USA > Maine > Aroostook County > History of Aroostook. vol. I > Part 16
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As much of old history is preserved in the form of ballads,
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I here insert some rhymes written by a lady at Masardis during these stirring times. It will thus be seen that history and the ballads of the period agree as to the incidents of that bloodless war.
"Come all ye 'noble Yankee boys, come listen to my story. I'll tell about those Volunteers and all their pomp and glory. They came to the Aroostook their country to support,
They came to the St. Croix and there they built a fort.
They started down the river some trespassers to find, They came to Madawaska Stream, and there they formed a line. But McIntyre and Cushman they thought it too severe To lodge with private soldiers; to a tavern they did steer
. They came to one Fitzherbert's at eight o'clock at night, Where these poor weary officers expected much delight. But instead of taking comfort, as I think you all will own, They were taken by an Irish mob and hauled to Fredericton.
Then on parole of honor these gentlemen went home, And never to Aroostook were they again to come.
When Rines and Strickland heard the news they knew not what to do.
Their heads were quite distracted, their hearts were full of woe.
Strickland turned unto his men and to them he did say, "We'll retreat back to Masardis; we can do it in a day." They came to Col. Goss's, they halted on the shore;
Such a poor distressed company you never saw before.
Some with empty stomachs and some with frozen feet. This is a feather in Rines' cap, this seventy miles retreat. Now they've gone across the river, a breastwork for to built, For fear the British would come up and they would have to yield.
'Tis built of spruce and many a cedar tree, So neatly framed together is this famous battery.
And now we defy the British Queen and all her red-coat crew To beat our noble Yankee boys, let them try what they can do."
During these troubles there was much anxiety among the families in this new settlement, but fortunately the disputes were settled without bloodshed, and the cloud of war passed by.
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In April 1839, the State troops went through to Fish River. Mr. Sanfield Reed, now living at Masardis, went as a teamster with a company of men under Captain Nye. They went with teams down the river from Masardis to Ashland, thence up the Little Machias to Little Machias Lake, thence across . through the woods some two and a half miles to Portage Lake, and followed down through the chain of lakes and Fish River, to the mouth of the river, where a block house was afterwards built called Fort Kent.
Immediately following the departure of the troops, new settlers began to come to the town. On the 21st of March, 1839, the town was incorporated.
In 1840 William Ellis came from Dexter and settled a short distance south of Mr. Pollard, on the lot afterwards occupied by John Knowlen. Mr. Ellis remained but a few years, and moved to Ashland.
Mr. Eben Trafton came from Newfield in 1841, and settled near the north line of the town. Mr. Trafton taught the first school ever opened at Masardis. He has for many years been one of the prominent citizens of the town, and at one time was largely engaged in lumbering, but for a number of years has given his whole attention to his large farm.
William Cowperthwaite, a son of the pioneer settler, came in 1841, and settled on his father's lot about a mile north of the St. Croix. Mr. Cowperthwaite remained one of the principal citizens of Masardis until his removal to California some two years ago, and was at one time a member of the legislature.
In 1842 Amasa Goding came fram Corinna and bought the farm of Thomas Goss. This is now one of the finest farms in the town, and is occupied by Mr. Llewellyn Goding, a son of the original settler.
In 1854 Charles W. Clayton came to Masardis and bought the property of Alexander Woodward. Mr. Clayton engaged largely in lumbering and farming, and was for years the principal business man of the town. In 1870 Mr. Clayton moved to Ash- land, where he has since resided. Mr. S. D. Reed purchased the Clayton farm, and now lives upon it. In 1883, Mr. Clayton built a starch factory on Squa Pan Stream in Masardis, and two years later Mr. Walker built the grist mill on the opposite side of the strea.m
Unmistakably Masardis is an excellent farming town as is evidenced by the indications of prosperity seen on every hand. The buildings are large, neat and tidy, the fields broad and level
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and free from stone and there are but two or three mortgaged farms in the town. The town is abundantly watered by the Aroostook and its tributaries, and all the people here seem to add to their prosperity is a railroad to the outer world.
