American Can Company Building, Eastport

Story         

The American Can Company Building is an iconic building located on the edge of Passamaquoddy Bay in Eastport and one of the few remaining structures of the world class Downeast Maine sardine industry. It was erected by the Seacoast Canning Company in 1908, a time when the company was the largest in the industry. The 20-inch-thick brick walls, rough-cut granite windowsills, and heavy timber structural system, designed by Boston engineer Charles T. Main, permitted industrial activity inside, and also signaled a sense of prosperity and permanence for the booming company. Later renamed the American Can Company, the site was home to the Continental Brand of roll key opening can – an innovation that became the gold standard in the global sardine industry.

Threat

Following the demise of the sardine industry, the 30,000 square-foot building was used as a warehouse for aquaculture. The few improvements that had been made were concentrated on the 139 concrete piers supporting the building. Prolonged neglect of the nearly flat roof and clerestory has meant the deterioration of the roof decking, interior timber structure, and flooring. The brick exterior walls have also suffered from the failing roof and exposure to the elements.

The continued, deteriorated state of the American Can Company building is not from a lack of trying or experience. Meg McGarvey, Linda Cross Godfrey, and Nancy Asante comprise Dirigamus, LLC, owner of the site since 2005. This trio of long-time Eastport entrepreneurs and promoters assembled a professional team and planned early on to revive the building, only to reach dead-ends with highly competitive federal funding programs and roadblocks too often encountered by those looking to make a difference in underserved Washington County. They have a proven track record in Eastport, having rehabilitated the twice-condemned 1886 Mincton Buliding and founding The Commons, which showcases local artists and authors. Their efforts are widely recognized: the Maine Department of Tourism awarded them for “being the spark that launched the restoration of downtown Eastport,” Yankee Magazine named them a Destination Gallery, and the Maine Women’s Fund honored them with a Visionary Leaders Award.

How to Get Involved

Dirigamus has redoubled efforts to save and reuse this iconic landmark, dubbed “The Lantern on the Pier,” inspired by Campobello islanders across the water who remarked on the resemblance when the light needed for the night shift would emanate through the clerestory windows. When complete, The Lantern on the Pier will include a 12-suite boutique hotel, two large gathering spaces for conferences, exhibitions, and other events, as well as fourteen year-round apartments. The building anchors the south end of Eastport’s downtown, serving as a launch point to visit local cultural institutions like the Tides Institute, sample the local cuisine, or jump into a kayak to explore Cobscook Bay.

The project will have an enormous economic impact on Eastport, creating jobs and year-round housing, fostering opportunities for small businesses, and lodging more visitors. The building’s inclusion in the National Register Historic District means the redevelopment will be substantially supported by State and Federal Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits. Without financial partners, the future of the American Can Company Building will only grow more uncertain. The groundwork has been laid for the American Can Company Building redevelopment, and now the project needs investors to make this catalytic project for Eastport and the regional Downeast economy a reality.

Check out this informational brochure to learn more about The Lantern on the Pier project and Eastport, Maine.

Learn how you can become a part of the restoration by speaking directly with a member of the development team:

  • Linda Cross Godfrey, Project Facilitator/Communications Contact

  • Meg McGarvey, Owner’s Representative/Construction Team Contact

  • Nancy Asante, Online Data/History Contact

 207-853-4123 | info@lanternonthepier.com

Fort George, Castine

Story

Fort George is a Revolutionary War-era fortification originally built as Fort Castine by British forces in 1779. Later renamed Fort George in honor of King George III, it was strategically located near the Penobscot and Bagaduce Rivers. This strategic importance made it a main objective of America’s failed Penobscot Expedition to recapture Mid-coast Maine from British forces. The British re-occupied Fort George during the War of 1812, abandoning it for the last time in 1815. After the war, residents of Castine salvaged materials from the fortification for use in new buildings and infrastructure in town, while other buildings were outright demolished or burned to the ground.

The fort had an interesting “second life” in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. As early as 1888, baseball games were played inside the fort boundaries and served as the home field for Eastern State Normal School and Castine High School. Residents also used the fort as community space for celebrations and gatherings, such as the Centennial of Maine Statehood in 1920. In 1930, the State of Maine acquired the property, but it was not until the 1960s when it conducted archaeological investigations and completed a limited reconstruction of historic structures likes the bombproof apartments in the south bastion. By 1969, the fort was listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Threat

Fort George has not received the attention and resources it deserves, leaving the Revolutionary War-era fort in a state of disrepair, vulnerable to further damage, and relatively unsafe for public access. Many of the original elements of the fortification remain including the ditch, curtain walls, and bastions, while erosion has diminished the original height of the earthworks. The site is not properly signed for public use and inadequate barriers easily permit inappropriate access to vehicles. Along with earthworks that have been consumed by vegetation, the brick and wooden elements of the remaining structures on site are deteriorating and creating a hazardous environment for the public.

