USA > Maine > Cumberland County > Harpswell > History of Brunswick, Topsham, and Harpswell, Maine, including the ancient territory known as Pejepscot > Part 8
USA > Maine > Cumberland County > Brunswick > History of Brunswick, Topsham, and Harpswell, Maine, including the ancient territory known as Pejepscot > Part 8
USA > Maine > Sagadahoc County > Topsham > History of Brunswick, Topsham, and Harpswell, Maine, including the ancient territory known as Pejepscot > Part 8
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103. Eli Cox.
104. Noah Tobey.
105. James Wilson.
106 Mr. Carr. (Tailor.)
107. Court House.
1
CHAPTER I.
BOUNDARIES AND NOTABLE FEATURES.
THE territory now covered by the towns of Topsham, Brunswick, and Harpswell, forming an extensive portion of the old Pejepscot pur- chase, is situated between Casco and Merrymeeting Bays, and on both sides of the Androscoggin River. The railroad station at Brunswick is distant from Portland twenty-nine miles, from Bath, nine miles, from Augusta, thirty-three miles, and from Lewiston, eighteen miles. Its latitude is 43º 54' 37" N., and its longitude 69° 57' 26" W. from Greenwich.
TOPSHAM, the most northerly of the three towns, is bounded on the north by Bowdoin and Bowdoinham; on the east by Merrymeeting Bay ; on the south by Brunswick ; on the west by Brunswick and Dur- ham ; and on the northwest by Lisbon. Its area is about 22,600 acres.
BRUNSWICK is bounded on the north by Topsham, from which it is separated by the Androscoggin River ; on the cast by the New Mead- ows River, which divides it from Bath and West Bath; on the south by Casco Bay and the town of Harpswell ; on the southwest by Free- port ; and on the northwest by Durham. It has an area of about 28,200 acres.
HARPSWELL is bounded on the north by Brunswick ; on the east by the New Meadows River ; and on the south and west by Casco Bay. It consists of a peninsula called Harpswell, or Merriconeag, Neck, which extends southwest from Brunswick into Casco Bay, and of the following islands : Sebascodegan, or Great Island, Orr's, Bailey's, and Haskell's Islands, with Whaleboat Island, Birch Island, and several smaller ones. The area of the Neck is 4,570 acres, and that of Great Island 5,790 acres, according to the measurement made in 1731, by Phinchas Jones, a surveyor.1 The whole town probably contains above 12,000 acres.
Through the Pejepscot region, and separating Brunswick from Tops-
1 McKeen, in Harpswell Banner, October, 1832.
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HISTORY OF BRUNSWICK, TOPSHAM, AND IIARPSWELL.
ham. runs the ANDROSCOGGIN RIVER, noted for its numerous falls and abundant power. The other rivers are the Cathance and Muddy, in Topsham, and the New Meadows, which separates Brunswick and Harpswell from Bath, West Bath, and Phippsburg.
The CATHANCE rises in the lower part of the town of Litchfield, flows in a southeasterly direction through the town of Bowdoin, and continues on this course until it reaches about the centre of Topsham, where it takes an easterly course for a short distance, then runs nearly north by northeast until it reaches the village of Bowdoinham, when it takes a bend and flows to the southeast until it reaches Merrymeet- ing Bay. A few miles south of Bowdoinham, this river has an arm which extends northwesterly for about a mile, where it drains two small branches. Its whole length is about twenty-seven miles.
MUDDY RIVER rises in the southeastern part of Topsham, about mid- way between the old Bowdoinham road and the Foreside road, and flows in a northeasterly direction until it reaches Merrymeeting Bay. Its length is not far from four and a half miles.
NEW MEADOWS RIVER rises in the town of Bath, about half a mile from Merrymeeting Bay, and flows south into Casco Bay. It was anciently called Stevens's River.
The only pond of considerable size in this whole region is Cathance Pond, sometimes called Bradley's Pond, in Topsham. It is little more than an expansion of Cathance River, and is a few acres only in extent.
