LB2007.1.122726

LB2007.1.122726

Belfast, Maine. Long low building along the water front, Bridge and dock. Small boat in the water under the bridge. Originally, "sardines" a different fish, were a luxury item imported from Russia. In the late 19th century, juvenile herring caught in weirs in the Lubec area were being canned and called "sardines". They caught on and by 1910, the Lubec Sardine Company had built four plants in Eastport and Lubec. As supplies of the herring became scarce in the area, the owners (Messrs Pike and Peacock) looked to expand in the Penobscot Bay area. To this end they built the plant in Belfast and began canning in August of 1911. As a result of the depression, by 1940 the sardine factory, operating sporadically under a series of owners, was, at best, a seasonal operation. Calvin Stinson and Glenn Lawrence built Bath Canning in 1946 and turned it into a sardine factory. Lawrence owned the Belfast Canning Company until Stinson bought him out in 1953. By 1962, the sardine factory was enjoying a banner year in production. In 1975, the Stinsons brought all their plants under the umbrella of the family name and they became, Stinson Canning Company. By 1982, the sardine factory was experiencing its worst since records were kept. It finally closed in 2001. Attempts were made to develop the property into condominiums and retail establishments and some site work was accomplished but the project failed due to finance issues and the site remained ugly and undeveloped for several years. On January 17, 2011, Front Street Shipyard, Inc. (FSS) announced the formation of a new custom boatbuilding, service yard, and specialty composites manufacturing facility, on the former Stinson canning factory site, just south of the Belfast bridge. Managing partner J.B. Turner, of Warren, Maine, is joined by Taylor Allen, owner of Rockport Marine, Inc. (RMI); Steve White, owner of Brooklin Boat Yard (BBY); and Kenneth Priest, President of Kenway Corporation in Augusta, Maine. Turner has 24 years of experience as a manager of yacht service and composite boatbuilding projects for major yards on the east coast. Prior to his involvement at Front Street, Turner was president of Lyman-Morse Boatbuilding Company. The company has experienced a rapid and successful growth since its inception. They have recently added a second travel lift with a 485 ton capacity.