Leigh I. Saufley served as a justice on the Maine courts for 30 years, the last 18 as Chief Justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. But in 2020, she willingly left what she described as the best ...

A ketch’s mainmast is forward and its smaller mizzenmast is aft. “In the old days, when they were sailing cargo, the schooner wasn’t as great going upwind, so putting that bigger sail forward made the ...

Portlander Mimi Olins’s creamy, free-form stoneware is a perfect foil for menu items at the city’s swanky Twelve restaurant and James Beard Award–winning Zu Bakery (owned by her husband, Barak) — and ...

If you enjoyed this story, I hope you’ll consider supporting Down East. For more than 70 years, Down East has been a leading ambassador and advocate for Maine — spreading stories across the country ...

If you’ve ever wondered at a ruby-red cardinal or black-capped chickadee flitting about your frozen yard, you know that winter bird-watching is something to crow about. “Some species that can be ...

In 2016, Carly Bahler arrived in Madawaska to study the local French. She was a PhD student with midwestern vowels and an infectious sort of brio, and soon after checking in at her convent turned ...

On the afternoon that Margaret Mathis began a four-day trek to the ancient ruins of Machu Picchu, in Peru, with her son and his family, their guide brought along an extra horse. “He’d never had anyone ...

On the state Department of Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry website, an interactive map tracks every bit of conserved land across all of Maine. Check only the box for federally protected lands, ...

Maine’s most influential architects since the early 19th century designed buildings that expressed the priorities and aspirations of their generation. But their projects were not merely of the moment.

Sam Calagione moved to New York after college. He tended bar and took writing classes, thinking he’d make a career in letters. Then, another possibility formed in his mind. That summer, he took a trip ...

Founder Michael Lyons explains how the Standish shop keeps its designs relevant — and its production high-quality. A Down East Shop maker spotlight. When Michael Lyons asked his doctor about some back ...

I’m walking across the top of the historic Mill Pond dam, in Whiting village, admiring the beauty of the water rushing below, when Jacob van de Sande tells me the nearly 200-year-old stone structure ...