ISLESFORD LIFE SAVING STATION 1879- ISLESFORD COAST GUARD STATION -1946) By: Hugh L. Dwelley Who's idea might it have been to establish a Life Saving Station on Little Cranberry Island? Very probably the fertile minds of brothers William and Gilbert Hadlock. They owned much of the island and, as owners and operators of a sizeable fleet of schooners engaged in fishing and the coastal trade, they were well'aware of needs to protect vessels on rocky coasts. A good number of Cranberry islanders, including Hadlock cousins Johnathan and Epps, had been lost at sea. William, a member of the Maine Legislature, was undoubtedly aware of life saving stations being built along the Maine coast. They also knew of a good location for the station and had a good candidate to be it's keeper. $100 The tip of Little Cranberry Island's far Southeast Point was gifted to the Life Saving Service by William E. and Gilbert T. Hadlock in 1878. The station was built in 1879 and 1880 and Gilbert T. Hadlock was appointed its first keeper on August 27, 1879. Gilbert was forty-two years old at the time of his appointment and he would hold the position for eight years. Gilbert would select the members of his creweight-man from among long-time family friends and acquaintances. In later years, many of them would come from further "down East" - from Lubec, Eastport, Jonesport, Etc. So, the establishing of the Little Cranberry Island (later Islesford) Life Saving Station was very much a Hadlock affair. Not only was the site for the Station gifted by the Hadlocks and Gilbert it's first Keeper, but the road built from the village (although not suitable for much more than OX carts) was mostly along Hadlock land and woodlots. Finally, the deed of conveyance probably contained a provision of first refusal for the Hadlocks to recover the property and its improvements should the government wish to dispose of the property which it did in 1946. Southeast Point was indeed an appropriate location for a Life Saving Station. It had a good view of vessels sailing off shore from both the east and the west. It would have served mainly the many vessels in the large coastal trade of that era. Fish and lumber were shipped west in great quantities from the Maritime Provinces as well from Eastern Maine to New York, the Southern States and the West Indies. Return trips carried sugar, rum, molasses, coal, flower and other produce. Fishing vessels from Maine and Massachusetts headed to and from the Grand Banks also found themselves in the area, especially in bad weather.