USA > Maine > Cumberland County > Prouts Neck > The story of Prouts Neck > Part 3
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Another picturesque character was Harris
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
Seavey, who brought the mail and supplies from the railroad station to the Neck in his Wild West coach. This equipage was of authentic vintage and had crossed the plains in its day, but never did it show to better advantage than when, driven at a thrilling pace over the dusty road by the skillful Harris, it drew up, with much creaking of brakes, before the Prouts Neck House.
Most of the earlier of the summer cottages were located away from the shore, the land along the cliffs in particular being regarded as much too exposed to storms to be attractive for dwell- ings. The fields that bordered the rocks were also more or less bare of bushes and trees. On the bay side and in the meadows in the central part of the Neck, where the woods afforded pro- tection from gales, many of the first cottagers built. Among these were the Merricks, Miss Agnew, Mrs. Gilbert, Charles E. Thomas, and Frank Moss. When Mr. Moss first came to Prouts Neck, in 1886, there were only five or six
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
cottages there, all of them of the simplest type. Charles Savage Homer, Sr., located near the Checkley Point and his sons Winslow and Arthur built near the paternal roof. Later the Homer cottage near the Checkley was occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Savage Homer, Jr.
The sea and the rocks, the woods, the beaches, the dunes and marshes provided a wealth of beauty for the eye in search of color. Charles E. Thomas in water colors and a few small oil paintings caught the break of a wave on the beach or the distant sweep of sea meadows. Frank Moss painted the sandy roads winding up through the dunes, the twisted pines and spruces, the sunsets over the water, all those aspects of nature that allure by refinement of color and repose of line; his pictures make a wonderful gallery of the quiet, pastoral quality of a land along the sea. Winslow Homer saw ocean and shore in their sombre, majestic moods.
To no painter has it been given to depict the unending conflict between the sea and the land
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
with greater genius than to Winslow Homer. He had been an artist-correspondent during the Civil War, and afterwards, returning from study abroad, had painted the negro shanties and cotton fields of the South, New England homes and hillsides, the forests and rivers of the North with their guides, lumbermen and trappers. In all his work was vigor and independence, abso- lute honesty of presentation, and a profound appreciation and understanding of the American atmosphere. It was, however, when he came to the coast of Maine and studied the sea in storm that he found the subject that appealed above all others to his artist's temperament.
His cottage was built close to the shore and the sea was his constant companion. In storms he would rise before dawn to study the rage of the waters. He lived the life of a hermit or of a devotee; nothing was allowed to distract his attention. Often he stayed there during the hardships of winter, sometimes alone, some- times with a single servant. In all the history
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
of art there are few such examples of absorbed devotion to work.
When he wanted a figure he found a model in some Scarborough fisherman or country woman. The scenes of his paintings "The Fox Hunt" and "Flight of Wild Geese" are the dunes of the Scarborough beaches. "The Fog Warning," "The Lookout -'All's Well,'" "Eight Bells" are filled with the drama of the seacoast. His greatest pictures, however, deal with the sea alone, the sea booming over ledges, triumphant and baffled, vanquished and victor in one.
"The Maine Coast," "Cannon Rock," "The Northeaster," "High Cliff - Coast of Maine," "Weather Beaten," these are his greatest achieve- ments. The sky, the sea, the wind-driven foam, and the mighty bulwarks of rock that defend the land from invasion are all that concern the painter in these noble canvases. They are por- trayed with power and absolute fidelity, and withal with a stern simplicity that belongs to Homer alone.
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
One of America's greatest painters - per- haps the greatest of all painters of the sea - found his truest inspiration in the waters and rocks of Prouts Neck.
Gradually the lure of the rocky coast made more and more of an appeal to cottage builders. Sites were chosen for summer homes on the opposite side of the Checkley from the bay, in the wilderness, as it were. The shore here was more exposed to storms from the ocean and bar- ren of trees or much vegetation, but there was a wide view of the open sea and in the foreground were the ledges and cliffs against which the waves tossed their white crests in fine weather or thundered in gales. On the summit above the highest of the cliffs the Hydes and the Cheneys built their cottage, and named it the Barnacle. The Putnams built their house, Driftwood, to the east of the Barnacle. These two were for some time the outposts on the cliffs, and it was for their use that a new road was constructed,
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CLUB HOUSE AND BAY View down path toward first tee and Locker House, Prouts Neck
THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
the private road that, starting at the Checkley, makes the circuit of the Neck.