MERRYMEETING BAY is formed by the confluence of the waters of the Androscoggin, Muddy, Cathance, Abagadusset, and Kennebec Rivers. It is about six miles in length and three in breadth, at its widest part. In a deed from Sir Ferdinando Gorges to Sir Richard Edgecomb in 1637, this sheet of water was called the " Lake of New Somersett." 1 In other ancient deeds it was called " Swan Pond."2
It is doubtful if there is in New England a tract of land of the same extent, possessing a more diversified scenery than does the territory just described. Each differing phase of the landscape may be sur- passed in many other places, but the tout ensemb e is rarely equalled. There is but one place where this extended view can be obtained, and comparatively few have ever enjoyed it. On the north of the village of Topsham, and about a mile distant from the bridge, is an abrupt elevation of land called Mount Ararat. In the innocence of childhood we long supposed this to be the veritable mount whereon the ark
1 Pejepscot Papers.
2 Ibid.
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BOUNDARIES AND NOTABLE FEATURES.
rested. Upon the summit of this hill once stood a very respectable observatory, rising higher than the surrounding trees. From the top of this observatory, or from the summit of one of the tallest trees, could be seen in one direction the Cathance River, winding like a sil- ver thread through the evergreen foliage; in another direction, the bright waters of Merrymeeting Bay ; farther still gleamed the broad line of the New Meadows River and the wide expanse of Casco Bay, the latter dotted with islands and swept by the white sails of vessels of every size. At the west, about sixty miles distant, the White Hills of New Hampshire are distinctly visible on clear days, while a glass reveals the observatory and church spires at Portland.
The scenery of the three towns is widely different. Topsham, on the north or left bank of the Androscoggin, is for the most part hilly ; while Brunswick, on the opposite bank of the river, consists (with the exception of the western and extreme eastern portions) of low, sandy plains. Harpswell is made up of islands, and the long, high peninsula of Merriconeag.
In the western part of the town of Brunswick a rocky elevation is to be observed. extending quite from the Androscoggin to Casco Bay. Many citizens are familiar with the picturesque scenery at Rocky Hill, some four miles up the river road, where this ridge begins. At the deep cut, some three miles west of the village, the railroad passes through a depression of this ridge, but at Oak Hill it again rises to full height.
A few miles farther, another depression is succeeded by Brimstone Hill, in Freeport, which completes the line quite to Harraseekit Land- ing, on Casco Bay. From Oak Hill and the higher points of the par- allel ridge west of it, the sea is usually visible. From all elevated points, for miles around, appear also the spires of the villages of Brunswick and Topsham, the highest among them being the twin towers of King's Chapel. On the approach from up river, Powder- House Hill (at an earlier date known as Sunset Hill) hides much of the villages from view. A bend of the river, with a broad expansion at this point. gives all the effect of a lake, with the accessories of high, rocky banks, green hills, low, grassy shores, and sandy beaches.
At the upper railroad bridge, where the banks of the river approach each other and the compressed waters go rolling on between the firm bounds of rock, the scene begins to change. Here is the beginning of the notable BRUNSWICK FALLS, the finest water-power on the Atlan- tic coast. This magnificent fall of water, though lacking in the gran- deur which attaches to the more famous falls of some other rivers, las
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HISTORY OF BRUNSWICK,. TOPSHAM, AND HARPSWELL.
yet a beauty of its own, which should by no means be overlooked. Its numerous cascades afford not only varied and picturesque views, but furnish a motive-power probably unsurpassed in New England within so small a space. The natural bed of the fall consists of coarse graphic granite and gneiss. The rock upon the middle fall projects above the water at several points, serving as natural abutments to the several sections of the dam. Shad Island, the former site of mills, divides the lower fall about midway. There are three pitches : the first has a vertical descent of about eleven feet, the middle of four- teen feet, and the lower of about fifteen feet. The total height of the fall is about forty-one feet above high tide, which flows to the foot of the fall, causing a variation in the height of the water of about three feet. The whole horizontal distance of the descent is 1,980 feet.
