I was born and raised in the county (Aroostock county) and loved it, picked potatoes in the fall with my mother and brother, my dad worked in the woods. We were poor but didn't know it.
Hearing the Maine accent makes me miss my daddy. My mom was 16 living in Salmon Falls when she got pregnant with me. My dear daddy was blamed as a bad boy and my momma sent as far away as possible to CA where I was born. I didn’t understand why my (adopted)father loved my brother and sister more than me until I was 16 and my “Uncle Bud” whom I never met sent me a plane ticket to visit him in West Buxton ME. Long story short my uncle was my father and he never gave up looking for me. I finally felt a father’s love I missed for 16 years. Sometimes I hear his voice calling me Cinderelly and miss him so much it hurts.My mom is 81 and still tells me he was the only man she ever loved 💕
It was good to watch this film again. So many different stories in this film. Rockport and Camden are fortunate to have such a good film made about their history.
I grew up in Bar Harbor in the sixties. Nothing else gives me more memories than that 11 years of my life. While times were not hard for us then because my father was a government employee. It seemed each town honestly took interest in its citizens. Especially the poor or those in need. Something we now need badly. I can remember we lived in a older home on Robert's Ave. 4 story home including the basement. Seemed like we had 12 fireplaces in the place and a coal bin in the basement. Of course we at that time heated like everyone else with fuel oil. But like every other person in town we bought 12 cords of firewood each fall from those that needed to sell it. Took us 3 years to become friends with the neighbors next door. When we moved they all had tears in their eyes. Down East Maine......I will never forget it!
hello Rockport Maine I am from Wisconsin and I loved knowing some of your history and RIP to Andre the seal? I like seals they are so cute and intelligent hugs!
I know this is a older life on the east coast, but the similarities as a generations old family on the west coast. These are pride, determination, honor, and family. This was greatly timed for me today. Home is where the heart is! Thank you, David!
@@peternicholson2504 Hi friend Peter! I'm still in shock as it has been confirmed that my savior, friend Rufino was murdered by his drugged out son. Sad days are too many. Stay safe, and be blessed!
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker Kinda numb, angry, sad, confused. Not just my life, but our friends suffering cuz of insane rulers! Sure feel safe at home with David Hoffman Filmmaker! Got to admit, I miss your talking head, as you say! Cheers!
Born & raised here in Augusta, Maine just wanted to say thanks for sharing this Mr. Hoffman I really enjoyed watching and learning about the ways of things back then.
I was born and raised in Searsport Maine, just a few miles up the coast. I lived in Rockport and Rockland. I have been in Kansas for 6 years now and a day doesn't go by I don't think about home. Most beautiful place on earth, take it from one who has been all over. Can't wait to go back to visit family this summer.
I too am a "Mainiac" now living in Oklahoma going on 30 years . Born in Bangor . Lived in Bucksport . moved away when I was 13. I also have been thinking a lot of my true home in the past years . I will likely never return there because financially its just not doable for me . But given the chance I would love too go home before I die .
Thank you Mr Hoffman, as a life long resident of the Maine Midcoast area it's so nice to see our simple way of life portrayed in a positive light. It's very easy to forget how special this place is when you're going through the trials and tribulations of life.
my parents took me to see Andre the seal when I was a kid. I remember the wooden enclosure in the water and the show. I still have the book to this day. thanks for the memories.
Your last name is currier that is my dad and my brothers middle name and goes back way way back in my ancestry it was a last name then eventually a middle😊
David, I've been producing music for 35 years. The music as applied here is absolutely appropriate. It has life without being distracting. It's Burnsesque. And Ken's work is the standard. The entire production is nicely polished.
I truly enjoyed this wonderful video. I'm 56, live in Mass, and Maine hs been a big part of my life forever. Bless you all for posting this and keep them coming!
Please allow me to respectfully disagree with your appraisal of the music. It was performed by Ellen Wiland from Rockport Maine as she watched the film. I personally love it. A matter of taste I am sure. David Hoffman-filmmaker
I enjoyed the music. And I think that the fact that it was composed in real time in correspondence with the film is absolutely impressive. Wonderful film. I grew up in nearby Tenants Harbor. My mothers side from Camden, my father's from Rockport. Their union was regarded by some to be the TRUE reconciliation of the two towns;) haha although, I do recall some minor skirmishes between the two!
Everything you create is just perfect! I💕Maine and I appreciate this special film that highlights my favorite state! It holds so many wonderful childhood memories of summers there.
A beautiful documentary. I lived in New Hampshire, for five years, as a kid. I remember the beautiful drives up along the Maine coast. We stopped at many of the coastal towns such as Rockport.
People did not smile in photographs in the old days. Camera speed was really slow, so people had to stand motionless for several minutes. No one can keep up a real smile for that long. As for being "... mostly bored or stressed, like we are...", that's your take on this, and yours alone.
