Description: Fishing gear, "Lilly Iron" (harpoon) from Wesley Bracy, Jr. with swiveling piece on the barb that folds flat for easy penetration, but opens crosswise for increased grip, thus preventing loss of the fish; Bruce Komusin inserted a wooden boomstick handle and secured it with rope for display purposes.
Description: Interview Transcript from an interview with Richard 'Chuddy' Alley. The interview was recorded in the 2000's (exact year unknown) by Jessi Duma and Jenny Matthews, who both lived on the island for a number of years. Chuddy came to GCI as a young boy, and recounts many memories of Great Cranberry in the early to mid 20th century. He talks about agriculture and fishing extensively with Jessi. He moved over to Islesford and his son Ricky Alley speaks about fishing with a fish trap, and Pursing. Jessi was a Cranberry Island Fellow and became the general manager for GCIHS for a few years. Interview with transcribed by Hannah Gower-Fox. She was the Archivist and Museum Curator for GCIHS in 2023. [show more]
Description: Fishing gear. Collection of twelve wooden tools: (A) Eight wooden needles for mending nets, making and repairing bait bag netting: snowshoe-shaped implements with U-shaped end, closed tangs, and pointed ends. (B) Net needle: wood with large rectangular eye hole. (C) Wood rectangle with hole in the middle and a loop of rope through two other holes: lobster fishing assemby that keeps the line from getting tangled. (D and E) Two wood implements that come to a smooth point. [show more]
Description: Art, pen and ink drawing titled "LOBSTER TRAP ON BOTTOM" by C. Gilley, showing an old fashioned round top wooden lobster trap on the sea bed, with a rope going up to an intermediate float (a glass bottle), the rope continuing further up to a bullet shaped float on the surface; also a lobster boat approching it on the surface
Description: Fishing gear. Harpoon head: wood handle with threaded metal collar and 5-pronged metal barbed harpoon head. Wood handle is a sawed-off tree limb; metal collar possibly an old pipe fitting; harpoon head is inserted into handle; collar turns freely. One tine missing its barb. From Victor White's old garage summer 2013.
Description: Fishing gear. Metal Fishing Buoy, round. It is stamped on one side PHILLIPS PATENT GUARANTEED LIGHTWEIGHT MODEL. and on the other, PATENT No 331163 NOTICE OF INFRINGEMENT REWARDED. The patent number is from Great Britain.
Description: List, handwritten, 18 Nov 1882, "Gauger's Returns" listing barrels of oil from ships, SLF (probably S.L. Foster) and R (probably Rozella), Capt. E. Stanley, S.L. Foster, signed by J.G. McKerson, Gauger
Description: Newpaper, "The Working Waterfront" Aug 2001, see page 10, article "Great Cranberry Island Historical Society Builds a New Museum from Scratch"
Description: Four photographs of boats (A-D) with unidentified men and boys aboard. (A) unidentified dory. (B) and (D) may be the same vessel, probably one of the mackerel schooners owned by Benjamin Harley Spurling whose wife was Frances Almira Preble (donor Louise Marr's grandparents.) C: The steamer may have been one owned by Hanson B. Joyce of Swan's Island engaged in the mackerel fishery. Joyce owned significant shares in several Cranberry Island vessels, possibly shares in Benjamin Spurling's vessels. (D): information from Ralph Stanley and Bar Harbor Record. [show more]
Description: A letter from J.E Welles to Ben Spurling. This letter is regarding the fishing industry. Welles mentions how it is hard to find fisherman to work out in Athens (Georgia). He then talks about deciding to not make his boat a power boat, but keep it how it is because it is greatly equipped for business. Lastly, he mentions about how if Ben wanted to come join him in the Gulf, he would figure something out, due to the lack of fisherman willing to work. [show more]
Description: A letter from J.E Welles to Captain Ben Spurling. In this letter he writes about the effect that the "war" is having on the fishing industry. This war being the Spanish American war. He seems to have a pretty negative outlook on the war, and believes it will have plenty of negative consequences. Lastly, he catches Ben up on his children, and about his future travels to Athens were his garden there is doing well.
Description: Newspaper article, probably September 1909. Title: "Mackerel in Maine Waters". Article reports that 20 barrels of mackerel were caught by Eben T. Lewis, Benjamin A. Spurling, and John S. Seavey, near Monhegan. Article lists other ships and captains active in the Monhegan area due to reports of large schools of mackerel.