LOCALITIES.
In the Androscoggin River, from Lisbon to Merrymeeting Bay, there are twelve islands, besides numerous rocks at the Brunswick Falls, which have acquired distinctive names.
BEECH ISLAND - probably so called on account of the growth of beech-trees found upon it - is the first island above the upper railroad bridge.
MERRILL'S ISLAND is a short distance above the former. It was named after John Merrill, Esquire, who purchased it in 1768.
GOOSE ROCK is the rock upon which the middle pier of the upper railroad bridge rests. It is not a bowlder, as is generally supposed, but is part of a ledge extending to the shore.1 Why the rock bears its present name is not known ; but it is quite probable that it was so called from a supposed similarity to a swimming goose. It has, how- ever, been suggested that it may have been a resort for fowlers, when after wild geese.
GOAT ISLAND is a short distance above the Factory, or second dam. The origin of its name is unknown ; but it is conjectured that one of the carly settlers pastured his goats upon it.
DEVIL'S ROCK is the name given to a large rocky island about mid- way of the second, or Factory dam. The traditional origin of the name is as follows : In the early settlement of the place, a man and his wife occupied a lone house a little way back from the river, on the Topsham side. This man was very superstitious, and probably ad- dicted to the habit of taking both frequent and deep potations. One
1 Survey by C. J. Noyes, Esq.
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BOUNDARIES AND NOTABLE FEATURES.
day during an ice freshet, as he was sitting at his window watching the ice go by, he imagined he saw Satan, in propria persona, floating down the stream on a log, and that he could hear the clanking of his chains as he climbed the rock. He informed his wife of this imaginary occurrence, and after the waters had sufficiently subsided, the pair vis- ited the rock and found the footprints left there by his supposed Satanic Majesty. These holes in the rock - one of which does bear quite a resemblance to a huge footprint - are still to be seen.
FISHING ROCK ISLAND, SALMON ISLAND, SHAD ISLAND. - All these names have been, at different periods, applied to the island at the lower falls, between the long dam and the gulf dam. Tradition gives the origin of the latter name as follows : The law formerly prohibited the catching of shad between sunset on Saturday and sunrise on Mon- day. Fish-wardens were annually chosen by some towns to see that this law was enforced. One Sunday some men went out and caught several of these fish, and hid them on this island, not daring to be seen carrying them home. Mr. Johnson Wilson and some friends started out after them in boats, pretending to be the fish-wardens, and went ashore on the island, found the fish, and, for sport, carried them away. The joke was discovered, and some complaint made against Mr. Wilson for breaking the Sabbath. Afterwards, when he built a mill, - the first one on the island, - those who had blamed him for taking the fish called his mill the " Shad Mill," and from that the island subsequently became known as Shad Island.
FRESHET ROCK is the name by which the rock between Shad Island and the Topsham shore is known. It is thus called from its being an index to the height of water in the river. It is never entirely covered by water except in freshets.
GRANNY HOLE MILL, STREAM, AND BRIDGE. - The channel which carries the water from the river above the lower falls, around the island in Topsham, was originally only a ravine; but about 1760 it was excavated so as to afford a continuous flow of water. Tradition gives the following account of the origin of its name : On one occa- sion, in midwinter, Mr. Thomas Wilson, grandfather of Mr. James Wilson, of Topsham, went over the ice to a fulling-mill near the fort in Brunswick, to obtain a web of cloth. He stayed until after dark ; and while coming home he heard a woman's voice in the direction of a mill which stood just south of where the flour mill in Topsham now stands. Going in the direction from which the sound came, he found a woman named Betty Watts, who had broken through the ice, and was clinging to the edge of it, screaming for help. Having his web of
80
HISTORY OF BRUNSWICK, TOPSHAM, AND HARPSWELL.
cloth with him, he held on to one end and threw the roll to the woman, who caught hold of it and was drawn out. In memory of this incident, the mill was called the "Granny-Hole Mill," and the name was afterwards applied to the whole ravine. The " Granny- Hole Bridge " is mentioned a number of times in the town records of Topsham.
