Obituary: John Joseph Connolly
John Joseph Connolly
PHIPPSBURG – John Joseph Connolly, 79, died surrounded by his loved ones on June 16, 2026, following complications related to Alzheimer’s Disease. He was born on Sept. 6, 1946, in Lawrence, Massachusetts. John was the son of Helen Harkins and Michael Connolly. He was predeceased by his parents.
He is survived by his wife of over 50 years, Darlene MacKinnon; his daughters, Erin Connolly (Jon Liberman) and Kate Connolly (fiancé Dave Hodsdon); his brother, Michael Connolly (Kim Connolly); his sister, MaryAnne Burrell (Stanley Burrell); and his grandchildren Ben and Madeleine Liberman. He is also survived by his sister-in-law, Sandra Panagopoulou, and many nieces and nephews including; Leigh Rix, Luke Panagopoulos, Kia Panagopoulou, Tristan Burrell, David Connolly, Alexander Burrell, Elizabeth Martinotti, Matthew Burrell, and Jordan Burrell.
John graduated from St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, in 1969, where he played varsity football and met his wife, Darlene. He attended Hurricane Island Outward Bound School, where he met his lifelong friend, Lance Lee.
John started his professional life as a special education teacher in Rochester, Massachusetts. During his time there, he met another lifelong friend, Jack Cummings (Beverly Cummings), and coached an undefeated football team.
After briefly living in Nebraska and Nova Scotia with Darlene, they settled down in New England. With the encouragement of Lance Lee, John undertook the construction of the restoration shop at what is now the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath, Maine. There, he carefully disassembled and re-erected a number of historic timber frames. That experience ignited a lifelong passion and led him to his love of timer frame structures.
In 1983, John founded Connolly and Co. Timber Frame Homes and later the Maine Barn Company. He built hundreds of timber frame homes, barns, and structures throughout North America over the next four decades. Early in his career, he joined together with several other craftsmen to establish the Timer Framers Guild of North America; an organization dedicated to preserving and advancing the craft. John became widely respected as one of the leaders who helped revive and shape modern timber framing throughout New England.
While John had a full professional life, his greatest joys were his family. He was an avid fisherman whose favorite place was fishing on the Kennebec River with his daughters. If he wasn’t there, you could find him jumping in the water with his family at Popham Beach. He also spent many years to serving as a hospice volunteer in Maine’s Midcoast community, quietly offering comfort and compassion to others during life’s most difficult moments.
John’s legacy lives on in the family he loved so deeply, the timber framers he inspired, and the structures that will stand for generations to come.
John’s family invites all who knew and loved him to join them in celebrating his life, sharing stories, laughter, and memories on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, at 10 a.m., at the Maine Maritime Museum, adjacent to the boatbuilding shop which brought John to Bath all those years ago.
Memories and condolences can be shared at http://www.brackettfh.com.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Timber Framers Guild in John’s honor.
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