USA > Maine > Waldo County > Belfast > History of the city of Belfast in the state of Maine v.I, 1770-1875 > Part 61
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88
The " Governor " returned to the Portland route in 1849, under the command of Captain Thomas Rogers. During a portion of the season, the "Kennebec," built in 1845, was substituted for the "Penobscot." Captain Asa M. Sanford was her master. On this boat, in August, 1849, the cholera first made its appearance in Bangor. The " Secor" ran as usual; and in November the " Ad- miral resumed her weekly trip between Portland and St. John, via Belfast. The " W. J. Pease," Captain William Flowers, ran a portion of the year.
During the winter of 1849-50, the "Secor " ran as a day boat between Frankfort and Portland. In April, the "Boston," eight hundred tons, just completed for Sanford's line, took the place of the "Penobscot." The latter boat was placed upon the route be- tween Philadelphia and Norfolk, and under the name of "Nor- folk " was lost in September, 1857. The " Admiral " made a few trips early in the season. The "Governor" ran as before, com- mencing March 23; and the "Lawrence," a small boat, ran to Ells-
1 Goold's History.
663
STEAMBOAT NAVIGATION.
worth, in connection with the "Boston," the " Secor " having been . transferred to the Kennebec River. The " S. B. Wheeler " made. a few trips to St. John, but the route was soon abandoned.
In 1851, the " Creole " made a few weekly trips between Port- land and Eastport, landing at Belfast. She was succeeded by the "S. B. Wheeler," for a short time. During the winter, the " Ocean," which belonged to the Kennebec route, made a few trips to Bos- ton. The " Secor " ran to Machias until June 25, when, having been purchased by Damariscotta parties, her route was terminated.1 The "Lawrence " then resumed the Ellsworth route, and with the "Boston " and the "Governor" continued until the close of the season. The same arrangement continued in 1852, with the addi- tion of the " Eastern State," a steamship commanded by Captain William Flowers, which ran to Boston at reduced rates, in oppo- sition to "Sanford's line," 2 as it was then first called.
This year Captain Josiah Simpson was authorized to extend his steamboat wharf one hundred and fifty feet.
With the spring of 1853 came several important changes. On the 21st of April, the " Daniel Webster," a new and elegant boat, arrived on her first trip, and ran thrice weekly to Portland. Captain Joseph Farwell, of Rockland, was her first commander ; and Edward Cushing, of Camden, clerk. She was built by the Maine Steam Navigation Company expressly for this route; and for strength, speed, and accommodations, having forty-two state- rooms and over two hundred berths, has never, to the present day, been excelled by any boat in our waters. A life-size portrait of Webster, presented by Boston friends of the late statesman, adorned her upper saloon. The "Governor," on the " People's line," also ran to Portland during a portion of the season on alternate days. On the outside route, the "Penobscot " ran at
1 During the Rebellion, the "Secor" was employed by Government as a war de- spatch boat, and was burnt off Charleston, S. C.
2 Captain Memenon Sanford, the originator of this line, died in New York, June 24, 1852, aged sixty-three. He was well known as one of the most extensive and enterpris- ing steamboat owners in the country. He was the proprietor of a line of steamers be- tween New York aud Philadelphia, and on the Penobscot route he placed the "Penob- scot," "Kennebec," "W. J. Pease," "Boston," and "T. F. Secor." The travelling public have been largely indebted to his enterprise and sagacity. For thirty years, he was a steamboat commander. Captains Thomas B. and Asa M. Sanford were his sons, as is Captain Charles B. Sanford, of Bangor. The line has been very successful, no serious accident having ever occurred. Among the pilots whose skill has contributed to this end may be mentioned the following from Belfast: Captains William Flowers, Samuel G. Flowers, W. C. Rogers, William R. Roix, Robert Otis Patterson, Ruel Stanley, Henry E. Brown, Thomas R. Sbute, and David H. Staples.
664
HISTORY OF BELFAST.
