Lubec lost a historic landmark to the January 4 storm that lashed the region with snow, rain and high winds, coinciding with an astronomically high tide. The McCurdy Smokehouse brining shed, located in the channel east of Water Street and long a part of the Lubec Landmarks collection, came free of supporting pilings during the peak of the storm‑surge driven tide, turning the shed from a historical structure into a hazard to navigation. After crossing the Lubec Channel into Canada, the shed ended up coming to rest on the Campobello shore, where scavengers have been dismantling parts of it.
     The tide on January 4 was predicted to peak at about 1 p.m.; it is uncertain how far above the expected high the water actually reached, but by 3:30 p.m. the shed was lying on the ground beneath its normal location. Subsequent tides carried it a short distance northward to the New England Aquarium dock behind Frank's Dockside Restaurant, in the process destroying two pilings.      
     An anxious crowd gathered awaiting high water early in the afternoon of January 5, but by the time the water started to recede the ruined building had not floated free, although it was seen to be moving slightly. Concerns were raised as to what could happen if it was to move on, including possibly damaging the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial Bridge to the extent authorities would be required to close it. Tides following January 6 were predicted to remain at normal levels until the end of January, thus hopefully allowing some time -- a particular concern given the sub‑zero temperatures with a dangerous wind‑chill restricting any kind of work -- to deal with the situation.
      As of the morning of January 6, the shed was still entangled in the dock but broke free with the rising tide around 12:30 p.m., making good its escape under the bridge, fortunately without a collision. A small group gathered at Mowry Point to bid farewell to a part of Lubec history as it disappeared into the sea‑smoke. By early afternoon the shed was in the vicinity of Campobello Island's Fox Farm mud flats.

Smokehouse history
     According to information from the National Register of Historic Places, the brining shed was one of the early buildings constructed as part of what later became known as the McCurdy Smokehouse. The building was also called the pickling shed and pumphouse and was built atop an existing wharf around 1907 by Robert G. McBride, who operated the business until his death in 1922. It was then sold to Cadwallader Kelley, who owned it on and off with his wife Dorothy, not including a brief time it was owned by Garnett Green. It was sold to Arthur P. McCurdy in 1959, then passed to John P. McCurdy. By that time the operation had grown to include nine separate buildings, all connected either by Water Street or the wharf. McCurdy operated the business until 1991, when the rising costs of regulatory compliance made the business no longer profitable.
     "We were the smallest of the processors," McCurdy says. "We had to do 500 hogsheads each year to stay in business." He explains how that would allow his "24 or 25" employees to pack 15,000 boxes annually for shipment. "Sometimes the captains would call in the middle of the night asking if they could deliver to me."
     The National Register of Historic Places traces the history of the smoked herring industry from its 1797 beginning in Lubec by Daniel Ramsdell, although that version is disputed. Demand rose considerably during the Civil War but then languished until late in the 19th century, when demand again rose to the point in 1908 where 13 firms produced smoked herring in Lubec, plus many more that produced canned herring: sardines. Several firms reportedly produced both smoked and canned herring.

Loss of smokehouse mourned
     The brining shed is not the first structure to be lost, says McCurdy, describing how a second smokehouse fell down on its pilings under similar circumstances. "Sheldon Stanley helped me take that one out." A third building, not associated with the complex but owned by Arthur McCurdy, floated off "sometime after we closed." That building was located behind the present Water Street Tavern, he says, describing how it headed out under the bridge, much as the brining shed, also ending up on Campobello. Losing the brining shed "was like a little piece of me," says McCurdy.      "So much of my life was involved in that place."
  McCurdy is not the only one to regret the loss. "It was a humongous loss," says Rachel Rubeor, president of Lubec Landmarks. The organization, she says, had been working on plans to lift the brining shed and move it to new pilings closer to the other buildings, thus making it accessible to visitors. "The brining shed was where the process started," she says. "We wanted to show people the entire operation from start to finish, using all the equipment and the buildings, and that was an integral part. It was where it all began." Fundraising did not proceed as rapidly as hoped, leaving the organization at risk for an event like that of January 4. When asked to describe the condition of the other buildings, Rubeor says, "They're all at risk."
     As of the morning of January 7, the footloose shed had found its way to the beach at Campobello's Fox Farms, with the floor‑mounted chimney still standing proud and tall, although the walls were largely collapsed. The waterline was painted with frost, about five feet above the ground, just at the level of the eaves. The shed was clearly visible from the international bridge; by January 9 it had not moved significantly but had partially crumbled, likely because of tidal action.
At this point, protecting the structure is the primary interest, says Rubeor, so that important artifacts can be recovered. Both Canadian and American authorities, including Senator Angus King, have been alerted that unauthorized dismantling has occurred. "Under the law," she says, "we have 30 days to get it out of there before the Canadian authorities will take over."
     By January 10, tempers were flaring on social media, pitting efforts by Lubec Landmarks personnel to halt the dismantling against local residents who felt roughed‑up in the process.      Questions were raised contrasting the need for prompt remediation versus claims that Canadian workers should have priority, and also as to the best way to proceed before the tide and continued winter weather further deteriorate the structure, scattering debris beyond the current area. Thinly veiled threats of arson were made, and questions were asked about what the next step ought to be, before cooler heads began to participate in the dialog