THE GOLDEN PIPE - This was a natural drain or outlet for what is now a stagnant pond in front of Flagg's brick-yard, in Topsham. It crossed Summer Street just west of Mr. Cyrus Flagg's residence, and so kept on till it entered the Granny-Hole Stream. In times of freshet, the water from the river flowed across the sand-bed through the Golden Pipe into the Granny-Hole Stream, which afforded an opportunity for lumbermen to run logs that way and save them from being carried down river and out to sea. The benefit thus derived from this channel doubtless gave rise to its name. When Summer Street was laid out, a portion of the drain was filled up and the street raised high enough to prevent the water from crossing it except in unusually high freshets. This drain is referred to in the town records under the name given above.
GREAT ISLAND is the name given in the Topsham town records to the island formed by the Granny-Hole Stream and the main river. It has also been called Thompson's Island, because it was at one time owned by Brigadier Thompson. It is usually called simply " The Island."
MIDDLE ROCK is the name of the rock upon which one of the piers of the Androscoggin Bridge (formerly the toll-bridge) rests.
MASON'S ROCK. - There are two traditions accounting for the name of the large rock below the falls, known as Mason's Rock. One is, that a Mr. Mason was once saved from drowning by getting upon this rock. The other is that, while upon the rock, he was killed by the Indians. There are no means of determining which of the two tradi- tions is most reliable. "Samuel Mason" occupied lot number ten (within the present limits of Brunswick village) in 1717. He occu- pied it less than three years, and what became of him is now unknown.
FERRY POINT is the point of land at the Topsham end of the iron railroad bridge. It is so called from the fact that, previous to the erection of the toll-bridge, a ferry was maintained between this point and the " Landing " in Brunswick.
TERRAMUGUS COVE is the name applied in honor of an Indian chief, Terramugus, to the cove between Ferry Point and the Granny-Hole Mill. It is probable, however, that the river formerly covered the
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BOUNDARIES AND NOTABLE FEATURES.
low land where the town landing used to be, back of the residence of Mr. Samuel Jameson, and that the name was applied to that particu- lar part of the cove.
OLD SUNDAY. - About midway between Mason's Rock and Ferry Point, but nearer the Topsham shore. is a large stone, now seldom exposed to view, which was placed there by Brigadier Thompson to form the anchorage for a boom. Tradition accounts for its name from its being placed there by the Brigadier on Sunday.
Cow ISLAND is the name applied to the island just below the pres- ent iron railroad bridge. The name was given early in the last cen- tury, and was doubtless suggested by the fact of its affording good and safe pasturage for cows. It was owned, prior to 1797, by John Sandford.1
THE NARROWS, where the river is compressed into narrow limits by two high rocky points, are about two miles below the Falls. The point on the Brunswick side was formerly occupied by Humphrey's steam-mill and ship-yard.
BAXTER'S ISLAND, FREYER'S OR FRIAR'S ISLAND, MUSTARD'S ISLAND. -These are different names for the island near the Topsham end of the Bay Bridge. The island was deeded in 1717 to the Reverend Joseph Baxter of Medfield, Mass., who came here as a missionary to the Indians. The name " Freyer's Island" is laid down on some of the maps of a recent date, but the origin of the name is unknown. It is called " Mustard's Island " from its present owner, Mr. John Mus- tard, of Topsham.
HUNTER'S ISLAND is the large island at the foot of the Narrows. In Stevens's deed from the Indians, in 1675, it is called "Stave Island." It may have borne other names, but we have not been able to ascertain them.
