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History of Hewnoaks
Hewnoaks is a place where creativity has taken root for more than a century.
For 100+ years, Hewnoaks has welcomed makers, thinkers, and neighbors into a landscape that encourages curiosity and connection.
The history of Hewnoaks continues to guide our mission today, reminding us that creativity thrives when people gather, share, and create in the rhythm of this magical place.
Hewnoaks Origins (1880 - 1900)
Hewnoaks began with artists Douglas and Marion Volk, who first visited Western Maine in the 1880s. Drawn to the region’s quiet beauty and growing arts community, the Volks eventually returned to look for a summer place of their own.
By 1898, Douglas and Marion had purchased and renovated the former Charles Hamblen farm in Lovell, and decided to officially give it a new name: Hewnoaks.
Douglas Volk (1859 - 1935)
Douglas Volk (1859 – 1935) was an American painter known for figure and portrait work, with pieces held in major museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Carnegie Museum, and the Portland Museum of Art.
A respected teacher, he held posts at the Cooper Union, the Art Students League, and the National Academy of Design, and helped found the Minneapolis School of Fine Art.
Marion Larrabee Volk (1859 - 1927)
Marion Larrabee Volk (1859 – 1927), an artist and designer, was deeply influenced by the Arts and Crafts Movement.
At Hewnoaks, she began weaving wool rugs and textiles using locally sourced natural dyes — apple bark, goldenrod, barberry, St. John’s Wort, and other plants gathered around Lovell.
Working with her daughter, Marion Bridges, and in collaboration with Lovell neighbors, she helped establish Sabatos Rugs and Textiles and the Sabatos Handicraft Society, known for bold motifs inspired by Indigenous art and traditional craft processes.
A Gathering Place for Artists & Makers
As the Volks expanded the property, they added cottages and a dedicated studio for Douglas, creating a summer home that welcomed artists, writers, and craftspeople.
Hewnoaks became a meeting place for figures associated with the Arts and Crafts Movement, including: J. Alden Weir, Frank Benson, Childe Hassam, Felix Adler, John Scott Bradstreet, Karl A. von Rydingsvärd, and Annie Mary Brown
The Volk children also contributed to the creative life of the place. Their son Wendell, a printmaker and woodcarver, hand-printed a treatise on the Sabatos textiles and produced silkscreen designs used in the family’s weaving work.
A Family Legacy (1900 - 2005)
The Volk family cared for Hewnoaks for more than a century. Jessie McCoig Volk – Wendell’s wife – was its last family steward. Beginning in the 1950s, she ran Hewnoaks as a rustic summer camp, introducing generations of visitors to Kezar Lake and the spirit of quiet retreat that continues to define the property today.
Following Jessie’s death in 2005, Hewnoaks was gifted to the University of Maine Foundation, with a request that the land remain a place for art, education, and the preservation of its natural beauty.
Archival materials from the family were donated to the Smithsonian Institution, and portions of the property’s historic contents were sold at auction.
Hewnoaks Today (2012 - present)
In 2012, a small group of artists and community members came together to honor Jessie Volk’s wishes by imagining Hewnoaks as a space for contemporary creative practice. That summer, thirteen artists were invited to work at the property — a pilot residency that affirmed what many already felt: Hewnoaks was still a place where creativity could unfold quietly and naturally.
Building on that success, Hewnoaks became a nonprofit organization in 2013 and soon established its independently juried application process. In 2014, the residency received 501(c)(3) status under the name Hewnoaks Artist Colony.
Today, Hewnoaks continues the spirit of the Volk family’s artistic life by offering time, space, and stillness to artists working across disciplines — preserving a century-long tradition of creativity rooted in nature and community.
Credit for all photos: Maine State Museum