MID-COAST HUMAN RESOURCE COUNCIL / Knox County

Files contain case and project logs, corresponendence with business and government agencies, reports, newsletters, memos, and press clippings. Records span the years 1980 through 1994. Significant issues include establishment of the Sears Island Cargo Port, the progress of marine industries (such as aquaculture, marine colloids, and fishing), projects handled by Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (especially job opportunities for low-income individuals, housing and urban development projects, and the Portland fishing industry), and Unity College, its progress and fundraising. The proposal of a new cargo port on Sears Island enjoyed support from the Environmental Protection Agency, but was opposed by environmental interest organizations such as the Sierra Club.

Significant events covered include a 40th anniversary ceremony of the Korean War (July, 1993), the robbery of many elderly Maine citizens by a Polish organized crime ring, and the changing ownership of several lighthouses, aided by the Bicentennial Lighthouse Funding Program. Senator Mitchell sponsored the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act, which preserves lighthouses for future generations. The Sears Island records include the involvement of Presidents Reagan and Bush, mostly covered in press clippings. People and organizations in other records include the U.S. Coast Guard, Maine veterans, Roger Alexander (whose struggle for U.S. citizenship brought press coverage), the Maine Maritime Museum, the Crowe Rope Company, and the Chewonki Foundation and its teacher Zoe Richards, who was featured in a program on the Lifetime network. There are reports and correspondence regarding FDA legislation on foods from marine industry products, including the identification of processed eucheuma seaweed (PES) as carageenan and related health risks.

Long-term field office representatives were Tom Bertocci and Jeanne Hollingsworth.