By Virginia M. Wright
From our 70th Anniversary issue
H. Allen and Sally Fernald didn’t care for the magazine Sally’s father gifted them when they moved to the New York suburbs in the 1960s. A young publication heavy on folksy ruminations and schooner histories, Down East didn’t reflect the Maine lives they’d lived — Allen as a summer resident of Kezar Lake since childhood, Sally as a native of Southwest Harbor, and both as University of Maine grads. They let their subscription expire.
More than a decade later, when Allen had grown unhappy as the head of CBS’s college-textbook publishing division, Down East became the Fernalds’ ticket back to Maine. In 1977, Allen learned the magazine was for sale and arranged to meet its owner and founder, Duane Doolittle, for lunch in Camden. “The two of us clicked,” Allen says, and he and Sally became the new owners of Down East and moved with their three teenagers into a large Queen Anne in Rockport.
As publisher for 24 years, Allen transformed Down East, introducing color throughout its pages and hiring experienced editors, photographers, and writers. In 1985, he and Sally downsized, buying land and a house on Bald Mountain, in Camden, where they enjoyed sweeping ocean views from their living-room window and regularly hiked to the 1,280-foot summit. In 2005, they deeded their beloved peak’s 86 acres to the Coastal Mountains Land Trust.
The Fernalds, now in their 90s, moved to Camden village a few years ago, but Bald Mountain remains Allen’s most cherished place. “We always considered our ownership to be a privilege,” he says, “and we’re pleased it will be shared with the community forever.”
