The Ruins of Stockton Springs

We haven't gotten out much this March.  It seems like the few days I've had off are snowy, cold or include gale force winds.  But we did manage a short jaunt (with drysuits and PFDs) last Sunday, along the shore of Cape Jellison from Stockton Springs Harbor.  It was just a quick trip to Defense Point and back; a chance to delight in the salt air, try to reestablish a reasonable paddle stroke, and enjoy the calls of the long-tailed ducks. 
We rescued our first dead balloon of the season.

 
    And took a few pictures of the old pilings exposed by the ebb tide.  These are the ruins marked on the chart below, stretching in front a long stream of condos, and easily visible from the landing at Stockton Springs.

  As we paddled along, looking for just the right angle for a photo, I wondered, "What were these pilings, and why are there so many?"
  Luckily, we live in an age where all questions can be answered.  A search of Wikipedia provided this picture of the facilities when a long pier used to host schooners waiting to be filled with potatoes shipped by rail to the harbor.

Stockton Harbor 1906

  The facility burned in 1924, though traces remain.  More pictures of the harbor are available on the Wikipedia site.