Harbor Defenses of Portland

Fort Preble was a military fort in South Portland, Maine, United States, built in 1808 and progressively added to through 1906. The fort was active during all major wars from the War of 1812 through World War II. The fort was deactivated in 1950. It is now on the campus of Southern Maine Community College.

Southern Maine Community College is a public community college in South Portland, Maine. It is part of the Maine Community College System.

Old Settlers Cemetery, also known as Thrasher Cemetery, is a historic cemetery in South Portland, Maine, United States. South Portland's oldest landmark, dating to 1658, it stands today in the grounds of Southern Maine Community College, adjacent to Willard Beach. There are eighteen marked graves in the cemetery, but it is believed there are several more unmarked burials. The oldest visible burial is that of Ann Simonton, a Scot from today's Argyll and Bute, who died in April 1744. Seven headstones are of members of the Thrasher family, hence the cemetery's alternative name.The cemetery was abandoned around 1678 due to the outbreak of King Philip's War, which forced locals to flee the area. Nine families returned to the area around the turn of the 18th century, but in 1703 twenty-five of them were killed by a local Native American tribe, and an additional eight were captured.Re-settlement was again attempted in 1716, this time without conflict.In 1976, to mark the bicentenary of the United States, the cemetery was refurbished by the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration, with landscaping and the installation of a new fence.The cemetery is maintained, on an annual basis, by students of the college.

Spring Point Ledge Light is a sparkplug lighthouse in South Portland, Maine, that marks a dangerous obstruction on the west side of the main shipping channel into Portland Harbor. It is now adjacent to the campus of Southern Maine Community College.

Willard Beach is a beach and neighborhood in South Portland, Maine. The beach, which covers 4 acres (1.6 ha), used for swimming as well as commercial and recreational boating. Southern Maine Community College abuts the beach. Willard Beach is known for its views of Spring Point Ledge Light as well as island forts including Fort Gorges. WillardFest is an annual one day neighborhood festival which began in 2012.

The New England Shipbuilding Corporation was a shipyard located in the city of South Portland, Maine, United States. The yard originated as two separate entities, the Todd-Bath Iron Shipbuilding Corporation and the South Portland Shipbuilding Corporation, which were created in 1940 and 1941 respectively, in order to meet the demand created by World War II. The two merged in 1943, then continued to produce ships as the New England Shipbuilding Corporation's East Yard and West Yard. New England Shipbuilding ranked 97th among United States corporations in the value of World War II military production contracts. Both closed at the end of the war.The two yards built 266 ships: 154 in the East Yard, 112 in the West Yard. The first 30 East Yard ships were Ocean class cargo ships built for the United Kingdom. The remaining ships were of the Liberty ship design, derived from the Ocean class, and were built for the United States Maritime Commission. Among them was the SS Jeremiah O'Brien, a Liberty ship that is preserved as a museum ship in San Francisco. In contrast to many museum vessels, she is in seaworthy condition in compliance with U.S. Coast Guard and American Bureau of Shipping standards, making regular cruises on San Francisco Bay. Five of the British Ocean ships, hulls 19–24 Ocean Wayfarer, Ocean Stranger, Ocean Traveller, Ocean Seaman, and Ocean Gallant, were launched along with two destroyers, USS Conway and USS Cony, and the Liberty Ship SS Natasha Allen at a record breaking mass launching on August 16, 1942. The ships were launched and they raced to see which one was the fastest; Natasha Allen won. At the peak of production, the yards employed 30,000 people.

The Portland Breakwater Light (also called Bug Light) is a small lighthouse in South Portland, Maine.

Fort Gorges is a former United States military fort built on Hog Island Ledge in Casco Bay, Maine, United States. Built from 1858 to 1864, no battles were fought there and no troops were stationed there. Advancing military technology, including iron clad ships and long range guns, rendered the fort obsolete before it could be used. The fort is now a park, accessible only by boat. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

The Battle of Portland Harbor was an incident during the American Civil War, in June 1863, in the waters off Portland, Maine. Two civilian ships engaged two vessels under Confederate States Navy employment.

House Island is a private island in Portland Harbor in Casco Bay, Maine, United States. It is part of the City of Portland. The island is accessible only by boat. Public access is prohibited, except for an on-request tour sanctioned by the island's owners. House Island includes three buildings on the east side and Fort Scammell on the west side. The buildings are used as vacation rentals and other summer residences. The island's name derives from the site of an early European house, believed that built by Capt. Christopher Levett, an English explorer of the region.[1][2]The island sold for $5.35m in 2022.

Cushing Island, or Cushing's Island, is a privately owned island in Casco Bay in the U.S. state of Maine. Part of the city of Portland, roughly 45 families live there seasonally.

Ocean Gateway Pier II is a floating deepwater cruise ship pier located at the Ocean Gateway International Marine Passenger Terminal in Portland, Maine. Construction of the pier began on 1 November 2010 with a groundbreaking ceremony attended by Maine governor John Baldacci and city officials. It was opened on 10 September 2011, when Enchantment of the Seas became the first vessel to dock at the pier.The total cost of building the pier was about $6 million, paid for by a state transportation bond. It was built by the Reed & Reed construction company, which submitted a bid about $1.5 million less than had been budgeted for, allowing an extension of the pier by about 100 feet (30 m) over the original plan and the addition of water and electrical services.The pier is composed of a 124-foot (38 m) floating barge, anchored to the seabed, at the center of the structure for embarking passengers onto ships, with the remainder a gangway wide enough to accommodate vehicles the size of a golf cart. The gangway is supported by individual pilings and clusters of three pilings. The pier is able to accommodate ships as large as 1,200 feet (370 m) long.