If you want to get to (or from) Deer Isle you will likely cross our bridge. The official name of the bridge is the " Deer Isle - Sedgwick" bridge. Our bridge was dedicated on June 19, 1939 by Gov. Lewis Barrows . The two Island school bands ( Deer Isle & Stonington) then marched across the bridge; This writer was a 13 year old trumpet player in the Stonington band. There was a lot of fanfare to be had but all of the Islanders knew that much of the credit for getting this bridge went to Frank McGuire and Ray Small. They were both members of the local ,and very active, Lions Club [ of which my father, Harold Small, was a member ]. The Lion's were a driving force behind this successful effort to get a bridge built. This in no way minimizes the efforts put forth by many of the other Islanders. Unless you were around in those days, it is difficult to realize how important it was to have this bridge. The only obvious drawback to the bridge was that we didn't have a single skunk on the Island until the bridge was built. Apparently skunks don't swim!

     For about 22 years we paid a toll to cross the bridge; a small price to pay when you consider the alternative. Crossing by car ferry was inconvenient if not dangerous.  If you want more information on the transformation from ferry to bridge, buy - Steel over Eggemoggin - available at - Island Advantages, PO Box 36, Main St. Stonington, Me. 04681.  < http://www.islandadvantages.com/index.html >This informative pamphlet has a number of photos depicting the ferry service and the bridge during construction as well as the story of how it all came about. All in all, a good purchase for someone seeking an important piece of island history.