Lubec, Maine: The Easternmost Town in the United States

At the very edge of the country, where the sun first touches the United States each morning, lies the quiet Downeast town of Lubec. It is home to one of Maine’s most beloved lighthouses, a storied fishing heritage, and some of the most dramatic tides and coastline in the country. For travelers willing to go all the way east, Lubec is a rewarding find. Here is a closer look.

America’s Easternmost Town

Lubec, in Washington County, holds the distinction of being the easternmost town in the contiguous United States. Settled in 1785 and incorporated in 1811, it sits on Passamaquoddy Bay at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy, across a narrow channel from Canada. Today it is a small, close-knit community of around 1,300 people — a fraction of what it once was — wrapped in big skies, cold clear water, and the ever-present rhythm of the tides.

West Quoddy Head Light

Lubec’s icon is the West Quoddy Head Light, the cheerful red-and-white candy-striped lighthouse in Quoddy Head State Park. Marking the easternmost point of land in the contiguous U.S., the current striped tower dates to 1858 (a lighthouse was first established at the site in 1808 to guide ships through the Quoddy Narrows). A small visitor center shares the area’s maritime history, and the park’s clifftop trails offer bracing walks, sweeping ocean views, and a good chance of spotting whales, seals, and seabirds offshore.

The Sardine Capital of the World

It is hard to imagine today, but Lubec was once known as the sardine-canning capital of the world. In its 1920s heyday the town buzzed with more than 20 sardine canneries and about as many herring smokehouses, plus a can factory, a movie theater, a bowling alley, and some 4,000 residents. The canneries are all gone now, but you can step into that vanished world at the McCurdy’s Smokehouse Museum, a preserved herring smokehouse on the waterfront that keeps this remarkable industrial history alive.

Roosevelt’s Campobello

Just across a short bridge from the foot of Water Street lies Campobello Island, in New Brunswick, Canada — the beloved summer retreat of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The Roosevelt Campobello International Park preserves the family’s summer home and grounds, and its lovely natural areas, as a joint project of the U.S. and Canada. It makes a memorable side trip, but remember that it is an international border crossing, so bring a passport and check current requirements before you go.

Cobscook Bay and the Great Tides

This corner of Maine is defined by water. Nearby Cobscook Bay State Park, an 888-acre preserve, is known for wildlife — bald eagles, seals, and porpoises — and for some of the largest tides in the country, a legacy of the Bay of Fundy. The tide here can rise and fall dramatically, transforming the shoreline hour by hour and leaving rich mudflats and tide pools behind. It is a paradise for campers, paddlers, and birdwatchers, though the strong currents mean you should always respect the water.

A Quiet Arts and Seafood Town

For all its remoteness, Lubec has a creative soul. Its walkable downtown mixes 19th-century buildings with art galleries, small shops, and cafes, and each summer the SummerKeys program fills the town with adult musicians who come to study and play. Fresh local seafood is a highlight of any visit — and true to the town’s heritage, smoked herring remains a local specialty worth seeking out.

Exploring the Bold Coast

Lubec anchors the far eastern end of Maine’s rugged Bold Coast. Just to the southwest, the dramatic cliffs of Cutler Coast Public Lands offer some of the finest coastal hiking in New England, while up along the St. Croix River sits the historic border city of Calais. Travelers making the long trip Downeast from central Maine often set out from the Kennebec Valley; our own town of Winslow, with its colonial-era Fort Halifax, is a fitting place to begin the journey east.

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