.the same time with the "Boston,"1 and a brisk competition ensued. Tickets to Boston were advertised at a dollar, and fre- quently sold for five cents, and were even given away. The " Lawrence " ran as usual to Ellsworth. With the exception of the "Governor," the same boats ran during the next two years. The new propellor " General Knox " made weekly trips to Bos- ton in 1855. In the summer, the " Secor" ran to Mount Desert, and the " Kennebec " came again on the outside.
In June, 1856, the new steamboat wharf which had been built by Captain James Miller, and which has since been purchased and enlarged by the Sanford owners, was first used for their steamers. The boats running this year were the " Webster," as before, the " Rockland," to Ellsworth, and the "Eastern City," Captain William Blake, directly to Boston.
From 1856 to 1859 inclusive, the " Sanford " and " Webster " ran during the season on the same days as in the previous year.
During the season of 1860, the " Webster " ran as usual, excepting for a few weeks in May and June, when, having been incapacitated by an accident, the "Forest City " supplied her place. The " Governor" ran direct to Boston during a portion of the summer.2 In December, the " Kennebec " succeeded the " M. Sanford."
The " Sanford " and " Webster " ran in 1861. The latter was chartered by Government in November; and the "Nelly Baker " then made semi-weekly trips to Portland.
In 1862, while the Rebellion was at its height, steamboats were in demand ; and several circumstances concurred to deprive the public of their customary means of transportation. The only boat on the Penobscot waters until August was the " Sanford." Early in that month, she ran on the Salvages off Cape Ann, in a fog, and did not resume her trips until October 20. She made her last trip on the 14th of November, when she entered the ser- vice of Government, and was lost on the 11th of December, on Carysfoot reef. During her absence, the only steam communica- tion on the Penobscot was by the tug-boat "Terror," which three times each week towed the barge "Fairy of the Wave " between Bangor and Rockland. The "Webster" returned on
1 The "Boston " grounded in Otto Sound, S. C., in May, 1864, while in government service, and was burnt to prevent her capture by the rebels.
2 Soon after, the "Governor," having been thoroughly repaired, sailed for the South, and was abandoned in a gale off Cape Hatteras.
665
STEAMBOAT NAVIGATION.
the 7th of October. While running the gauntlet of rebel batteries on the James River, she was injured, and marks of cannon-shot remained on her paddle-boxes. She was sold to Boston parties in November for forty-two thousand dollars, and left the route. Under the name of the " Saguenay," she was in 1874 running on the river St. Lawrence.
The new steamer "Harvest Moon" occupied the Portland route from March 23 until July 17, 1863, when the " Webster " returned and ran until October, being again succeeded by the former. The new steamer " Katahdin " arrived on her first trip on the 20th of May of that year.
In 1864, the only boats running were the " Katahdin," and to Portland the "Lady Lang, " a new boat commanded by Captain William R. Roix, of Belfast. The " Regulator" took the place of the latter in 1865, and the " Katahdin " ran as before.
In May, 1866, the " Regulator," Captain J. A. Blanchard, and the " Lady Lang," Captain Andrew J. Whitmore, formed a daily communication to and from Portland. In July, the stern-wheel steamer " De Witt Clinton," owned by the Eastern Packet Com- pany, made a few trips from Belfast and Castine to Portland. The " Katahdin " continued on the Sanford line.
The Portland route was supplied in 1867 by the " Milton Martin," commanded by Captain Albert Wood, formerly of the " Admiral." She was distinguished as having been the head- quarters of General Grant during the siege of Richmond. On the 21st of August, the steamer " Cambridge," Captain C. B. Sanford, arrived on her first trip, taking her place in the Sanford line in connection with the " Katahdin," under an arrangement which still continues. This boat is two hundred and fifty feet in length by thirty-six in breadth, and constructed with reference to safety and strength. She is lighted with gas, and her sleeping arrangements accommodate four hundred and fifty first-class passengers. Dur- ing this season, the "Sanford " owners purchased Miller's Wharf, which they enlarged, and added covered passenger and freight depots. In October, the steamship " William Tibbetts" com- menced weekly trips to Boston, touching at the wharf of S. S. Lewis. She was not a fortunate boat. On the 25th of March, 1868, she ran ashore below Rockland, and escaped with consider- able injury. In August following, while entering Belfast harbor, her pilot-house and foremast were shattered by lightning, and several persons stunned. A seaman was burnt by the destruc-
666
HISTORY OF BELFAST.