My wife is Nancy Hey, who has also commented on this excellent documentary. Her mom and my mother in law, Louise Bennett Hey, sold her house in Rockport, either in 2011 or 2012. She passed away on March 5, 2013, in Arlington, VA. Nancy and I, who've been together since 1999, will always treasure the August vacations we spent with Louise. Rockport and Camden have a very peaceful, wholesome vibration, it penetrates your soul with sunshine. I love the people and the place.
just a fun note: 35:51 shows the 1890's building back at clip 9:39. Then start on Google street views at that Pascal spot and drive the same turn in 2021 as the videographer did in 1991. That's rare, to have two identical 'street view' car drives to reference 30 years apart.
did some drilling work on loring air force base Caribou Maine coldest place i ever been,,you can have your state and they all talked funny too me being from So IL so did I lol
I was two years old when this was made/released. I'm 34 now. I don't feel much connection to the place I grew up or the places that I've lived, but watching this video made me glad that there are people and places like this. Seeing people from that era and imagining what they lived through, knowing that most featured--if not all--are no longer with us; I can't really describe how stuff like this makes me feel. This was very good. I wish I could look fondly upon my own hometown this way. Thanks, David. Cheers from the South.
l lived in Maine, in Rumford, from 1960 to 1964, when I was in my early teens. I loved it, and hated the move to British Columbia when my father took a new job. My memories of Maine are some of my favorites.
Hi David, I too am a filmmaker and came to Rockport, initially, through Maine Media Workshops. Thought I'd stay for a year or so and it's almost 7 years later. I now teach classes there and do freelance documentary work. I've been a big fan of this documentary for a long time (I have a VHS copy). It's excellent. Plus, we are all very lucky that you captured this oral history with some of these old-timers (many of whom I suspect are not living). So, just wanted to say "thank-you" for your work, it's both an inspiration as a doc film-maker as well as a long-time family favorite!
Thank you Christopher. 1st of all, the voiceover is the famous Pater Thomas who just died this year. I worked with Peter for more than 50 years and he was my absolute favorite. My e-mail address is allinaday@aol.com and I would welcome an e-mail with some links to some of your work. I used to teach at the workshop as well. I enjoyed it. David Hoffman-filmmaker
Maine media workshops is amazing, I've worked there for the past eight years. Many happy summer memories there! Vacationland means a slower pace of life
Thanks for presenting this interesting interpretation of Rockport's history. Everyone loves a good story and this qualifies. Rockport does have a beautiful harbor but certainly not in the same league as several others unnamed. I can recall some 80+ years ago how Rockport looked and the gracious people who helped a strained motorist get to his military base on time. To me it has been the inhabitants of a community that are paramount. Rockport has had more than it's share of wonderful people. How fortunate for the rest of us!
I remember Rockport going up Route One a number of years ago - don't recall Camden. David your use of narration and use of images sure looks familiar in use for documentaries today. Nice work.
Maine...a state I would like to visit. David, this is a good film that seems to describe the character of people as good and hard working. That "character" of people was in the man who founded his shoe company: SAS Shoes. The man, Terry Armstrong, was born and raised there. He passed away in November, 2005. I worked for SAS (San Antonio Shoes) for 15.5 years. Again, as said, I would like to see the beauty of Maine. It's on my "bucket list".
Living on the coast of Maine is the best. You have shown just how hard it must have been for these folks back in the day. Thank you so much for sharing this, Mr. Hoffman.
Well done! I get the feeling we are missing out today on some of the Maine qualities of life as depicted here in your excellent video. We have witnessed the decline of so many unique Maine enterprises in the last few decades like the sardine canneries along the coast, big time fish processors, small manufacturing factories and so forth. The older folks from the coast still know how to do practical things, but the kids today don't have many examples of what good work is or good fun either! All in all there is no place I can think of I'd rather live!!
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker Talk about some messed up stuff! Lost Coast IPA has been too often a companion on our hill. The smokey reminders of Ross and his dads life just disapating. Then sister Patti, and Rufino the next day. The kids also knew what a man Rufino was. Good grief, soon.
@@luciehanson6250 Good grief! Totally appropriate. Things seem to be hitting you right now can't be avoided but you are old enough to know that time heals. David
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker You are right, David. Grief changes as one ages. I used to grieve greatly over lost love. Had I loved myself more then, I wouldn't have wasted so much time on the loser. I'm sad. And, I am guilty over the direction of my sadness; savior over sibling? To me, my savior was a better person.
I moved to Gardiner Maine just before Covid shut down the whole world and I am hopeful that we shall soon be able to participate and enjoy the community and the festivals that I have heard about and have made Maine what it is. Memorial Day parades and 4th of July fireworks.
I liked the music. Great video. Many memories of Maine as I went to high school in Hinckley. I did visit the coast on occasion. Damariscota and Pemaquid . Lovely state. Lovely people.
I was born in south western NH and lived there till 21. Still live in NH but 20 minutes from Maine and the NH seacoast. Maine is beautiful with a rugged rocky seacoast and some harsh winters. Gotta be tough and self-reliant to be a New Englander. Keeps out the riff-raff!
Excellent Story, very interesting .... was happy to see "Andre the seal in the water... took pictures next of his monument ... Went there ,Camden and attended many Rockland Lobster Festivals... all are some of Maine's Beautiful Places ,Joe and I visited many times ,"GREAT MEMORIES" from when he was alive.
RUclips recommended your videos about boomers to me. I watched and loved them. Then subscribed and saw this gem. I grew up in Maine and this was a pleasure to watch. Thanks, David.
Spent summers in Maine as a youngster. Lovely area. Explored the coast from Pemaquid, north thru New Harbor, Chamberlain, Round Pond, Waldoboro, and up to Rockland. Great memories.
Love that this video is on line and available for the public to see. Thank you for posting it. Rockport is now celebrating their 125th anniversary this year (Camden is celebrating 225).
I really enjoyed seeing this film...I lived in Camden for about 28 or so years, and fished out of the harbor with my son ...in Rockport. Got married in Rockport. It was awesome to see Dot and David in their younger years. I took care of them in their older years. Only took me 15 minutes to realize it was Dots voice.... I knew I new that voice and smile... wish you had the names of the people who you interviewed...cause some of the others sounded familiar as well... I enjoyed every minute of this film ...thank you David Hoffman.
