My Colonial States Trip~Part 4

A Slice of Life

 Bill Lites

My first stop the next day was to visit the Albacore Submarine Museum in Portsmouth, NH where I took a quick tour thru the U.S. Navy’s unique research submarine that was used in the 1950s to study streamline hull/propeller designs along with various propulsion systems. I had toured other submarines, but this one was by far the most compact vessel I had ever seen. I don’t have claustrophobia, but I sure wouldn’t have volunteered for duty in that sub.

Just a few miles up the road I crossed the border into Maine and stopped to visit the Kittery Historical & Naval Museum in Kittery, ME where I discovered a small but amazing collection of local Kittery area historical memorabilia, including many maritime and military contributions.

Another 5 miles up US #1 was the Old York Gaol (jail) which served as a colonial debtor’s prison in York County Maine as far back as 1656. The present structure was an expansion of the original jail and was in use from 1719 to 1879 when it was closed and converted to a school. It was not open when I was there, but I took time to take a peek thru the windows.

Then it was on north to visit the Seashore Trolley Museum in Kennebunkport, ME which is one of the oldest and largest museums of mass transit vehicles. The price of a ticket will get you a 30-minute ride into yesteryear on the museum’s 1918 electric trolley that was once used on the Eastern Mass Street Railway line.  

As part of my research for this trip up the Eastern Seaboard, I had Googled “Lobster Restaurants” and discovered that a guy named Mike Urban had come up with a list of the “12 Best Lobster Shacks in New England” and one of them was “The Clam Shack” right there in Kennebunkport, ME.   So, of course, I had to try one of their lobster rolls for lunch. Yummy, was that ever good! If you are ever in Kennebunkport, try to find a place to park, and walk across the Kennebunk River bridge to “The Clam Shack, and whatever you do, don’t miss the opportunity to try one of their famous lobster rolls. You won’t be sorry.

Next I visited the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum in Portland, ME where they have a collection of narrow gauge rolling stock and artifacts that were used in Maine during the late 19^th century and early 20^th century. The museum operates a 1½ mile long narrow gauge railroad, using vintage equipment, which carries passengers along the waterfront of Casco Bay and parallels Portland’s Eastern Promenade.

While I was in Portland, I visited the Portland Observatory which was built in 1807 and is the last surviving maritime signal tower in the United States. The observatory is an 86 feet tall hexagon shaped structure which sits atop Munjoy Hill, which itself is 222 feet above sea level. Originally located to be seen from the open ocean and the Portland wharfs, the observatory served as a primitive means of ship-to-shore communications for merchantmen and was even used successfully as a watchtower during the War of 1812. Then it was on north another 25 miles or so to Brunswick, ME where I spent the night.

     —–To Be Continued—–

Tags: #amblogging, Albacore Submarine Museum, America North East Travel Series, Christian bloggers, Kennebunkport, Kittery Historical & Naval Museum, ME, Old York Gaol, Travel Series