with your youngest friends!
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Celebrate the 120th Anniversary of E.B. White's Birthday with PMM
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E.B. White's "Faint Endeavor"
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On Thursday, July 11 join PMM as we celebrate beloved children's book author E.B. White's birthday will a family friendly party from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm, and a cocktail party for the adults from 6:00 to 8:30 pm.
The family friendly festivities are presented in collaboration with Carver Memorial Library, and will include a storytime reading, crafts, games, and face painting. Stone Fox Farm Creamery will be selling their ice cream during the party, and the first 50 children will receive a free kid's ice cream cone. There is no cost for this event, and Museum admission will be free all day for children 16 and under.
The evening cocktail party is for ages 21 and over, and will include a cash bar. Partygoers will enjoy an evening of readings and cocktails in the Museum's boat barns. Fans are encouraged to bring their own favorite E.B. White passage and join in on the fun. The cost of the cocktail party is $8 and $5 for Museum members. Cocktails will be available at an additional charge.
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Join us for a free reception for Susan Tobey White's
Lobstering Women of Maine,
5:00 to 7:00 pm on Sunday, July 14. This exhibit has been made possible thanks to generous support from:
Check out this
great feature in the Bangor Daily News of Susan Tobey White's Lobstering Women of Maine exhibit.
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On Saturday, July 20, visitors will be able to explore the Museum's 2019 Where in the World? exhibit through special family-friendly activities including trivia, a scavenger hunt, speakers, and more. All activities are included with Museum admission.
The Where in the World? exhibit features paintings of Maine cargo ships in foreign ports and the navigational charts that guided the way. Captains and owners commissioned paintings of their vessels as a point of pride to ensure a successful voyage. Today, these port paintings provide viewers with a tour of the ports as they looked in the early to mid-1800s. Navigational charts with hand-written course notations from the Museum's collections accompany the port paintings, putting the voyages of Maine sea captains into geographical context. This exhibit has been made possible with grant support from the Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust, and sponsorship from:
Where in the World? Day
has been made possible thanks to generous support from:
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Acrylic Painting Workshop
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Saturday, July 27, 10am to 4pm, local artist Susan Tobey White will hold an acrylic painting workshop at the Museum. Participants will have the opportunity to use photographs from the Museum's collections as inspiration. All levels are welcome. The cost of this workshop is $125 or $115 for PMM members. Materials list available.
Registration deadline is July 19. To register, call 207-548-2529 ext. 213 or email [email protected].
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Seeking Foul Weather Gear
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Young visitors love trying out our foul weather gear in the "Gone Fishin'" exhibit! Mikaela was catching fish and singing along as she "row, row," rowed her boat. These clothing items are well-loved and in need of replacement. Do you have gently-used foul weather gear that needs a new home? Contact Jeana at
[email protected]
to arrange a donation. Thanks!
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Historic Photo Exhibit on Display
at Belfast City Hall
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| Winter scene of lower Main Street, Belfast |
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PMM will be the "guest artist" at Belfast City Hall for the next 3 months. The exhibit will feature photographs from Belfast's former undertaker, Charles Coombs as well as photos from Belfast's own Eastern Illustrating & Publishing Co. Collection. The exhibit will be on display from June 28 -September 30. So the next time you have to pay a parking ticket or license your dog take a gander!
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New York Harbor
In 1825, with the opening of the Erie Canal to the Great Lakes, New York became the major transshipping point for grain between the American interior and Europe. By 1840, more passengers and tonnage of cargo came through New York Harbor than all other United States ports combined. The New York trade was so profitable, that Maine built ships made it their homeport and rarely, if ever, returned to their birthplace. Searsport's shipbuilding and -owning Carver family moved to New York City in the late 1870s and set up Baker, Carver, and Morrill, a ship chandlery selling clothing, food, and other supplies to ships.
