Category: history

76 Days Adrift. Lamoine Man's Incredible Story of Survival Coming to Reel Pizza Cinerama in powerful documentary.
Events, history

76 Days Adrift.

Lamoine Man’s Incredible Story of Survival Coming to Reel Pizza Cinerama in powerful documentary. Shaun Farrar Oct 07, 2025 The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by The Witham Family Hotels Charitable Fund. BAR HARBOR—Two and a half months. 76 days. 1,824 hours. 109,440 minutes. An eternity. No matter how you measure it, surviving for that amount of time in the open ocean in a six-foot … Continue reading 76 Days Adrift.

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Where Farrand Once Walked: New Garden Path Will Open at Reef Point off Bar Harbor's Shore Path
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Where Farrand Once Walked: New Garden Path Will Open at Reef Point off Bar Harbor’s Shore Path

Shaun Farrar Aug 21, 2025 The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by Thrive Juice Bar & Kitchen. BAR HARBOR—For the first time in 70 years, visitors will once again be able to experience a piece of what was once the famed gardens of Beatrix Farrand’s Reef Point estate. While the original Shore Path entrance and sweeping grounds remain part of history, the new owners of … Continue reading Where Farrand Once Walked: New Garden Path Will Open at Reef Point off Bar Harbor’s Shore Path

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A Car Once Bought With a Song Wins National Award with Style.
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A Car Once Bought With a Song Wins National Award with Style

Carrie Jones Jul 26, 2025 SEAL COVE—This month a museum on Mount Desert Island quietly won a major award in the world of antique automobiles for a car once owned by Metropolitan opera lyric tenor James Melton. The Seal Cove Auto Museum hosted an 1910 Pierce—Arrow 36—UU Runabout at the Misselwood Concours d’Elegance at Endicott College in Beverly, Massachusetts. The auto museum earned official congratulations … Continue reading A Car Once Bought With a Song Wins National Award with Style

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A Town Woven Together: Mount Desert Clerk Wins Regional Award for Quilt-Inspired Poster Carrie Jones Jul 23, 2025 Claire Woolfolk with her winning poster of Mount Desert The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by Swan Agency Real Estate. MOUNT DESERT—The Town of Mount Desert, led by Town Clerk Claire Woolfolk took top prize at NEMCI & A (New England Municipal Clerk Institute and Academy) regional competition. The prize wasn’t for best budget, beautiful views, or anything like that. It was for an interactive poster. This, however, wasn’t just any poster. It was art created by Woolfolk via knowledge and quilt squares and it represented not just the Town of Mount Desert, but the community and the places and people who have comprised its history and some who still are. ”The assignment was for year-one students to make a poster representing ourselves and our municipality,” Woolfolk explained Tuesday. “Since I'm a quilter, I chose nine locations/points of interest and used 16 people throughout the town's history as the cornerstones.” When she presented the quilt-poster to the selectboard during its meeting July 21, there were ohs, ahs, and sighs of appreciation. Some board members left their seats to peer more closely at the art. “Claire is a talented artist, as you see from the poster she created,” Town Manager Durlin Lunt said Wednesday. “She creates images in her mind before transposing them to a physical form for all to enjoy. Her preferred medium involves sewing and quilting, but she could create visual art using any materials of her choosing.” The poster is interactive. You unclip it to expose the entire piece. “The program is the NEMCI (New England Municipal Clerk Institute, a regional group of the six New England states of municipal clerks). The program is an intensive three-year training. Each year consists of 22 two-hour classes in six days,” Woolfolk said. Mount Desert won first place in the regional competition, placing first out of thirty students from six New England states. “NEMCI and other regional or national governmental professional organizations are an important component of municipal professional development. Town of Mount Desert Department Heads are always encouraged to be active in,” Lunt said. “We can learn so much from our peer groups and educate their members as well through sharing best practices. Claire enthusiastically avails herself of such opportunities.” It’s a lot of work, which Woolfolk is used to. She’s worked in the Mount Desert clerk’s office since 2010, beginning as an assistant clerk and by 2015, she was the head clerk for the town. A town clerk makes sure that town’s records are kept and that its elections are safe and secure. “I've been wanting to make a quilt for the town for years and decided to take this opportunity. It was a rewarding assignment and I learned a lot about the people who built this community and the accomplishments that make it such a special place,” Woolfolk said. Woolfolk made the entire poster herself. She’s quick to point out, however, “I had input from some of our residents, co-workers and the MDI Historical Society.” The quilt features figures like Dorothy Renault and Joseph Curtis, Karol Hagberg and Stephen Smith and iconic places such as Thuya Gardens, the Somesville Bridge, and the Fish House in Otter Creek. There is extensive narrative to go along with the deftly created images. She’ll complete the quilt for good in the future. She might change out a few blocks as well. Photos: Shaun Farrar/Bar Harbor Story ABOUT NEMCI&A The New England Municipal Clerks' Institute & Academy (NEMCI&A) is an intensive program of continuing professional education for those in attendance. The purpose is to assist Clerks in developing and maintaining the high level of administrative expertise needed for the successful operation of increasingly complex municipal governments. Population changes, increased municipal responsibilities and extensive social and legislative changes have increased both the difficulty and importance of the clerk's function. With increased responsibility comes a need for professional education to aid the municipal clerk in acquiring the necessary new skills and knowledge, while developing and strengthening those already in use. Over 500 cities and towns have sent clerks to the New England Municipal Clerks' Institute and Academy. The Following Two Images are Paid Content From The Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce Thanking Its Sponsors and Partners for Independence Day MOUNT DESERT 365 CURRENT JOB POSTINGS: All postings can be accessed here. Director of Development for Camp Beech Cliff Director of Finance for Camp Beech Cliff Place-based Class Teacher: Grades 3-5 for The Community School Chief Financial Officer for Land & Garden Preserve Chief Operating Officer for Land & Garden Preserve Gardener - Thuya Garden for Land & Garden Preserve Groundskeeper - Thuya Garden for Land & Garden Preserve Head Grower for Land & Garden Preserve Public Works Office Coordinator for the Town of Mount Desert Town Manager for the Town of Mount Desert Registered Community Health Nurse for Mount Desert Nursing Association (Part Time) Caretaker for Seaside United Church of Christ CLERK JOBS THROUGHOUT NEW ENGLAND Principal Office Assistant - Finance/Town Clerk Yarmouth, MA View Ad Assistant Town Clerk Town of Branford, CT View Ad City Clerk/Clerk of the Council City of Newton View Ad Election Supervisor City of Newton View Ad Follow us on Facebook. And as a reminder, you can easily view all our past stories and press releases here. Bar Harbor Story is a mostly reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, please consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Thanks for being here with us and being part of our community, too! Thanks for reading Bar Harbor Story ! This post is public so feel free to share it. Share If you’d like to donate to help support us, you can, but no pressure! Just click here (about how you can give) or here (a direct link), which is the same as the button below. To support The Story If you’d like to sponsor the Bar Harbor Story, you can! Learn more here. Leave a comment THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING OUR COMMITMENT TO YOUR COMMUNITY
history

