USA > Maine > Penobscot County > Garland > History of Garland, Maine > Part 2
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"And I, the said Thompson Joseph Skinner do in my capacity of treasurer as aforesaid and by authority and direction from and for, and in behalf of the president and trustees of Williams College aforesaid, and pursuant to the vote and order of the corporation of said College, covenant to and with the said Levi Lincoln his heirs and assigns that the said president and trustees of said Williams College are lawfully seized in fee in their corporate capacity as aforesaid of the afore granted premises, that they are free of all incumbrances, (except- ing the conditions to be performed and the reservations
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to be made as aforesaid) that the trustees of Williams College aforesaid in the capacity aforesaid have good right to sell and by me the said Thompson Joseph Skinner in my capacity of treasurer, to the said corpora- tion as aforesaid to convey the same to the said Levi Lincoln, his heirs and assigns forever in manner as aforesaid, and that the said president and trustees and their successors in said office will forever, hereafter, war- rant, secure and defend the same premises to the said Levi Lincoln and his heirs and assigns forever against the lawful claims of all persons whatsoever.
"In witness whereof, I, the said Thompson Joseph Skinner, in my official capacity of treasurer of the cor- poration of Williams College aforesaid, and for, and in behalf of the president and trustees of said college, pur- suant to their vote and order in their corporate capacity, have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of said corporation this fourth day of June, in the year of our Lord one thousand, seven hundred and ninety-eight.
"Signed, sealed and delivered in the presence of us whose names are hereunto written.
"THOMPSON JOSEPH SKINNER (L S. )"
"-Addenda-
"N. B. The word Mendon and the word Gentleman on the first page, erased and the word Esq. inserted.
"Also the words Seth Hastings in the second page erased.
"Also the words Seth Hastings in the third page erased and Levi Lincoln interlined before the execution of this deed.
"And also the words -- and Northerly by number three in the sixth range in the first page interlined before exe- cuting this deed.
Signed PARK HOLLAND.
THOMAS WOLCOTT."
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It will be seen by the above addenda that Seth Hastings dropped out as one of the proprietors and that his inter- est was transferred to Levi Lincoln.
"COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS.
"Suffolk ss. Boston, 5th of June, 1798, Personally appeared the above named Thompson Joseph Skinner, Esq., and acknowledged the foregoing deed to be his free act and deed before me, Elisha May, Justice of the Peace throughout the Commonwealth."
"Hancock ss. North District.
"Received July 14th, 1814, and recorded in Book number one, page 121, and examined by John Wilkins Register.
"A true copy as of record : Attest ISAAC HODSDON Clerk of the Judicial Courts and acting Register of deeds."
The Waldo Patent
The geographic situation of the township, now Garland, having been originally described as township number three in the fifth range of townships north of the Waldo Patent, the inquisitive reader will desire to know something of the history of that patent.
In March, 1630, John Beauchamp of London, Eng- land, and Thomas Leverett of Boston, England, obtained a grant of land from a company acting under the authority of the government of England. This grant was first known as the Muscongus Patent from the river that formed a part of its western boundary. From the
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seacoast, it extended northerly between Penobscot Bay and River on the east, and the Muscongus River on the west, to the line that constitutes the southern boundary of the present towns of Hampden, Newburg and Dixmont.
This grant or patent embraced a territory of thirty- six miles square. It conveyed nothing but the right of exclusive trade with the Indians, to promote which a trading house was built and supplied with such articles of exchange as were necessary to a successful traffic. This traffic was carried on without interruption to the mutual advantage of the whites and natives until the opening of the first Indian War in 1675, a period of forty-five years.
About the year 1720 this patent passed into the hands of a wealthy family of Boston of the name of Waldo and from that time it was known as the Waldo Patent.
In the year 1759, a very sad event occurred in an attempt to find the northern limit of this patent.
