Owl & Turtle Loses Lease to Sherman's

The Owl & Turtle Bookshop in Camden, Maine, lost the lease to its longtime location overlooking the harbor of this picturesque city and will have to move out by the end of February. A 34-year-old institution, the store is known for its maritime collection (there is even a ship-like set of spiral stairs connecting the main selling floor with the "lower deck") and distinctive shelving system—horizontal rather than vertical. When the Owl & Turtle was originally founded in 1970, it was one the few, if not only, bookstore/bed-and-breakfasts in the country. But when Paul and Carole Lerner bought the store in 1998, the owners of the building took over the operation of the tiny inn.

Jeff Curtis, who co-owns two of Maine's four Sherman's Book and Stationery Stores with his wife, Audrey (his mother, Patricia Curtis, owns the flagship store in Bar Harbor and a seasonal store in Northeast Harbor), will take over the Camden retail space. "Our interest in Camden goes back to before we opened our first store in the '80s," said Curtis, referring to the Sherman's in Boothbay Harbor, which opened in 1989. A second store in Freeport, best known as the home of L.L. Bean, opened in 1998. The Curtises will rent the entire Camden building, including the space the Owl & Turtle now occupies. They have not made any decision yet as to whether they will keep the bed-and breakfast open. "My suspicion is," Curtis told PW, "we'll probably use it as backroom space for the store." Unlike the other Sherman's locations, which stock a large selection of stationery and gift items, the Camden store will carry only books.

At press time, the Lerners had not made a decision about whether they will relocate the Owl & Turtle or close it.