Yesterday, we returned from a vacation to visit my family in Maine. Already homesick, I found your video. Thank you very much for preserving the past and providing the interviews of the elders. Please enjoy your summer.
Thank you Lyn. I lived in Maine for 20 years and making this simple story about the town I lived in meant a lot to me. I'm glad that others are affected by it. David Hoffman-filmmaker
Excellent documentary, there are some very interesting pieces of history. Some of the social activities looked excellent also. Thank you for the video.
Thank you for your comment. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that RUclips is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts. David Hoffman filmmaker
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker I am unemployed and that might overdraw my bank account. I do refer videos (like this one) to other interested people whenever I have the chance.
I came to Maine from Chicago almost 6 years ago for a seaweed harvesters' apprenticeship. I had expectations about Maine except rocks, potatoes, lobster, and some water. I had NO idea that I would find the beauty, peace, sense of community, and friendliness that I encountered here. After my 10-day trip to Maine, I moved from Chicago 5 weeks later. It was that fast! I will never live anywhere else but Maine.
I grew up in the 90's but hear your sentiments. It's odd to me how time has gone by, the future is now, but society seems to be declining and I yearn for simpler times with humble hard working people
Brunswick is still the town of hippies, hobos and snobs, with more and more snobs "from away" taking over. I'm native here. Seeing the changes supported by the pretentious snobs from away is hard to witness. At least the military/war machine factor is gone from here, that's a big plus.
Awww I felt so many things watching this @David Hoffman , This is why I adore you Happy 1/23 /2021 David and thank you for all you share 🍃🥀 Namaste' 🥀🍃
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker I shared this video , I particularly want people to see the bit about how people helped each other and the generations in families cohabitated to survive . We are there again ✅
Born in Danforth. Have been all over the state including the northern woods. I use to work for cytell on loring air force base as a kid telemarketing. We use to travel the old tunnels playing paintball wars and there was old Humvee and 2.5 ton trucks down there that you could move around to change the game ever time.
When I was a kid on vinalhaven we used too go to the hardware store an 2,3 or 4 old fisherman Rocken in rocking chairs would hold out a cast iron frying pan full of candy .he say there you go young fellow man that brings me back loved the way the store smelled an the old wood floors warped from so many people walking on them .we get a piece of mono for marckeral fishing We get payed 25 cents for jack mackerel .go swimming in Lawson quarry .great place too grow up
Great video, I envy the old days, not sure if I should or not, but it seems like tougher times yet simpler times. It seems like nothing was taken for granted....from a hard days work to leisure activities.....everyone served a purpose....we cry when the internet is down for a few hours, yet back then it took 100 men just to put an ice cube in a drink.
The temperature has, thankfully, kept a lot of people from moving here, but they still come anyway. Land prices skyrocketed over the decades because of the influx of flatlanders.
A good film from beginning to end. Very well made. Even the drawings are good. The history of Rockport is well presented. We are very fortunate to have the interviews with the older people. Nice stories about doughnuts and also Andre. Thanks you very much.
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker Thanks for the invitation David. I haven't any plans of traveling in the near future, but if I do tour in the USA I will make it my priority to go to Maine. In the meantime i will continue to enjoy your good work. I must say again i really did enjoy this film.
Lived innYork for 20 years, loved it the way life should be. Husbands illness brought us back to NJ, HE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH ALS , AND PASSED in 4 months .
I’m really sorry for your loss. I know ALS is particularly difficult for everyone involved so I am sure you’ve had to exude Hercules level strength just to keep going after your husband passed. I realize I don’t know you but I wish you all the best.
Thanks beautifully done it just gets better and better as I got to the end with the personal interviews of older residents a real Americana for posterity!
I drove from Southern California to Maine to live for 6 months (Fall and Winter of 2013) just to see what it was like to experience a real winter. It took me 6 days to get to Maine. On the 1st day of that following Spring, I left the town of Oakland, Maine and headed back to Southern California. It only took me 4 days.
@@ev500sam I was wrecked by the cold and lack of sun during the winter time. And the length of the winter too. Depression and homesickness was rampant with me. The only Winters I had experienced before Maine were So Cal Winters, short and very dry, very sunny and any freezing temps are rather short lived, some mountains areas excluded. But the beauty of Fall in Maine was stunning, the foliage was insane!! I had never seen such colors like that, so many trees and rivers!! And the Mainers I met were built of a personality type that humbled me, mostly from their work ethic I witnessed. Plus all the wildlife!! Very different from Southwest wildlife. And Winter was beautiful too, but the depression was too heavy for me so I floored it back to so cal come Spring. But I’ll never forget Maine and those I met there and I look forward to the day I return to experience a Summer there.
The Indigenous people who used to live and still live in Maine are called Penobscot, one of the five Wabanaki nations (Abenaki, Maliseet, Mi’kmaq, Passamaqquoddy, and Penobscot). Wawenock means “round island” in the Penobscot (Penawahpskewi) language. The Wawenock were one of the five Penobscot tribes, a tribe decimated by the epidemics and merged with the rest of the Wabanaki nations. In addition to Wawenock, the Pigwacket, the Caiba, the Norridgewock, the Arosaguntacook all lived in what is now Maine. Settler immigration and epidemics hit them hard and they moved to Quebec (Odanak) and the Maritimes, Vermont and New Hampshire. There were between 70,000 and 100,000 Wabanakis living in New England before Contact.
