This allowed Old Town Canoe to reclaim leadership in worldwide canoe manufacturing and to become a major player in the exporting of canoes to Europe and Japan. The James River Corporation pulp and paper mill, although suffering from an industry wide slump, has, to date, avoided major layoffs, unlike other Maine mills. The downtown area, although losing its status as a clothing center, has remained the office and business center of Old Town through the Sewall Company, City Hall, all three local banks, and various professional offices. The downtown has also had some recent success as a discount, specialty, and furniture center. The new Old Town Canoe factory store, located on North Main Street, has been successful.
Several observations are conspicuous in the social and economic history of Old Town.
In the long term, those industries exhibiting the greatest stability have been directly related to wood resources. R.J. Morin, Governor's Restaurant, and the Sewall Company were not transplanted into the community but have been the product of local inventive genius and entrepreneurship. Old Town has also traditionally held a close relationship to the Penobscot River - whether for log driving, powering sawmills, transportation, hydropower, or as a medium to float canoes.