Hugh J. Chisholm was originally a large distributor of printed news materials sold on railroads and steamships throughout the northeast. In 1876 he started a lithographic printing company with his brothers that produced many pictorial tourist guides. While their lithographic material was printed in Portland, they imported engraved material in from Germany. At the same time they became heavily invested in Maine’s wood pulp industry. By 1892 they had become an early pioneer in publishing view-cards of the Northeast. Many of their cards were made as heavily retouched photo-chromolithographs.
Description: Hugh J. Chisholm was originally a large distributor of printed news materials sold on railroads and steamships throughout the northeast. In 1876 he started a lithographic printing company with his brothers that produced many pictorial tourist guides. While their lithographic material was printed in Portland, they imported engraved material in from Germany. At the same time they became heavily invested in Maine’s wood pulp industry. By 1892 they had become an early pioneer in publishing view-cards of the Northeast. Many of their cards were made as heavily retouched photo-chromolithographs. [show more]
The blacksmith shop was across the street from the Jonathan M. Rich house. "In addition to the house [in SWHPL 6022], Jonathan wanted the land across the road that went with it so that he could build a blacksmith shop for his son, Alvah Dalton Rich Sr., (1872-1908). Charles Edwin Hamblen married Alvah Rich's widow, Evelyn Frances (Pomroy) Rich. Their son, Alvah Dalton Rich, Jr. (1909-2002) was born after his father's death."
Description: The blacksmith shop was across the street from the Jonathan M. Rich house. "In addition to the house [in SWHPL 6022], Jonathan wanted the land across the road that went with it so that he could build a blacksmith shop for his son, Alvah Dalton Rich Sr., (1872-1908). Charles Edwin Hamblen married Alvah Rich's widow, Evelyn Frances (Pomroy) Rich. Their son, Alvah Dalton Rich, Jr. (1909-2002) was born after his father's death." [show more]
“The beginning of the ice industry was in the 1880's when Capt. John L. Stanley constructed an artificial pond in the swamp at the back of his house, built an ice house, dug a well and prepared to sell ice and water to the fishing vessels at his wharf. He soon enlarged his ice house and he continued in the business all his life, enlarging and improving from time to time and carrying on an extensive fish business. Capt. Benjamin Robinson had a pond constructed on his property and established an ice delivery business in the village, which still continues being now owned by Christopher W, Lawler.” - “Traditions and Records of Southwest Harbor and Somesville, Mount Desert Island, Maine” by Mrs. Seth S. Thornton, 1938, p. 92. “J.L. Stanley has commenced to cut ice on his Lily pond and has put in one day’s hauling, in his ice house, of very superior quality and about ten inches thick.” – Bar Harbor Record, Thursday, January 19, 1888.
Description: “The beginning of the ice industry was in the 1880's when Capt. John L. Stanley constructed an artificial pond in the swamp at the back of his house, built an ice house, dug a well and prepared to sell ice and water to the fishing vessels at his wharf. He soon enlarged his ice house and he continued in the business all his life, enlarging and improving from time to time and carrying on an extensive fish business. Capt. Benjamin Robinson had a pond constructed on his property and established an ice delivery business in the village, which still continues being now owned by Christopher W, Lawler.” - “Traditions and Records of Southwest Harbor and Somesville, Mount Desert Island, Maine” by Mrs. Seth S. Thornton, 1938, p. 92. “J.L. Stanley has commenced to cut ice on his Lily pond and has put in one day’s hauling, in his ice house, of very superior quality and about ten inches thick.” – Bar Harbor Record, Thursday, January 19, 1888. [show more]
"The Cheese House was part of the Cheese House chain which had 18 cheese-shaped locations in New England. Apparently, there are only … two buildings left. The stores were built in the late 1960s and early 1970s. They were constructed of wood with a cut-out wedge for the entrance and windows. They are 9' tall and 40' in diameter. In the late 1970s, the chain disbanded due to financial problems." - “Giant Food: Misc. Food” by Debra Jane Seltzer, Roadside Architecture.com, Accessed online 11/12/13; http://www.agilitynut.com/food/other.html The postcards for all the Cheeses Houses appear to be the same photograph. The store in Trenton was owned by Alex A. Albin and Bernice E. Albin. It closed in 1984 and the building has been for sale almost all the time since. Collectors of architectural oddities are always looking for such buildings, originally built as cheese wheels, hot dogs, clam boxes or loaves of bread.
