Rockland Area Lime Industries

by Courtney C. MacLachlan, David R. Hoch, Paul G. Merriam

Overview

Ever since William McIntyre produced and sold the first lime shipment in 1733, lime production has been a vital part of the Rockland area economy. Local farmers dug into a vein of high-quality lime rock running along the coast from Thomaston to Lincolnville. They burned it in homemade kilns and shipped it to cities farther south to be used as mortar and plaster. As lime manufacturing grew in the area, specialized support industries developed, such as shipbuilding, shipping, barrel-making, and lumbering, to provide the kilns with fuel. Thus a full-fledged regional economy was born, and lime was the mainstay. This book explores the tough and gritty lives of those who made their living from an industry that was, and still is, a backbone of the area.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780738544854
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	06/07/2006
Series:	Images of America Series
Pages:	128
Sales rank:	659,144
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.31(d)

About the Author

Authors Courtney C. MacLachlan, David R. Hoch, and Paul G. Merriam have created this dramatic visual history from the collections of the Rockland Historical Society, other local historical societies, and private collections. MacLachlan, a descendant of Rockport lime producers, is a librarian at the Strawbery Banke Museum in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. She authored The Amanda Letters: Civil War Days on the Coast of Maine. Hoch and Merriam are Rockland residents with an in-depth knowledge of the lime industry. Hoch was the last president of the Rockland-Rockport Lime Company. Merriam, author of Homefront on Penobscot Bay 1940-1945, is a former history professor and a partner in GEM Productions, a historical video company.