Joe Phelan

Staff Photographer

Joe Phelan is an award winning journalist who makes photos and videos around the capital area for the the Kennebec Journal, Morning Sentinel and the other Masthead Maine publications. Joe’s first journalism job was as a kid delivering his hometown newspaper, The Blade, in the suburbs of Toledo, Ohio. Then he worked as reporter and editor for the school newspapers in high school and college and started taking pictures to go with his stories for a local running magazine. He graduated from Bowling Green State University with a journalism degree. Before getting hired by MaineToday Media he did a photojournalism internship at the The Plain Dealer and worked as an Associated Press stringer in Cleveland.
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Posted inKennebec Journal, Local & State, News

Photos: Historic weather vane, once stolen and ransomed back, is removed from Hallowell tower

by Joe Phelan

A historic weather vane has been removed from the former fire house in Hallowell, this time, with the city’s permission.
The instrument, which depicts a horse pulling a fire-hose cart with a single fireman, has a rich history.
In November of 1983, it was stolen from the tower of the Second Street building and ransomed back about a week later, when the publisher of a Maine antiques newspaper met up with two strangers in the woods near Manchester, New Hampshire, and paid them $1,000 of city funds in exchange for the valuable item.
The next year it was returned to the building with help from an Augusta Fire Department ladder truck.
The city will store the object in its vault while it seeks to get it appraised for its value and to determine the cost of duplicating the item so it can display the original at City Hall and use the duplicate on the building.
All photos by Joe Phelan.

Posted inBusiness, Kennebec Journal, Local & State

Photos: Arts group moves into former Harlow Gallery building in Hallowell

by Joe Phelan

The prominent red building at 100 Water St. in downtown Hallowell is now home to The Studio at Gallant Therapy Services. The group, which has 38 clients, provides a space for people with varying intellectual and developmental disabilities and Autism to participate in drawing, painting, fiber arts and other types of art. All photos by Joe Phelan.

Posted inKennebec Journal, Local & State, News

Photos: Monmouth flower farmers growing 10,000 tulips over winter

Kim and Chris Brawn, with help from their son Carter, have been running Pease Hill Farm, a cut flower farm located in Monmouth, for three years and this is the first year they’ve tried growing tulips indoors. Last fall they bought and planted 15,000 tulip bulbs. They planted 5,000 in the ground outside and 10,000 were planted, 66 to a plastic crate, in potting soil to be forced to bloom over the winter.

https://www.centralmaine.com/author/joe-phelan/page/17