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| New York Harbor, James E. Buttersworth, signed, c.1860. Oil on board. Museum purchase funded by Susan H. Crowe, Robert L. Hammer and Charles M. Cawley, #1999.10 |
New York Harbor, A Closer Look:
Castle Garden, New York's immigration headquarters from 1855-1890 until supplanted by Ellis Island, sits at the left side of the shoreline. On Governor's Island, to the right, Fort Williams, fires a salute. During the Civil War, Fort Williams housed Union recruits, was a barracks for the garrison's troops, and a prison for Confederate prisoners of war. In busy New York Harbor commerce and recreation compete for space: in the midst of a yacht race, a towboat brings a ship of the line into the harbor.
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| New York Harbor Inset from "Cape May to the Kennebec River" Nautical Chart Charles Copley, Hydrographer, circa 1854. Gift of Captain George A. Erskine, #106 |
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PMM Pen Bay 2020 Calendar
Coming Soon!
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We are excited to announce that our 2020 Penobscot Bay wall calendars will be available soon! Next year Maine celebrates its bicentennial and our calendar will help you mark each historical day. Each month features an iconic photo from the Eastern Illustrating collection from various towns around Penobscot Bay and includes informative captions about the photos and interesting factoids about Penobscot Bay towns and villages. It was beautifully designed by graphic designer and PMM volunteer, Norma Whitman and measures 13" x 19" and will retail for $15.99, with shipping available at an additional cost. We anticipate these calendars being available mid-July. This will be a limited edition so pre-order yours today!
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All Aboard! More Eastern Illustrating Negatives Now Online!
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| Bangor & Aroostook Railroad's station at Northern Maine Junction |
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Last fall I was alerted by one of our supporters that someone had listed a few Eastern Illustrating negatives on Ebay. It turned out the seller had nearly 100 Eastern glass negatives all of which featured trains, stations
and trolleys, mostly of Maine.
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Bangor & Aroostook Railroad's coal shipping facilities in Searsport |
Through generous donations from a few of our supporters, Phil Morse,David Jones, Ann & Nat Foss and Jim Rossman, money was raised to make the deal. Over the past few months the negatives were digitized and cataloged. Check them out
here!
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Serendipitous Find!
Photo archivist, Kevin Johnson, was recently preparing a slideshow for his talk for the South Thomaston Historical Society. While looking for Carroll Thayer Berry photos of South Thomaston, he saw a familiar face in a group of 1959 images taken near the Morse Boat Yard. Wearing his telltale plaid suit jacket, flat cap and the stub of a cigarette stuck between his fingers, it was none other than Kosti Ruohomaa. Berry and Ruohomaa along with Jim Moore, teamed up to do a book in 1959 titled Maine Coastal Portrait. The classic portrait that Berry took of Kosti "in action" leads us to imagine what the portrait of Berry looks like that Kosti was taking at the same time. We will be keeping an eye out for it as we process Kosti's archive!
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The Samuel F. Manning Collection
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If a picture is worth a thousand words, then Samuel F. Manning's illustrations in the 19 books, numerous periodicals, and multiple projects have exponentially added to the information provided to researchers and nautical enthusiasts. His technical drawings have elucidated the complexities of lofting in our current exhibit Scaling Up:
The Canoa da Picada Plan Goes Full-Size. Sam donated the bulk of his archived drawings, correspondence, and meticulous research notes to us in 2017, and we have been scanning and cataloguing his 47 years worth of his work on
subjects ranging from ship and boat building, to coastal and deep sea shipping, to Maine town histories. Here are a few highlights from the collection:
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| One of the earliest voyagers by sea on a floating log from the book Ships Through History. Samuel F. Manning Illustration Collection, LB2016.25.3 |
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| A classic Maine Downeast lobster boat from the book Ships Through History. Samuel F. Manning Illustration Collection, LB2016.25.98 |
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| Want to learn to chart a course? Sam can guide you through the process in the book The Complete Guide to Sailing & Seamanship. Samuel F. Manning Illustration Collection, LB2016.25.154 |
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| Does your engine have you befuddled? Know the parts of an engine from the book The Complete Guide to Sailing & Seamanship. Samuel F. Manning Illustration Collection, LB2016.25.177 |
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| Find your way to Bath, Maine in 1908 from the book Evolution of the Wooden Ship. Samuel F. Manning Illustration Collection, LB2016.25.1311 |
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| Sam takes the table of offsets to 3-D in this article for Wooden Boat. Samuel F. Manning Illustration Collection, LB2016.25.1467 |
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Junior Adventurers: Lighthouses
Wednesday, July 3
11am and lasts half an hour to one hour
Included with Museum admission
After a reading of Abbie Against the Storm, participants will take a special tour of the Ship Captain's house, make a lighthouse craft, and conduct a lighthouse experiment.