tion of a carboy of sulphuric acid, and died from his injuries. The " City of Richmond," commanded by Captain William E. Dennison, commenced running this season to Portland, and con- tinues.
The little steamer " White Fawn " from Rhode Island made a few trips in the bay during April. She was soon after sold to parties in Bangor. In June, a freight-boat, called the "Jersey Blue," made a few trips to Boston,
In April, 1870, the iron steamship " Alliance," eight hundred tons, Captain Thomas R. Shute, succeeded the " Tibbetts," and ran until August of the following year, making one weekly trip to and from Boston. The " Argo," a side-wheel boat, of two hun- dred and fifty tons, ran to Ellsworth during the summer of 1871, connecting with the Moosehead Lake Railroad.
The first steamboat that ever went above the east bridge was the tug " Nautilus," which towed a vessel from City Point to the outer harbor. She was piloted by Captain Fred. Pattershall. This was Aug. 10, 1871.
The steamer " Pioneer" ran to Castine and Brooksville in 1874, and continues on the route.
..
RAILROADS AND RAILROAD PROJECTS.
667
CHAPTER XL.
RAILROADS AND RAILROAD PROJECTS.
First Railroad in Maine. - Road projected from our Coast to Quebec. - Survey by Col- onel Long. - Belfast selected as the Terminus. - Charter granted. - Proposed Rail- ways to Gardiner and to Bangor. - Belfast and Waterville Railroad. - Moosehead Lake Railroad projected in 1853. - Revived in 1867. - Liberal Charter. - Municipal Aid. - Corporation organized. - First Officers. - Survey. - Contract for Construc- tion. - Celebration at Breaking Ground. - Injunction applied for and refused. - Change of the Northern Terminus. - Lease to Portland and Kennebec Railroad Com- pany rejected. - Contract with the Maine Central. - Additional Subscription by City. - First Train. - Gauge changed. - Road opened for Travel. - Depot Build- ings. - Description of Road. - Distances. - Maine Central Company declines accept- ing Lease. - Compromise effected. - Terms of Contract. - Penobscot Bay and River Railroad. - Survey of Route through Belfast. - Georges Valley Railroad Company. - Project of Road from Brooks to Bangor.
I N 1835, the first successful application of steam to locomotion in New England was made upon the Boston and Worcester Railroad.1 It was followed in our own State the next year,2 by the completion of the Bangor, Oldtown, and Milford road. These enterprises made a great impression upon the public mind, and charters for railways in all directions were soon granted. Early in 1835, the importance of a direct communication from the St. . Lawrence to the coast of Maine, which nearly two centuries and a half ago had been pointed out to his government by the sagacious Champlain, the founder of French colonization in America, began to attract attention.8 In response to a resolve of the Legislature, the United States Government detailed Colonel Stephen H. Long, an eminent engineer in the public service, to survey the most
1 The early history of railroads in New England is a history of conflict with conser- vative ignorance. When the huilding of the Old Colony road was first agitated, the opposition was decisive. It was argued at a public meeting in Quincy that such a com- munication with Boston would affect the price of oats, and break up the business of a stage proprietor who daily took some six passengers to and from the city. Dorchester appointed a committee to remonstrate against the charter, and, if their efforts were unsuc- cessful, to have the road pass only on the outskirts of the town. - Boston Advertiser.
2 The first railroad train in Maine was run over this road Nov. 6, 1836, with the "Pioneer," a ten-ton engine, imported from England.
