A Tiny Island In the Gulf of Maine That Remains a Disputed Gray Zone Between the U.S. and Canada

We recently posted about the tiny country that once existed between the United States and Canada which was thought to be resolved in 1835 and ratified in 1842. Yet despite this deal, there is still a tiny island in the disputed waters of the Gulf of Maine called Machias Seal Island that remains an official gray zone between the two countries. Both the United States have called the island their own. In fact Canada put a lighthouse onto the island in the 1830s, but that symbolic gesture didn’t keep U.S. Border Patrol agents from stopping Canadian fishing boats in 2018.

Canada’s made the biggest land grab so far building a lighthouse there in the 1830s the US meanwhile pretends that the lighthouse isn’t there because gray zone. This all sounds pretty polite but sometimes the tension escalates. The U.S. Border Patrol stopped a lot of Canadian fishing boats in the area in 2018. It said it was enforcing immigration laws and other violations of federal law. The Border Patrol didn’t arrest anyone and claims the stops were routine but some Canadians ID them as a potential flexing of American muscle .