There was now a post office and general store, run by Frank Seavey, situated between the Prouts Neck House and the Willows. The Checkley was the social centre; here dances and theatricals were given, and tennis tournaments played on the two courts between the hotel and the ocean. There were baseball games with teams from Grand Beach and Biddeford Pool in the Merricks' meadows. Catboats and canoes began to displace the old-time dories, and parties up the river for lunch or supper at Eaglesnest were very popular. Buckboards were in vogue for driving and haywagons for moonlight rides. Harris Seavey's stage coach was often chartered for an expedition to Mitchell's on the Spurwink River for lobster suppers. Clambakes and rock teas and excursions to Portland by bicycle offered a variety of entertainment.
Then a game new to America began to be talked about and the era of golf came in. On
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
the Merricks' property in the centre of the Neck a course of six holes was arranged. This soon proved too small, and enterprising cottagers looked for new grounds. In 1900 some sheep pastures were rented up the road near Scar- borough Station, and the Owascoag Golf Club was formed.
Dr. James Nevins Hyde was the president, and John R. Meeker - to whom Prouts Neck has always been largely indebted for the golf it has enjoyed - took charge of the course. Whatever it may have lacked in the way of velvety fairways and putting greens was made up for by picturesqueness and sporty hazards. On the second hole there was a wide and deep sand pit about a hundred yards from the tee and many a golfer labored here long with his niblick before he could cross the bridge. Other holes were checkerboards of juniper and blueberry bushes running up and down hill. One drive had to be made up a steep hillside with no view of the green and a guess as to the right direction.
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
But there were tees of hard-baked sand and small stubbly putting greens, and many a player got his first taste for the ancient and royal game on the Owascoag links. Harris Seavey drove his stage coach loaded with golfers from the Prouts Neck House to the course and such as couldn't get seats on the coach took their bicycles and wheeled along the road. A room in a near-by cottage housed the golf clubs and served as headquarters. A bell was hung by the gate to the course, and when that bell was rung the players, no matter where they were, stopped their game and hurried back to the house; that is, they did if they meant to go back by the coach, which wouldn't wait for laggards.
The Owascoag Golf Club throve; on the Neck the hotels enlarged their accommodations and more cottages were built. There was now an Episcopal church. Charles E. Thomas, with public spirit and the desire to make people happy, had left his cottage to trustees to be used as a library. In 1902 new tennis courts
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK 1
were built on land adjoining the Southgate and a boathouse on the western shore. Here water sports were held every summer. Ira C. Foss, the proprietor of the Checkley, built the water tower. A board walk was laid through the edge of the woods - popularly known as "the Merrick-go-round." Bathhouses were added to the original little primitive cluster on the bathing beach.
The Prouts Neck Association had been or- ganized in 1887, with J. Vaughn Merrick as president, Thomas B. Merrick as treasurer, and Frank Moss as secretary and beach committee. Its first object was the establishment of a beach service, the purchase of a lifeboat, the building of a boathouse, and the maintenance of a boat- man. The Association has done much for the welfare of the Neck; it has had the roads and boundaries surveyed, thoroughfares constantly improved, arranged for the installation of a telegraph service, a better water supply, the policing of the Neck, the sanitation system; in
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GARRISON COVE, PROUTS NECK
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
short, has taken charge of those thousand and one details that make for the welfare of a com- munity.
There were several fires on the Neck, one of which destroyed the Jocelyn Hotel and several houses near by. Had not the wind been blowing toward the ocean there might have been much more destruction, as there were no means at hand to check the conflagration. As a result of this fire a movement was set on foot to organize a fire patrol service, and largely through the efforts of Mr. Moss an appropriation was obtained from the town for the purchase of a truck equipped with the necessary apparatus to fight fires. This service has been constantly improved, thanks to the generous interest of many mem- bers of the Association.
The original Association has now a most valu- able and efficient aid in the Women's Auxiliary, which has taken in its charge the care of the woods and paths, the employment of experts on the protection of trees and bushes, and the rais-
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
ing of funds by public entertainments for the work of the Association.
Prouts Neck is now a game sanctuary, and to this is due the great variety of birds to be found here in the summer.
