Introduction
The City of Portland is the county seat of Cumberland County, the largest city in the State of Maine, and the namesake of the City of Portland, Oregon, nearer the Pacific Coast of the United States. While the City of Portland is often identified as along the Atlantic, the community is largely identified by the Casco Bay in particular, and the Casco Bay is home to several of the city’s islands, including Ram, Cushing, and Peaks Islands, all of which maintain cultural and city attractions for the greater community.
Island Attractions
On Ram Island, the Ram Island Ledge Light Station is the principal attraction; with Cushing and Peaks Islands, the attractions include Battery Kendrick, Battery Foote, and the Watch Tower on Cushing; and Battery Steele, the Whaleback Ledge, the Ocean Rock Viewpoint, and the seasonal Fifth Maine Museum on Peaks.
Mainland Attractions
The City of Portland is a university city home to the University of Southern Maine in the UMaine system centered in the Town of Orono, north of Bangor, in Penobscot County. However, for the general population of the City and for potential tourists to the region, the International Cryptozoology Museum and the Tate House Museum are located immediately to the north of the Fore River, while the central city area, home to the Maine College of Art and Design for higher education, is also home to the Portland Fire Museum, the Portland Museum of Art, the Centre Civic arena/museum, Mainely Frames & Gallery, the Wadsworth-Longfellow House of the Maine Historical Society, the Maine Jewish Museum, and the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad. One of the numerous signature places to stay within the inner City of Portland is the Press Hotel of the Autograph Collection.