PLEASANT POINT lies between the Androscoggin and Muddy Rivers, extending into Merrymeeting Bay. Although this name is appropri- ate, and has the prestige of antiquity, yet it would appear still more appropriate to perpetuate the name of its original owner, the first set- tler in Topsham, by calling it Gyles's Point.
CATHANCE POINT is the point of land in Bowdoinham formed by the bend of the Cathance River near its outlet into Merrymeeting Bay.
FULTON'S POINT and PATTEN'S POINT are names which have been successively applied to a point on the eastern side of Cathance Point, by former residents of the vicinity, - James Fulton having been one
1 Deed to Brigadier Thompson.
G
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HISTORY OF BRUNSWICK, TOPSHAM, AND HARPSWELL.
of its earliest occupants, and John Patten, its owner at a later period.
CENTER POINT, formerly called Moffitt's, and still earlier Somerset Point, is the point of land between the Abagadusset and Cathance Rivers. In a deed from Sir Ferdinando Gorges to Sir Richard Edge- comb, dated 1637, this point was called " Somerset Point."1 The name has often been spelled "Samoset," and the explanation has been given that it was named in honor of the Indian chief of that name ; but it is evident that the latter name is a corruption of the former. In the last century, the point was occupied by a family named " Mof- fitt," for whom it was named; and in like manner its present name was given because of its occupation for many years by a family named Center. It is in the town of Bowdoinham.
ABAGADUSSET POINT is the striking name which attaches to the last projection which engages our attention on the north side of the bay. It lies between the Kennebec and Abagadusset Rivers, and is a part of the town of Bowdoinham. The meaning and derivation of the name have already been given in Chapter I of Part First.
OAK HILL is about four miles north of Topsham village. The origin of the name is obvious.
In Brunswick the following localities are more or less familiar : -
FISH-HOUSE HILL, upon which stands the residence of Miss Nar- cissa Stone, received its name from the fact that there was once a fish- house upon it, where salmon and sturgeon were cured and packed for shipment.
EATON BROOK - the first brook west of the village - bears this name from Daniel Eaton, who lived near it in the last century.
HARWOOD'S BROOK was named for George Harwood, one of the early settlers, who built a house and attempted to clear a farm on what was afterward the " Captain Adams Place," which included the very noticeable hill, with the large house at the top, on the west bank of the Androscoggin, about a mile above the village.
SANDY GULLY -as its name indicates-is a sandy ravine on the River road, where it crosses Harwood's Brook.
ROCKY HILL is about four miles from the village on the road leading up the river. It is the beginning of the broad, rocky ridge to which reference has been made. The scenery of the locality is the boldest of any in the three towns.
THE PINNACLE is the name of a hill, probably the highest in the three towns, situated on the north side of the Durham road, at the
1 Pejepscot Papers.
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BOUNDARIES AND NOTABLE FEATURES.
extreme western border of Brunswick. It is well covered with trees, except a space on the east and south, the latter side being marked by a precipitous ledge of light-colored granite.
BALD ROCK is a massive projection of ledge on a western slope of the ridge of which Oak Hill is a spur on the eastern side, nearly opposite.
OAK HILL is a spur of the granitic ridge which extends from the Androscoggin River to Casco Bay. It is on the Portland road, about four miles west of the village.
GROWSTOWN, a neighborhood about two miles west of the colleges, · derives its name from the numerous families named Grows who for- merly resided in the vicinity.
BUNGANUCK LANDING is the western side of Maquoit Bay, near Freeport. The origin of the name is given elsewhere in the volume.
WHARTON'S POINT, at Maquoit, was named for Thomas Wharton, who owned the lot in 1717. It was afterwards sold to William Wood- side.
