Cobblestones Home : Colonial Trail : Portland Observatory

The Portland Observatory sits atop Munjoy Hill, extending 86 feet above the highest ground above sea level in Portland. It looks like a light house, but does nothing of the sort. It is actually used to view ships out at sea. The Portland Observatory was built in 1807 on a cow pasture when sea captain turned entrepreneur Lemuel Moody decided to design and construct a signal tower for the merchants of Portland's bustling harbor. WIth his powerful telescope, he would identify incoming ships and, using color and design coded flags, notify merchants in the harbor, which gave them ample time to reserve a berth in the harbor and hire a crew of stevedores (Steh-vi-doors[dock helpers]) before a vessel came into port.

The Portland Observatories connection to the Freedom Trail is that it was of

great significance in its time and it is the oldest and only existing maritime signal station in the entire United States. It could have also been used to warn people of enemy ships arriving even though it was built in the 1820s. It is also a really neat thing to look at and the view is awesome. (If this gets on the Portland Freedom trail, it will dramatically increase the amount of people inside it every day, so maybe there could be a limit set on visitors per day.)

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