Land of Liberty Explorers

Just off the coastal of Lubec, Maine lies Campobello Island. The island is part of New Brunswick, Canada, but it served as the summer home to United States President Franklin Roosevelt and his family. As a wedding gift, Sarah Roosevelt gave her son and his new wife Eleanor a 34-room, red shingled cottage on the shore of the island. Franklin and Eleanor used the summer cottage to escape the hot New York summers. Roosevelt last visited his Campobello home in 1939. Occidental Petroleum’s president, Armand Hammer, acquired the home in 1952. He deeded it to the governments of both Canada and the United States upon Eleanor’s death in 1962. The international park was created soon thereafter, with the U.S. National Park Service and Parks Canada contributing equally to the cost of development, operation, and maintenance.

Tours of FDR’s cottage are offered daily and are very informative. We enjoyed learning about the intercom system that allowed Eleanor to call the children downstairs and seeing how the family spent their summers. In addition to FDR’s cottage, several other cottages are available to tour.

The park also has several short hiking trails that lead to Mulholland Point and its lighthouse overlooking the FDR Memorial Bridge that links Maine and New Brunswick.

Remember your passport! Even though FDR was a U.S. president and Campobello is just off the Maine coast, it is still in Canada and a passport is required.

Head Harbour Light Station

Campobello’s other main attraction is Head Harbour Light Station, sometimes called “East Quoddy Light,” overlooking Passamaquoddy Bay. The light station was established in 1829 to help guide ships through the bay. In 1842, a large red cross was painted on the side of the light tower to provide ships with a distinctive daymark to aid navigation. The Canadian Coast Guard manned the light station until 1986.

The light station is best visited at low tide, so that visitors can make it all the way to the light station. Beware…some could find the rusty staircase a little scary!

Quoddy Head State Park

Back in the U.S.A., Quoddy Head State Park is home to West Quoddy Head Light, which is easily recognized by its red and white candy cane stripes. President Thomas Jefferson commissioned West Quoddy Head Light in 1808. After checking out the lighthouse, we hiked the Coastal Trail for views of Maine’s famous rocky shore. We used the Thompson Trail to loop back to the parking area.

Lubec, Maine

We enjoyed spending a couple nights in Lubec, the easternmost town in the United States. It is a quaint Downeast fishing village. We spent one night at the Water Street Tavern & Inn, where we had an excellent dinner and our room had a nice view of the FDR Memorial Bridge. The second night, we stayed at the lovely Peacock House Bed & Breakfast, where Dutch Babies were on the breakfast menu and the innkeeper was excited to share about the night Seinfeld star, Michael Richards (Kramer), showed up at the front door.

We went on a thrilling whale watch excursion with Downeast Charter Boat Tours. After cruising past Campobello Island into the Bay of Fundy, we were greeted by several finback whales. We also enjoyed seeing an eagle catching fish and the natural whirlpools created by the tides on the Bay of Fundy.