Kennebunk, ME Summary

photo by gusto

Kennebunk (population 9,101), Kennebunkport (population 3,495), and Kennebunk Beach are three adjacent towns in southern Maine, 27 miles southwest of Portland. In the 1800s the area became busy with trade — the inland rivers and streams were perfect sites for sawmills and gristmills. Lumber was needed for shipbuilding on the Kennebunk River, and for houses and repairs. As more people came there to work, farms grew to feed them. The town center of Kennebunk moved to the north side of the river. Up to 100 ships were built in a year in the early 1800s. The towns became the second richest in the state, with shipbuilders, owners, and captains building elegant houses in town.

However, after 1861, more and more steel ships were being built and the lumber and boatbuilding industries shrank dramatically.

Shipping embargoes during the Civil War further reduced the industries. The boom ended and many people left. Luckily, the 1870s brought a growth in the popularity of summer houses and resorts along the coast. The 1880s brought growth to the Kennebunks as tourism gradually took the place of shipbuilding.

Kennebunk is full of white clapboard houses with shutters, and sea captains’ mansions. Many wealthy artists and writers own houses here now, in place of the sea captains, and, as a consequence, there are a few stores in the area selling rare and used books. There are walking tours of the old houses to give visitors a good taste of the area’s history.

The Brick Store Museum has changing exhibits on the history and art of southern Maine, and one semi-permanent exhibit on Kennebunk in the Federal Period.

The Taylor-Barry House Museum, built in 1803, is a good picnic spot in summer. Gooch’s Beach and Middle Beach are meeting grounds for teenagers; the quieter Mother’s Beach is ideal for families.

Kennebunkport is a scenic town with old captains’ houses, boutiques, and restaurants. Dock Square, the town center, is a good place to begin a tour. Captain Lord Mansion, built in 1821, is now a guesthouse. Nott House, in the center of the village, has white Doric columns — it was built in 1853 in the Greek Revival style. All the carpets, wallpaper, and furniture are original.

The Wedding Cake House, built in 1821, is covered with white ornate fretwork and does, indeed, look as much like a wedding cake as any house could. The story behind it is that a sea captain had to leave in the middle of his own wedding and the house was a gift to his new bride to make up for the lack of a wedding cake. The house is a private residence, but the adjacent carriage house is a studio and gallery open to the public.

Both Kennebunk and Kennebunkport are perfect for taking a leisurely walk or drive around town. Guided walking tours run from Nott House from June to October, and there are also plenty of opportunities for self-guided tours. There are many beautifully maintained buildings of Colonial, Greek Revival, Federal,and Victorian styles. The townhouse school is a white, one-room schoolhouse with a pretty peaked roof. It was used from about 1900 to 1951. The old jail is to the left of the school, and is now open by appointment only.

The Seashore Trolley Museum exhibits an enchanting array of a century’s worth of streetcars — from 1872 to 1972 — from many cities around the world, such as Nagasaki, New York, Budapest, Boston, and Sydney. The highlight of the museum is a 4-mile trolley ride with a stop to look at the restoration workshop.

South of Kennebunk is the Rachael Carson National Wildlife Refuge. It is a great place for retreating from the crowds in summertime on a relaxed self-guided tour. Visitors can wander the trails through salt marsh and spot shorebirds and waterfowl — there are more than 200 species to see.

Rachael Carson was a naturalist and author of Silent Spring and other books that helped begin the environmental movement.

Portland International Jetport is the nearest major airport.