8 Hon. John A. Poor's address at Belfast, July 4, 1867.
668
HISTORY OF BELFAST.
favorable route from Portland, or some other point on the sea- board, to Quebec. Under the same resolve, Albert Smith and P. H. Green were appointed to visit Canada, to procure the co-opera- tion of that Province in the great undertaking. Lord Aylmer, the Governor-general, entered cordially into the project, and desig- nated suitable officers to make a reconnoissance of the route of the proposed road to the line of Maine. Colonel Long's preliminary reconnoissance embraced three routes, - from Belfast, Wiscasset, and Portland. His report shows that the entire distance from Belfast to Quebec was two hundred and twenty-seven miles, being shorter by nineteen miles than from Wiscasset, and by fifty miles than from Portland. The estimated cost of a double track road from Belfast was $4,906,151, equivalent to an average cost of $21,613 per mile, being much less than to the other proposed ter- mini. The result of this report, so favorable to Belfast, was received with enthusiastic demonstrations of joy. Real estate advanced rapidly in price, public meetings were held, and the people of the town pledged their capital and energies for the accomplishment of the work. A weekly communication was arranged with Canada, for an interchange of local information and progress ; and H. O. Alden, Esq., on behalf of a citizens' committee, visited Quebec, where he addressed a large meeting at the Exchange.1 Measures for a charter were immediately undertaken ; and " An Act to estab- lish the Belfast and Quebec Railroad Corporation " 2 was passed March 9, 1836. A bill to provide for making the section from the St. Lawrence to the Province line had been already granted by the Canadian Parliament.8 By a resolve of the Maine Legislature, five thousand dollars were appropriated for a preliminary instru- mental survey, which Colonel Long commenced June 6, 1836, and completed during the following October.4 The route followed
1 Quebec Gazette.
2 The original corporators were Alfred Johnson, Jr., Daniel Lane, Hiram O. Alden, John S. Kimball, Nathaniel M. Lowney, Rnfns B. Allyn, Hugh J. Anderson, William G. Crosby, Ralph C. Johnson, Frye Hall, Salathiel Nickerson, Jr., Philip Morrill, Thomas Pickard, James White, Joseph Williamson, and Nathaniel H. Bradbury. On receipt of the news that the charter had been granted, a public supper took place at the Eagle Hotel, which was illuminated in honor of the event.
8 Copy of charter, printed in alternate pages of French and English.
4 The surveying party consisted of two brigades, headed by Lientenant Simmons, U. S. A., and Professor F. A. Barton, of Andover, Mass. Each brigade contained about seventeen young men, mostly college students, who joined the party for the purpose of seeing practical engineering. There were two commissaries, two cooks, four axe-men, two wagoners and covered baggage-wagons, and eight horses. The head-quarters here were at No. 10 Phoenix Row. - Journal.
669
RAILROADS AND RAILROAD PROJECTS.
substantially that afterwards adopted for the Moosehead Lake Railroad to Unity; thence by Skowhegan, Bingham, and the Kennebec Forks, to the Canada summit; the whole distance being one hundred and fifty-four miles.
This enterprise died in its birth, and nothing but the able report came from it. The severe commercial crisis of 1837-39 checked all progress in internal improvements. But in 1845, stimulated by the inception of the Portland and Montreal Railroad, the charter was revived, and a fruitless attempt made to re-enlist the aid of the citizens of Quebec. The Levis and Kennebec Rail- way, which is now nearly completed over the original route from opposite Quebec to the Chaudiere River in Maine, and has a large governmental subsidy, contemplates a junction with the Somer- set railroad at Solon, leaving a gap of only fifty miles to be provided for. When this is filled, two points of winter connec- tion with the ocean present themselves, - Portland and Belfast. From Quebec to Portland by this route, the distance is two hun- dred and fifty-six miles ; from Quebec to Belfast, two hundred and thirty-three miles, or only six miles longer than the route sur- veyed by Colonel Long.1
Among the railroad projects of 1835 and 1836 was one to Gardi- ner, another to Moosehead Lake,2 and a third to Frankfort and Bangor. The charter of the latter, granted March 22, 1836, gave the right to connect at Belfast with any railroad to the Kennebec River, and to extend a branch from Frankfort village to Brooks ; there to join the Quebec Railroad. A singular provision stipu- lated that, if " more than three thousand shares were subscribed for from Frankfort to Belfast, the same shall be distributed among all the subscribers to the Brooks and Bangor divisions."
