Badger's Island

Badger's Island is located in the Piscataqua River at Kittery, Maine, United States, directly opposite Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Eastern white pine for masts, together with lumber for hulls, arrived down the Piscataqua River from inland forests.

Only two tenths of a mile (322 m) from Portsmouth's busy wharves, the island's gradual slope into the deep channel between was ideal for launching vessels.

The first U. S. Navy ships commissioned by the Continental Congress were built here by master shipbuilder James Hackett,[1] including USS Ranger in 1777.

U.S. Navy vessels built on Badger's Island: Clipper Ships built by Fernald & Pettigrew:[7] Badger's Island became a terminus for the Kittery, a ferry which delivered passengers across the swift Piscataqua River from Portsmouth to the landing and waiting room of the Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway.