Features Archives - The Harpswell Anchor

5 minute read

Features

First Person: For ROMEOs kitchen maven, ‘Food is my love language’

"Growing up in Boston, my mom was first-generation Irish and my dad was first-generation Italian. For both of them, everything was about Sunday. In the morning, you go to church, get your doughnut — our big treat for the week — and then everything was about Sunday supper."

byJeffrey Good

March 4, 2026

4 minute read

Features

1st president of Holbrook Community Foundation put everything he had into his projects

William "Bill" Mangum, the first president of the Holbrook Community Foundation, died on Nov. 28. He was 81.

bySam Lemonick

March 3, 2026

4 minute read

Features

From smoky brisket to huge cinnamon rolls, new cafe impresses Brunswick with eclectic offerings and large portions

Fried chicken on a jumbo biscuit with sausage gravy and a drizzle of maple syrup. Beef on weck, a favorite in Buffalo, New York, with thinly sliced roast beef piled high on a homemade kaiser roll topped with caraway seeds and coarse salt. A "big smoked breakfast" with brisket, pulled pork, smoked sausage, two eggs, home fries and toast. Hungry yet?

byConnie Sage Conner

February 28, 2026

7 minute read

Features

A lobster house in winter: Cook’s embraces offseason role as island outpost

The wind off Garrison Cove was wicked on New Year's Day. The temperature on Bailey Island was in the low 20s, with a wind chill that made it feel like single digits. The sun had set by 4:15 p.m., and the temperature continued to drop in the cold blue of evening.

byBisi Cameron Yee

February 6, 2026

4 minute read

Features

Bailey Island neighbors have grandsons on opposite teams in Super Bowl

Parny Hagerman and her neighbor Surrey Hardcastle have a lot in common. They live just a few yards from each other on Bailey Island. Both are retired school administrators and each has nearly two dozen grandkids. What's more, Hagerman and Hardcastle both have grandsons in the NFL.

byTroy R. Bennett

February 4, 2026

6 minute read

Features

Orr’s Islanders confront Harpswell’s Ku Klux Klan history

When the Ku Klux Klan gathered in Harpswell on the Fourth of July in 1925, it wasn't behind closed doors or in the dark of night. Their picnic and parade attracted hundreds of klansmen with their families. A photograph from that day shows Harpswellians in klan regalia, hoods back and faces showing. One wears a scarf reading, "100% American." Women and children pose with them.

bySam Lemonick

February 2, 2026

5 minute read

Features

First Person: Cundy’s Harbor pastor traveled the world, then came home to answer the call

"Dean and I were riding our Harley-Davidson through the cornfields of Illinois on our way to visit Minnesota, where he grew up. It was August and the corn was tall. It was like riding through a tunnel. The pastor here, Bob Herring, was retiring, and I was on the board helping to pick a new one."

byJeffrey Good

February 1, 2026

5 minute read

Features

A cosmic history of Harpswell

Time and place seem like obvious things, the anchors of our lives. But when examined closely, they are almost beyond comprehension. For example, we have trouble grasping that at one time in the past, we didn't exist.

byAlan Lightman

January 31, 2026

5 minute read

Features

Orr’s Island volunteer remembered as selfless and kind

Harpswell residents are mourning the sudden loss of an Orr's Island woman whose spirit of quiet generosity benefited many corners of the community.

byJ. Craig Anderson

January 17, 2026

4 minute read

Features

First Person: Veteran deputy serves Harpswell in good times and bad

"How did I decide to get into law enforcement? You're going to laugh at this one. I couldn't beat 'em, so I had to join 'em. Growing up in Freeport, I was always speeding and driving like an idiot and getting tickets. I had a warning letter from the state saying, 'We're going to take your license if you get one more conviction.' I did a soul search and figured out this is what I wanted to do."

byJeffrey Good

January 4, 2026

Features

First Person: For ROMEOs kitchen maven, ‘Food is my love language’

1st president of Holbrook Community Foundation put everything he had into his projects

From smoky brisket to huge cinnamon rolls, new cafe impresses Brunswick with eclectic offerings and large portions

A lobster house in winter: Cook’s embraces offseason role as island outpost

Bailey Island neighbors have grandsons on opposite teams in Super Bowl

Orr’s Islanders confront Harpswell’s Ku Klux Klan history

First Person: Cundy’s Harbor pastor traveled the world, then came home to answer the call

A cosmic history of Harpswell

Orr’s Island volunteer remembered as selfless and kind

First Person: Veteran deputy serves Harpswell in good times and bad

District abandons option to close Harpswell’s only public school

The leadership we need

Recycling center resumes full service after equipment accident

Features

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