MONTICELLO
Twelve miles due north from Houlton is the pleasant vil- lage of Monticello, located upon the banks of the north branch of the Meduxnekeag Stream. The town of Monticello is one of the best of the border towns of Aroostook and contains many beautiful farms and fine and attractive residences. The soil throughout the greater part of the town is fertile and productive and is easy of cultivation. The road from Houlton to Presque Isle runs in a due north course upon the centre line of the town, thus dividing it into two equal parts. The eastern half of the town, lying between the County road and the New Brunswick line, has been longer settled and perhaps contains the greater portion of good farming land. In the western half, however, there is much very fine farming land, though in some portions the farms seem newer and not yet under cultivation like the east- ern section. Monticello is bounded on the north by Bridgewater and south by the town of Littleton. Its eastern boundary is the New Brunswick line and on the west lies the wilderness town- ship of Letter C, Range 2.
The town shows evidence of having been settled earlier than the towns in the Aroostook Valley. Occasionally may be seen an old dwelling whose style and general appearance tell of its having been built nearly a half century ago, but in most in- stances the old dwellings have been either taken down or mod- ernized and the grounds around them handsomely arranged and attractive. Upon the older farms the general aspect is one of thrift and prosperity, though the great need of this, as of the other Aroostook towns, is a better and more direct connection with the outside world by means of a railroad running upon our own soil to the great trunk lines of the State.
Gen. Joel Wellington of Albion, Me., bought the township about the year 1828, and it was formerly known as Wellington Township. By the conditions of the deed from the State of Maine, Gen. Wellington was required to make certain improve-
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ments upon the township, among them being the building of a mill, opening roads, building a schoolhouse and other necessary improvements to make the tract available for settlement. In 1829 he came through the woods from Houlton by a spotted line, bringing with him a crew of men and commenced felling trees and clearing land on the high land south of the Meduxnekeag Stream, near where the Wellington homestead now stands. He cleared up most of the land upon which the present village is located and built a mill upon the stream.
Soon after Gen. Wellington entered upon the town, settlers commenced to come in and take up lots, clear away the forest and make homes for themselves and families. Among the first was George Fond, who came from the town of Thorndike in 1830 and took a lot near the present village on the east side of the road. The first frame house built in the town was built by Mr. Pond in 1835 and in this house Mr. Pond kept hotel for nearly twenty years. Mrs. Pond was a very useful woman in the new settlement, there being no doctor nearer than Houlton, and her services were often required as a nurse for the sick. Hr daughter, Mrs. Isaiah Gould, who now lives in the old Pond homestead, relates many interesting stories of the experiences of this good woman in traveling through the woods on horseback and up and down the stream in a boat, sometimes in time of freshet at the risk of her life, to visit patients who required her services.
Gen. Wellington continued to make his home in Monticello until his death, which occurred at the residence of his son Albion at Fort Fairfield in 1865, and his remains were brought to Mont- icello for interment. On the same day Mr. George Pond died at Monticello in the house he built in 1835, and these two pioneer settlers of the town were buried on the same day.
In 1831, Clo. Nathan Stanley came to the town and settled about a mile and a half south of the stream on the line of the Houlton road and the same year William Cowperthwaite came from New Brunswick and bought a lot of 120 acres on the Me- duxnekeag Stream some three miles below the mill. The old gentleman, now 76 years old, is still living and resides with his son near the old place where he first made his home.
Among the early settlers of the place were also Mr. Jerry Lyons, the Stackpoles, Wadlias, Jewells, Lowells and others. Mr. Wadlia came from Castine in 1832 and bought a lot half a mile west of the County road. In 1833 Peter Lowell came from Dixmont and settled upon a beautiful ridge of land half a mile
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south of the stream. In the same year Mr. John Hayward came from New Brunswick and settled in the east part of the town near Mr. Wadlia.
The road from Houlton to Monticello was cut through in 1833 and did not continue farther north until 1840, when it was extended to Presque Isle and became the thoroughfare for the trnasportation of supplies to the new settlements in the Aroos- took Valley.
The hotel so long kept upon the high land on the south side of the stream was built by Mr. Jesse Lambert in 1846. In 1861 it was purchased by Isaac Archibald, and afterwards passed through a number of different hands until six years ago it was bought by W. S. Howe, who kept it until last fall, when it was destroyed by fire and has not been rebuilt. Another well known hotel was the old Gould stand, on the hill a mile south of the vil- lage. This house was long kept by Deacon Hiram Gould and was also burned a number of years ago and has not been rebuilt. Dea. Gould now resides in the village and is quite infirm.
