The Portland daily press., 1875-07-21
eThe Portland Militia Fifty Year. Ago.v

"The Portland Militia Fifty Years Ago"
To the Editor of the Press.
The correspondent of the Bangor Wing
whom you quote, makes several mistakes in
describing the old military companies of Port
land. He should have said there were four rival
companies instead of three. He omitted the
artillery. He further says, "The Portland
Rifle Corps was organized in 1872 to protect
Portland from the British fleet" A petition
was presented to and granted by the Legisla-
ture of Massachusetts,, in January, 1910, for
power to enlist company of rf1emen. The
first public parade of the company was June
II, 1911, after having expended, of the funds
of the corps, $3742 for rifles, equipments,
uniforms, camp equipage and instruments for
full band, the members of which were MEM
bers of the organization and wore the company
uniform.
The date and nature of the duty assigned to
the corps ito protect Portland from the British
fleet is explained by the following copy of an
official order from the commanding General:
''DIvIsIoN ORDERS. 18th DIVISION.
PORTLAND, Sept. IA, 1914.
Lieut.. Henry Smith, of the Portland Rifle
Company, with the men under his command,
will take ont of the Portuguese ship, San Jose
Indiana, at Union wharf, eight IL pOuad car
ronades, carriages, implements and ammunl-
ton, and transport them by water to Vaughans
bridge TO be put on board the Boxer. Lieut.
Smith will place the brig according to his best
discretion, having in view a situation that will
keep the brig afleat at low water, and COM
mand the west end of the bridge and hill
above.
By order of the Major General,
Abel M. Anterior. Aide d. {"
tho ovda Of a
riflemen but had been appointed Aide to Gen.
Alfred Richardson who was Commander-in-
Chief The corps had just obtained permission
to change their uniform while on active duty
to blue jackets and pants and round hats
which was just the thing for man-of-war's
men. There were several merchants who had
lost their ships by the enemy, and two captains
who had been taken with their ships, in the
ranks of the company. We may well imagine
that these trod the bloody deck of the British
prize with proud step. and needed no urging
to go on board.
The Bangor correspondent says "No person
ever belonged to it not lawyer or merchant
until years after left it." Here he is wrong
again. OF the sixty-six men whose names ap-
pear on the record as officers or in the ranks at
the FIRST parade, twenty-one are known to have
been mechanics, one OF whom is the venerable
Henry S. Pearson, matchmaker, now sc years
old-the Oldest working mechanic in your city,
and the only survivor of the original members
of the Company, When l was member of
the corps (from 1882 to 1866 at least one third
of the members were mechanics, and this has
been about the proportion from the time of Or
ganization, as the records show. Originally
none were admitted Tut Federalists and no
one was excluded on account of his occupation.
ga mans man for a. that.''
OF the famous Bowdoin class of 1925 which
the Bangor writer mentions, eight became
members of the Rife Corps, viz, Patrick Henry
Greenleaf, Henry W. Longfellow, George w.
Pierce, Josiah S. Little John D. Kinsman,
Stephen Longfelow Jr., Frederick Mellen and
Edward D. Preble. Messrs. Preble and Kips-
man became captains, and Stephen Longfellow
was a Lieutenant.
WINDHAM, July II. W. G.