Castine Historical Society Presents Lecture on the Importance of the Cotton Trade in Maritime Castine

July 24th, 2019

Castine, Maine: Join the Castine Historical Society on Thursday, August 8 at 7 pm for a talk entitled “Cotton’s Ocean: Castine and the Antebellum Cotton Trade.” Guest speaker, Dr. Stephen J. Hornsby, will focus on the importance of the trans-Atlantic cotton trade for the growth of the shipbuilding and ship owning industries in Maine before the Civil War, and how Castine fit into this world of oceanic commerce. Admission is free.

Dr. Hornsby is director of the Canadian-American Center and Professor of Geography and Canadian Studies at the University of Maine. He is the author and co-editor of several prize-winning books, including the Historical Atlas of Maine (2015). He is currently working on a future publication entitled Cotton’s Ocean: Yankee Shipowners and the Antebellum Cotton Trade.

Hornsby will present his talk in the Humanities Lecture Hall in the Bath Iron Works Center for Advanced Technology on the Maine Maritime Academy campus in Castine. Immediately after his talk, Compass Rose Books of Castine will sell copies of his books in the lobby, and Hornsby will be available for a book signing.

The Castine Historical Society serves as a window into Castine’s extraordinary past. The Historical Society preserves local history and hosts permanent and seasonal exhibitions in its Abbot School  gallery located at 17 School Street, Castine. It also hosts lectures, walking tours of the town, house and garden tours, and historic reenactments. The Grindle House offices and research library located at 13 School Street, Castine are open year-round and researchers are welcome by appointment.

 

The Historical Society is open daily Monday – Saturday, 10-4; Sunday, 1-4 through September 2. Fall hours are September 6 – October 14, Friday, Saturday, Monday, 10-4; Sunday, 1-4. For more information visit castinehistoricalsociety.org, call 207-326-4118, or email info@castinehistoricalsociety.org.