Beginning with a slow trickle of small field trips over the winter, nearly 500 students have walked through the doors of the Penobscot Marine Museum this school year! Students from grade three to grade twelve drove from as near as Bucksport and as far as Carrabec Community School in North Anson. Plus the 6 students from Long Island Elementary School who, along with their parents, started their day with a ferry ride to the mainland and stopped for a museum visit on their way to Acadia National Park!

Depending on the learning goals of the teachers, grade level, and sometimes the weather, students participated in a variety of activities on the PMM campus. Groups of 10-15 students rotated between activities spending about 15-30 minutes in each session. Options were arranged into themes, with the most popular being "Working the Bay" and "Life at Sea & On Shore." Students could enjoy a tour of the Fowler-True-Ross house, time for self-exploring in the Savage Education Center, a port painting craft, making and floating origami boats, scavenger hunts, and more!

Our field trip collaboration with the Maine Ocean School was particularly exciting! When teachers chose to include the Yard in the Yard activity, students from MOS would often lead it. It was wonderful to see MOS students showing younger kids how to trim the sails and tie off the lines. Thanks for your help!

Do you have a classroom, scout group, or other children's group who would enjoy a field trip to the Penobscot Marine Museum? We are continuously scheduling visits and can work with you to meet your educational goals. Find out more here or contact Jeana at  [email protected] or 207-548-2529 x213.

An early Spring slideshow at the Readfield Historical; Society inspired their members to "adopt" all 36 negatives remaining of Readfield. The Winthrop Lakes Region is as popular a spot today as it was back when Eastern was making its postcards. Enjoy the scenic views  here . 

The Eastern Collection goes beyond  Maine and the towns of  Glover  and  Woodstock , Vermont were also recently adopted. A big thank you to the Readfield Historical Society, Joan Alexander and Janet Houghton for helping make these images available!

 

Cuxhaven, Germany sits at the southwest side of the mouth of the Elbe River as it flows from the North Sea. The city of Hamburg, 58 miles downriver, in 1869 ranked as the principal commercial city and seaport of Germany, but could only accommodate vessels with a 14 foot draft, 18 feet if the spring tides flood the river. Any ship drawing a deeper draft unloaded its cargo at Cuxhaven, where lighters, or small cargo boats, ferried the cargo to Hamburg. Otherwise Cuxhaven served as a port of refuge, a winter harbor when the Elbe River iced over, a place to replenish stores for the voyage home, or as a rendezvous for passengers traveling between the Elbe River ports and England before the advent of steamships. 

Ship PREMIER. Henrich Andrea Petersen and Peter Christian Holm, signed, 1874. Oil on canvas. Gift of the Estate of John Allen, #2000.2.

 

Cuxhaven, A Closer Look

 

The ship PREMIER sails out of the Elbe River headed out to the North Sea. To the left is the breakwater of Cuxhaven harbor. The Alte Liebe (Old Deep) lighthouse with its cylindrical red brick tower, sits just beyond the breakwater. Built in 1805 by the city of Hamburg, it saw almost two centuries of use, making it Germany's oldest lighthouse in service. Beside it is the semaphore mast with a flag. The Kugelbake (Ball Beacon), the wooden tower with a vertical slatted daymark and the ball-looking daymark atop a staff perches on Bosch Head. The Kugelbake is the symbol of Cuxhaven. Just astern of the PREMIER, are other steamships and sailing ships.

We will be hosting  Brewster Harding  for the 8th (almost annual) vintage postcard and paper ephemera show on Saturday, June 15 from 8:30 am - 2:00 pm. The show will take place in the hall of the Congregational Church, 8 Church St. More than ten postcard dealers will be selling tens of thousands of antique postcards, books, prints, early advertising, and artwork. Collecting postcards is not a new hobby. In fact postcards are the 3rd most collected item behind stamps and coins. Come see what the fuss is all about! If you have some old postcards and are wondering what they might be worth, bring them along! Free appraisals from noon-2:00 pm. We hope to see you there.

Wednesdays, from June 19 

through August 7

Programs begin at 11am and 

last 30 minutes to one hour.
Included with Museum admission.

Discover the Penobscot Marine Museum through stories, crafts, games, and special tours of the exhibits. These weekly programs are designed for children and their families to have fun at the Museum. Each will explore a different topic and will include a craft to take home!

Sponsored by Wayne Hamilton in memory of Loraine Hamilton.

Saturday and Sunday, June 22 and 23, from noon to 4:00 p.m. bothdays, PMM celebrates the art of knot tying. Visitors will discover all about knots and their uses in maritime Maine with demonstrations, vendors, and special hands-on activities. Knot Your Ordinary Weekend events are included with Museum admission.

♫  Haul on the bowline, our bully ship's a rolling

Haul on the bowline, the bowline Haul! ♫ 

Sing shanties, furl the sails of Yard-in-the-Yard, build paper ships, tie sailors' knots, explore PMM's exhibits, and end the week with a pirate treasure hunt. Does your child enjoy discovering new things? This year's new Children's Explorer Camps will be full of hands-on fun including exciting games, crafts, and activities. Campers will step back in time to discover what life was like on shore and in Maine maritime communities in the 19th century. We'll also discover more about the fish that Maine fishermen caught and continue to catch and the boats and ships built in Penobscot Bay. Whether your child is interested in history or science or has a strong sense of curiosity, this camp is for them! Space is limited, register today.

	Schooner Lewis R. French with Burnt Coat Harbor Light on Swan's Island in the distance

June 16 to June 20, PMM Curator Cipperly Good will join the Schooner Lewis R. French as a guide on their lighthouse cruise. The Schooner Lewis R. French is Maine's oldest schooner and a National Historic Landmark.  PMM members will receive a 10% discount on the cruise.

Before joining the Penobscot Marine Museum Cipperly sailed on tall ships as a deckhand and educator, completed a trans-Atlantic and worked at maritime museums on both coasts of the U.S. She is thrilled to join the cruise to not only share her knowledge of Maine's lighthouses, but also Maine's maritime history.

This cruise will make an effort to sail close up to some of midcoast Maine's beautiful lighthouses offering guests great photo opportunities, and will try to visit a few ashore as well. Additionally this cruise includes tickets to the Penobscot Marine Museum so you can enjoy the Museum before or after your cruise.

Not a PMM member? Find out more about our memberships here.

To reserve your space visit  https://schoonerfrench.com/ or call 

1-800-469-4635.  Be sure to mention that you are a PMM member to receive your discount.

Check out what artist Eric Hopkins had to say about PMM to Down East Magazine.

Wednesday, June 26

11am and lasts half an hour to one hour

Included with Museum admission

Speaker: Weather With Capt. Daniel S. Parrott

Thursday, June 27, 6pm

PMM Old Vestry, 2 Church Street

Shadowbox Workshop

Saturday, June 29, 10am-Noon