Description: "The Cheese House was part of the Cheese House chain which had 18 cheese-shaped locations in New England. Apparently, there are only … two buildings left. The stores were built in the late 1960s and early 1970s. They were constructed of wood with a cut-out wedge for the entrance and windows. They are 9' tall and 40' in diameter. In the late 1970s, the chain disbanded due to financial problems." - “Giant Food: Misc. Food” by Debra Jane Seltzer, Roadside Architecture.com, Accessed online 11/12/13; http://www.agilitynut.com/food/other.html The postcards for all the Cheeses Houses appear to be the same photograph. The store in Trenton was owned by Alex A. Albin and Bernice E. Albin. It closed in 1984 and the building has been for sale almost all the time since. Collectors of architectural oddities are always looking for such buildings, originally built as cheese wheels, hot dogs, clam boxes or loaves of bread. [show more]
Moses Morse Sawin bought Buck's Express on August 14, 1860, "He conducted this business several years under its old name, then changed it to Sawin’s Express, which became one of the best known and most flourishing of the suburban express lines about Boston. His business was in transporting baggage and merchandise between Boston and Cambridge. He continued business until 1905, when he sold out to the Boston & Suburban Express Company, and retired from active business." - A History of Cambridge, Massachusetts (1630-1913) by Samuel Atkins Eliot, A.M., D.D. Together With Biographies of Cambridge People – The Cambridge Tribune, p. 243-4 – 1913 Sawin's Express was such a fixture of life at Harvard, transporting students' luggage to and from school, that it appeared often in jokes, skits and in Harvard alumnae publications.
Description: Moses Morse Sawin bought Buck's Express on August 14, 1860, "He conducted this business several years under its old name, then changed it to Sawin’s Express, which became one of the best known and most flourishing of the suburban express lines about Boston. His business was in transporting baggage and merchandise between Boston and Cambridge. He continued business until 1905, when he sold out to the Boston & Suburban Express Company, and retired from active business." - A History of Cambridge, Massachusetts (1630-1913) by Samuel Atkins Eliot, A.M., D.D. Together With Biographies of Cambridge People – The Cambridge Tribune, p. 243-4 – 1913 Sawin's Express was such a fixture of life at Harvard, transporting students' luggage to and from school, that it appeared often in jokes, skits and in Harvard alumnae publications. [show more]
For over a year [after the start of WWII] the Penobscot Bay islands had no regular ferry service. Local fishermen and boat owners filled in as best they could. Then, at a special town meeting in August 1942, Vinalhaven voted to raise $55,000 to build a powerboat. The result was a sixty-five-foot, diesel-powered “motorship” named “Vinalhaven II,” built in Southwest Harbor, Maine. The boat went into service in July 1943, and Charles Philbrook was her captain…” – “Stories from the Maine Coast: Skppers, Ships and Storms” by Harry Gratwick, The History Press, 2012, p. 54-55. "The “Vinalhaven II”, 57 gross tons owned by the Vinalhaven Port District, Inc. of Rockland was built [by Southwest Boat Corporation] in 1943 to serve the island of Vinalhaven with passenger and freight service to Rockland." - "Boatbuilding During World War II: MDI, Ellsworth, Stonington and Bluehill" by Ralph W. Stanley, p. 10 - 1997. “Vinalhaven II” was designed by Cyrus “Cy” Hamlin. “Clarence” Bennett, a fisherman, was one of the group that raised the money to build “Vinalhaven II.” – Ralph W. Stanley 2011.
