Before the Pemaquid Point Light, depicted on Maine's state quarter, was constructed in 1827 by order of President John Quincy Adams, many a ship was destroyed by being tossed upon the massive rocky outcropping of Pemaquid Point, which lies between mid-coast Maine's Muscongus Bay and Johns Bay.
Pemaquid Point Light is one of the most popular of Maine's 65 lighthouses, and it's easy to see why. The lighthouse sits high atop a massive craggy headland of jagged granite ledge overlooking endless views of the Atlantic Ocean and islands in the Gulf of Maine, including Monhegan Island, famous for it's art colony. A more dramatic setting for a lighthouse is hard to imagine.
The keeper's house is home to a Fisherman's Museum. In 2003, the tower was opened for public tours for the first time. Call the museum at (207) 677-2494 for dates and times. Pemaquid Point Lighthouse can be found by following Route 130 from Damariscotta all the way to Pemaquid Point in New Harbor, Maine. The area also has a picturesque working harbor filled with lobster boats, a sandy beach, the Rachel Carson Salt Pond Preserve, and Fort William Henry.
The history of the lighthouse and interesting stories of some of the shipwrecks that occurred on this rocky section of the Maine coast are told in Lighthouses of Maine, written by Bill Caldwell and published by Down East Books.
Visit the Pemaquid Point Lighthouse Photo Gallery for pictures of the tower, keeper's house, grounds, and the dramatic rocky ledge they're perched on.
The Victory Chimes, also depicted on Maine's state quarter, was built in 1900 and is the largest passenger sailing vessel under the USA flag, with accommodations for 40 guests. She's registered as a National Historic Landmark, a reminder of the golden age of sail, and takes passengers on week-long cruises along the coast of Maine. There are over a dozen other windjammers in the Maine Windjammer fleet that offer sailing vacations out of Camden, Rockport, and Rockland, Maine. The historic windjammers with their billowing sails can be spotted up and down mid-coast Maine and are honored at several festivals in the mid-coast, including celebrations in Camden, Rockland, Friendship, and Boothbay Harbor.
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Windjammer Photo used by permission of the Maine Windjammer Association. Other photos copyright Deborah M. Fowles 2003 and licensed to About.com.
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