Many reasons led to the organization of the Country Club. The Owascoag golf course was too far away from the Neck for convenience; the tennis courts by the Southgate were few and difficult to keep in condition for playing; the need was felt for a clubhouse that should serve as a social centre, for afternoon tea, for dancing and for theatricals. Moreover there were rumors that the Ethan Wiggin farm, which stretched from the town road to Ferry Rock, might be ac- quired by a trolley company as a terminal, and this it was thought would greatly affect the charm of the Neck.
The Wiggin farm would make an admirable site for a country club and would ensure the preservation of a beautiful tract of land closely adjacent to the Neck. The project was taken
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" EASY ALLEY " Thirteenth Hole. Prouts Neck Golf Course
THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
up in September, 1906, and through the generous agency of P. W. Sprague and George S. Motley · the land was bought for the club. Tennis courts were built and a capacious club house. At the same time land was secured farther up the road for a nine-hole golf course. This was opposite Massacre Pond; on one of the slopes had stood the original Black Point church, and across its fields had run the primitive King's Highway of Henry Jocelyn's day. At the time of the purchase it was largely grass and wood- land; near the road stood the house of Henry Lee, a picturesque fisherman well known to all the Neck, who had served as a model in some of Winslow Homer's paintings. Work was at once begun on the golf course, which took the place of the Owascoag links.
A path was cleared through the woods from the Country Club to a point near the golf house, which made the latter easy of reach. A pergola was built between two of the tennis courts as a memorial to Mrs. George P. Putnam, who had
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
done so much by her skill in horticulture to beautify Prouts Neck. Later Mr. Sprague, the president of the club, presented a men's locker house of the most approved construction. To Mr. Sprague's interest and generosity from its inception much of the present success of the Country Club is due.
In 1923 it was decided to enlarge the golf course from nine to eighteen holes. This opens up the land back of Western Beach, Ferry Rock and the river, connects with the main club house, and provides a course that for natural beauty, with its views over marshes, woods and waters, is unrivaled on the coast.
In the work of building this new course Frank H. Anson was one of the leaders, and his sugges- tions as to improvements and the assistance he gave in many ways was of the greatest service.
The possession by the Country Club of this large tract of land, extending from the highroad to the Scarborough River, is of inestimable value to the Neck, both as a protection against possi-
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
ble undesirable neighbors and because it retains the shore of the bay and the river in all their natural charm. Another of the great beauties of the Neck, the woods with the Sanctuary, are also secured for public benefit. The Sanctuary is the property of the Prouts Neck Association by gift of Charles S. Homer, Jr. and the rest of the woods have been added to the original gift by purchase, the funds having been raised by popular subscription.
To care for these woods, for the beautiful marginal way which encircles the Neck, and for the roads, which, with the exception of the one leading from the Southgate to the Checkley, are all private roads, is one of the main interests of the Association.
The woods are called the Homer Woods, and in the Sanctuary is a tablet, placed there - to quote the inscription -"In appreciation of the generosity of Charles Savage Homer, who gave these woods to the people of Prouts Neck, and of the genius of his brother Winslow Homer, who with his brush gave Prouts Neck to the world."
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THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
Winslow Homer's studio-cottage, on the walls of which hang a number of his sketches and studies, is open on certain days, and many visitors come every summer to the home of this great painter.
Prouts Neck has had many owners, Cammock and Jocelyn and Scottow, Timothy Prout, Alexander Kirkwood and Thomas Libby; but none of them have cared more for its beauty or done more to preserve its native charm than the men and women, coming from many cities, who have made their summer homes here. Some have delved into its history. C. Emma Cheney, the wife of Bishop Charles E. Cheney, wrote a delightful little volume, Mistress Alice Jocelyn: Her Letters, in which are related the impressions and experiences of a young English girl, sup- posed to be the niece of Henry Jocelyn, who visited Black Point in 1642. Augustus F. Moul- ton has dealt with the actual history of the Neck in his writings, The Settlement of Scar- borough and Old Prouts Neck. The Homers and the Merricks, the Hydes, the Cheneys, the Put-
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الو
SCARBOROUGH
GENERAL PLAN
OF THE 18 HOLE GOLF COURSE AT DROUTS - NECK SCARBOROUGH . MAINE WAYNE . E . STILES . Ciof Course and Landscape Architecture - Town Planning Boston . Mass. August 1924
SCALE IN FELT
18.8
LENGTH OF COURSE
HOLE
DISTANCE PAR
1
405
YARDS 4
.