I always wondered why they gave two towns so close together very similar sounding names---Rockport & Rockland. It's such a pretty area, and yes, there are unique personalities (a few of whom are featured here). Since Covid and telecommuting, places like this have taken off. You don't have to live in cities any more.
I was stationed at NAS Brunswick, Maine. Nice area. I asked for a milkshake and the lady told me they call them fraps. Spelled it the way she said it. Great lobster places.
@@ongogoblogian1343 Lo and behold, the daughter of the founders of the original Fat Boy's has opened The Frappe Shop in front of the Tontine Mall there in Brunswick. Fat Boy's changed hands several years ago.
Born and raised in Maine ( Fairfield area) . Bought a home in Rockport and have enjoyed the area ever since. Going back and forth to work in Rockland, I am always in awe of the views of mountains and hills. The inland of Rockport is as interesting to me as the coast. Great video on Rockport, very well done and very interesting.
Thanks for this piece. We lived in Rockport for the first 3 years of our married lives, which was 46-43 years ago. We moved there when I went to work for W.T. Grant Co. store in Rockland, 46 years ago. When I retired as the CEO of the Bone & Joint Center in Albany, NY last September the physicians purchase a painting for me by Stapleton Kearns of "Rockport Harbor," which is hanging proudly in our living room in Frankfort, ME.
As a filmmaker who documents "the way it was" in the Appalachian Mountains, I also have a deep love for Maine. I used to spend many summers as a child there. I really enjoyed this documentary. Very well done!!
Thank you. David Hoffman - filmmaker Have you seen my Appalachian mountains films on this my RUclips channel. Search bluegrass on my channel to find many clips
I just found them. Absolutely amazing! I am a big fan of the "Squire of Turkey Creek." He certainly has an influence of what I am trying to do in documenting vanishing customs and ways here in the NC High Country.
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
I was born and raised in the county (Aroostock county) and loved it, picked potatoes in the fall with my mother and brother, my dad worked in the woods. We were poor but didn't know it.
Hearing the Maine accent makes me miss my daddy. My mom was 16 living in Salmon Falls when she got pregnant with me. My dear daddy was blamed as a bad boy and my momma sent as far away as possible to CA where I was born. I didn’t understand why my (adopted)father loved my brother and sister more than me until I was 16 and my “Uncle Bud” whom I never met sent me a plane ticket to visit him in West Buxton ME. Long story short my uncle was my father and he never gave up looking for me. I finally felt a father’s love I missed for 16 years. Sometimes I hear his voice calling me Cinderelly and miss him so much it hurts.My mom is 81 and still tells me he was the only man she ever loved 💕
What a sad story. I am glad that your mom has lived so long and you got to be with your dad.
David Hoffman filmmaker
Great story. I use to live in Berwick, Maine. What a beautiful state.
Bless you for this.
Thank you for your story. God bless.
Buxton Boys are still built different!!
It was good to watch this film again. So many different stories in this film. Rockport and Camden are fortunate to have such a good film made about their history.
I grew up in Bar Harbor in the sixties. Nothing else gives me more memories than that 11 years of my life. While times were not hard for us then because my father was a government employee. It seemed each town honestly took interest in its citizens. Especially the poor or those in need. Something we now need badly. I can remember we lived in a older home on Robert's Ave. 4 story home including the basement. Seemed like we had 12 fireplaces in the place and a coal bin in the basement. Of course we at that time heated like everyone else with fuel oil. But like every other person in town we bought 12 cords of firewood each fall from those that needed to sell it.
Took us 3 years to become friends with the neighbors next door. When we moved they all had tears in their eyes. Down East Maine......I will never forget it!
I could listen to those older folks talk all day. Especially the lady in the blue.
Such a lovely drawl and seems so sweet. I love that she has so many stories about the past.
hello Rockport Maine I am from Wisconsin and I loved knowing some of your history and RIP to Andre the seal? I like seals they are so cute and intelligent hugs!
I know this is a older life on the east coast, but the similarities as a generations old family on the west coast. These are pride, determination, honor, and family.
This was greatly timed for me today. Home is where the heart is! Thank you, David!
Hello Lucie. I hope you are okay. This was a good film. It would be good if all towns had a film about them as good as this.
@@peternicholson2504 Hi friend Peter! I'm still in shock as it has been confirmed that my savior, friend Rufino was murdered by his drugged out son. Sad days are too many.
Stay safe, and be blessed!
@@luciehanson6250 That is tragic Lucie. I'm sorry that you are going through this difficult time and for your friend.
YIKES. Horrible and sad.
David
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker Kinda numb, angry, sad, confused. Not just my life, but our friends suffering cuz of insane rulers!
Sure feel safe at home with David Hoffman Filmmaker!
Got to admit, I miss your talking head, as you say! Cheers!
I love these videos. Often, we think of "rural" and "country" in the American South, but theres just as much country up north, too.
Nice work! Very interesting stuff, definitely enjoyed watching, thank you for sharing
Born & raised here in Augusta, Maine just wanted to say thanks for sharing this Mr. Hoffman I really enjoyed watching and learning about the ways of things back then.
That's my Grandfather Howard Dearborn at 7:06. Etc. Great man!!
love the old maine accent not many people talk that way in southern maine
You're lucky to have him. Bless his heart
I was friends with Dearborns in New Hampshire. Probably of the same blood.