When the work of building Fort Pownal had been fairly inaugurated Governor Pownal ascended the river with a large escort. The object of this expedition seems to have been for the purpose of a conference with the Indians. He was accompanied by General Samuel Waldo, a representative of the interests of the Waldo family, who had taken great interest in the construction of the fort, believing that its presence on the river would be of great advantage to the proprietors of the patent. Arriving at the southern limit of the present town of Hampden, the expedition landed. General Waldo hav- ing withdrawn a short distance from his companions, sud- denly turned and exclaimed, "Here is my bound !" The exclamation was followed by an event intensely tragical. Scarcely had it escaped his lips when he fell and expired instantly.
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Gen. Waldo was held in high esteem for his sterling qualities of mind and heart. His sudden death produced a profound impression upon his companions. He was buried near the fort where his body remained for some years, but was ultimately removed to Boston.
It has been noted that the exterior lines of the present town of Garland were run by Ephraim Ballard and Samuel Weston in 1792. In the year 1800, Moses Hodsdon, a resident of the present town of Kenduskeag, assisted by David A. Gove, Daniel Wilkins and a Mr. Shores, surveyed the townships into lots. Isaac Wheeler, Esq., who was afterwards a prominent citizen of the town, accompanied the surveying party.
Original Designation
The town of Garland was originally described as number three in the fifth range of townships north of the Waldo Patent. As has been noted, the present towns of Hampden, Newburg and Dixmont constituted the first range north of this patent. Bradford was num- ber one, Charleston number two, Garland number three and Dexter number four in the fifth range of townships north of the Waldo Patent.
Boundaries and Natural Features
Garland is bounded north by Dover, east by Charles- ton, south by Exeter and west by Dexter. It is in touch with Sangerville on the northwest, with Atkinson on the
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northeast, with Corinth on the southeast and Corinna on the southwest.
Measuring from east to west it is very near the center of the State.
It occupies a central site between the northern and southern limits of the inhabited sections of the State.
It covers an area of thirty-six square miles. The southerly half of the town is moderately level. Its soil is well adapted to the production of crops common to central Maine. Its northerly section is traversed from east to west by an elevated range of land about three hundred feet above the level of the southern section and it was originally covered by a remarkably heavy forest growth of bass, beech, birch, maple, hemlock and spruce. In the wheat-growing period it was noted for its excellent crops of wheat. At the present time, while crops common to this section of the State are success- fully cultivated, it exceeds in its hay-producing and gra- zing adaptation. It is an excellent dairy section of the State.
Some of the higher points of the range of land traversing the northerly section of the town, are about eight hundred feet above the level of the sea, command- ing a great variety of views, from the wildly picturesque to those of surpassing beauty. At the north the tower- ing forms of Katahdin, Boarstone and Russell Mountains arrest attention, while, in restful contrast, the productive farms of the Piscataquis Valley, covered in summer with growing crops and grazing herds, present a scene of rural beauty which is seldom surpassed in central Maine.
At the south the view extends to the range of hills thirty miles away, of which the Dixmont Hills are a section, and embraces the area of a dozen towns in one of the finest agricultural regions in central Maine.
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A Notable Natural Feature
Near the eastern boundary of the town a remarkable ravine or pass, locally known as the "notch," bisects the elevated range of land which has been described. This ravine is about two miles in length, three hundred feet in depth at the deepest point and just wide enough at the bottom for the county road which passes through it. Before the advent of the railroad to this part of Maine, it was regarded as the natural outlet to the out- side markets for the inhabitants of Piscataquis County. In harmony with this view, a road was established through the ravine in 1846 by the joint action of the commissioners of Penobscot and Piscataquis Counties.
It was not built and open for travel until 1860. The course of the ravine through the hilly range is south, bearing a little to the east.
A moraine, locally known as a horseback, approaches the ravine from the north, terminating at its entrance. Resuming its form and course at the south end of the ravine, it extends through several towns.
At some points this moraine presents the appearance of a well constructed road. At other points it broadens and sometimes reaches an elevation of forty or fifty feet. Sections of it are used for the public travel and are kept in good condition at trifling cost. On each side of the hilly range near the line of the moraine there are deep basins resembling the basin of a pond.
Geologists trace the existence of the ravine, the moraine and basins to the same source.
