Trap to Table: Generations of Tradition in Maine Lobstering

Article by: Barb Ford | Photography by Barb Ford | Published August 28, 2025

The Allure of Maine's Coast

If you are headed to New England, one of the very best destinations is the coast of Maine. While it may seem crowded with tourists in some areas, there’s good reason for that. There is great shopping, great eating, fabulous views, spectacular sunsets, and fascinating history almost everywhere you look. And there are still many wild and lonesome spots that can make your spirit soar. Maine is a state known for its history, its brilliant fall colors, its beautiful lighthouses, its terrific shopping, and best of all, its great eating, especially lobster, one of the state’s most iconic staples and treasures.

The People Behind the Lobster

But the best part of Maine is its people. They are not standoffish, as many might think; they are friendly, down-to-earth, and remarkably kind. People like Harlan and Michelle Creamer, lobstermen (or perhaps more inclusively, lobster harvesters) in Waldoboro, who dropped everything to show us the route to the hospital when my mother had an accident. Harlan and Michelle gave up their one night off to stay with us and make sure everything worked out at the hospital, and then delivered dinner to our house just to be sure we ate after an evening spent with doctors and nurses. As they say, in Maine neighbors take care of each other. And the best people I have met all seem to be related to lobster somehow. They are either lobstermen, families of lobstermen, or cooks who prize lobster above almost every other food.

There are few foods more divisive or more sought after than New England lobster. Today it is coveted as a luxury, but that wasn’t always the case. Years ago, there were prison riots and mill worker strikes because lobster was served too often. I grew up loving lobster, but my grandmother thought it was food for poor people! Many people also worry about cooking live lobsters and discuss the most humane methods. But in the end, most people love eating lobster, whether steamed, baked, broiled, or as the star of a dish. I have even seen confirmed vegans change their minds when faced with a lobster supper.

The Heritage of Lobstering

In New England, the source of most lobster consumed in the United States, lobster has a long and storied history. While people in the West revere cowboys, New Englanders revere lobstermen. Lobstering is one of the few trades still handed down through generations and one of the few industries that truly lives up to its claims of sustainability.

Two of my lobstering friends, Harlan Creamer and Clint Collamore, haul lobsters daily in the summer and come from families that have been doing so for five or more generations. Each has a specific territory where they set their traps early in the season, and those territories are carefully guarded. Licenses for lobstermen are extremely limited and often handed down through families or earned by young apprentices who work for years alongside an experienced captain.

The process of fishing for lobster is complex and physically demanding. Each trap, attached to a buoy, must be baited, these are usually with herring or another small fish, and lowered to the ocean floor. Most lobstermen run hundreds of traps; licenses for 500–600 traps are common in Maine. Every 4–5 days, the traps are hauled up, the catch measured, and non-legal lobsters returned to the sea. Egg-bearing females have their tails notched before release, signaling to any future lobsterman that the lobster must be protected. The “keepers” are banded, stored, and the trap is re-baited and reset. With the help of a sternman, a lobsterman can haul nearly 200 traps in a day. It is hard, heavy, and risky work—especially in bad weather. Considering the danger and skill involved, it is remarkable that lobster is not even more expensive!

Prices fluctuate with supply and demand, and there are times when lobstermen lose money because fuel, bait, and wages outweigh the market price. Some sell directly to locals and restaurants; others work with co-ops and shipping firms. The Maine Lobstermen’s Association, now more than seventy years old, balances economic realities with conservation, advocates for the industry, and introduces young people to lobstering through its Junior Harvesters program.

Yet the future is uncertain. Climate change, shifting ecosystems, and legislative challenges from those unfamiliar with lobstering traditions all create difficulties. Many lobstermen hesitate to encourage their children to join the trade, which could mean the end of centuries of tradition.

Trap-to-Table Traditions

Still, lobstering remains one of Maine’s greatest cultural treasures. I once joined Clint Collamore and his grandson Clinton for a morning on the water, hauling traps aboard their boat, The Just Right. Watching Clinton, the next generation, at work as sternman, I saw firsthand how heritage and hope are passed from one set of hands to the next.

Of course, with lobster comes debate: lobster rolls (buttered or mayo?), bisque or chowder, steamed or baked. Maine’s annual Lobster Festival in Rockland draws thousands to sample every version imaginable—rolls, pies, macaroni and cheese, even lobster grilled cheese.

For purists, nothing beats a trap-to-table meal: lobster caught and cooked in the same waters it grew up in. Years ago, my first lobster supper with a lobsterman was when Harlan and Michelle Creamer dropped off eight fresh lobsters and stayed to share them with us. Imagine pulling dinner straight from the ocean and cooking it just feet away—that is truly at the heart of Maine dining.

Cooking lobster is simple but requires respect for freshness. Unless the market steams it for you, lobsters should be cooked within hours of purchase. The classic Maine way? A big pot of salted water, lobsters plunged in headfirst, sometimes corn added on top, and a short boil before serving with melted butter. Simple is best.

The best way to eat lobster is outdoors at a picnic table with friends. Lobster is messy, fun, and communal. Some Mainers won’t consider less than a “twin lobster dinner,” though many visitors find one is plenty. Leftovers can be turned into lobster rolls or baked into a decadent lobster pie with crushed Ritz crackers, cream, and fresh dill.

From trap to table, lobster is more than just a meal in Maine. It is a way of life, a tradition handed down, and a reminder that the best food often carries the story of the people who harvest it.