The Old Port (sometimes known as the Old Port Exchange) is a district of

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

, known for its

cobblestone Cobblestone is a natural building material based on Cobble (geology), cobble-sized stones, and is used for Road surface, pavement roads, streets, and buildings. Sett (paving), Setts, also called ''Belgian blocks'', are often referred to as " ...

streets, 19th-century brick buildings and fishing piers. The district contains boutiques, restaurants and bars.

Geography

The Old Port district is located on the southeastern side of the Portland peninsula, overlooking the wide mouth of the Fore River and the Port of Portland. It is bounded on the east by Franklin Street ( U.S. Route 1A), with Commercial Street running southwest along the waterfront, and 19th-century buildings on its north side as far west as Maple Street. It extends inland as far as Federal Street, between Pearl and Temple Streets, with Fore and Middle Streets as major cross streets that very roughly parallel the waterfront. The shore area on the southeast side of commercial street is lined with wharves. It is bordered by the neighborhoods of Bayside, East Bayside,

Munjoy Hill Munjoy Hill is a neighborhood and prominent geographical feature of Portland, Maine. It is located east of downtown and south of East Deering. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the neighborhood had a large Irish and Italian American po ...

and the West End. A large portion of this area has been designated a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

, and is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

as the "Portland Waterfront Historic District".

Parks

The Old Port includes the adjacent parks of Post Office Park and Tommy's Park, which features a large mural. Bell Buoy Park is located next to the Casco Bay Ferry Terminal. The Eastern Promenade Trail terminates in the Old Port and connects to the East End Beach.

Post Office Park

Post Office Park is located at the northeastern corner of the intersection of Middle Street and Exchange Street. Its official address is Middle Street. It stands across Exchange Street from the slightly smaller Tommy's Park. Portland's Post Office, designed by Alfred B. Mullett, stood at the location from 1871 to 1965, when it was demolished and replaced by a parking lot. In the 1980s, the City of Portland considered building a Japanese theme park on the lot, but—due to a recession—it did not come to fruition; instead Post Office Park was built, completed in 1993.

Tommy's Park

Tommy's Park is located at the northwestern corner of the intersection of Middle Street and Exchange Street. Its official address is Middle Street. It stands across Exchange Street from the slightly larger Post Office Park. The lot was formerly home to a one-storey structure connected to both the Oxford Building at 185 Middle Street and 80 Exchange Street. A prominent feature of the park was a

trompe l'oeil A trompe is a water-powered air compressor, commonly used before the advent of the electric-powered compressor. A trompe is somewhat like an airlift pump working in reverse. Trompes were used to provide compressed air for bloomery furnaces ...

mural painted on the

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

end of 80 Exchange Street. The second mural at the location, it was designed and painted in 1986 by local artist Chris Denison. It was removed during building restoration work in 2018, and was repainted to a design by South Portland artist Will Sears. The park contains the city's visitor-information booth. Between and 1983 and 2021, Mark Gatti operated his Mark's Hot Dogs stand in the park. Tommy's Park is mentioned in ''The Killing Kind'', a 2015 novel by John Connolly.

History

The Portland peninsula was first settled in the 17th century, but was abandoned during the

French and Indian Wars The French and Indian Wars were a series of conflicts that occurred in North America between 1688 and 1763, some of which indirectly were related to the European dynastic wars. The title ''French and Indian War'' in the singular is used in the U ...

of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. It was resettled, and incorporated as Falmouth in 1718. It prospered economically in the 18th century due to the lumber trade, particularly the trade in virgin trees used as ship masts. At the outbreak of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, a large part of the city was destroyed by fire in a British raid in October 1775. The city rebuilt, and again became a major shipping center and Maine's leading port and economic center. Commercial Street was created by fill in the 1850s, and Middle and Exchanges Street area developed as a major commercial district. In 1866, a major fire swept through the area, bringing on a wave of new construction. Historically, Exchange Street was where many printers and newspapers were located. At the top of Exchange Street, strategically located across Congress Street from Portland City Hall, is the

Press Herald Building The Press Herald Building (also known as the Gannett Building) is a historic building in Portland, Maine, built in 1923 and expanded in 1948. It is strategically located across Congress Street from Portland City Hall. It was occupied by the '' ...

built in 1923 and expanded in 1948 as the headquarters of the ''

Portland Press Herald The ''Portland Press Herald'' (abbreviated as ''PPH''; Sunday edition ''Maine Sunday Telegram'') is a daily newspaper based in South Portland, Maine, with a statewide readership. The ''Press Herald'' mainly serves southern Maine and is focused ...

.'' In 2015, the renovated building became the Press Hotel. The Old Port was transformed in the 1970s when real estate developers purchased derelict buildings and refurbished them into apartments, condos, offices and retail space. A new group of restaurants emerged that included The Hollow Reed on

Fore Street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...

that are cited for influencing the city's current restaurant culture. During that same decade, the Old Port Association formed and helped halt the city's demolition of historic buildings (see

Union Station A union station, union terminal, joint station, or joint-use station is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway company, railway companies, allowing passengers to connect conveniently bet ...

) and lobbied for street scape improvements. The

Cumberland County Civic Center Cross Insurance Arena (formerly Cumberland County Civic Center) is a multi-purpose arena located in Portland, Maine. Built in 1977, at a cost of US$8 million, it is the home arena for the Maine Mariners (ECHL), Maine Mariners of the ECHL. There a ...

was built at the top of the Old Port in 1977. In the early 1980s,

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

passed the

Economic Recovery Tax Act The Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 (ERTA), or Kemp–Roth Tax Cut, was an Act that introduced a major tax cut, which was designed to encourage economic growth. The Act was enacted by the 97th Congress and signed into law by U.S. President R ...

, which provided tax incentives for redevelopment projects, and spurred further development in the district. In 2006, construction began on the Ocean Gateway project. The Ocean Gateway serves as the city's

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

terminal.

Old Port Festival

The Old Port Festival was a yearly one-day festival which took place in the neighborhood. For the first 36 years (1973–2009), it took place on the first Sunday in June; however, noting weather patterns which consistently brought rain storms on that day, organizers moved the festival to the second Sunday in June 2010, avoiding heavy rain. In 2009, festival organizers sought to create the world's largest

lobster roll A lobster roll is a North American dish comprising lobster meat served on a grilled hot dog–style bun. The filling may also contain butter, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper, with variants made in some parts of New England replacing the b ...

as part of the festival. It included of lobster meat and 4 gallons of mayonnaise. It measured 61 feet and 9.5 inches long. Pieces of the roll were sold to benefit a youth association. In 1998, the event included children games, including a petting zoo and miniature golf. In June 2019, the final Old Port Festival occurred, though some area business owners sought to continue the event.

References

External links

Portland Downtown DistrictPortland Old Port Nightlife
{{Portland, Maine Entertainment districts in the United States Neighborhoods in Portland, Maine Redeveloped ports and waterfronts in the United States Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Maine National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Maine