While the nearly five-acre site is owned by the Maine Bureau of Parks and Land, the Town of Castine is legally responsible via a decades-old agreement to manage and maintain the site. This has left Fort George in limbo. The original agreement dates to 1950 and was to be renewed every five years, but the last renewal occurred in 1981! The agreement also has ineffective language that focuses more on trash pick-up and maintenance of the baseball field, favoring recreation over historic preservation and interpretation.

The Town of Castine, with a population just over 1,000 people, does not have the capacity or resources to steward a historic site on its own, especially with a need to prioritize essential services to its residents. The effects of deferred maintenance and attention has snowballed into a severe lack of interpretation, public programming, and thus a diminished public interest and ownership of the site.  

How to Get Involved

The most sustainable, long-term way to preserve Fort George is to revisit the agreement between the State of Maine of the Town of Castine. A 2021 Historic Properties Management Plan prepared for the Town of Castine concluded the “most significant impact to the cultural resources that comprise the Fort George property stems from the tangled lines of authority for the preservation, maintenance, development, and interpretation of the site. The situation is a direct result of the historical split between the State’s ownership and the Town’s management of the property.” The report pointed out that placing the burden of maintaining a historic site of this caliber on a small town “guarantees that the site will never be interpreted or promoted to its full potential.”

A convening of state and local officials, preservation-minded organizations, and interested residents is paramount to charting a path for Fort George. Enhanced attention by the state and town would also go a long way to supporting residents who care about the property but have felt overwhelmed by all that it needs. First steps could include state-funded signage along Route 1, promotion of Fort George at Midcoast State Parks and historic sites, and inclusion in the state’s tourism promotion materials. Improvements like signage and low-impact barriers would also help dissuade inappropriate use of the site and prevent vehicles from entering the perimeter of the earthworks.

For more information on Fort George and how you can join the conversation to rethinking its future, please contact Castine Town Manager, Shawn Blodgett, at 207-326-4502 or townoffice@castine.me.us.

The Friends of Castine Fortifications, a community organization dedicated to the protection and promotion of Castine’s many forts, maintains a Facebook page.

St. Louis Church, Auburn

Story

St. Louis parish traces its origins to 1902, when it formed to serve the mostly French-Canadian neighborhood in New Auburn, a neighborhood south of downtown Auburn across the Little Androscoggin River. Parishioners first gathered in the church’s basement before they could raise enough money to carry out their full building campaign. They set to work on the tall, two-spired upper church, designed in the Gothic Revival-style by architect Timothy G. O’Connell. The parish laid the cornerstone of St. Louis in May 1915. O’Connell designed numerous Catholic and Episcopal churches across New England, including at least fifteen in Maine like St. Mary’s Church in Lewiston’s Little Canada neighborhood. Among his most notable and larger-than-life commissions was the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Lewiston. They have since been parceled off, but the St. Louis parish also built a convent in 1929 and a school in 1952, the former’s design taking queues from the gothic design of the church.  

Threat

In August 2013, the parish held its final mass and the doors have been closed ever since, following years of discussion over whether to repair the historic building. Among the major issues were large cracks along the masonry of the tower, failing concrete elements, and the shifting parapet wall that towers over the main entrance into the church. The estimated cost for repairs reportedly exceeded $1 million. Maine’s Catholic diocese subsequently sold the church building in 2014 to a group of five investors based in Lewiston and Auburn. The group envisioned that the sacred space could become an arts and culture venue, but the multi-year effort ended in failure. Following foreclosure proceedings, the City of Auburn took possession of the property in hopes of redeveloping the historic church and transforming it into an asset for the neighborhood and city.

Jay Brenchick, Auburn’s Director of Economic Development, has led the charge to market this unique property. He has opened the church doors for countless showings and pursued leads with restaurateurs, brewery owners, and small businesses. The 10,000 square feet of space and list of needed repairs and upgrades seems to be the biggest deterrent. Working numbers estimate about $1 million to conduct structural repairs and restore the church’s two facades and another $1 million to finish the interior for general use, including a new HVAC system and ADA improvements.

How to Get Involved

There is no easy solution to preserving St. Louis Church. The City of Auburn’s efforts to date have been comprehensive and have helped eliminate many unknowns for potential buyers, including completion of a structural analysis, phase one environmental review, and hazardous materials report. The City will be improving the roads in the neighborhood and has also assembled an attractive incentives package: $250,000 specifically for improving the building and another $250,000 available through tax increment financing. The landmark church is not on the National Register of Historic Places, but preliminary discussions with the Maine Historic Preservation Commission were promising, opening the opportunity to support the church’s redevelopment with State and Federal Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits.

The real estate listing for the St. Louis church is online with other properties available for sale from the City of Auburn -  https://www.goauburn.me/properties-for-sale

You can also contact Jay A. Brenchick, Auburn’s Director of Economic Development at 207-333-6601 ext. 1218 or jbrenchick@auburnmaine.gov.