A Town Woven Together: Mount Desert Clerk Wins Regional Award for Quilt-Inspired Poster

Carrie Jones Jul 23, 2025 The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by Swan Agency Real Estate. MOUNT DESERT—The Town of Mount Desert, led by Town Clerk Claire Woolfolk took top prize at NEMCI & A (New England Municipal Clerk Institute and Academy) regional competition. The prize wasn’t for best budget, beautiful views, or anything like that. It was for an interactive poster. This, however, wasn’t just any … Continue reading A Town Woven Together: Mount Desert Clerk Wins Regional Award for Quilt-Inspired Poster

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More Than a Festival: Dawnland is a Gathering of Hearts, Art, Stories, and Ideas
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More Than a Festival: Dawnland is a Gathering of Hearts, Art, Stories, and Ideas

Carrie Jones Jul 14, 2025 Share The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by The Witham Family Hotels Charitable Fund. BAR HARBOR—Corinna Francis traveled approximately three hours to attend the Dawnland Festival of Arts and Ideas. The cost to attend a festival and sell her jewelry is a lot when it’s a multi-day event. The artist, like Francis, has to pay for gas, a hotel room, … Continue reading More Than a Festival: Dawnland is a Gathering of Hearts, Art, Stories, and Ideas

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Town Hill’s Empty Church Building Awaits a New Calling VIS Seeks Solutions For Church's Future
history

Town Hill’s Empty Church Awaits a New Calling

VIS Seeks Solutions For Church’s Future Carrie Jones and Shaun Farrar Jul 12, 2025 TOWN HILL—The green and white church on the Crooked Road once hosted congregants who mourned, married, and celebrated within the structure. It had a Sunday school and worship services and many a potluck. Once 65 students went to Sunday school there. It was a place with purpose. Now, the West Eden Church, … Continue reading Town Hill’s Empty Church Awaits a New Calling

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history

Let’s Talk Horror: It’s Acadia After Dark

Reverend Redbeard brings the delightfully terrifying to a podcast Carrie Jones Apr 12, 2025 Share BAR HARBOR—Bar Harbor’s Reverend Redbeard has a new venture and it’s all telling us about the scary stories, tales, and people who focus on them. Scary things and Maine seem to go hand-in-hand, a phenomena that began even before famed horror writer, Stephen King. There is no shortage of material … Continue reading Let’s Talk Horror: It’s Acadia After Dark

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Moratorium Talks: What Has a Place in Bar Harbor? Workshop continues to collect information
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Moratorium Talks: What Has a Place in Bar Harbor?

Workshop continues to collect information Carrie Jones Apr 01, 2025 Share The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by First National Bank. BAR HARBOR—As the Bar Harbor Planning Board worked through lodging moratorium issues, March 27, its members heard a history of transportation and lodging on Mount Desert Island from Dr. Sean Cox, managing editor of the Mount Desert Island Historical Society’s Chebacco. “It wasn’t an automobile island … Continue reading Moratorium Talks: What Has a Place in Bar Harbor?

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MOUNT DESERT ISLAND HAD A REAL SANTA CLAUS And it still does.
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MOUNT DESERT ISLAND HAD A REAL SANTA CLAUS

And it still does. Carrie Jones Dec 25, 2024 Share This story was originally published in 2022. It’s been updated. THE NORTH POLE AND BAR HARBOR—In 1920, Dr. J.B. Ells came back from World War I and he returned to Bar Harbor. One of his first greeters when he arrived home was a 15-year-old boy who had been paralyzed. While the doctor was away at … Continue reading MOUNT DESERT ISLAND HAD A REAL SANTA CLAUS

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This Century-old Down East Tradition Delivers Christmas Cheer Wrapped in Red String
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This Century-old Down East Tradition Delivers Christmas Cheer Wrapped in Red String

Dec 21, 2024 Share by Emily Burnham/Bangor Daily News MOUNT DESERT—The sight of the approaching Sunbeam, the Maine Seacoast Mission’s longtime service vessel, is always a welcome one for residents of Maine’s island communities especially on a frigid winter’s day, just before Christmas. For more than a century, during the holiday season the Sunbeam has visited islands and coastal communities throughout Maine, from Monhegan to the … Continue reading This Century-old Down East Tradition Delivers Christmas Cheer Wrapped in Red String

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