New Harbor is a small scenic coastal

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

in the

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, in Lincoln County,

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

, United States. In 2019, the town of Bristol, and in turn New Harbor, was a finalist in the Reader's Digest award for "America's Nicest Place." Bristol and New Harbor were also nominated for and won the "Nicest Place in Maine Award" by Reader's Digest. New Harbor has historical sites such as the

Pemaquid Point Light The Pemaquid Point Light is a historic U.S. lighthouse located in Bristol, Lincoln County, Maine, at the tip of the Pemaquid Neck. History The lighthouse was commissioned in 1827 by President John Quincy Adams and built that year. Because of poo ...

house and

Fort William Henry Fort William Henry was a British fort at the southern end of Lake George, in the province of New York. The fort's construction was ordered by Sir William Johnson in September 1755, during the French and Indian War, as a staging ground for ...

. New Harbor is the site of Pemaquid Beach, on Johns Bay.

History

Colonial Pemaquid

One of its most notable historic sites is Colonial Pemaquid, which has a long history dating back to Native Americans who lived in the area at least seven thousand years ago. Colonial Pemaquid later became the site of an early English outpost and fishing station. Today, Colonial Pemaquid is a State Historic Site owned and managed by the Bureau of Parks and Public Lands, part of the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry. The Friends of Colonial Pemaquid, a non-profit organization, assists the state in caring for and interpreting the site. Visitors to Colonial Pemaquid can explore several points of interest, includin
Fort William Henry
a replica of the 1692 fort built on the same site. The fort features interpretive panels and artifact exhibits, as well as a panoramic view of the area from the roof. The Fort House, a restored

Federal-style Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the newly founded United States between 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815, which was heavily based on the works of Andrea Palladio with several inn ...

home dating back to 1790, contains a

research library A research library is a library which contains an in-depth collection of material on one or several subjects.(Young, 1983; p. 188) A research library will generally include an in-depth selection of materials on a particular topic or set of to ...

, archaeology lab, interpretive information, and artifact storage from the many archaeological digs conducted at Pemaquid. The village area displays stone building foundations, which reveal the locations and sizes of structures from various periods of the village's history. The

burial ground A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

dates back to the early 1700s, and it is believed to be the site of burials for settlers dating back to the original British arrival in the 1620s. The museum at Colonial Pemaquid houses exhibits on the history of the area, from ancient Native American life to the colonial period, including a large diorama of the Pemaquid village. The site also commemorates the wreck of the Angel Gabriel, a

galleon Galleons were large, multi-decked sailing ships first used as armed cargo carriers by European states from the 16th to 18th centuries during the age of sail and were the principal vessels drafted for use as warships until the Anglo-Dutch War ...

destroyed by a hurricane while anchored at Pemaquid in 1635. A bronze plaque dedicated by descendants of the survivors marks the event. Colonial Pemaquid also includes a

gift shop A gift shop or souvenir shop is a store primarily selling souvenirs, memorabilia, and other items relating to a particular topic or theme. The items sold often include coffee mugs, stuffed animals, toys, t-shirts, postcards, handmade collect ...

operated by the Friends of Colonial Pemaquid, offering history-related items for visitors. The shop is located in the Fort House. The town's history is also documented in an account by Waterman Hatch, who worked for Capt. John Nichols in the Partridge House in 1825 and 1826. Hatch's account, transcribed by Dr. Peregrine Wroth, details the remnants of cellars, streets, and other structures throughout the peninsula. Hatch's recollections provide insight into the early settlement's layout, including the locations of blacksmith forges, paved streets, and

burial sites Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

Beach history

Pemaquid Beach, is a public family beach in New Harbor, Maine. The Beach is owned by the Town of Bristol in mid-coast Maine and, along with its "sister" park- the Pemaquid Point Lighthouse, are operated by the Bristol Parks Commission. In 1958 there was a special town meeting held where voters of New Harbor approved a large purchase of what was once called "Big Beach." This town purchase officially made the beach public, allowing all residents to visit any time of the year even when closed in the off-season.

Notable people

Benjamin Bates IV Benjamin Edward Bates IV (; July 12, 1808 – January 14, 1878) was an American rail industrialist, textile tycoon and philanthropist. He was the wealthiest person in Maine from 1850 to 1878, and is considered to have introduced both the Efficienc ...

Slaid Cleaves Slaid Cleaves is an American singer-songwriter born in Washington, D.C. and raised in South Berwick, Maine and Round Pond, Maine, United States. An alumnus of Tufts University, where he majored in English and philosophy, Cleaves lives in Aust ...

Thomas Drummond (judge) Thomas Drummond (October 16, 1809 – May 15, 1890) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Circuit Courts for the Seventh Circuit and previously was a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Distr ...

John Gyles John Gyles (1680 at Pemaquid, Maine1755 at Roxbury, Boston) was an interpreter and soldier, most known for his account of his experiences with the Maliseet tribes at their headquarters at Meductic, on the Saint John River. King William's ...

* Marcus Hanna, lighthouse keeper * Robert Livingston Ireland Jr. * Cabot Lyford, sculptor *

William North William North (1755January 3, 1836) was an American soldier and politician. Early life William North was born in Bristol, Maine, Pemaquid, Maine, to John North and Elizabeth Pitson in 1755. John was an Irish immigrant and Elizabeth a native o ...

* Elizabeth Upham Yates

Representations in media

The village's lobster fishermen and "Back Cove" were featured on an episode of the Discovery Channel's '' Sunrise Earth''. The community was also used as a filming location for the 1999 film ''

Message in a Bottle A message in a bottle (abbrev. MIB) is a form of communication in which a message is sealed in a container (typically a bottle) and released into a conveyance medium (typically a body of water). Messages in bottles have been used to send distres ...

'', with some scenes filmed at Shaw's Wharf. In 1922 the silent film ''

The Seventh Day The seventh day may refer to: * Saturday in some calendars * Sunday in other calendars * Friday in the Bahá'í calendar * Shabbat in Judaism * Sabbath in seventh-day churches * Qixi Festival, a Chinese festival that falls on the seventh day ...

'', starring

Richard Barthelmess Richard Semler Barthelmess (May 9, 1895 – August 17, 1963) was an American film actor, principally of the Hollywood silent era. He starred opposite Lillian Gish in D. W. Griffith's '' Broken Blossoms'' (1919) and ''Way Down East'' (1920) and ...

, was filmed in New Harbor. Hiking and nature preserves include the

Rachel Carson Rachel Louise Carson (May 27, 1907 – April 14, 1964) was an American marine biologist, writer, and conservationist whose influential book ''Silent Spring'' (1962) and other writings are credited with advancing the global environmental m ...

Salt Pond Preserve in New Harbor. The Salt Pond Preserve was one of Carson's favorite spots, and inspired some of the research for her book, The Edge of the Sea.

Gallery

File:Pemaquid Beach -4.jpg, A photo of Pemaquid Beach from the 60's or 70's, shortly after the public purchase from the town. File:Pemaquid Beach -1.jpg, The new Pemaquid Beach Pavilion at Pemaquid Beach overlooking Johns Bay.

References

{{authority control Villages in Maine Villages in Lincoln County, Maine Populated coastal places in Maine