The Island House

The Island House, owned by Deacon Henry H. Clark, was the first summer hotel on Mount Desert Island. Deacon Henry Higgins Clark (1811-1897) built the Island House in the 1850s.  He also owned a shipyard, a chandlery, a stable, a brick yard, a lobster cannery and the Pemetic Hotel.

The first photograph shows an early version of the Island House. R.J. Lemont’s "Drugs and Medicines" was housed in Deacon Clark’s barn at the time, as can be seen here. It later moved further up the road toward Main Street to 14 Clark Point Road.

By 1886 the Island House was greatly enlarged, stretching to the corner of Dirigo Road. The second photogaph shows the large structure and the wooden sidewalks on Clark Point Road.

The Island House was torn down over the 1911-1912 winter.