GREAT CRANBERRY ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY
GCIHS
Cranberry
Hitty
SupportPublications
All publications are available by mail order, or in the museum store (with a 10% discount for GCIHS members.)
2011
Cabin in the Woods
by Wini Smart
This publication explores Sammy Sanford, his connection with Captain Samuel Hadlock, Jr. and William Preble, and his tiny cabin near Preble Cove which became a destination for Rachel Field as she was writing God's Pocket.
to order
2010
House Histories of Great Cranberry Island
by Wini Smart
A long-awaited collection of photos and information about the houses of Great Cranberry. This volume includes 64 houses on 90 pages. A second volume will follow with the remaining houses. House owners, expecially of the missing houses, should get in touch with the author to add info or make corrections. to order
2009
Cranberry House Construction Contributions 2004-2008
by Bruce Komusin & Karin Whitney
Gives a brief history of the Cranberry House project from its inception in 2003 to its opening in 2008. Then lists each individual donors' monetary contributions, plus the amounts raised from fundraising events and foundation grants. The total raised was $511,882.
to order
2008
Enterprising Islanders
by Wini Smart
Covers a variety of island occupations from 1760 to 2008. "Islanders have always found ways to support themselves. They do it all: running boarding houses, restaurants, fishing, store keeping, farming, captaining, and quilting. All they needed was an idea and lots of hard work."
to order
2006
Boatdog Bess, My Story
by Kay Gibson
A charming photo-storybook, in her own words, of how boat dog Bess came to be the very best boat dog in the world.
to order
2005
Artists of the Cranberry Isles, Past and Present
by Wini Smart
With a foreward by Carl Little and an introduction by Wini Smart, this booklet features single-page biographies and sample works of 21 past and 21 current Cranberry Isles artists, plus two photogrphers.
The booklet was issued in conjunction with the Art of the Cranberry Isles show held July 28, 2005 in the Neighborhood House of Northeast Harbor, Maine.
see more to order
2004
Winter: The Other Season
by Wini Smart & Bruce Komusin
A narrative woven around the old-time activities on Great Cranberry Island in winter time, enlivened with old photos, and personal memories from many year-round residents.
to order
Hitty Preble of The Cranberry Isles
by Wini Smart & Bruce Komusin
A flat wooden doll, plus a storybook telling how Rachel Field's award-winning book, Hitty, Her First Hundred Years was written, and how it describes people and places here on Great Cranberry Island.
see more to order
2003
sample poem
"The Back Shore"
Surf, Stone, & Spruce
by Ted Harlan
Poetry and photos of Great Cranberry Island. Each of Ted's personal poems is enhanced with an appropriate photograph by George Harlan, his father.
to order
2002
Cranberry Road
by Wini Smart
Taking her cue from Rachel Field's famous poem, Wini has woven a marvelous text with plenty of old photos, giving a appreciation what went on and how the island looked when Rachel was here.
to order
A Taste of Cranberry
by Susan Donald Michalski
Poetry and lino-cuts by Susan Donald Michalski, a regular summer visitor to Great Cranberry Island.
to order
2001
Sample image
Great Cranberry Island, Maine
An Artist's Sketchbook, 1998
by Susan Donald Michalski
Susan Donald Michalski has been visiting the island for years, keeping a sketch diary with charming watercolor vignettes of island life, buildings, and scenes. She has given us permission to publish a collection of these sketches. Bruce Komusin diligently worked as editor and publisher. The Historical Society purchased a wire binding machine, allowing us to present a very professional product. This 20-page booklet, completely in color, will make a nice souvenir of the island.
see more to order
Riding With Tud
March 18, 1993
by Jeff Weisbruch
Driving the length of the island, Tud remembers the old families who lived in each home, in his own amiable style. This is completely different from the 1992 interview.
(43 pgs, 7 photos, 2 original cartoons)
to order
sample image
If it Were Yesterday...
A Historic Coloring Book
of Great Cranberry Island
by Wini Smart
A new Island classic is born! Wini Smart's charming narrated coloring book celebrates the simple joys of a child's vacation on Great Cranberry Island, both in the early 1900s and today. If it were yesterday, we'd arrive on the J.T. Morse, meet old pals at the dock, spend a day out cod fishing, hike to see the wild birds and the shipwreck, and talk with Passamaquoddy John Snow about how, in olden days, his people lived on the island.
see more to order
2000
The Heraldry of Great Cranberry Island
Working Lobstermen's Colors
Summer 2000
A single-sheet 8.5" x 11" poster of lobster buoy markings for the summer of 2000.
to order
1999
God's Pocket
by Rachel Field
Many believe Rachel Field's God's Pocket, first published in 1934, was her greatest downeast book. It chronicles the fascinating life of Captain Samuel Hadlock, Jr. (1792-1830) of Cranberry Isles -- a showman forerunner of Buffalo Bill Cody and P.T. Barnum -- and a Great Cranberry Island favorite son.
see more to order
courtesy of Susan W. Smith
Salvaging Cargo from the Wreck
of the Emily F. Northam
by Farnham W. Smith
The three-masted cargo schooner Emily F. Northam grounded on Baker Island Reef, southeast of Islesford, in the midst of a Nor'easter on Thursday, December 2, 1926. Another storm shortly afterwards shifted her into the Cow Yard, off Great Cranberry Island. Even now you can still see her ribs sticking up at low water.
This publication, by Farnham W. Smith, the man who supervised the cargo salvage, was first published in Downeast magazine in March of 1974. It tells the full story of the events of that long-ago winter.
(10 pgs, 8 photos)
to order
An Interview with Ralph Stanley
Jan 15, 1994
by Jeff Weisbruch
Ralph is a wooden boat builder and National Heritage Foundation "National Treasure."
(18 pgs, 1 photo)
to order
1998
The Fairies
by William Allingham
William Allingham (1824 - 1889) wrote this poem, which was a favorite of Barbara Brooks (b. 1912.) As a little girl, she repeated it to herself as she wandered down through the hills and deep cool woods leading to Preble Cove. (a single-sheet, 8.5" x 11" poster)
to order
1997
The Asa D. Stanley House
Built ca. 1857 - 1863
by Bruce Komusin
Asa D. Stanley and his wife Ellen Maria built this house. Their daughter Addie (Stanley) Duren lived in it after them. Ronald Mountain currently owns it.
This report has photos of the original owners and their daughter, and touches on the fire that destroyed one wing.
(8 pgs, 7 photos)
to order
1996
The Construction of Road "I-95"
on Great Cranberry Island, Maine
by Doris "Dot" McSorley
This report explains how and why the road known by the locals as "I-95" came to be built. It is written by the original owner of the land.
(9 pgs, 7 photos, 1 map)
to order
1994
An Interview with Tud Bunker
Oct. 12, 1992
by Patti D'Angelo
Tud was a well-liked storyteller and lifetime resident of Great Cranberry Island. (20 pgs, 3 photos)
to order