Story
Eagle Island, located off the coast of Harpswell, was the summer home of the famed arctic explorer Admiral Robert E. Peary (1856-1920). Peary was born in Pennsylvania but raised in Maine, going on to study Civil Engineering at Bowdoin College and serving as a civil engineer in the United States Navy. He led his first expedition to the Arctic in 1886 and, on his ninth and final expedition in 1909, became the first person to reach the North Pole.
Peary fell in love with what he would name Eagle Island well before his fame, buying it in 1881 for $200. In 1904, Peary designed and built a house on the island as a place of refuge, where he would spend time writing about engineering, nature, and coastal defense. The original house, sited on a north-facing ledge overlooking the open water, was a simple one-story wood-framed structure. Over the years, the house was expanded to look like a ship with a surrounding deck and a flag lawn representing the ship’s bow. Peary also added two stone bastions, one on the west side for his library and the other on the east side for an arboretum.
The family continued to summer at the house after Peary’s death in 1920, later gifting it to the State of Maine in 1967. What was then the State Park and Recreation Commission built a new pier and initiated a $200,000 restoration campaign to preserve the history of Admiral Peary and provide a way station for recreational boating.
The nonprofit Friends of Peary’s Eagle Island (FPLE) formed in 1992 and has worked closely with the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands (BPL) to preserve the main house which serves at the primary museum space, caretaker's cottage, gardens, and trail across the 17-acre island. Among the highlights of the FPLE’s work is construction of a welcome center, upgraded bathroom facilities, and installation of a fire suppression system in the main house. The site was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 2014.
Threat
FPLE and BPL have successfully stewarded Eagle Island, welcoming 6,000 visitors per year to the site. However, that success has been hampered by compounding challenges that began at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The site was closed as part of the public health emergency and the island buildings were mothballed. The house, however, was not properly ventilated in the process, resulting in the proliferation of mildew and mold. Biological growth now threatens not only the house, but the priceless artifacts stored within its walls. Visitors can still tour the island, but numbers have dropped by one third without access to the main attraction–impacting not only attention on this significant site, but the local tourist economy on shore.
In 2023, the State planned to use American Rescue Plan funds for mold remediation and repairs to the foundation, roof, and envelope, but discovered preservation work was not an eligible expenditure. To make matters worse, the pair of January storms that wreaked havoc along the coast destroyed the Eagle Island’s pier and moorings, undercut sea walls, and jeopardized the east bastion. The damage is estimated at $1.9 million but does not include measures to help mitigate future harm. BPL hopes to rebuild the pier by 2025 but funding from the Federal Emergency Management is uncertain. Meanwhile, the Maine State Museum has been asked to assist the site in cataloging and preserving the contents of the house.
How to get involved
Infrastructure required to rebuild the pier will only be made possible through federal disaster recovery funds and investment from the State of Maine. BPL has signaled that a funding request will be submitted to the legislature in 2025, and Eagle Island is a top priority. Voice your support for investment in our state-owned historic sites by reaching out to your state legislators, the Governor, and Maine’s Infrastructure Rebuilding and Resilience Commission formed in the wake of the recent winter storms. This includes advocating for the reintroduction of L.D. 791, An Act to Support the Maintenance, Preservation and Promotion of Historic Sites,” which would have allocated $1 million over the next two years towards state-owned historic sites but failed in the legislature last year.
To learn more about Eagle Island and how to support the Friends of Peary’s Eagle Island as the organization continues to welcome visitors, please visit https://www.pearyeagleisland.org/.
Photo Credits: John Burgess; Nick Knight; Friends of Peary’s Eagle Island; Maine Memory Network; National Park Service; Ford Reiche