According to their theory, an immense glacier or ice- berg, coming from the north in the glacial period of many thousand years ago, moving with irresistible force towards the present oceanic waters, made its way through the hilly range leaving the notch to inspire coming
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generations with wonder. In its progress it had scooped up enormous quantities of drift, which, becoming incor- porated with it, formed a constituent part of this huge glacier.
As it moved onward, the drift, including clay, sand, gravel, pebbles and boulders, was deposited, forming a ridge now known as a moraine. An examination of this moraine reveals the existence of all the materials included in the geologic term, drift.
Water Courses
The town of Garland divides its waters between the Penobscot and Kennebec Rivers. The Kenduskeag, which is the largest stream in the town, rises near the center of the town of Dexter from north to south, and nearly two miles west of its eastern limit. It flows into Pleasant Pond, a small sheet of water extending from West Garland into Dexter. Emerging from Pleasant Pond, it flows easterly to Garland Village, thence south- easterly through the towns of Corinth, Kenduskeag and Glenburn to Bangor, where its waters mingle with those of the Penobscot River. On its course through Garland its waters are used to propel machinery at West Garland, Garland Village and Holt's Mills. The Kenduskeag is fed by numerous streamlets flowing from the southern slope of the hilly range which traverses the town from east to west.
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Main Stream
Main Stream rises on the north side of the hilly range in Garland and enters Dexter near its northeast corner. After leaving Dexter it finds its way to the Kennebec River through Moose Pond in Harmony and the Sebasti- cook Stream.
Sources of Information Relating to the Local History of Garland
Existing records show when and by whom the exterior lines of the present town of Garland were run; also when and by whom the township was divided into lots. Mr. Williamson, in his history of Maine, tells us in a single brief sentence upon the authority of Abner Sanborn, a former prominent and intelligent citizen of the township, that the beginnings were made by Joseph Garland, Isaac Wheeler and Josiah Bartlett. Also Levi Lincoln was one of the original proprietors, hence the plantation was called Lincolntown. But of the occurrences aside from these, from 1802 to 1811, the writer has been unable to find any record. The early settlers, confronted by common hardships, inspired by common purposes and bound together by common sympathies, worked together for the common welfare. But this was the voluntary labor of the mem- bers of an unorganized community and there is no record of purposes or results. The material for the history of the nine eventful years that precede the incor- poration of the town, is, therefore, of a traditional character.
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Who the first settlers were-whence, when and why they came-where they made their beginnings-the hardships they encountered-the privations they suffered -most of these things rest largely upon human remem- brances. But the remembrances of the events of those early years were very clear in the minds of many of the men who lived to see the middle of the century that wit- nessed their early struggles in the wilderness. Events, which, in the rush of the present would be forgotten in a day if noticed at all, were full of meaning to them and never forgotten. The crowing of a cock, the curling smoke above the tree tops in new directions were to them joyful assurances of the coming of other families into the townships.
The advent of the first physician was an occasion for special rejoicing. The occasional sermon from an itinerary minister was never obliterated from the memory of those who heard it.
The coming of the blacksmith, of the carpenter, of the shoemaker, of the tanner, supplied wants of pressing importance. These, and kindred events which now seem trivial, were to them matters of vital interest. They were occasions for the exchange of congratulations among themselves, and were rehearsed to their children and grandchildren with a frequency and particularity of detail that riveted them in the minds of both narrator and listener.
Among the persons who furnished valuable information relating to events which occurred, both before and after the incorporation of the town, were Deacon John S. Haskell and his sons-Daniel M., John K., Wm. S. and Jacob W. Haskell, -Moses Gordon and his sons, Horace, Parker and Albert G. Gordon. Special acknowl- edgements are due to Moses G. Gordon for much valua- ble information relating to the earliest inhabitants of the town.