Pigeon Hill Schoolhouse, Oxford

Story

The Pigeon Hill Schoolhouse was constructed around 1867 to replace the previous schoolhouse that was lost to fire immediately across Pigeon Hill Road. There is not much known about the one-room schoolhouse other than it was one of nine schools that served Oxford children and it remained active until the last teacher, Barbara Elliot and her students used the building in late 1940. The schoolhouse and the land it sat on was subsequently sold in 1951 to Evan Thurlow, who served as a selectman in the town of Oxford for nearly four decades. The Thurlow family homestead was within view of the school. The Pigeon Hill Schoolhouse is reportedly the only remaining school building of nine that has not been demolished or altered for a new use. While relatively small in size and simple in its design, the schoolhouse still carries all the characteristics of one-room, rural schoolhouse complete with its original wall-mounted blackboards.    

Threat

In late summer 2022, news circulated around Oxford that the Thurlow family was slated to sell a large tract of land, including the original homestead and schoolhouse. The property sits adjacent to the Oxford Casino along Route 26 and is prime real estate for development. Patricia Larrivee, President of the Oxford Historical Society (OHS), received confirmation of the proposed sale and plan to clear the land. She jumped into action to save the Pigeon Hill Schoolhouse, quickly developing a plan to relocate the building and rallying support in the community and among town leadership. While the Thurlow family helped to ensure supporters would have 90 days to remove the school building from the property, the new owners have since provided a more reasonable timeline of 6 months, ending December 2022.    

How to Get Involved

The plan developed by Patricia Larrivee and the OHS is to relocate the schoolhouse next to the Kay House Museum which is owned by the Town of Oxford and the long-time location of the OHS in the center of town. The Town Board of Selectman approved the relocation of the schoolhouse, but many obstacles remain including the physical relocation of the 16’ X 15’ wood frame schoolhouse and paying for it all!

The estimated cost to move the schoolhouse into town is $25,000. OHS hopes to salvage and reuse the original granite foundation stones, otherwise they will need to pour a new concrete foundation, costing at least another $5,000. The schoolhouse would then need to be rehabilitated before its planned use as a resource room and programming space. To date, the OHS has raised nearly $12,000, including an anonymous donation of $10,000. Given its proximity to Oxford Elementary School, it would serve as the perfect location for a field trip to learn about local history.

To learn more about Pigeon Hill Schoolhouse and how you can help pay for its relocation, please contact the OHS at (207)743-1654 or oxfordhistoricsocietykayhouse@gmail.com.   

Washburn Memorial Library, Livermore

Story

The Washburn Memorial Library was built in 1883 and executed using the same architectural plans as the original section of the Hubbard Free Library in Hallowell, except the main floor is four feet longer. Deceivingly, traditional wood framing comprises the building’s structure while 6-inch granite ashlar from North Jay, Maine, clads its exterior. Architect Alexander Currier is credited with the Gothic Revival-style design, intended to emulate a church building. Governor Israel Washburn, Jr. was inspired to build and dedicate the library to honor his father, Israel Sr., and mother, Patty. Shortly after completion, Governor Washburn presented it to the Livermore community as a public lending library in 1886.

The Washburn Memorial Library is now part of the Norlands Living History Center, a living history museum centered around the family’s 1867 farmstead as well as an 1828 meetinghouse and 1853 schoolhouse. The building also houses the Washburn Library Archive, which contains a myriad of first-hand accounts of roughly 100 years of life at Norlands and its surrounding community. In addition, the archival collection includes correspondence, diaries, photographs, and enlistment and town records. Among the papers are exchanges between major political figures and members of the Washburn family, as well as intimate personal letters dating from the Civil War era.

Threat

Limited yet continuous movement of the library’s internal trusses have raised the alarm for Norlands’ leadership. An engineer’s report suggests that as the trusses pull apart under the weight of the Monson slate roof, they push the exterior walls outward, compromising sections of the exterior granite walls. As a result, there are multiple locations around the 140-year-old library where mortar joints are widening, permitting water infiltration. This influx of water damages the interior plaster walls, and in periods of freeze and thaw, damages the granite wall structure. The compromised building envelope also means that the decorative woodwork, archival documents, and museum objects inside are all in jeopardy. The widening and newly formed gaps caused by the shifting structure have also allowed for a colony of bats to move in. The library’s compounding problems have severely restricted its use as a space for programming and research and are great cause for concern for not only the building but also its vast collection of local history stored inside.  

How to Get Involved

The Norlands Living History Center is undertaking a targeted capital fundraising campaign this year to raise $250,000 to initiate priority stabilization and restoration of the Washburn Memorial Library. The Washburn Legacy Library Campaign builds off the momentum of a generous donation from a Washburn descendant in 2020, which allowed for the complete renovation of the climate-controlled archive in the library’s basement. Priority will be given to stabilizing the roof trusses, resetting the exterior masonry walls and repointing the mortar joints to remedy the worst of gaps, and assessing how to best stabilize the walls to prevent any damage to the large stained-glass windows.

Among the challenges faced at Norlands is the uncertainty of identifying qualified tradespeople and securing a commitment for work to begin because of long waitlists and unstable material prices. Maine Preservation will be assisting the organization to overcome some of these challenges, while the greatest focus remains on raising the funds needed to make the priority stabilization and restoration possible.

Visit the Washburn Legacy Library Campaign website to learn more about the building and how you can contribute.