Wow that's awesome 🌻
PETER THOMAS!!!!
I only ever heard him that which made him famous...Forensic Files. This guys voice is an ASMR dream.
He was my friend and colleague.
David Hoffman filmmaker
I was born and raised in Searsport Maine, just a few miles up the coast. I lived in Rockport and Rockland. I have been in Kansas for 6 years now and a day doesn't go by I don't think about home. Most beautiful place on earth, take it from one who has been all over. Can't wait to go back to visit family this summer.
@@p1zd3c I just moved home (Camden) after living in the Chicago area for the past 20 years. The mountains are calling you home!
Funny .. my brother is also a transplant from Maine to Kansas.. I’m sure he feels the same as you.
I can understand why you might dream of returning to a place that can have frost every day of the year
I too am a "Mainiac" now living in Oklahoma going on 30 years . Born in Bangor . Lived in Bucksport . moved away when I was 13. I also have been thinking a lot of my true home in the past years . I will likely never return there because financially its just not doable for me . But given the chance I would love too go home before I die .
Left Portland at 14 . 40 years in buffalo I, still consider myself a mainer. Can afford tlive there now!
Thank you Mr Hoffman, as a life long resident of the Maine Midcoast area it's so nice to see our simple way of life portrayed in a positive light. It's very easy to forget how special this place is when you're going through the trials and tribulations of life.
my parents took me to see Andre the seal when I was a kid. I remember the wooden enclosure in the water and the show. I still have the book to this day. thanks for the memories.
I did a book report on him and saw his outdoor pen at the aquarium
Your last name is currier that is my dad and my brothers middle name and goes back way way back in my ancestry it was a last name then eventually a middle😊
David, I've been producing music for 35 years. The music as applied here is absolutely appropriate. It has life without being distracting. It's Burnsesque. And Ken's work is the standard. The entire production is nicely polished.
it is lovely
"The good will always be here,if you work it" a wise Rockport native. can apply to you.
What a great story about Maine, Rockport and Camden wow I sure enjoyed
Jill Fisher where you from there
I been there last July, I Love this Place Maine. Always be in My Heart.
I love this narrator .. he’s the forensic science guy 😝
Peter Thomas. My friend.
David Hoffman Filmmaker
Same here
Me too but I don’t know who he is
You are talking about The Forensic Files.
You both are amazing at what you do!
Loved Maine. Was stationed at Loring AFB in early 1960's. Great places, great people!! Born and raised in Georgia. Could not believe the snow!!
My mother was born and raised in Portland Maine and she moved out to California when she was 24 years old. Maine is a beautiful state.
I truly enjoyed this wonderful video. I'm 56, live in Mass, and Maine hs been a big part of my life forever. Bless you all for posting this and keep them coming!
Thank you for the history lesson! I lived in southern Maine for 20 years and always enjoyed the long drives along the beautiful coastline...
So very many genuine and caring people!
Please allow me to respectfully disagree with your appraisal of the music. It was performed by Ellen Wiland from Rockport Maine as she watched the film. I personally love it. A matter of taste I am sure.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
I enjoyed the music. And I think that the fact that it was composed in real time in correspondence with the film is absolutely impressive. Wonderful film. I grew up in nearby Tenants Harbor. My mothers side from Camden, my father's from Rockport. Their union was regarded by some to be the TRUE reconciliation of the two towns;) haha although, I do recall some minor skirmishes between the two!
that voice-over guy is impeccable!
Everything you create is just perfect! I💕Maine and I appreciate this special film that highlights my favorite state! It holds so many wonderful childhood memories of summers there.
This music is magical, immediately captivates, and enhances the narrator’s voice. 👍👍
Thank you for presenting this.
A beautiful documentary. I lived in New Hampshire, for five years, as a kid. I remember the beautiful drives up along the Maine coast. We stopped at many of the coastal towns such as Rockport.
Does it ever strike the admiring and nostalgic that if you actually look at old photos/ film people are mostly bored or stressed, like we are?
People did not smile in photographs in the old days. Camera speed was really slow, so people had to stand motionless for several minutes. No one can keep up a real smile for that long. As for being "... mostly bored or stressed, like we are...", that's your take on this, and yours alone.
My wife is Nancy Hey, who has also commented on this excellent documentary. Her mom and my mother in law, Louise Bennett Hey, sold her house in Rockport, either in 2011 or 2012. She passed away on March 5, 2013, in Arlington, VA. Nancy and I, who've been together since 1999, will always treasure the August vacations we spent with Louise. Rockport and Camden have a very peaceful, wholesome vibration, it penetrates your soul with sunshine. I love the people and the place.
just a fun note: 35:51 shows the 1890's building back at clip 9:39. Then start on Google street views at that Pascal spot and drive the same turn in 2021 as the videographer did in 1991. That's rare, to have two identical 'street view' car drives to reference 30 years apart.
i love Maine more then any state in the country, im going to be in Maine next week for a week
did some drilling work on loring air force base Caribou Maine coldest place i ever been,,you can have your state and they all talked funny too me being from So IL so did I lol
I was two years old when this was made/released. I'm 34 now. I don't feel much connection to the place I grew up or the places that I've lived, but watching this video made me glad that there are people and places like this. Seeing people from that era and imagining what they lived through, knowing that most featured--if not all--are no longer with us; I can't really describe how stuff like this makes me feel. This was very good. I wish I could look fondly upon my own hometown this way. Thanks, David. Cheers from the South.
One of the best utube vids I've seen! Course it helps that im from the area. Great historical and anticdoltal info. Awesome!