2
525
-
4
5
385
A
4
550
-
A
5
167
6
580
..
4
T
4
405
4
,
325
..
4
1ST NINE
3075
YARDS
35
10
200
5
11
558
12
550
..
4
145
3
14
384
..
4
15
360
A
16
305
4
17
193
3
18
475
..
2ND NINE 2970
YARDS
35
TOTAL COURSE
6045 YARDS
PAR 70
-18
DLACA
PUINT
ROAD
nn
16
17
NORTH
IVER
11
-12
C
6
Or
. .
-
.
.2
٨
٢٠
-
٢
·
THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
nams, Dr. Edward N. Whittier, Charles E. Morgan, John Sailer, General Henry C. Mer- riam, the Effingham Perots, Dr. Stanley White and Mrs. Cheyney Bartol are among the resi- dents who have done much to enrich the summer life. The Prouts Neck Association has had many devoted presidents, J. Vaughan Merrick, Charles A. Burditt, James W. Holland, J. Hartley Merrick, Frank J. Hale, Minot Simons and James F. Shaw. The protection and preserva- tion of much of the beauty of the Neck is due to Frank Moss and P. W. Sprague. David E. Williams had the happy idea of staging plays acted by the smaller children in the Sanctuary and these have given great pleasure both to audience and actors.
It is a far cry from the Black Point of Henry Jocelyn to the Prouts Neck of to-day, but the beauty of the place is the same. Here are the woods and the waters, for men to enjoy and draw strength from, and to preserve in their pristine loveliness.
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COLONIAL CHRONOLOGY
Reprinted from the map herein, made by James W. Holland
1603. Martin Pring in the Speedwell discovered this coast.
1607. The Plymouth Company sent Gilbert to settle near the mouth of the Kennebec River.
1620. The Mayflower landed at Plymouth, Mass.
1631. Stratton's Islands settled as stated in patent to Thomas Cammock, nephew to Earl of Warwick.
1633. Cammock settled on Black Point where the garrison fort was afterward placed.
1635. Henry Jocelyn settled at Ferry Rock.
1659. Black Point church built.
1663. John Libby settled.
1675. King Philip's War.
1676. Black Point garrison surrendered to the Indians under Mogg Megone, who was killed next year in an assault.
1678. End of the war, after the battle June 26, 1677 on Moore's Brook in which out of 300 whites Captain Swett and 60 men were killed.
1679. Purchase of Maine by the Massachusetts colony.
1681-1690. Scottow's fort of 100 acres sheltered the settlers when Indians attacked.
1689-1699. King William's War.
1690. Sack of Falmouth and retreat from Black Point of all the whites.
1691. New charter uniting the province of Maine to the colony of Massachusetts Bay.
1692. Execution of Reverend George Burroughs at Salem for witch- craft.
1702. Second settlement of Scarborough.
1703. Queen Anne's War. Defense by Captain Pine.
I710. Port Royal, N. S., taken from the French.
I713. Ambush and massacre of 19 settlers. Peace.
1720. Second organization of the town government. 1722. Indian War.
1725. Treaty with the Indians.
1745. King George's War. Capture of Louisburg.
1748. Peace.
I754. French and Indian War.
1758. Louisburg captured again.
1759. Quebec taken.
1763. Canada ceded to England.
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KEY TO HOLLAND MAP
Names of owners or occupants of cottages, Prouts Neck, Maine: 1924
I. Walter Perry
2. M. Libby
3. Hoxie (Mrs. Samuel Leavitt)
4. Frank V. Noyes
5. P. W. Sprague
6. Mrs. R. C. Grant
7. W. H. Kohling
8. "
9. P. W. Sprague
IO. Forest House
IOA J. Hartley Merrick
II. Marvin H. Gates
12. P. W. Sprague
13. W. W. Poole
14. F. M. Newcomb (store)
15. Mrs. Charles E. Morgan
16. Estate J. B. Merrick
17. Golf Club House
18. J. Vaughn Merrick
19. Mrs. Frank Moss
20. Thomas Library
21. Mrs. Russell Griffin
22. George F. Henderson
23. Rosamond M. White
23A George S. Motley
24. V. T. Shaw
25. Frank J. Hale
26. F. E. Parkhurst
27. Charles L. Homer
28. Miss Theodora S. Butcher
29. Dr. W. Pearce Coues 30. Lyons (Tea House)
31. Miss Catherine Stanton
32. Mrs. Charles Savage Homer
33. Winslow Homer (studio)
33A Mrs. Effingham Perot
34. Herbert G. Fairfield
35. Charles A. Burditt
36. St. James' Church
37. William E. Winchester
38. Stanley White
39. Miss Emily W. Sailer
40. George B. Berger
41. Mrs. Henry C. Merriam
42. Abner Kingman
43. Samuel S. Sewall
44. Mrs. Frank H. Anson
45. James F. Shaw
45A Mrs. Effingham Perot (res.)
