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Native flora, most. Wild Gardens of Acadia, Sieur de Monts Spring, Mount Desert Island. More than 300 species of native plants are displayed and labeled.


National park, first east of the Mississippi (and only one in New England). Acadia National Park, most of which lies on Mount Desert Island.


Native American, first to play major-league baseball. Louis Sockalexis, a Penobscot born on Indian Island in 1873. He was such a sensation that Cleveland changed its name from Spiders to Indians. Alas, he died broke and drunk.

Natural history museum, best. College of the Atlantic, Bar Harbor. Native fauna in realistic settings.

Naval battle, first of American revolution. Machias, 1775. Local boys commandeered the British schooner Margaretta and proceeded to terrorize passing British ships.

Naval defeat, worst for U.S. until Pearl Harbor. The ill-fated Penobscot Expeition of 1779 in which the British desroyed a U.S. fleet of 30 to 40 ships in Penobscot Bay. Paul Revere was present at the debacle. He ended up walking back to Boston.

Nepalese artifacts, most and best. Options from the World Marketplace, Rte 15, Blue Hill. Far out prayer bells, sculptures, handcrafts, etc.


Nuts most, world’s largest. DIMARCO REALTY, Prospect Harbor. The collection once belonging to Perry’s Nut House and containing every known botanical nut has ended up on public display in this tiny seaside village.






Oars and paddles, world's finest. Shaw and Tenney, Orono. This company is one of the few remaining manufacturers of handcrafted, solid wood oars and paddles. Its been doing this since 1858.


Observation tower, highest. The tower at the Bucksport narrows bridge, which soars more than 500 feet. An elevator, New England's fastest, blasts visitors to the top in less than a minute. There is no other observation tower like this in the Western Hemisphere.

Old and fat people, most. Maine. Our state has the highest average age in the nation and the fattest people in New England. Who says fat people die young? Mainers enjoy life too much for that.


Old tools, most. The Tool Barn, Hulls Cove. Thousands of antique implements.

Onion rings, best. Jordan's Snack Bar, Rte 1, Ellsworth.


ONLINE INFORMATION for Downeast Maine, best. CAPTAIN D and his family of websites: CaptainD.com, DowneastPorts.info, MaineCybermall.com, Appealing PublicPlaces.com, AcadiaNationalPark.biz, MaineInternetDirectory.com, and SearchDowneast.com. If it's worth knowing, it's here someplace.







Organic market, certified, largest in Northeast. Hannaford, with markets in Bar Harbor, Ellsworth, Bucksport, Calais, Machias, and Bangor.


Organic produce, best buy. Crossroads Farm, Jonesport. We couldn't believe how many carrots we got for $3. These guys grow 30 varieties of lettuce.

Oyster bar, Maine’s longest. Dennett’s Wharf, Castine. This venerable eatery hosts the annual Maine state oyster-eating championship.




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Paintings, most energetic. Swing dancers on display at Susan Tobey White's High Street Studio & Gallery in Belfast. They make you want to dance.


Passamaquoddy Tidal Power Project model, best. The 14-by-16-foot working model at the Quoddy Maritime Museum in Eastport. The project was an abortive depression-era effort to harness the region's great tides for the generation of electricity.

Paul Bunyan, biggest. Bangor Auditorium, Bangor. The statue here is 30 feet high.

Peruvian products, most. Peruvian Link, Route 9, Amherst. Wonderful fabrics from Alpacas.


Pharmacy, most idealistic. Downeast Pharmacy, Bangor and Brewer. Good Maine citizens, this small chain quit selling cigarettes a few years ago, and never did sell beer. It is engaged in a number of programs focusing on the elderly, youth, and the environment.

Pirate republic, only one ever planned. Captain Samuel Bellamy's, which was to have been established in what now is Machias. The captain was hanged before he could bring this hair-brained scheme to fruition.

Poet, best. Edna St. Vincent Millay, who was born and raised in Camden, Maine. Among her many honors, she was the first woman to receive a Pulitzer Prize.

Pop folk singer, best. Noel Paul Stookey, who lives in Blue Hill. Stookey made his mark in the late fifties and early sixties with Peter, Paul and Mary, one of the most popular groups ever.

Popovers, best. Jordan Pond House, Acadia National Park. Several generations of Rockefellers, Astors, and Vanderbilts have made tea and popovers a venerable afternoon tradition.

Post office, oldest. Castine Post Office, Main Street, Castine. In continuous operation for 180 years, it is country’s oldest. It is a national historic landmark.

Pots, biggest. Lunaform, Sullivan. Huge, unique, definitely cool, garden planters.

Pottery, most potters, Mainely Pottery, Rte 1, Belfast. This place shows the work of some 24 Maine potmakers.

Pottery, only saltglazed. Monroe Salt Works, Ellsworth and Belfast. Last company preserving the ancient technique of salt glazing.

Publicly-owned land, least. Maine, where just two percent of the land is publicly-owned. No state has less

Public recreation area, Maine's most popular. Acadia National Park, which accounts for 60 percent of visitor days to public areas in Maine.

Puffins, best viewing spot. Machias Seal Island. Each morning at 7, Capt. Barna B. Norton's vessel departs Jonesport for this island. Call 207-497-5933. Capt. Norton, a direct descendant of the legendary Tall Barney, has long led the campaign to secure this island as a U.S. possession, a contention rather hotly contested by Canada.

Putting green, best. The 18-holer at Kebo Valley Club, Bar Harbor. The only one of its kind.


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Radio station, non-profit community, best. WERU, East Orland. Fighting the good fight against the likes of Clear Channel, WERU is keeping community radio alive in Downeast Maine.


Radio Station owned by a really famous person, best and only. WKIT-F.M. (100.3), Bangor, Stephen King's very own station. He gets to hear the songs he likes.

