Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1888-09-20
AUGUSTA IN ~YE oLDEN TIME
fhe Ship Building Boom that Sunk
Many of Its Boomers-Persoral
"reminiscences of an East Side Jour
mai Reader.

Mr. EDITOR In reading your Facts an
Personal "Reminiscences Of Early Kennebec
hich appeared in Fridays issue of tn
Daily Journal, recalls to the mind OF III
writer of this sketch the many radiea
changes that have been going on in tn
city and on the kennebee, in the past fit
years. Mr. Reeds reference to the -'Eas
side channel and its gradual filling up 5
that to-day you can hardly go in and on
with a skif seems 10 suggest the inquiry
the cause?
The answer is easy of solution.
About forty one or two years ago Mr.. Sam
uel Homans-l0ng since numbered with tn
silent majority-built the first steam say
mill On the same spot where Sturgis, Lam
bard & Co. mill now stands, and with il wa
bull, wharf, and boom to hold the logs 70
the mills supply.
The wharf and boom extended out and a
cross the channel, so that when the boom wa
filed with logs, it partially damned the chan
ael and the edgings, sawdust, old sunkel
logs, &c, coming from above, found lodg
ment in the channel at this point and tn,
filling has been gradual all these years, IN
til today, hardly vestige of its former con
dition remains. Fortunately, it has beer
no great damage 10 any one, as the larg'
business done at this place, in former year
as shipping point, of the product of tn
Farm and the Forest, has sought other chan
nels to reach the markets and left no US
for the wharyes or the channel that one,
played so important part in the eommerc,
and business of the city.
Mr.. Reed, in the article referred to is re
ported as saying, why, | remember whel
a large bark was built and launched in from
of the present residence of Mr.. Lambard
in an abundant depth of water" Yet tn
writer remembers quite number of larg'
barks, that were built at this point-Man,
briggs and schooners, and several ships also
have been built in the same spot mentioneo
by Mr.. Reed. About the year 1915, a
good sized ship for those times, was built a
this place and launched without trouble. /
think her name was "Sibyl Lambard." She
was very fine ship. The same year anoth-
er ship was built on the west side of the
Office. Her name was ar. NJ Mills" Thu,
was before the beginning of the decline of
our merchant marine. These were years
when ship-building in Maine was blooming"
Everybody wanted to build ship, or to own
an interest in one that was to be built. Many
men who knew nothing about navigation.
and who could not tell ship
from ferry boat,were wild to invest some
thing in shipping. Many instances, when d
number of men would form company to
build ship-eaeh agreeing to take certain
interest until the whole was taken-othei
men not in the company would get excited
and offer and pay very large bonus to some
member of the company for his chance. A.
a result of this excitement and speculation
ships multiplied beyond any demand for
their use. Wages were very high, carpen
tiers were paid So to IS day and every
thing else that entered into the construction
of ship was correspondingly nigh, making
the cost of ship much too great and til,
large number built more than was needed
created a large surplus of shipping. Many
failures followed. Ship-building in Main.
begun to decline and it has continued to de
cline all the years since, until today it has
nearly reached low water mark.
These matters suggest themselves in read
ing Mr.. Reeds "reminiscences which will form
the basis of another sketch in the near flu
ture. EAST SIDE.