Description: For over a year [after the start of WWII] the Penobscot Bay islands had no regular ferry service. Local fishermen and boat owners filled in as best they could. Then, at a special town meeting in August 1942, Vinalhaven voted to raise $55,000 to build a powerboat. The result was a sixty-five-foot, diesel-powered “motorship” named “Vinalhaven II,” built in Southwest Harbor, Maine. The boat went into service in July 1943, and Charles Philbrook was her captain…” – “Stories from the Maine Coast: Skppers, Ships and Storms” by Harry Gratwick, The History Press, 2012, p. 54-55. "The “Vinalhaven II”, 57 gross tons owned by the Vinalhaven Port District, Inc. of Rockland was built [by Southwest Boat Corporation] in 1943 to serve the island of Vinalhaven with passenger and freight service to Rockland." - "Boatbuilding During World War II: MDI, Ellsworth, Stonington and Bluehill" by Ralph W. Stanley, p. 10 - 1997. “Vinalhaven II” was designed by Cyrus “Cy” Hamlin. “Clarence” Bennett, a fisherman, was one of the group that raised the money to build “Vinalhaven II.” – Ralph W. Stanley 2011. [show more]
Granite quarrying began as early as 1870 on Mount Desert Island at Hall's Quarry. “The list of public buildings, libraries, state capitols, city halls, churches, and residences built with Maine granite is a lengthy one. Not only building stone but paving and curbing stone and rubble were in such demand that many schooners and larger vessels were kept busy. As in other trades, the quarry owners often owned and operated their own fleets. It was rough and heavy work and the last resort of many an old vessel that had seen her best days. For example, the famous old “Bloomer” launched on the west shore of Mt. Desert Island was still carrying stone out of Penobscot Bay eighty-two years later…” - “The Maritime History of Maine: Three Centuries of Shipbuilding and Seafaring” by William Hutchinson Rowe, published by W.W. Norton and Company, 1948, p. 263. "In 1901 the State of Maine ranked first in the nation in terms of the value of granite produced [$2,689,300]… Maine granite was used for many purposes – literally from tombstones to paving blocks. Maine firms profited from lucrative government contracts for buildings in Washington and customs houses and post offices throughout the country. The pillars of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City and Grant’s tomb in the nation’s capital were easily visible monuments to the skill and ingenuity of Maine craftsmen. Less obvious were the thousands of tons of stone from the Pine Tree State that went into cemeteries, dry docks, breakwaters, bridge abutments, cellars, fencing, hitching posts, curbing and paving along the eastern seaboard and beyond." “The granite industry in the Pine Tree State, built on the sweat of native and foreign labor and nurtured by the infusion of outside capital, began to retreat from its economic zenith in 1905 as the changes in architectural styles, competing materials, and rising costs swept up the nation.” – "Tombstones and Paving Blocks: The History of the Maine Granite Industry" by Roger L. Grindle, A Courier of Maine Book, Rockland, Maine, 1977, p. xi, p. 183.
Description: Granite quarrying began as early as 1870 on Mount Desert Island at Hall's Quarry. “The list of public buildings, libraries, state capitols, city halls, churches, and residences built with Maine granite is a lengthy one. Not only building stone but paving and curbing stone and rubble were in such demand that many schooners and larger vessels were kept busy. As in other trades, the quarry owners often owned and operated their own fleets. It was rough and heavy work and the last resort of many an old vessel that had seen her best days. For example, the famous old “Bloomer” launched on the west shore of Mt. Desert Island was still carrying stone out of Penobscot Bay eighty-two years later…” - “The Maritime History of Maine: Three Centuries of Shipbuilding and Seafaring” by William Hutchinson Rowe, published by W.W. Norton and Company, 1948, p. 263. "In 1901 the State of Maine ranked first in the nation in terms of the value of granite produced [$2,689,300]… Maine granite was used for many purposes – literally from tombstones to paving blocks. Maine firms profited from lucrative government contracts for buildings in Washington and customs houses and post offices throughout the country. The pillars of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City and Grant’s tomb in the nation’s capital were easily visible monuments to the skill and ingenuity of Maine craftsmen. Less obvious were the thousands of tons of stone from the Pine Tree State that went into cemeteries, dry docks, breakwaters, bridge abutments, cellars, fencing, hitching posts, curbing and paving along the eastern seaboard and beyond." “The granite industry in the Pine Tree State, built on the sweat of native and foreign labor and nurtured by the infusion of outside capital, began to retreat from its economic zenith in 1905 as the changes in architectural styles, competing materials, and rising costs swept up the nation.” – "Tombstones and Paving Blocks: The History of the Maine Granite Industry" by Roger L. Grindle, A Courier of Maine Book, Rockland, Maine, 1977, p. xi, p. 183. [show more]
Otmar “Otto” Franz Karban bought Echo Vista from Clarence N. Reddish on November 21, 1955. Clarence apparently bought the land and / or the business from Omar Tapley. The part of the land on the edge of the lake had belonged to Ernest T. Richardson and Vina E. (Ray) Richardson before it was sold it to Clarence Reddish. The Richardsons had a business, The Maplewood Lunch, just down the road from Echo Vista on the water side of the road.