Radio station, world's most powerful. U.S. Navy Communication Center, Cutler. The 26 antenna towers here keep tabs on naval operations worldwide. This installation is said to put sleepy Cutler right up there with the Pentagon at the top of the list of enemy targets in any future nuclear confrontation.

Radio stations, most per capita. Bangor, Maine. With 11 stations, Bangor gives listeners more choices than any other city in the country.

Research facility, nation's largest for study of mammalian genetics. The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor.

Restaurant, best Caribbean atmosphere. Marlintini's Grill, Blue Hill.

Restaurant, best French. Le Domaine Restaurant, Hancock.

Retail business, Maine's oldest. S.L.Wadsworth & Son, Eastport. Founded in 1818, this venerable shop has been in the same family for six generations.

Right whales, most likely place in Maine to encounter them. Off Eastport.

Rock face, toughest climb. Precipice Trail, Champlain Mountain. Eight hundred feet more-or-less straight up.


Rocks & gems, biggest selection. BENNETT'S GEMS AND JEWELRY, Rte 1, Belfast. Best place in Eastern Maine to get stoned.






 Romantic dinner, best restaurant to have one. Lucerne Inn, Dedham, according to readers of Bangor Metro magazine.




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 Salad Bar, best. Ruby Tuesday, Brewer and Bangor, according to readers of Bangor Metro magazine.


Salsa, best. SISTER'S SALSA, Penobscot. This is a fresh refrigerated salsa preserved naturally with fruit juices, vinegar and salt.


Sandwiches, best. MANO'S MARKET, Rte 1, Hancock. The selection of hot and cold sandwiches here is unsurpassed.

Sandwiches, best selection all for under $5, Fat Cat Deli, 28 Main St., Machias.

Sardine cannery, site of first. Eastport, where a cannery was established in 1876. Maine is the only state in the nation with facilities to can and pack sardines.


Sardine cannery, nation's most highly automated. Stinson Seafood Company, Prospect Harbor.

Sea captains, most. Searsport. Between 1870 and 1900, more than 200 captains of deep water merchant vessels called Searsport home.

Seafood restaurant, best. Fisherman's Friend, Stonington. If you can believe Maine Times, this place is tops.

Self-help organization, best. H.O.M.E. Inc., Orland. Helped hundreds of area residents beat poverty.

Sheepskin stuff, most. Blacksheep Trading Co., Trenton. We get warm and fuzzy just thinking about all the cool, er, warm stuff they have.

Sheet music, most. Bagaduce Music Lending Library, Blue Hill. Here is an incredible collection, upwards of a million examples of old sheet music.

Shipmasters, most. Searsport, Maine. During the 1870s and '80s, ten percent of the shipmasters in the U.S. Merchant marine hailed from here.

Ship's chandlery, largest discount outlet north of Boston. Hamilton Marine, Rte 1, Searsport.

Ship's chandlery, nation's oldest. S.L. Wadsworth & Son, Eastport. Operating since 1818.


Ships models, best. BLUEJACKET SHIPCRAFTERS, Searsport. The modeling kits this company makes quite likely are the world's finest In continuous business for over a century, they're also the oldest.



 Shoe store, country's oldest. Colburn's, Belfast. Folks have been outfitting their feet here since 1832.

Six- and eight-wheel-drive amphibious ATV dealer, Maine's largest. Off Road, Rte 1A (the Bangor Road), Ellsworth


Smoked hams, best. W.A. Bean and Sons, Bangor. Spiral-cut, honey-glazed hams are sold nationwide by mail order.

Smoked salmon, best. Grindstone Neck of Maine, Winter Harbor. Owner Carl Johnson is a perfectionist, and his smoked salmon is as good as can be.

Snack foods, healthiest. Gladsone's Under the Sun, Ellsworth. This local company uses as many fresh Maine agricultural products as possible.



Snake, Maine's largest. The black racer, which can be more than six feet long. The good news is Maine has no poisonous snakes.

Snowplow, first. The one invented by Don A. Sargent of Bangor.

Solar observation, first made in North America. That of Harvard professor Samuel Williams in 1780 from Isleboro.


Sports bar, best. KONA'S, Bar Harbor Road, Ellsworth. Half steak house, half sports bar. This is the place to go.

Stained glass windows, most incredible. Baptist Church, Sedgwick. This old, poverty-stricken church with a leaking roof has windows worth some $10 million.

Staircase, best. The Ruggles House, Columbia Falls. The most noted architects have found the hand-carved flying staircase astounding.

State park island, only one in Maine. Warren Island, just west of Islesboro Island. This 700-acre park features trails, a picnic area, and campsites.

Steak, best. Texas Roadhouse restaurant, Stillwater Avenue, Bangor, according to readers of Bangor Metro magazine. Here can can pick your own cut of cow.

Stephen King memorabilia, best selection. Betts Bookstore, Hammond St., Bangor. Proprietor Stu Tinker, King's friend and neighbor, stocks a copy of everything by King along with an ever-changing selection of King collectibles.


Sunday brunch, best. THE RIVERSIDE CAFE, Ellsworth. Fresh squeezed juices, homemade baked goods, fresh baked bagels and such favorites as The Crabby Biscuit, Rudy's Famous Homemade Quiche, and the Blackbean Omelette make this our hands down favorite!

Sunrise, first to see it. During much of the year, folks at the summit of Cadillac Mountain are the first U.S. citizens to see the new day.

Sushi, best. Ebisu, Union St., Bangor.

Surf, best. Schoodic Point, Schoodic Peninsula. No other point of land on the Atlantic seaboard juts further into the open ocean.

Symphony orchestra, nation's oldest. Bangor Symphony Orchestra, Bangor. This venerable community orchestra was founded in 1896, and hasn't missed a season since.