I miss Rockport and Camden so much. I loved going to see Andre. It has been way to long since I have been able to get home.
l lived in Maine, in Rumford, from 1960 to 1964, when I was in my early teens. I loved it, and hated the move to British Columbia when my father took a new job. My memories of Maine are some of my favorites.
What happened to them after 1000 yrs. We dont see em in the film. are they busy watching TV.
Hi David,
I too am a filmmaker and came to Rockport, initially, through Maine Media Workshops. Thought I'd stay for a year or so and it's almost 7 years later. I now teach classes there and do freelance documentary work. I've been a big fan of this documentary for a long time (I have a VHS copy). It's excellent. Plus, we are all very lucky that you captured this oral history with some of these old-timers (many of whom I suspect are not living). So, just wanted to say "thank-you" for your work, it's both an inspiration as a doc film-maker as well as a long-time family favorite!
Thank you Christopher. 1st of all, the voiceover is the famous Pater Thomas who just died this year. I worked with Peter for more than 50 years and he was my absolute favorite. My e-mail address is allinaday@aol.com and I would welcome an e-mail with some links to some of your work. I used to teach at the workshop as well. I enjoyed it.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
Maine media workshops is amazing, I've worked there for the past eight years. Many happy summer memories there! Vacationland means a slower pace of life
Thanks for presenting this interesting interpretation of Rockport's history. Everyone loves a good story and this qualifies. Rockport does have a beautiful harbor but certainly not in the same league as several others unnamed. I can recall some 80+ years ago how Rockport looked and the gracious people who helped a strained motorist get to his military base on time. To me it has been the inhabitants of a community that are paramount. Rockport has had more than it's share of wonderful people. How fortunate for the rest of us!
I remember Rockport going up Route One a number of years ago - don't recall Camden. David your use of narration and use of images sure looks familiar in use for documentaries today. Nice work.
J
Maine...a state I would like to visit.
David, this is a good film that seems to describe the character of people as good and hard working. That "character" of people was in the man who founded his shoe company: SAS Shoes. The man, Terry Armstrong, was born and raised there. He passed away in November, 2005. I worked for SAS (San Antonio Shoes) for 15.5 years.
Again, as said, I would like to see the beauty of Maine. It's on my "bucket list".
Just bought a home in Litchfield,can't wait to get there.
Living on the coast of Maine is the best. You have shown just how hard it must have been for these folks back in the day. Thank you so much for sharing this, Mr. Hoffman.
Well done! I get the feeling we are missing out today on some of the Maine qualities of life as depicted here in your excellent video. We have witnessed the decline of so many unique Maine enterprises in the last few decades like the sardine canneries along the coast, big time fish processors, small manufacturing factories and so forth. The older folks from the coast still know how to do practical things, but the kids today don't have many examples of what good work is or good fun either! All in all there is no place I can think of I'd rather live!!
yes much has changed there
Thanks!
My heart goes out to you for your recent travails. May they soon cease.
David
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker Talk about some messed up stuff! Lost Coast IPA has been too often a companion on our hill. The smokey reminders of Ross and his dads life just disapating. Then sister Patti, and Rufino the next day. The kids also knew what a man Rufino was. Good grief, soon.
@@luciehanson6250 Good grief! Totally appropriate. Things seem to be hitting you right now can't be avoided but you are old enough to know that time heals.
David
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker You are right, David. Grief changes as one ages. I
used to grieve greatly over lost love. Had I loved myself more then, I wouldn't have wasted so much time on the loser. I'm sad. And, I am guilty over the direction of my sadness; savior over sibling? To me, my savior was a better person.
I moved to Gardiner Maine just before Covid shut down the whole world and I am hopeful that we shall soon be able to participate and enjoy the community and the festivals that I have heard about and have made Maine what it is. Memorial Day parades and 4th of July fireworks.
I liked the music. Great video. Many memories of Maine as I went to high school in Hinckley. I did visit the coast on occasion. Damariscota and Pemaquid . Lovely state. Lovely people.
I was born in south western NH and lived there till 21. Still live in NH but 20 minutes from Maine and the NH seacoast. Maine is beautiful with a rugged rocky seacoast and some harsh winters. Gotta be tough and self-reliant to be a New Englander. Keeps out the riff-raff!
A fine video. I was born and raised in southern Maine, and now live in SC. I still learned a few new things here. Enjoyed this!
I love the human story you add with all the short interviews of the older residents.
Thank you Bryant
David Hoffman - filmmaker
Excellent Story, very interesting .... was happy to see "Andre the seal in the water... took pictures next of his monument ... Went there ,Camden and attended many Rockland Lobster Festivals... all are some of Maine's Beautiful Places ,Joe and I visited many times ,"GREAT MEMORIES" from when he was alive.
RUclips recommended your videos about boomers to me. I watched and loved them. Then subscribed and saw this gem. I grew up in Maine and this was a pleasure to watch. Thanks, David.
Charming stories about people's behavior and fate.
The seal was the most charming af all😀
Spent summers in Maine as a youngster. Lovely area. Explored the coast from Pemaquid, north thru New Harbor, Chamberlain, Round Pond, Waldoboro, and up to Rockland. Great memories.
Love that this video is on line and available for the public to see. Thank you for posting it. Rockport is now celebrating their 125th anniversary this year (Camden is celebrating 225).
+Robin McIntosh Thank you Robin and happy Birthday to Rockport from me
David Hoffman - filmmaker
Thank you for doing this video. I miss my Maine travels with the borders closed.