The village of Monticello is very pleasantly located upon the high ground south of the Meduxnekeag Stream and within a few years has extended across the stream and is now thickly built up as far north as Stitham's Corner. A handsome school house adds much to the looks of the place and gives evidence of the interest taken by the citizens in the education of their children. On the hill west of the main street is the Union meet- ing house, a very handsome church building erected some years ago, and on the beautiful plain on the bank of the stream east of the village is the cemetery.
The town was incorporated July 29, 1846, and in 1850 had a population of 227. In 1880 the population has increased to 965, and today it is well up to 1200.
LITTLETON
Adjoining the town of Houlton on the north is the flourish- ing town of Littleton, through which the County road from Houl- ton to Presque Isle runs in à duè north course on the centre line of the town. The south half of this town was originally granted by the Massachusetts Legislature to Williams College and the north half to Framingham Academy. The Meduxnekeag Stream enters the town a little over a mile west from the southeast corner and flowing north for nearly three miles, turns abruptly to the east and crossing the boundary flows in a suotheasterly
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direction until it finds its way into the St. John at Woodstock. The principal tributary of the Meduxnekeag in Littleton is John- son Brook, which enters the town near its northwest corner and flowing diagonally across the town in a southeasterly direction, empties into the Meduxnekeag some two miles from the south line. The western half of the town contains a number of high ridges and the surface in this portion is considerably broken, not enough, however, to interfere with farming operations as the soil is fertile and productive. The peculiar formation known as the "horseback" extends in a northerly direction through this portion of the town. The eastern half of the town contains no very high ridges but in portions is somewhat broken, though less so on the whole than the western half. Limestone forms the underlying ledge in this town, and the soil is enriched by its gradual disintegration. Its porous character also affords natural drainage. The town was originally covered with a mixed growth of the hard and soft woods natural to this region and contained much valuable timber.
The first settlements made in the town were along the line of the present County road from Houlton to Presque Isle and in the southern portion of the township.
All the original settlers of the town having now passed away, it is quite difficult to trace its early history or to determine who first entered the wilderness to make a home in what is now Littleton. It is quite certain, however, that among the very earliest, if not the first, settlers who came to the town to remain and make a home was Mr. Thomas Osborne, who came from Belfast, Me., in 1835 and settled on a lot in the extreme southern part of the town adjoining the Houlton line. This lot had been taken a short time previous by Mr. Daniel Jones, who came from Bath and had made a small clearing upon the lot. Mr. Jones sold his improvement to Mr. Osborne and removed to Hodgdon, where he was for many years a valued and influential citizen, and where he continued to reside until his death. Mr. Osborne was a tanner by trade and worked at this business in Houlton a portion of the time during the first years of his residence in Littleton. After his death his son, Stephen A. Osborne, came into possession of the farm and is still residing upon it. He continued to improve the farm and in 1862 built a large house and stable with the intention of keeping a hotel, which plan he afterwards abandoned. Mr. Osborne was one of the conductors on the freight trains which in the early days ran from Aroos- took County to Bangor and which consisted of four and six
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horse teams, their down freight being usually shingles and the return cargo a general assortment of supplies. He now devotes himself wholly to farming, his farm at present consisting of 163 acres of fertile land, with nearly 100 acres cleared.
Mr. Lewis DeLaite was also one of the earliest settlers of the town. He came to Littleton from Piscataquis County about the year 1840 and settled on the west side of the County road, one lot south of the center of the town. Here he made a farm upon which he resided until his death, and was succeeded by his son, Lewis DeLaite, who for many years was one of the active citizens of the town. He also drove team on the Bangor route for a number of years and was engaged in trade in Little- ton. Mr. DeLaite removed with his family to Minneapolis some few years ago and his farm is now occupied by Mr. Jerry Har- rigan. About the time that the elder Lewis DeLaite settled in Littleton, the lot immediately opposite was taken by a Mr. Ham- ilton, who was a blacksmith and worked a part of the time at that trade in Houlton. Mr. Hamilton moved from Littleton about 1850 and his farm is now owned and occupied by Mr. Jerry Harrigan. At about the same time Mr. Staples settled upon what is now the Wright farm next south of the DeLaite farm, and the lot opposite, afterwards the Tozier farm, was taken by Philip Keene, who remained but a few years and sold to Mr. Tozier, who came to Aroostook from Miramichi, N. B. His son, James Tozier, is now a merchant in Ashland, having formerly been engaged as a scaler of lumber upon the Aroostook and St. John waters. Another son, Edward Tozier, is a farmer in New Limerick. The Tozier farm was afterwards owned by Mr. C. A. Stevens and is now occupied by Mr. Robert Hone.
