Bath unveiled its refreshed logo, designed to complement the city’s flag, and officially dropped its “Maine’s Cool Little City” moniker on Monday.

The new logo has three slightly different variations, but each features a red circle with a white six-masted ship silhouette representing the Bath-built Wyoming, the largest wooden schooner built in the U.S., according to the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath. The Wyoming was built in 1909 at the Percy and Small shipyard, where the Maine Maritime Museum now sits on Washington Street.

Bath’s refreshed logo, unveiled on Wednesday, kept the three-masted ship and wave design from the former logo. The new logo, better compliments the city’s flag, said Bath Marketing and Communications Specialist Lindsey Goudreau. Photo courtesy of Lindsey Goudreau

White and blue waves, meant to represent the Kennebec River, make up the lower half of the circle.

The logo also features the nickname “City of Ships” as a nod to Bath’s shipbuilding history in place of the former tagline “Maine’s Cool Little City,” that “had just stopped to resonate with folks and felt generic,” said Lindsey Goudreau, Bath’s marketing and communication specialist.

Goudreau said the city wanted the refreshed logo to feel “friendlier and more progressive while still referencing the city’s iconic maritime history.” The city also wanted the new logo to echo the city’s flag, so the two designs could be used in tandem.

Amanda McDaniel, Main Street Bath Director and member of Bath’s Economic Development Committee, said Bath’s flag is widely used in the community, so “it made sense to have a more updated logo that felt like it was in the family of that overall aesthetic.”

“Having the bold, strong red color represents vitality and forward motion to me,” said McDaniel. “And the waves, of course, showing our powerful, ever-present Kennebec River and the importance Bath has had in its long-standing reputation as ‘The City of Ships.’”

The new logo will replace the former logo, created in 2014 by Briggs Advertising, on city signs and marketing materials. Goudreau said the city wanted to keep some elements of the old logo, like the silhouette of the Wyoming and the waves.

The marketing and communications subcommittee of Bath’s economic development committee was tasked with working with a designer to refresh the logo. Goudreau said the city received 44 proposals from designers across the country but ultimately signed with Jay Paulus of PaulusDesignGroup, which has offices in Bath and Washington DC.

Bath’s former logo depicts the Wyoming, the largest wooden schooner to be built in the U.S. It was built by Percy and Small shipyard, where the Maine Maritime Museum now sits. File photo

Work on the new logo began in April 2021 and the committee critiqued six revisions of the new logo before finally settling on one late last month, said Goudreau.

Paulus, who lives in Bath, said the task was somewhat challenging because the city wanted the new version of the logo to be based on the former logo and compliment – but not mirror – the city flag.

“Usually you start from scratch, but we had to be mindful of the previous work the city had done and embrace it,” said Paulus. “It was a fun project and living in Bath made it that much more important for us. It was a tricky process, but we’re pleased with it and I’m glad the city is too.”

The design process alone cost the city just over $3,000, which was budgeted for and funded by tax revenue from Bath Iron Work’s shipyard on Washington Street.

The new logo will be used on the city’s website, social media accounts, brochures and signs around the city, including the sign on between the northbound and southbound lanes of Leeman Highway, welcoming people to Bath. The logo can also be used, with permission, by businesses, nonprofits and schools within the city.

The new logo, however, will not replace the city flag or official seal used on legal documents.

Goudreau said she doesn’t know how long it will take or how much it will cost to add the new logo to signs around the city but hopes to have it done by the end of the year.