Sponsored by Wayne Hamilton in memory of Loraine Hamilton.
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4th of July at PMM
Free Museum admission
Thursday, July 4,
Museum open 10am-5pm, activities until 1pm
Whether on land or at sea in the late 1800s, Searsport locals always celebrated Independence Day with decorations and entertainment. Enjoy traditional activities like croquet, bean bag toss, and children's crafts on the Museum's crescent.
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Junior Adventurers: Life In Maine
Wednesday, July 10
11am and lasts half an hour to one hour
Included with Museum admission
Discover the animals and daily tasks that made up life in Maine through a reading of Robert McCloskey's One Morning in Maine, visiting the boat barns, and more!
Sponsored by Wayne Hamilton in memory of Loraine Hamilton.
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E.B. White's Birthday Party
Thursday, July 11, 11am-2pm
Free with Museum admission
Free children's Museum admission all day
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E.B. White At Night
Thursday, July 11, 6pm-8:30pm
$8/person, $5/PMM member
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Susan Tobey White's Lobstering Women Of Maine Exhibition Reception
Sunday, July 14, 5pm-7pm
PMM Old Town Hall, 7 Church Street
FREE
Exhibit sponsored by Hamilton Marine.
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Junior Adventurers: Maps
Wednesday, July 17
11am and lasts half an hour to one hour
Included with Museum admission
Enjoy a reading of Tish Rabe's There's a Map on My Lap
followed by a compass rose game and craft, a special visit to the Where in the World exhibit, and a pirate's map treasure hunt.
Sponsored by Wayne Hamilton in memory of Loraine Hamilton.
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Where In The World?
Saturday, July 20, 10am-5pm
Included with Museum admission
Sponsored by Allen Insurance and Financial.
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Junior Adventurers: Animals At Sea
Wednesday, July 24
11am and lasts half an hour to one hour
Included with Museum admission
Beginning with a reading of Captain's Castaway, participants will also enjoy visiting the animals photograph exhibit, making a wildlife feeder to take home, and more.
Sponsored by Wayne Hamilton in memory of Loraine Hamilton.
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Speaker: Weather With Tom Shyka
Thursday, July 25, 6pm
(rescheduled from July 18)
$8/person, $5/PMM member
PMM Old Vestry, 2 Church Street, Searsport
The Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems (NERACOOS) spans coastal waters from the Canadian Maritime Provinces to the New York Bight. NERACOOS provides weather and ocean data to fishers and commercial shippers determining if conditions are safe for passage and to emergency managers issuing storm warnings. Tom Shyka, Product and Engagement Manager at NERACOOS will talk about weather reporting to ships and interesting weather patterns observed through the NERACOOS buoy data.
Sponsored by Hamilton Marine.
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Workshop: Acrylic Painting With Susan Tobey White:
Photos As Inspiration
Saturday, July 27, 10am-4pm
$125/participant, $115 for PMM members
Registration deadline is July 19
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Junior Adventurers: Ice
Wednesday, July 31
11am and lasts half an hour to one hour
Included with Museum admission
Discover the cool history of ice harvesting through a reading of The Ice Horse, a science experiment, a visit to the ice harvesting exhibit, and more.
Sponsored by Wayne Hamilton in memory of Loraine Hamilton.
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Speaker: Weather With Ralph Stanley
Thursday, August 1, 6pm
$8/person, $5/PMM member
PMM Old Vestry, 2 Church Street, Searsport
Ralph Stanley, legendary boat builder and local historian, will share exciting stories about shipwrecks and disasters of Mount Desert Island vessels and shipwrecks at Mount Desert Island.
Sponsored by Hamilton Marine.
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