In 1843 Martin Johnson came from Readfield and took the lot next south of Staples. Robert Williams had made a small clearing upon the lot and sold to Mr. Johnson, who also bought the lot opposite and cleared up a large farm upon which he lived until his death in 1856. His son, Lewis B. Johnson, then came into possession of the homestead farm upon which he made many improvements. He was also for some years employed in teaming to Bangor and was engaged in trading and lumbering, and built the first mill in the town. Mr. Johnson sold the farm in 1868 to Mr. J. T. Drake and moved to Houlton, where he was for some years engaged in trade and is now one of the prom- inent and substantial citizens of Houlton. He held the office of County Treasurer of Aroostook for six years and was after- wards sheriff of the County for a term of six years. He is now
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president of the Farmers' National Bank of Houlton.
Another of the early settlers of this portion of the town was Noah Furbush, who came in 1843 and took the lot next south of Mr. Johnson's. He lived there some ten years and moved to Lynn, Mass., where he still resides and is engaged in the soap business.
Major Abner True came to Littleton from Lincoln about 1845 and took the lot next to the center line of the town. Here he made a clearing, built a house and opened a hotel which he kept for many years. Major True died nearly 20 years ago and is still remembered as one of the pioneer settlers of the town.
In the portion west of the County road one of the earliest settlers who remained to make a home was Mr. William Wiley, who moved from Massachusetts to New Brunswick in 1825 and in 1849 came to Littleton and bought of a Mr. Rollins a lot half a mile west of the County road and south of the centre line. Some ten acres were cleared on the lot when Mr. Wiley pur- chased it. He made a good farm here and lived upon it until his death in 1863. His son, David Wiley, now lives on the old homestead, having made additions to the farm which has now about 100 acres of cleared land. David Wiley was a good sol- dier in the old Sixth Maine Battery and is a respected citizen of Littleton.
On the South Ridge one of the earliest settlers is Mr. Peter McGlynn, who emigrated from Ireland in 1848 and in 1850 came to Littleton and took a lot in what was then the wilderness por- tion of the town, a mile and a half west of the County road. Mr. McGlynn has now a fine farm with 70 acres cleared and has a good set of farm buildings. A good road now runs by his place and he is in the midst of a pleasant and prosperous neigh- borhood with fine fertile farms, all of which he has seen hewn out of the forest since he has settled on his lot.
Among the first to settle east of the stream were Samuel Adams, Francis Watson and John Little. They came about 1840 and have now all passed away. Mr. Joseph Henderson, the earliest living resident in this portion of the town, came from Ireland and settled in Littleton in 1843, taking a lot east of the Meduxnekeag and next to the New Brunswick line. The three settlers named above were the only ones in this portion of the town when Mr. Henderson came. Their only outlet was an old lumber road which let out to the road from Woodstock to Houl- ton and over this they took their grists to Cary's mill in Houl- ton in those early years.
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This section now contains some of the finest farms in the town, occupied by substantial, independent farmers with neat and handsome buildings. Mr. Josiah Little of Portland had pre- vious to 1840 acquired possession of the Williams College Grant and of him these early settlers purchased their land. Mr. Hen- derson wrote to his friends in Ireland of the opportunity for making a home in this new country, and in 1845 his four bro- thers, William, Nathaniel, John and Thomas Henderson came and settled on lots near Joseph. Of these all but William are now dead. The others left children who now occupy the old farms and are in comfortable circumstances.
On the west bank of the Meduxnekeag is the fine farm of Mr. James McClay, who came here from New Brunswick in 1850 when there were but few settlers in his vicinity, John Wat- son, James McBride and Charles Perry came from New Bruns- wick about the same time and settled on lots near Mr. McClay and all have made handsome farms.