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Stories of the Pioneers
In 1846, and the years immediately following, the writer was an occasional listener to stories of pioneer life in Garland from the lips of the pioneers. These stories were of tedious journeyings to the township while yet it was a part of a wilderness of many miles in extent -sometimes in mid-winter on sleds drawn by slow mov- ing teams, when men, women and children were assailed by pitiless blasts and drifting snows-sometimes on horseback, when the rider with his scant supply of food and clothing closely packed in a leather bag, pursued his lonely way, guided by spotted lines-sometimes on foot when the maker of a future home, with his bundle dan- gling from the handle of the axe across his shoulder made slow progress towards the township of his choice; and sometimes a part of the little journey was performed on rude fishing smacks, manned by drunken sailors, when the passengers were in constant peril of being consigned to watery graves.
Graphic descriptions were given of hastily constructed cabins, where chilly snows driven by wintry blasts entered unbidden, destitute of every convenience that makes housekeeping attractive-with hand to hand contests with the stern old forest that had withstood the storms of centuries, for the possession of a cleared space whereon to make a home and secure the crops for the subsistence of the family-of painful, and often final separation from relatives and friends, to whom they were bound by ties of blood and friendship, and deprived, even, of com- munication with them except at long and uncertain inter- vals, when the nearest post-office was twenty-five miles away and could be reached only on foot or horseback and the postage on two letters would cost a healthy woman the wages of a full week-of struggles with debts
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in a region destitute of currency-of burdens of build- ing roads and bridges without the power of levying taxes-of destitution of schools and religious privileges, which in a New England community were esteemed as among the most precious legacies of New England citizenship.
It must not be inferred, however, that to the early settlers, life in the wilderness, invested as it was with privations and hardships, was devoid of enjoyment. They were robust, earnest, courageous men. The grand old forest which covered their rude cabins was a constant inspiration to noble endeavor. They had an important and well defined end to accomplish, which was nothing less than to subdue the wilderness that had covered the haunts of the moose, the wolf and the bear, and replace it with the institutions of civilization. They came to lay the foundation of a typical New England community, which, in due time, would become a constituent part of an independent state.
In their visions of the future, they saw the wilderness retiring step by step before their vigorous assaults, to give place to fields of waving grain, to pastures covered with flocks and herds, and orchards laden with fruit. They saw attractive and convenient houses in place of log-cabins and rude huts. They saw those characteristic institutions of New England, the church and the school- house, smiling from the hilltops and nestling in the val- leys. They saw, also, the New England town meeting, where the capable and ambitious would be called to places of honor and trust, and the humblest citizen would have a voice on all questions of local policy. All these things came within the range of their expectations and each step in the actual present towards the realization of the ideal future afforded satisfaction and encourage- ment.
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Disappearing
At the date of the narrations alluded to in the fore- going chapter, more than forty years had elapsed since the blows of the settler's axe were first heard in the township. Those who had come in the strength of early manhood, if living, were far advanced in life. Some had moved to other places to find homes with chil- dren or relatives. Others "weary with the march of life" were dropping from the ranks. They had wrought well and endured much, not for themselves alone, but for their descendants as well. Their sturdy blows compelled the wilderness to give place to the homes we occupy. They richly merit a warm place in the memory of those who come after them. Let not their voices come to us from the misty past in the pathetic refrain :
"Ye do not answer us! Ye do not hear! We are forgotten and, in your austere And calm indifference, ye little care Whether we come or go, or whence or where.
"What passing generations fill these halls, What passing voices echo from these walls Ye heed not! We are only as the blast, A moment heard and then forever past!" Longfellow.
No, the men to whom we owe so much must never be forgotten. The printed page shall bear to the genera- tions which follow them and us the history of their deeds.
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Beginnings
"Waking, I dream. Before my vacant eyes, In long procession, shadowy forms arise; Far through the vista of the silent years, I see a venturous band-the pioneers, Who let the sunlight through the forest gloom, Who bade the harvest wave, the garden bloom."
O. W. Holmes.
At the opening of the summer of 1801, the present town of Garland presented an area of six square miles of heavy forest growth, the continuity of which was nowhere broken except by a small natural pond lying partly in Garland and partly in Dexter, from which flows the Kenduskeag stream, and several small bogs at different points. But this condition of things was soon to be changed.
Forces had been organized which, in due time, would transfer the township to the influences of civilization.
