INDIANS EARLY SETTLERS ICE BUSINESS STEAMBOATS FARMING CEMETERIES
ROADS FERRY MAIL SERVICE VETERANS TOWN HALL MARIE ANTOINETTE
This section of Maine was visited at a very
early date by fishing vessels from Europe, but no real settlements began before
the 1600's. It is recorded that John Richards bought the island of
Jeremysquam in the Kennebec River in 1649 and attended a meeting of landowners
to form some sort of government at Merrymeeting Bay in the following year;
but no further mention of this is ever made and no early claim was based on this
purchase.In 1734 George Davie
purchased Wiscasset including the island of Jeremysquam from three Indians of
the
Abnaki tribe, which was later agreed to by the chief, Robinhood, after whom
a cove in Georgetown has been named. Indian Wars soon wiped out all the
settlements in this region. It was not until after 1750 that the permanent
settlers began to come in.
The
Wiscasset Proprietors, a group of mainly Boston men formed to make money on
their investments, had purchased from the granddaughter of Davie the rights to
Wiscasset and Jeremysquam, but meanwhile the
Kennebec Proprietors claimed the
same territory. This included an area 15 miles each side of the Kennebec
River granted originally to the Plymouth Colony for trading rights for beaver
and other commodities with the Indians and by which the Plymouth Colony was able
to pay its debts, even for the passage to America in the Mayflower. After
much litigation the Kennebec Proprietors kept their claims to Wiscasset and
adjoining lands and Wiscasset Proprietors were able to control Jeremysquam, the
original name of the island. This was divided into thirty-four 100 acre
lots which were sold to the settlers. At the same time squatters and
others had occupied the same lands and we find such deeds to early settlers in
the records at the Wiscasset Courthouse. Finally in 1815 the State of
Massachusetts to which we still belonged ordered each land owner to pay about
71/2 cents per acre for his property and he received a deed to that
effect. These lots were surveyed by Stephen Parsons, whose map giving lot
number, name of owner and acreage still exists. -
Bea Harriman
Here are some old Postcards:
More to come...