On March 3, 1918, Eden was renamed Bar Harbor, after the sand and gravel bar, visible at low tide, which leads across to Bar Island and forms the rear of the harbor. He was the last sitting president to visit the town for a century thereafter, until Barack Obama's arrival in July 2010. President William Howard Taft played golf in 1910 at the Kebo Valley Golf Club. Others enjoyed horse-racing at Robin Hood Park-Morrell Park. Yachting, garden parties at the Pot & Kettle Club, and carriage rides up Cadillac Mountain were popular diversions. A glimpse of their lifestyles was available from the Shore Path, a coastal path skirting waterfront lawns. The rich and famous tried to outdo each other with entertaining and estates, often hiring landscape gardener and landscape architect Beatrix Farrand, a resident at local Reef Point Estate, to design their gardens. Tourists were arriving by train and ferry to the Gilded Age resort that would rival Newport, Rhode Island. īy 1880, there were 30 hotels, including the Mira Monte Inn, a historic landmark that survived a massive fire in 1947. Birch Point, the first summer estate, was built in 1868 for Alpheus Harding. Agamont House, the first hotel in Eden, was established in 1855 by Tobias Roberts. Inspired by their paintings, journalists, sportsmen and 'rusticators' followed. In the 1840s, its rugged maritime scenery attracted the Hudson River School and Luminism artists Thomas Cole, Frederic Edwin Church, William Hart and Fitz Henry Lane. With the best soil on Mount Desert Island, it also developed agriculture, with a main focus on dairy. Įarly industries included fishing, lumbering and shipbuilding. Bar Harbor itself was first settled by Europeans Israel Higgins and John Thomas in 1763 and incorporated on February 23, 1796, as Eden, after Sir Richard Eden, an English statesman. Also named for him is Somes Sound, the only naturally occurring fjard on the East Coast of the United States.

In 1761, Abraham Somes established the first European village on Mount Desert Island, naming it Somesville. Champlain named the island Isles des Monts Deserts, meaning 'island of barren mountains'-now called Mount Desert Island, the largest island in Maine. In early September 1604, French explorer Samuel de Champlain ran aground on a rock ledge believed to be Egg Rock, just off Otter Cliffs, and when he came ashore to repair his boat he met local natives. They speak of Bar Harbor as Man-es-ayd'ik ('clam-gathering place') or Ah-bays'auk ('clambake place'), leaving great piles of shells as evidence of this abundance. The town of Bar Harbor was founded on the northeast shore of Mount Desert Island, which the Wabanaki Indians knew as Pemetic, meaning 'range of mountains' or 'mountains seen at a distance.' The Wabanaki seasonally fish, hunt and gather berries, clams, and other shellfish in the area.

Find out where to go with our weather planner.See also: West Street Historic District and Harbor Lane–Eden Street Historic District The Abbe Museum features the history and culture of Maine's native people, the Wabanaki. No idea where to travel to this year? We now have a tool which suggests which destination suits your ideal climate conditions.

Which is the driest month in Bar Harbor?Īugust is the driest month with 92mm (3.6in) of precipitation.

Which is the wettest month in Bar Harbor?ĭecember tops the wettest month list with 136mm (5.3in) of rainfall.

The coldest month is January with an average maximum temperature of -0☌ (32☏).

Which is the coldest month in Bar Harbor?.

July has an average maximum temperature of 26☌ (79☏) and is the warmest month of the year.

Which is the warmest month in Bar Harbor?.

The coldest season / winter is in the following months: January, February and December. Other facts from our historical climate data: The best time of year to visit Bar Harbor in the United States of Americaĭuring the months of June, August and September you are most likely to experience good weather with pleasant average temperatures that fall between 20 degrees Celsius (68☏) and 26 degrees Celsius (79☏).

Bar harbour weather