I live in standish maine. This is awsome
Standish is a nice town
Loved this! We got up to Camden area every summer! Beautiful part of the world!!
I really enjoyed seeing this film...I lived in Camden for about 28 or so years, and fished out of the harbor with my son ...in Rockport. Got married in Rockport. It was awesome to see Dot and David in their younger years. I took care of them in their older years. Only took me 15 minutes to realize it was Dots voice.... I knew I new that voice and smile... wish you had the names of the people who you interviewed...cause some of the others sounded familiar as well... I enjoyed every minute of this film ...thank you David Hoffman.
+MaryJane Rowland And Thank you Mary Jane.....
David Hoffman - filmmaker
Very well done! Learned so much about Rockport and Camden.
Thank you for this sir
Like many have said, I grew up nearby (Searsmont) and was born in Rockport. Miss the area every day.
Yesterday, we returned from a vacation to visit my family in Maine. Already homesick, I found your video. Thank you very much for preserving the past and providing the interviews of the elders. Please enjoy your summer.
Thank you Lyn. I lived in Maine for 20 years and making this simple story about the town I lived in meant a lot to me. I'm glad that others are affected by it.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
Just a GREAT video and historical document of this area. Makes me want to return. Thanks. What wonderful people you filmed. Well done.
Thank you MSRPHOTO. The folks I filmed were very carefully selected.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
Excellent documentary, there are some very interesting pieces of history.
Some of the social activities looked excellent also.
Thank you for the video.
Thank you for your comment. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that RUclips is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts.
David Hoffman filmmaker
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker I am unemployed and that might overdraw my bank account.
I do refer videos (like this one) to other interested people whenever I have the chance.
I came to Maine from Chicago almost 6 years ago for a seaweed harvesters' apprenticeship. I had expectations about Maine except rocks, potatoes, lobster, and some water. I had NO idea that I would find the beauty, peace, sense of community, and friendliness that I encountered here. After my 10-day trip to Maine, I moved from Chicago 5 weeks later. It was that fast! I will never live anywhere else but Maine.
Penmanship, awesome, I wish I could travel back in time....lovely
Lived in Me during 80's as a child. When I go back it is sad to see how hard of a time a lot of areas are doing in this economy.
I grew up in the 90's but hear your sentiments. It's odd to me how time has gone by, the future is now, but society seems to be declining and I yearn for simpler times with humble hard working people
I thoroughly enjoyed this!
I love maine born in Brunswick alot of history Joshua Chamberlain is my idol .
Best state to love in I hope it doesn't become to overpopulated .
Chamberlain, amazing man indeed.
Brunswick is still the town of hippies, hobos and snobs, with more and more snobs "from away" taking over. I'm native here. Seeing the changes supported by the pretentious snobs from away is hard to witness. At least the military/war machine factor is gone from here, that's a big plus.
Awww I felt so many things watching this @David Hoffman , This is why I adore you Happy 1/23 /2021 David and thank you for all you share
🍃🥀 Namaste' 🥀🍃
Thank you Molly.
David Hoffman filmmaker
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker I shared this video ,
I particularly want people to see the bit about how people helped each other and
the generations in families cohabitated to survive . We are there again ✅
Born in Danforth. Have been all over the state including the northern woods. I use to work for cytell on loring air force base as a kid telemarketing. We use to travel the old tunnels playing paintball wars and there was old Humvee and 2.5 ton trucks down there that you could move around to change the game ever time.
When I was a kid on vinalhaven we used too go to the hardware store an 2,3 or 4 old fisherman Rocken in rocking chairs would hold out a cast iron frying pan full of candy .he say there you go young fellow man that brings me back loved the way the store smelled an the old wood floors warped from so many people walking on them .we get a piece of mono for marckeral fishing We get payed 25 cents for jack mackerel .go swimming in Lawson quarry .great place too grow up
Wonderful memories. Thank you.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
born and raised Mainer from Portland. have never been to Rockport, Maine will though this summer. loved loved the video.
Great video, I envy the old days, not sure if I should or not, but it seems like tougher times yet simpler times. It seems like nothing was taken for granted....from a hard days work to leisure activities.....everyone served a purpose....we cry when the internet is down for a few hours, yet back then it took 100 men just to put an ice cube in a drink.
my parents were born and raised in Yarmouth. loved listing them talk about Maine
I would be interested to see York County get this kind of presentation.
So would I, I have been a resident of York Country since 1985. My family moved here from Portland, ME.
York Pa.?
@@markshropshire5995 york, maine...a beautiful seaside community located in southern Maine
Heart warming video! I still do things for my neighbors and they for me :) it's a wonderful feeling
Nice video. Beautiful towns. The only glaring problem is that it is too damn cold!
The temperature has, thankfully, kept a lot of people from moving here, but they still come anyway. Land prices skyrocketed over the decades because of the influx of flatlanders.
So true - and thank you.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
Another great video by Mr. Hoffman. And I didn't know until the final credits. Thank you.
Nice Video.. thanks for sharing!!! My dad was born in Elsworth, My grandmother used to work in the Hancock House. I wish to visit Maine.
I live in a house right across from where the Hancock House was. I hope you can visit some day.
Thanks 🤩👏
I'm sitting watching this in my old house in rockport .I new old guys like my father in law who tried to blow up that bridge back in the day
Born in Orrington raised in Dedham. Living in RI. Miss Maine every day.