Among the prosperous farmers east of the Meduxnekeag, besides the Hendersons already mentioned, are Mr. John Craw- ford, whose farm is the southeastern lot in the town.
The town is well provided with roads in all sections and a general appearance of prosperity is noticed. Large quantities of farm produce are hauled from Littleton to Houlton to be shipped and the farmers are now hopeful that the building of the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad will soon give them better facilities for exporting their produce.
The two half townships originally granted to Williams Col- lege and Framingham Academy were incorporated as a town on March 18, 1856, and the new town was named Littleton, after Mr. Josiah Little of Portland, a former proprietor. It is a pros- perous and growing town with many good farms and pleasant, comfortable homes.
FORT KENT
Along the nrothern border of Maine for many miles flows the beautiful St. John, the grandest river of all this northern land. Broad and fertile intervales are along its banks and beau- tiful islands are dotted here and there throughout its course. Away from the river the land rises in broken ridges in many places and the scenery is the finest to be found in Maine. Fish River flows southward through a magnificent chain of lakes and
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becomes a noble river before it pours its volume into the St. John. At the confluence of Fish River with the St. John is the old town of Fort Kent. The situation is naturally picturesque. Lofty hills rise at a distance from the river banks while near the water the land lies in gradually receding terraces of fertile soil. The village of Fort Kent is located on the level plain along the river and extends to the higher land on the banks of Fish River. At the point where Fish River enters the St. John is the old Block House, around which clusters the early military history of the town. This old structure is still in a good state of preservation and has recently been purchased by the State, and measures will be taken to keep it from destruction as it is a valuable mon- ument of the history of Maine and should be most carefully preserved. Fort Kent has until quite recently been regarded as a remote point away on the northern frontier, separated from the rest of the State by a long distance and looked upon almost as a foreign country. Since the extension of the New Bruns- wick Railway to Edmundston, however, and the completion of the new road "through the woods" from Caribou, Fort Kent has been brought nearer to the outside world and has come to be known more as a part of the State of Maine. Passenger trains now run to Edmunston, N. B., but twenty miles below, and the extension of the Temiscouta Railroad will soon allow of railway travel to the station immediately opposite the town. By the opening of the new road by way of the "thoroughfare" between the Lakes, Fort Kent is brought within about forty miles of Caribou and the ride is an easy and very pleasant one. From Caribou village the road runs through Woodland to New Sweden and crossing that town enters the wilderness township of 16, R. 3. Soon after entering that town it crosses the Little Mada- waska River and running into 16, R. 4, skirts along the beauti- ful Madawaska Lake.
Here the citizens of Caribou have erected a handsome club house on the shore of the lake and the place is much fre- quented as a summer resort by the people of that enterprising village. After passing the lake the road runs for a long dis- tance through the forest, though there are small clearings at in- tervals for the entire distance.
The history of Firt Kent dates away back to the time of the Aroostook War with the events of which controversy it was in- timately connected. There were settlers upon the town long before that memorable conflict, as will be seen by reference to the chapter on the early Acadian settlement along the upper St.
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John. The present article will deal more particularly with the history, development and present business of the good town of Fort Kent.
The first settler upon the territory now included in the town was Mr. Joseph Nadeau, who was born some twelve miles far- ther down the river in what is now the town of Frenchville. Mr. Nadeau is wont to relate that in his boyhood came the cold year, now remembered by but a very few aged settlers, but a matter of tradition with all this people. The season opened unusually early and April was warm and sunny. Nearly all the seed was put into the ground in that month. In May a heavy frost came and killed all the crops which were just sprouting from the ground. The people re-seeded the ground and had still a prospect of a good crop, but in June a heavier frost succeed- ed which killed everything and made a crop impossible for that year. Much suffering ensued among the French settlers along the river and as the snows of the following winter came on many of them made the journey through the woods to Canada and sought refuge among the French settlers along the St. Law- rence. Mr. Nadeau related that his mother, who at the time had a nursing infant, was placed upon a sled and hauled by dogs through the woods to Canada. At the house at which she found refuge was another infant which Mrs. Nadeau nursed. This child grew to be a stalwart man and in after years became Mrs. Nadeau's second husband.
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