Description: Otmar “Otto” Franz Karban bought Echo Vista from Clarence N. Reddish on November 21, 1955. Clarence apparently bought the land and / or the business from Omar Tapley. The part of the land on the edge of the lake had belonged to Ernest T. Richardson and Vina E. (Ray) Richardson before it was sold it to Clarence Reddish. The Richardsons had a business, The Maplewood Lunch, just down the road from Echo Vista on the water side of the road.
Origins of Dried Cod (and other fish) "In the Mediterranean world, where there were not only salt deposits but a strong enough sun to dry sea salt, salting to preserve food was not a new idea. In pre classical times, Egyptians and Romans had salted fish and developed a thriving trade. Salted meats were popular, and Roman Gaul had been famous for salted and smoked hams. Before they turned to cod, the Basques had sometimes salted whale meat; salt whale was found to be good with peas, and the most prized part of the whale, the tongue, was also often salted. …Even dried salted cod will turn if kept long enough in hot humid weather. But for the Middle Ages it was remarkably long-lasting – a miracle comparable to the discovery of the fast-freezing process in the twentieth century, which also debuted with cod. Not only did cod last longer than other salted fish, but it tasted better too. Once dried or salted – or both – and then properly restored through soaking, this fish presents a flaky flesh that to many tastes, even in the modern age of refrigeration, is far superior to the bland white meat of fresh cod. For the poor who could rarely afford fresh fish, it was cheap, high-quality nutrition." - "Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World" by Mark Kurlansky, Walker Publishing, 1997. p. 22-24. “Fish Flakes” were “A rack or platform for drying fish.” This New England term goes back to 1635. - “Dictionary of American Regional English” by Frederic Gomes Cassidy and Joan Houston Hall, published by the Belknap Press of Harvard University, 1996 For years the "flakes" were set out on wire racks to dry under the sun. Sea Gulls passed over them repeatedly. Today, Federal regulations would not allow this "unsanitary" practice and the racks of drying fish have disappeared.
Description: Origins of Dried Cod (and other fish) "In the Mediterranean world, where there were not only salt deposits but a strong enough sun to dry sea salt, salting to preserve food was not a new idea. In pre classical times, Egyptians and Romans had salted fish and developed a thriving trade. Salted meats were popular, and Roman Gaul had been famous for salted and smoked hams. Before they turned to cod, the Basques had sometimes salted whale meat; salt whale was found to be good with peas, and the most prized part of the whale, the tongue, was also often salted. …Even dried salted cod will turn if kept long enough in hot humid weather. But for the Middle Ages it was remarkably long-lasting – a miracle comparable to the discovery of the fast-freezing process in the twentieth century, which also debuted with cod. Not only did cod last longer than other salted fish, but it tasted better too. Once dried or salted – or both – and then properly restored through soaking, this fish presents a flaky flesh that to many tastes, even in the modern age of refrigeration, is far superior to the bland white meat of fresh cod. For the poor who could rarely afford fresh fish, it was cheap, high-quality nutrition." - "Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World" by Mark Kurlansky, Walker Publishing, 1997. p. 22-24. “Fish Flakes” were “A rack or platform for drying fish.” This New England term goes back to 1635. - “Dictionary of American Regional English” by Frederic Gomes Cassidy and Joan Houston Hall, published by the Belknap Press of Harvard University, 1996 For years the "flakes" were set out on wire racks to dry under the sun. Sea Gulls passed over them repeatedly. Today, Federal regulations would not allow this "unsanitary" practice and the racks of drying fish have disappeared. [show more]