MAIR POINT, MARE POINT, MERE POINT. - These are the varied spellings of the name applied from a very early date to the peninsula which extends into Casco Bay and Maquoit Bay. The derivation, and consequently the spelling, of the name has been the subject of some discussion, and there still exists a difference of opinion concerning it. In the earliest deeds and other documents which we have seen, the name is spelled Mair ; and for this reason we have so spelled the name whenever reference is made to it. We incline to the opinion that some time previous to the Pejepscot purchase, a man named Marr (or Mare) lived on the point, and that "Mair" is a corruption. Williamson 1 states that John Mare was an early settler on Mare Point. Some are of the opinion that at a very early period the point was occupied by French settlers, who gave it the name of Mer Point, which in English would be Sea Point. There is no proof, however, that the locality was ever occupied by the French.
NEW WHARF is the name of a wharf at Middle Bay, built in 1837. It was then spoken of as " The New Wharf," and never having received any other name, it is still called New Wharf, though now old and dilapidated.
PENNELLVILLE is a neighborhood near Middle Bay, which includes a number of families of the name of Pennell. Much ship-building has been done in this vicinity.
MAIR BROOK rises a short distance west of the Twelve-Rod road,
1 History of Maine, 1, p. 564, note.
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IIISTORY OF BRUNSWICK, TOPSHAM, AND HARPSWELL.
and crossing that road about half a mile below the colleges, thence runs in an easterly direction and empties into Harpswell Harbor, between Prince's Point and Harpswell Neck. The origin of the name is unknown, but it is doubtless the same as that of Mair Point.
THOMPSON'S BROOK, in the eastern part of the town, was named after Cornelius Thompson, an early settler, through whose lot the brook ran.
COOK'S CORNER, two miles east of Brunswick village, on the road to Bath, was named for Stephen Cook, who resided there in 1764 and probably earlier.
PRINCE'S POINT extends into Harpswell Harbor, between the Neck and Great Island. It received this appellation after a family named Prince, who have lived on the point many years.
HAM'S HILL, near New Meadows River, on the upper road to Bath, was named for Tobias Ham, who settled upon it previous to 1742.
BULL ROCK is a rock in New Meadows River, upon which rests one of the piers of the bridge below the railroad.
The following are localities in Harpswell : -
HARPSWELL NECK is what was formerly and is now, often, called MERRICONEAG.
The " GREAT ISLAND " is the English and SEBASCODEGAN the Indian name for the largest of the islands included in the township of Harps- well. Richard Wharton, in 1683, speaks of it as " Sebacoa, alius Chebascoa diggin." 1
ORR'S ISLAND is the name now applied to what, in 1758, was known as LITTLE SEBASCODEGAN.2 It received its later name from one of its first English occupants, Joseph Orr, who owned nearly the whole island. Orr's Island and Bailey's Island were, also, prior to 1683, called " The Twins." 3
BAILEY'S ISLAND, situated south of the Neck, is the present name of what was called WILL'S ISLAND in the Act of Incorporation of Harpswell. Captain James Sinnett, now upwards of eighty years of age, who has resided upon the island all his life, gives the following account of the origin of these names. The first settler upon the island was a man named Black, who, with his wife and a boy, moved there from Kittery. They were of mixed broed, having in their veins the blood of the Anglo-Saxon, Indian, and African races. Black and his wife died and were the first persons ever buried upon the island. Their son, Will Black, lived to old age and became generally known
1 Pejepscot Papers.
2 See Act of Incorporation of Harpswell. 8 Ibid.
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BOUNDARIES AND NOTABLE FEATURES.
by the name of Uncle Will. The island consequently took its first name from him. Afterwards, Deacon Timothy Bailey, of Hanover, Mass., purchased the island and moved there with his family. The Blacks were squatters, and, having no legal claim to the land, they moved to Orr's Island, and settled on the lot now owned by Mr. Ralph Johnson. Thereafter Will's Island was called Bailey's Island.
NORTH YARMOUTH ISLAND is situated south of, and in close prox- imity to Sebascodegan, or Great Island. The explanation of its bearing the name of a distant town is probably as follows : -
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