ROCKLAND — With a generous challenge grant from the Roxanne Quimby Foundation and another from the Davis Family Foundation, the Millay House Committee of the Rockland Historical Society has engaged Les Fossel of Fossel Preservation Partners LLC, in Alna, Maine, as the general contractor. Fossel served on the board of Maine Preservation, a statewide preservation advocacy group in Yarmouth, and he has been restoring old buildings for forty years. When asked about the Millay House, Fossel said in a news release, "Edna St, Vincent Millay is a legend larger than life. It is great to have a building we can tie that legend too. There are many wonderful communities throughout Maine with interesting histories and architecture. Restoring this double house on Broadway will reflect the history of one of those communities and one of the legends it produced."

The Millay House Committee also hired Rockland architect Gerald Weinand to complete a site plan and architectural drawings of the house. Weinand, who has restored old homes and buildings along the Maine coast, said, "I am excited to be part of a project that will help us remember that, for a brief time, someone who would become a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet lived in Rockland. If this landmark had been razed or renovated beyond recognition, as time went by, it would be forgotten."

John Ware, the longtime owner of Maritime Energy, is going to help with the replacement of the heating system at the Millay House. Ware is donating some of the cost because he believes it is important to preserve a Rockland landmark, especially one connected with such a great American poet.

Travis Hamilton of Arbor Tech in Searsmont will be clearing the back lot of dead trees and brush to create a woodland garden. He said, "That hidden wooded area has a lot to offer. There is lots of variety back there. The young stand of quaking aspens will be a lovely surprise for those who wander along the little trail."

The Millay family lived on the north side of the double house when Dr. Benjamin Williams delivered their first child at home. Although the future Pulitzer Prize-winning poet lived at 200 Broadway for only three months before her family moved to Union, the historical society plans to restore this Rockland landmark and help establish a literary organization to celebrate the legacy of Edna St. Vincent Millay through writers' workshops and a Midcoast poetry festival, from headquarters at 200 Broadway. This will add a literary dimension to all the exciting cultural opportunities available in Knox County.

The outside of the double house will be restored to reflect its original appearance when it was built in 1891. The unit on the south will be rehabilitated as an attractive, income-producing rental. The unit on the north will be restored to resemble the comfortable, working-class residence that it was when the Millay's lived there.