A good film from beginning to end. Very well made. Even the drawings are good. The history of Rockport is well presented. We are very fortunate to have the interviews with the older people.
Nice stories about doughnuts and also Andre.
Thanks you very much.
Thank you for your comment come up Peter.
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker Thanks for the invitation David. I haven't any plans of traveling in the near future, but if I do tour in the USA I will make it my priority to go to Maine. In the meantime i will continue to enjoy your good work. I must say again i really did enjoy this film.
Thank you for uploading this! I lived there for many years!
Nice to hear from you Rachel. And thank you for commenting on my RUclips video.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
Lived innYork for 20 years, loved it the way life should be. Husbands illness brought us back to NJ, HE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH ALS , AND PASSED in 4 months .
I’m really sorry for your loss. I know ALS is particularly difficult for everyone involved so I am sure you’ve had to exude Hercules level strength just to keep going after your husband passed. I realize I don’t know you but I wish you all the best.
Thanks beautifully done it just gets better and better as I got to the end with the personal interviews of older residents a real Americana for posterity!
I drove from Southern California to Maine to live for 6 months (Fall and Winter of 2013) just to see what it was like to experience a real winter. It took me 6 days to get to Maine.
On the 1st day of that following Spring, I left the town of Oakland, Maine and headed back to Southern California. It only took me 4 days.
Lol, what was the rush? 😉
@@ev500sam I was wrecked by the cold and lack of sun during the winter time. And the length of the winter too. Depression and homesickness was rampant with me.
The only Winters I had experienced before Maine were So Cal Winters, short and very dry, very sunny and any freezing temps are rather short lived, some mountains areas excluded.
But the beauty of Fall in Maine was stunning, the foliage was insane!! I had never seen such colors like that, so many trees and rivers!! And the Mainers I met were built of a personality type that humbled me, mostly from their work ethic I witnessed. Plus all the wildlife!! Very different from Southwest wildlife.
And Winter was beautiful too, but the depression was too heavy for me so I floored it back to so cal come Spring.
But I’ll never forget Maine and those I met there and I look forward to the day I return to experience a Summer there.
@@John_McD yup, the winters are tough and long. They don't mess around! Might be easier by the coast, since it more mild.
I’ve too made the drive from San Diego to gardiner Maine
The Indigenous people who used to live and still live in Maine are called Penobscot, one of the five Wabanaki nations (Abenaki, Maliseet, Mi’kmaq, Passamaqquoddy, and Penobscot).
Wawenock means “round island” in the Penobscot (Penawahpskewi) language.
The Wawenock were one of the five Penobscot tribes, a tribe decimated by the epidemics and merged with the rest of the Wabanaki nations. In addition to Wawenock, the Pigwacket, the Caiba, the Norridgewock, the Arosaguntacook all lived in what is now Maine.
Settler immigration and epidemics hit them hard and they moved to Quebec (Odanak) and the Maritimes, Vermont and New Hampshire.
There were between 70,000 and 100,000 Wabanakis living in New England before Contact.
I always wondered why they gave two towns so close together very similar sounding names---Rockport & Rockland. It's such a pretty area, and yes, there are unique personalities (a few of whom are featured here). Since Covid and telecommuting, places like this have taken off. You don't have to live in cities any more.
I was stationed at NAS Brunswick, Maine.
Nice area. I asked for a milkshake and the lady told me they call them fraps. Spelled it the way she said it.
Great lobster places.
Fat boy fraps are the greatest shake you’ll find too bad they’re going outta business soon
@@ongogoblogian1343 Lo and behold, the daughter of the founders of the original Fat Boy's has opened The Frappe Shop in front of the Tontine Mall there in Brunswick. Fat Boy's changed hands several years ago.
Born and raised in Maine ( Fairfield area) . Bought a home in Rockport and have enjoyed the area ever since. Going back and forth to work in Rockland, I am always in awe of the views of mountains and hills. The inland of Rockport is as interesting to me as the coast. Great video on Rockport, very well done and very interesting.
Thank you for sharing you lucky person.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
Born in Lincoln and raised in Maleseet Indain Reservation in Houlton, ME. Never left the state once, I love it too much.
This was a great video, I enjoyed it very much.
Rockport and Camden are huge lobster 🦞 towns..both gorgeous.
Yes. I lived there for more than 20 years. Quite amazing.
David Hoffman filmmaker
This is very classic and i love the story telling :)
Imanuel Aaron Mogie Thank you Imanuel.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
David Hoffman You're welcome David.
Imanuel Mogie - watcher :)
Hi I liked the the TV show it was good im from Washington state and ive been to maine once and it was awesome.
Thanks for this piece. We lived in Rockport for the first 3 years of our married lives, which was 46-43 years ago. We moved there when I went to work for W.T. Grant Co. store in Rockland, 46 years ago. When I retired as the CEO of the Bone & Joint Center in Albany, NY last September the physicians purchase a painting for me by Stapleton Kearns of "Rockport Harbor," which is hanging proudly in our living room in Frankfort, ME.
Wonderful! David you certainly can make a documentary.
As a filmmaker who documents "the way it was" in the Appalachian Mountains, I also have a deep love for Maine. I used to spend many summers as a child there. I really enjoyed this documentary. Very well done!!
Thank you.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
Have you seen my Appalachian mountains films on this my RUclips channel. Search bluegrass on my channel to find many clips
I just found them. Absolutely amazing! I am a big fan of the "Squire of Turkey Creek." He certainly has an influence of what I am trying to do in documenting vanishing customs and ways here in the NC High Country.