support the most important ideas or concepts within the Significance Statement and help communicate the area ’ s significance and its relevance to people visiting or living within a National Heritage Area . Together they show how the proposed NHA meets Criterion 2 , and they ultimately guide the future direction of a National Heritage Area .
Downeast Maine communities have engaged in well over a decade of region-wide public outreach around heritage tourism planning and development , and more recently around National Heritage Area and Destination Development work . The significant and consistent public input and information gathered over the years underscores that the Downeast Maine study area has a unique and nationally important story beloved by many , as well as the potential and desire to better support interpretation of that story and expand on opportunities .
The Significance Statement and Interpretive Themes of the Downeast Maine National Heritage Area are based on public feedback and ideas gathered over many years of regional collaborations and expressed during more recent public discussions and individual outreach , and the many Working Group committee discussions .
Passamaquoddy Canoe , Abbe Museum - This birchbark canoe , displayed at the Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor , represents thousands of years of traditional Wabanaki knowledge handed down from generation to generation . It is nearly identical to the ones used to greet French visitors over four-hundred years ago .
Statement of Significance
The rich natural resources of Downeast Maine enabled the Wabanahki to thrive for 12,000 years , attracted the first French settlement in the nation , sparked the first naval battle of the American Revolution , and provided vital building materials and food supplies for growing American cities . The natural resources that supported human population and helped to build the east coast and American nation remain intact and vital to the culture , environment , economy , and identity of Downeast Maine .
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