Contributed by Penobscot Marine Museum
Description
In 1901 Mr. and Mrs. Frank Ball of Andover, Massachusetts, purchased the "White House," a former boarding house for tannery workers and fishermen, and established one of the first sporting camps in Grand Lake Stream.
Under Stephen Yates’ ownership, prior to and after the tannery went bankrupt in 1898, the White House catered to sportsmen.
Ball turned the place into a sporting destination. He added cottages, two of which are the Twin Sisters shown in the photo, marketed it effectively, and made it easy for guests to get to. Sportsmen could take the Washington Country Railroad to Princeton, then board a stage or a launch up Big Lake to Gould’s landing, where Ball sent a buckboard to meet them. Later, brochures advertised that Balls Camps’ autos would meet them at the train station.
The abundance of landlocked salmon and, later, smallmouth bass, the availability of excellent guides, and the ease of access to Grand Lake Stream spurred the development of many other sporting camps: Yates Camps (Indian Rock Camps), Grand Lake Camps, Will Rose’s Camps or Ouananiche Lodge, Grand Lake Lodge, Chet’s Camps. and others.
Many still operate.
In 1922 Rutherford Weatherby and Herb Chisholm purchased Balls Camps, and the business continued as Weatherby’s Maine Fishing and Hunting Lodge. The Twin Sisters still stood facing Canal Street in 2013.
About This Item
- Title: Twin Sisters, Balls Camps, Grand Lake Stream, ca. 1925
- Creation Date: circa 1925
- Subject Date: circa 1925
- Location: Grand Lake Stream, Washington County, ME
- Media: Glass Negative
- Dimensions: 12.75 cm x 17.75 cm
- Local Code: LB2007.1.106542
- Collection: Eastern Illustrating & Publishing Co.
- Object Type: Image
Cross Reference Searches
Standardized Subject Headings
- Hotels--Maine--Grand Lake Stream
- Hunting & fishing--Maine--Grand Lake Stream
- Eastern Illustrating & Publishing Company
- Photographs--Maine
- Postcards--Maine
- Camps--Maine--Grand Lake Stream
- Houses--Maine--Grand Lake Stream
People
For more information about this item, contact:
Penobscot Marine MuseumPO Box 498, 5 Church Street, Searsport, ME 04974
(207) 548-2529
Website
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. No Permission is required to use the low-resolution watermarked image for educational use, or as allowed by the applicable copyright. For all other uses, permission is required.
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