The certainty of an early railroad connection between Portland and Waterville became established in 1848,8 and measures for an extension to Belfast were taken. The Legislature granted a satis- factory charter, and eight hundred dollars were subscribed for a survey, which Mr. Butterfield, an engineer from Lowell, Mass., completed during the summer. This plan failed for want of perse- verance and capital.
1 Pampblet published at Quebec, in 1869.
2 "A civil engineer has commenced surveying a railroad route to Moosehead Lake." Journal, Ang. 10, 1835.
8 The railroad from Boston to Portland was opened December, 1842; to Waterville Nov. 27, 1849 ; to Augusta, Dec. 29, 1851; and to Bangor, in 1855.
670
HISTORY OF BELFAST.
A railroad to Moosehead Lake was first seriously conceived by the Hon. Albert G. Jewett, in 1853. At a large meeting held Feb- ruary 7, the subject was thoroughly discussed, and a charter soon followed. The usual number of conventions, newspaper articles, visits to towns along the proposed route, and attempts to obtain subscriptions both at home and abroad, proved ineffectual, and for nearly a quarter of a century the matter seemed buried in obliv- ion. During the winter of 1867, the importance of securing a connection with the interior seemed to have become impressed with peculiar determination. Early in the session, Dr. N. P. Monroe, who was then representative in the Legislature, intro -. duced a bill to revive the old project of 1853, which resulted in a new charter for constructing a road over the most practicable route to Moosehead Lake, excepting the distance from Newport to Dexter. The whole distance was estimated to be eighty-one miles ; viz., thirty to Newport, fourteen from thence to Dexter, and from Dexter to Greenville, at the foot of the lake, thirty-seven miles. Between Newport and Dexter, a road was already in progress, leaving sixty-seven miles to be built by the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railway Company. The charter embraced many liberal provisions. Preferred and non-preferred stock were authorized ; the latter class to receive no dividend until a certain per centum was secured to holders of the former. Cities and towns to be benefited by the road were empowered to subscribe to the non- preferred class, to an amount not exceeding twenty per cent of their valuation, and to issue their bonds for the same. The esti- mated cost of the section to Newport was $800,000. Immediate measures for raising this sum were taken. In public meetings and in private conferences, the subject was discussed with great earnest- ness. A railroad convention on the 23d of March was largely at- tended by delegates from twenty-three towns on and near the line of the proposed road. At meetings called for the purpose, on the 6th of April, by a vote of eight hundred and sixty-five in favor, to twenty-seven against, the city authorities were authorized to subscribe for three thousand six hundred and four shares of non-preferred stock, amounting to $360,400. The result was re- ceived by a general expression of gladness. The bells were rung, and in the evening there was a bonfire in Custom-house Square, and a public gathering at Peirce's Hall. It was a matter of regret that certain persons endeavored to excite popular resent- ment against several prominent citizens who conscientiously
671
RAILROADS AND RAILROAD PROJECTS.
opposed the loan. Brooks and other towns upon the line of the road afterwards made conditional subscriptions of $70,000.
