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​Interested in the Shucking Contest?

​Get in touch coordinator@pemaquidoysterfestival.com

 Our oyster shucking contest qualifies the winner to enter the National Oyster Shucking Competition in St. Mary's Maryland. Be sure you've brushed up your skills - you'll be up against some serious contenders for cash prizes. 

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Captions for the Above Photos:  (Left) Judge: John Reny (Right) Carter Newell ends his round (photos courtesy scottbsmith.com)

Learn more about Edward A. Myers:

Toward the end of his life, Ed Myers spent a great deal of his time disguised as a kindly old man who volunteered at the South Bristol School where he would help out as needed.

By the time he got to that point, Myers had lived several lives as an environmental, civic and humanitarian activist.

His list of professional credits are much too long to detail here but the barest sketch must include mention that, in 1973, he was a founding member of the Damariscotta River Association and, in 1982, the organization that became Citizen’s Offering New Alternatives (CONA).

Active in civic affairs, Myers was appointed to state committees by three different governors; served as the administrator for the University of Maine’s Darling Marine Center in Walpole between 1969 and 1974, and moving to Damariscotta after WW II, he is also the guy who first came up with the idea of shipping lobsters to far away places where folks could literally enjoy a taste of Maine in their own home state.

A recognized authority on marine resources and aquaculture issues, his testimony helped shape numerous bills considered by the state legislature. In 2001 at the age of 84, Myers was the keynote speaker at the World Aquaculture Federation Convention in Orlando, Florida.

For all that, one of Myers’ lasting gifts to the world was developing the concept that it was possible to cultivate shellfish the way one might grow a garden; from seed to harvest to market. 

In 1973, Myers founded Abandoned Farm, the first mussel aquaculture operation in North America. Managing the business between 1974 and the mid-1990s, Myers modified techniques originally developed in Europe.

Along the way, Myers received the state’s first ever aquaculture lease, granting him rights to a section of Clark’s Cove on the Damariscotta River.

Myers’ business plan wasn’t necessarily a rousing financial success, but someone had to go first and by virtue of doing so, he literally pioneered the industry that The Pemaquid Oyster Co., and others continue to refine to this day. 

Myers turned his experience into wisdom, which he doled out like pearls to those who followed. He was a groundbreaking and inspirational figure and remains so to this day to those who knew him or benefited from his wisdom.

The Oyster Festival is packed full of fun and educational exhibits, local vendors, loads of delicious oysters and the auditory pleasures provided by some of the finest musicians in the state.

The festival’s charming penchant for attracting lousy weather aside, it literally doesn’t get much better than this. You should go.