Tag Archives: Portland’s working waterfront
‘Wharfside Stories’ help unwrap history of Portland’s working waterfront
For more than 60 years Leland Merrill has made a daily pilgrimage to Widgery Wharf on the city’s waterfront. These days Merrill, now in his early 90s, no longer works a lobster boat, but he still has many friends on the wharf. Merrill’s tales of life and work among the lobstermen based in Portland Harbor is part of a new collaboration between the Casco Bay Estuary Partnership and the Waterfront Alliance. The project, called “”Wharfside Stories”,” provides a look at various aspects of Portland’s working waterfront. It will be part of an exhibition that’s open to the public during the day-long Portland Unwrapped event taking place Wednesday at various venues throughout the city. continue reading the story here 16:44
James Odlin – There are fishing boats ready to come home to Maine and revitalize the state’s nonprofit Fish Exchange.
Groundfishing vessels, many of which call Maine home, are forced to travel to Gloucester, Mass., to sell their fish and the lobster by-catch, putting at jeopardy Portland’s working waterfront and risking the permanent loss of what’s left of the groundfishing fleet. Last year, more than 126 million pounds of lobster were caught close to shore in traps. By contrast, less than 100,000 pounds were caught by groundfishing boats, less than one-tenthof 1 percent of the total. continued
