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| Today |
When Granite
Was King
Stonington is one of the few descriptive town names we have in
Hancock
County
that actually describes the nature of the community.
Resting
on a granite ledge and, in places, some mighty thin soil, the
community became a boom town when the granite industry set up
shop.
<complete story>
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The Stonington Opera House had stints as a silent movie
theater and vaudeville hall before falling on hard times. In
1999 four women from New York bought it and by the summer of
2000, with the help of scores of volunteers who literally
shoveled the place out, they were up and running with opera,
dance, ragtime and movies.
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Neighbors |
May Williams Recalls Old Days and Ways
Although many people think of May Williams as quintessentially
Stonington, in fact she’s “from away.” Worse yet, she started,
in 1920, as a “summer person.” She was 4 years old.
<complete story>
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Today |
It’s a
Beautiful Town…and that Can Be a Problem
Like many other coastal fishing villages, Stonington is at the
mercy of Realtors and people from away. It is stunningly
beautiful, with the islands of the Stonington archipelago
stretching to the horizon, and a harbor dotted with fishing
boats and the occasional sailboat. Still a vibrant fishing
community, with over 200 registered fishing boats, Stonington is
struggling to maintain its identity in an increasingly
gentrified world.
<complete story>
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Neighbors |
Stonington’s
Fish Pier: the Heart of the Town
After visitors stroll the length of Main Street and stop into a
shop or two, they invariably end up on the fish pier. If it were
a national park it would have little signs advising people to
take pictures “here.”
<complete story>
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| Written and
photographed by Alice Wilkinson |
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Go
Figure |
THE
FACTS
Acreage: 5,502
Population, 2000: 1,152
Population, 1990: 1,252
Population, 19 years and younger: 295
Median age: 41.6
Schools: Stonington Elementary School. (Deer
Isle-Stonington Junior-Senior High School is in town of
Deer Isle)
Library: Stonington Public Library
Churches: Christian Science 1, Church of the
Nazarene 1, Baptist 1, Episcopal 1, Roman Catholic 1,
United Methodist 1, Other 1
Town meeting: First Monday in March
<more town facts>
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They
Said It |
“One thing that really
 has
changed is business. When the quarry was around, there were a lot of
people working.”
—May Williams
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Milestones |
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The early years
1762 (circa):
William Eaton and Jonathan Greenlaw are
first settlers of Deer Isle.
1789:
Deer Isle is incorporated.
1830:
Population of isle numbers 2,217.
1860:
Population of isle numbers 3,592.
1897:
Green’s Landing separates from Deer Isle to
create Stonington.
1905:
600-plus men are employed in Stonington’s
six quarries. Average daily wage, for 9-hour day, is $1.50 to $2.
1905: Stonington High School is built.
1906:
87,381 tons of granite are shipped from
Stonington.
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