commentary

We are a strong community. We are willing and able to help

Thu, 09/28/2023 - 9:45pm

Steve Cartwright

The Port Clyde General Store, Sept. 28, following the devastating fire that destroyed it, the Boat Line terminal, Dip Net, and the Wyeth art gallery. (Photo courtesy Steve Cartwright)

Port Clyde, Sept. 28, 2023. (Photo courtesy Steve Cartwright)

Firefighters, after a long night of battling the blaze. (Photo courtesy Steve Cartwright)

Port Clyde, Sept. 28, 2023. (Photo courtesy Steve Cartwright)

The Port Clyde General Store, Sept. 28, following the devastating fire that destroyed it, the Boat Line terminal, Dip Net, and the Wyeth art gallery. (Photo courtesy Steve Cartwright)

Port Clyde, Sept. 28, 2023. (Photo courtesy Steve Cartwright)

Firefighters, after a long night of battling the blaze. (Photo courtesy Steve Cartwright)

Port Clyde, Sept. 28, 2023. (Photo courtesy Steve Cartwright)

Sixty-odd years ago I'd go to the Port Clyde General Store with mom or dad to buy paint, hardware, Grant's Dairy milk and Calderwood's bread... maybe a treat for me. A vivid childhood memory was the toilet, where you could lift the seat and see the harbor below. The store had a big pot-belly stove in those days. It was already a very old place, dating to the horse-and-buggy, sail-powered lobster boat era.

The store changed over the decades, becoming more of a grocery store with items for tourists. Then on September 27, 2023, a wall of fire ravaged the old store and surrounding buildings, including the nearby Monhegan Boat Line terminal. It tore out part of the heart of this small village. I loved stopping for coffee at the store after a run, at the big wooden breakfast bar. The store had gone from year-round to seasonal, but the old wooden building retained its comfortable, have-a-chat atmosphere. A community gathering spot, what every town should have.

Only four days before the big fire, hundreds of local families and people "from away" gathered by the Monhegan Boat building for a free lobster and chowder dinner, live music, dancing and dessert. Buckets were set up for donations to a scholarship in memory of Jim Barstow, who ran the Monhegan ferry Laura B for decades. The family continues the business, and both the Laura B and a sister vessel Elizabeth Ann appear unharmed by the fire.

There were reportedly no injuries as St. George firefighters were joined by many others from surrounding towns, keeping the blaze from spreading further and finally extinguishing it. There was little or no wind. One can imagine the horror if high winds spread the flames. It was horrible enough.

"Heartbreaking" was a common refrain, as a steady stream of people, some of the same who partied at the "Rock the Dock" for Captain Barstow, parked their cars and walked to the scene. Jim got to see the completed terminal before he died in June.

Some people nodded hello. Nobody was cheerful. I said "good morning" to someone who replied, "it is morning." It was also mourning. People were quiet, serious. It was a wake. "A lot of history lost," said a passerby.

I almost didn't want to look, but I was curious. I felt like crying, looking at the charred skeletons of buildings. The air was thick with acrid smoke. Perhaps we are all curious about how the fire started, but however that happened, it won't change the reality; we have lost these local and beloved landmarks, like the death of a friend. I'm already missing the store, the art gallery, the Monhegan Boat terminal and the Dip Net, which I remember way back as a tiny diner with homemade pie. I forgot what else it had.

Some years ago I walked into the Dip Net and there was Andy Wyeth celebrating his 90th birthday with family. I apologized for intruding.

"Sit down with us," he said.

That's Port Clyde, once known as Herring Gut.

You can't take it with you, but you can cling to the good memories, like boarding the Laura B. with my girlfriend in January, and staying over on the island with the one-room school teacher. We cracked the ice in the well by throwing the metal bucket at it. The day after we left, a violent storm took out the island ferry dock.

Almost 53 years ago to the day, on September 26, 1970, an immense fire consumed the Port Clyde Packing Company, where many local women packed sardines in tins. It was never rebuilt, but here's to the rebuilding of the Boat Line terminal, the Dip Net, the General Store and the Wyeth art gallery. It won't be quite the same, but it will be good. We are a strong community. We are willing and able to help. Here's to hope amid the ashes.

Steve Cartwright is a retired journalist who lives in an old family cottage in Tenants Harbor. He serves on the St.George Selectboard, and the Blueberry Cove/Tanglewood camps board.