Our 72 Year History

Oscar Carver opened the general store on Perio Point. In the early 1950s he began buying clams in the basement of his homestead. His son Richard Carver joined him in the business in 1953 after attending Husson College.

January 1, 1959

After successfully outgrowing the facility on Perio Point, the Carvers open a new store in the middle of town.

The original store building on Perio Point did not remain vacant for long as they began shelling clams in the 800 sq. ft building. Many years of growth followed with additions of heating oil, hardware, clothing, and gas.

Oscar Carver passed away unexpectedly in 1974, leaving the future of the business in the hands of his son, Richard Carver (pictured here). A year later Richard's son, Albert Carver joined his Dad full-time, working side-by-side at Carver Shellfish.

They both described the growth from 1978-1984 as "very evident".

The groundbreaking for our Black Duck Cove Road location is seen here in 1984. The new facility would open the following year in 1985, expanding from 800 sq ft to 2400 sq. ft, complete with a single bay loading dock.

The following year, Snappy Lobster Pound, a tidal pound with a capacity of 65,000 is build and lobsters are added to the list of offerings by Carver Shellfish.

Another tidal pound comes on line in 1990, Mum's Pound. with a capacity of 35,000.

Six years later, a 6,400 sq. ft. addition grew the busy seafood processing facility and another tidal pound was added to the business.

A.C. Inc is founded as a division of Carver Shellfish June 17, 2007.

Three years later, a new 2,000 sq. ft. shipping and receiving area is added. From 2000 to 2010, many additions and upgrades are made, including two more tidal pounds with a capacity of 130,000.

Plant Manager Patrick Robinson becomes Vice President of A.C. Inc. and another 3,800 sq ft is added to the business.

In 2011, A.C. Inc's Facility is 16,500 sq. ft. with cold water storage for 40,000 pounds of live lobsters, 3,200 sq. ft of coolers, 5 loading bays, 2 receiving bays, 3,600 sq ft of processing areas, and tidal storage for 430,000 pounds of live lobsters.

 A.C. Inc. launches a new product, fresh frozen clams and is making plans for Value Added Seafood products in the Community in which it is caught. 

Our purging capacity for Shellfish at A.C. Inc. increased by 35% for a total capacity of 42,000 lbs. The facility at Perio Point which buys product directly from fishermen was expanded to accommodate 3 vessels at a time for offloading and re-supplying.

We added 2 clam dredging boats to our infrastructure for producing our own Ocean Clam products.

We added ozonated water to our facility at Black Duck Cove Road in Beals, Maine, enhancing our sanitation capabilities. Clam grading equipment was added and a line of shucked Ocean Clams were added to our product list.

 Frozen storage was added to both facilities in Beals; at Perio Point and Black Duck Cove Rd.

Upgrades were made our wharf at Perio Point including a new office building and breakroom area for our employees.

 A.C. Inc is pleased to announce two new business acquisitions; Close to Coast Seafood and Beals Lobster Company. These businesses had been serving our communities for a combined 80+ years and we’re excited to continue their hard work going forward.

Bringing these businesses into the A.C. Inc Family increases the diversity of products we offer while continuing to grow our marketing strength for our locally caught seafood offerings. This helps us to maintain the best price for our harvesters and increase employment opportunities in and around the communities we serve.