The First Opening
It is the month of June of the summer of 1801. The reader may imagine that one of the sturdy pioneers has come to the township for the purpose of selecting a lot of land whereon he may establish a home. Our pioneer believes that he will have the first choice of lots within the limits of the township, and proposes to make a leisurely and careful examination of its different sections so that his selections may not discredit his judgment in the years to come. To facilitate the work he has in hand, he establishes his camp near the center of the township, close by the site of the present residence of James M. Stone, originally the Joseph True place.
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On a beautiful June morning, after a hastily prepared breakfast of pork and Indian bread, he starts out from camp and guided by the surveyor's line of the preceding year, which leads him over the present route of the center road running east, he travels leisurely towards the eastern limit of the township. At the end of one and a half miles he has reached the elevation upon which Joseph C. Treadwell now resides. He still fancies that he is the only human being in the township. But the illusion is suddenly dispelled by the ring of the sharp, incisive blows of an axe plied by sinewy arms. Recovering his equanimity, which had for the moment been disturbed by the discovery that he was not alone in the township, he passes eagerly towards the spot from which the sounds proceed. He reaches the point of interest in time to see one of those giants of the forest that has withstood the storms of centuries, yield to the blows of the woods- man's axe and move majestically through the air, carry- ing to the ground in the embrace of its long, strong arms, many a smaller tree standing in range, that has been "notched," with a force that seemed to shake the solid earth. Advancing a few rods, he finds himself face to face with the man the blows of whose axe attracted him to the spot. He learns that the name of this man is David A. Gove, that he is an agent of the proprietors to promote the settlement of the township, that he is a resident of New Ohio, now Corinth, that he emigrated from Nottingham, N. H., that he selected this lot while assisting in the survey of the township the preceding year for his friend, Josiah Bartlett of Nottingham, who intends to establish a home here, and that he has just commenced felling ten acres of trees for Mr. Bartlett.
This first opening was made in 1801 upon the elevation on the old Bartlett farm now covered by an orchard, a little way east of the present residence of Calvin Campbell. This lot is number three in the sixth range.
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Conflicting Claims
Some of the friends of the late Isaac Wheeler, Esq., have claimed for him the distinction of making the first opening in the township. This claim does not seem to be well founded. It is certain that his beginning was not made earlier than 1802. His friends do not claim for it an earlier date. The late Obed Bartlett of Boston, Mass., said that he had often heard his father, Josiah Bartlett, affirm that his was the first opening in the township.
Deacon John S. Haskell felled ten acres of trees in the township in 1802. He says that the sixteen or eighteen men who had beginnings in that year worked in com- panies of five or six men each upon one lot after another, or, in the parlance of the times, they changed work- that at the end of each week they repaired to the resi- dence of a Mr. Sanborn in Charleston to spend the Sabbath, and that on their way to that point they passed an opening on the old Bartlett place which they supposed was made a year earlier. There was a tradition among the old settlers of a good natured rivalry between Josiah Bartlett and Joseph Garland relating to the name that should be given to the township when incorporated. Mr. Bartlett claimed the honor of giving it his name for the reason that his opening was the first therein. Mr. Garland claimed the honor upon the ground that he had established the first family in the township. The parties to the dispute finally agreed that the one who presented the first son to the township, born within its limits, should be allowed to give his own name to the future town. An event soon after occurred in the family of Mr. Garland that decided the question in his favor, and when it was incorporated in 1811, it took the name of Garland by unanimous consent.
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Events of 1802 in the Township
The events that occurred in the township in 1802 seemed to promise its early occupation by families. In the summer of this year openings were made on nine- teen different lots with the purpose of making homes for an equal number of families. These openings were widely scattered over the township. The proprietors had unwisely determined to withhold from sale the lots on each alternate range with the expectation that when the lots available to settlers had been peopled, those on the reserved ranges would command higher prices. This policy brought numerous hardships and discomforts to the inhabitants and retarded the growth of the township. It separated families by long distances in a wilderness, destitute of roads, while every consideration of comfort and convenience, of safety and sympathy, made it very desirable to have these homes in such proximity to each other as to favor neighborly intercourse.
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