Description: Collection of journals, ledgers, wallet, books, scanned photos pertaining to Stanley family: Items A-H. (A) Enoch B. Stanley's tan leather fold-over "The Revised and Improved Collector's Tax Book....Adapted to the Revised Statutes of 1883", by W. W. Bolster, Published Portland: W. H. Stevens & Company, No. 193 Middle Street. Entries from 1890-1892 with categories for real estate, personal property, poll tax, highway tax, a section on school district tax. With three loose handwritten pages inserted. One is list of children for Hannah Lopaus(?) who moved to Mount Desert July 12th 1799 and had 10 children and includes list of 9 children born to Hannah's daughter Nancy Lopauss Richardson Clark, one of whom was Meltiah P. Richardson (spouse of Carrie Stanley Richardson). The second loose page is a petition for a fish weir at Thrumcap for Enoch B. Stanley and W.D.(?) Stanley in January 1891. The third loose page is Permission for a fish weir with full description dated Feb. 7, 1891. (B) Maroon fold-over wallet (empty). (C) Scans from loaned Schmidt family photo albums including family and one of old hearse. (D) Maroon wallet with 14 items folded inside it: receipts: Meltiah Richardson 1871 taxes; E.B. Stanley 1862 & 1864; note to Capt Stanley 1864; 1864 receipt; 1864 receipt Hadlock; 1871 tax receipt; M. P. Richardson to E.B. Stanley 1874; one faded small photo of a person on a sailboat; registered letter receipt 1878 addressed to Thomas Leighton of Millbridge Me received of E. J? Stanley; Receipt 1882 for 7.33 payment; 1876 receipt E. B. Stanley and Perley Russell goods of Haskell 14.50. Envelope addressed to Mrs. Caroline H. Stanley Cranberry Isles ME with Boston Jan 30 1898 postmark 2 cents. Two comic poem pages (not scanned). (E) Small tan leather journal full of information listing fish catches and payments to individuals 1868-1870 in Boston, Cranberry Isles, Gloucester, Schooner Rozella mentioned on one page. Names include Gilley, Bunker, Spurling, Stanley, Ladd, Wayland, Bulger, Young; only three representational pages scanned from this journal. (F) Small narrow brown marbled ledger (undated) tallying fish and bills; two pages mention schooner Harrie [or Fannie?] Forrest; 1 page scanned. (G) Book: The Matron's Manual of Midwifery and the diseases of women during pregnancy and in child bed by Frederick Hollick, MD 1843. (H) Book: How to Hunt and Trap containing full instructions for hunting Buffalo, Elk, Moose, deer, Antelope - by J. H. Batty, 1878; inscribed "Boynton Stanley" at top of page, lower down "William G. Thumbeam[?] from Papa, Christmas 1878." (See also 2015.316.2077 and 2017.389.2164) [show more]
Object, Woodworking, Woodworking Iron, Marking Iron
Subject:
Businesses, Boatbuilding Business
Businesses, Fishery Business
Description: Branding iron, long handle with heavy head: "E.N. White 1442". 1442 was Edgar Nelson White's number, and black and white were his colors. Edgar was Victor White's brother. With reminiscences of the family in the 1960s by Charles Liebow including Edgar and Alice White, their Dog Point Road house and outbuilding "Duffys", their grandsons Chuck and Larry Pipes, and working as sternman for Edgar.
Description: Five ledgers (A-E) 1830-1850s of a collection of 18 small, 19th-century ledgers or account journals belonging to William P. Preble; very difficult to decipher, many entries not in chronological order, often several years of entries not made in sequential order. (Only exterior and one page of each ledger scanned. A= Small marble covered ledger 1836, 1837. Mentions Brig Hannah & Abigail. Fabric goods like calico and cotton, pants and clothing. B= Small tan ledger with blue pages, entries made in very faint pencil. Boston 1849 – payments to individuals. November 28, 1849 lists of quantities of [fish?]. Individual accounts/expenses. Hardware. Provisions. C= 1856 Samuel S. Bunker one of the Surveyors of Highways in the Town of Cranberry Isles. Small ledger lists residents and poll tax for each D= 1855-1856 Brig Factor items, supplies, and expenses, tallies of fish, payments and expenses for sailors/fishermen, mentions lobsters, mention of the Schooner Sea Flower and Quickstep. Entries written in two directions, as if it was used for different years. The only year found so far is 1856 with entry for Nathan Stanley with balance due to Haynes. Lobsters for June 1855. E= 1855-1858. Black leather journal with blue pages and leather clasp. Miscellaneous entries expenses, fish. 1857 and 1858 accounts of individuals. Provisions and payments for Schooner Sea Flower. 1856 payments. 1855 payments. [show more]
Description: Business receipt. Itemized purchases dated May 4, 5, 11, 18, and 25,188(?). Company name appears as 'Jewett and Brower', at Portland Maine. Made out to Mrs. Spurling. Total amount is for $121. Lines 1, 3, and 5 appear to be haddock.