The corporation was organized July 3, 1867, by the choice of Alfred W. Johnson, Thomas Marshall, Reuben Sibley, Nahum P. Monroe, Hiram O. Alden, Wm. M. Rust, Columbia P. Carter, Wm. H. Simpson, Wm. T. Colburn, Seth L. Milliken, Axel Hay- ford, H. N. Lancaster, and Charles B. Hazeltine, as directors, who elected Alfred W. Johnson president, John H. Quimby clerk, and W. T. Colburn treasurer. Mr. Johnson declined, and Axel Hayford succeeded him as president. Measures for obtaining sub- .scriptions were adopted ; and although a rule of both corporators and directors prescribed that " no assessment whatever, except for a preliminary survey and location of said road, shall be made upon any share or shares, so as above subscribed ; nor shall any work upon said road be commenced until the full amount be secured for its completion to Newport, thereby avoiding the necessity of any mortgage or incumbrance being ever contracted by this corpora- tion," enough was soon raised to render the ultimate success of the enterprise probable. On the 20th of August, when the books were closed, the individual subscriptions amounted to $156,700, headed by $10,000 from Colonel Alfred W. Johnson.
Colonel A. W. Wildes, of Skowhegan, assisted by Messrs. Mortimer and Smith, commenced a preliminary survey of the pro- posed route August 14. The distance to Newport, by the most direct course, was found to be thirty-six miles. Reckoning iron at eighty-five dollars per ton, he estimated the whole cost at $900,843. To make up the deficiency of subscriptions, the city, by further legislative authority, voted March 29, 1868, by eight hundred and sixty-nine yeas against fifty nays, to take an additional sum of $140,000 of preferred stock. Great exertions were made for ob- taining aid from abroad. During the winter, railroad meetings took place. In January, escorted by a band and a large cavalcade of citizens, the whole composing over one hundred sleighs, parties from Pittsfield, Hartland, St. Albans, Palmyra, and other towns in the north of Maine, came to view our commercial facilities, and were entertained by a ball and dinner.
Proposals for constructing the Newport section were offered in June, and accepted by Messrs. Ellis, Willson, Hogan, & Co., of Canada, for $25,900 per mile : $21,428 thereof to be paid in cash, and $4,472 in preferred stock ; the road to be completed June 1, 1870. An assessment was ordered July 20, 1868. The whole
672
HISTORY OF BELFAST.
amount then subscribed was $911,700, comprised of individual subscriptions, $156,700 ; of contractors, $170,000; subscription of Belfast, $500,000; conditional subscriptions of towns,.$75,000.
Ground was first broken for the road Aug. 4, 1868. Cere- monies incident to the occasion took place. A national salute was fired in the morning; and at nine o'clock a procession, headed by the Excelsior Band and fire companies, escorted the officers of the corporation, the city government, the orator and chaplain of the day, and others, through the principal streets to the depot grounds, where a pavilion had been erected. After prayer by the Rev. Dr. Palfrey, a miniature wheelbarrow and spade were produced ; and Misses Carrie S. Sargent, Ada Pote, and Hattie White raised a sod, which Mayor Hayford wheeled a short dis- tance, and made the first dump, accompanied by the discharge of cannon, music from the band, and cheers of the spectators. A large plough, drawn by eight oxen, was then drawn across the flat, followed by a shovel and pick-axe brigade of laborers, who loaded and hauled away the loosened earth. Seth L. Milliken then delivered an address, succeeded by brief remarks from Henry Hudson, of Guilford, and Judge J. G. Dickerson. A dinner at the New England House, at which toasts were given and speeches made, concluded the proceedings.1
Against the protest of a large number of citizens, who believed that the amount of subscriptions was inadequate, the city authori- ties commenced issuing bonds in payment for the non-preferred stock. Apprehending litigation, in which the municipal officers might become involved, Daniel Haraden, city treasurer, resigned on the 31st of August. After six other persons had been elected and had declined, Timothy Thorndike accepted the position. In September, a bill in equity was brought by Ralph C. Johnson and twelve other "taxable inhabitants " against the city treasurer, the mayor and others praying for an injunction to restrain the payment of any money for the railroad. At the law court in December, the bill was dismissed for want of jurisdiction.2
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.