46. Charles C. Hyde
47. George P. Putnam
48. Stuart W. Webb
49. James M. Farr
50. Miss Mary Caldwell
51. Mrs. C. Cheyney-Bartol 52. Ralph B. Wilson
53. Frank W. Chandler
54. John R. Meeker
55. John R. Meeker (res.)
56. John J. Walton
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ELEVENTH AND TWELFTH FAIRWAYS Prouts Neck Golf Course
THE STORY OF PROUTS NECK
57. P. W. Sprague (res.)
58. Mrs. James W. Holland
59. Freeman Hinckley
60. Miss Elizabeth Gilbert
61. Clinton W. Davis
62. William B. Goodwin
63. P. Shaw Sprague
64. David E. Williams
65. Frank S. Smithers
66. Frank S. Smithers (res.)
67. James M. Farr (res.)
68. Minot Simons
69. Maxwell Savage
70. Miss Helen Wheeler
HOTELS
(A). Checkley
(B). West Point (Behind this was site of Cammock's house)
(C). Cammock (D). Willows
(E). Southgate (On the front lawn was Timothy Prout's dairy house) (In 1675 site of doganne or magazine)
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٢
# H.Land
indian Comp
1675
Scarborough Beach
R R. Station
· L.Bowley
Grange
HALL
Oliver
C F. Walker .
· FM. Newcomb
Pub.Library #
3.H. Libby
Cong ChurchCE . Parsonage
D.Libby
# $ Libby
$ Libby.
Ji.s.Perry' ..
Clay Puts
J Perry
Cemetery (1741-1800 Black Pt. Meeting House
M. Wilds
G.Bimsch #/ T.Carter !
IR.Maserve
F. G Meserve
# N.C Harmon
GH.Pillsbury
· Jos Foss
(Dealo - Small) *51741
Black Rock
Som Libby's 0741
E Moulton
GB.Libby,
TC.Libby #
· FA.Miller (1. Fogg's 17+)
A. Perry (Capt Libby 174) .
J.Fog8 .
Grand
Beach
SCARBOROUGH A Ferry Rock
wharf F Fiske Yard+
FELarrabee 074 L Dan Foges
Sife OF Cia Crist M
A. Jocelyn 4631
Larrabee Ja
1741
Heirs
Battle Field June 16,1677 Capt 3welt and bOmen killed
otra C. Foss
N & Lana
Harmon
. H. Libbey
Western
Bosch
A.H. Sesve
Forest out &
R Moore lubB CELLbby
200-
-
B.F. Seavey
FM Newcomb
Great
Scottow's
Fort ".
Ambush
Country Club,
B
Atlantse Ha frantic House Gunnison
Kirk wood H;
Scarborough Beach
Nech Bosch
Prov
Cunner Rock
.-
J. Jocelyn's Cave
Pulpit Rock
Cannon Rock
Shooting Rech
Gesl Rocky
Spouting Roe
Shell Cove
Eastern
Core
In 1770 called Black Pi. Neck. 112 acres
Gilbert Rocks
South Cove
Indians 1675
ORIOCOAG
DUNSTAN'S RIVER
CREEK
MILL
NESCH RIVER
USM8 MIN
LIBBY'S RIVER
....
PINE POINT
JONES CALER
ROWASCOAG RIVER
W. Homer
LINKS
Town Road
SETTLEMENT
LP Hermon
· Harmon
Constitution ROCK,
Jordan
SKETCH MAP OF PROUTS NECK Maine. and Vicinity, J.W. Holland 1910
Hubbard's Rocks
Thunder Cove
H Higging
High or Kirkwood's Ch
Kettle Cov
N
Sobreen Cand
Garrison Core
Brach
Site of House of Jubby + 1663
A
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