Seth Goldstein, Director, Cushing’s Point Museum and Director of Development, South Portland Historical Society

Black Community Building in the Port of Portland

Through the 19th century, maritime jobs were important to Portland’s Black community. Following emancipation in the Massachusetts Province of Maine in 1783, many individuals obtained relatively well paying shipboard jobs and also found employment in related shore-side occupations such as blacksmiths, rope makers, and longshoremen. The income generated by these occupations contributed to the community’s economic stability, home ownership in Portland’s Munjoy Hill neighborhood, and the building of civic buildings such as the Abyssinian Meeting House.

This talk will analyze how maritime trades both contributed to a vibrant black community and ultimately harmed it. The tragic sinking of the SS Portland off the coast of Massachusetts on the night of November 27, 1898, significantly affected Portland’s Black community. Of the estimated 192 deaths, twenty individuals were from Portland. These men and women worked a variety of jobs onboard the Portland, including stewards and stewardesses, cooks, porters and saloon men.

Seth Goldstein grew up on Cape Cod where he developed his passion for maritime history. He received his Bachelor’s degree in European History from the University of California at Santa Cruz and his Master’s degree in World History from Northeastern University. He has worked for Greater Portland Landmarks and the Portland Harbor Museum, and is currently the Director of the Cushing’s Point Museum at Bug Light Park and Director of Development for the South Portland Historical Society. Seth is also affiliated with the Atlantic Black Box Project, and has taught at the University of New England, Southern Maine Community College and the Maine College of Art and Design.