Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1890-05-05
Romantic Incidents. Eminent Hen Of
Two Nations Sir Archibald
Campbell Leads tho
DanCN.
Dance.
Bv Hon. Edward wigsin.


names Of some who afterwards gained
world wide fame as leaders of mighty armies
in defence of their country's flag, and Of
others who won an unenviAble not0riety by
tn ir attempts to trail that glorious banner
IN the dust. So much is connected with its
early history that our sketch must of neces
sity be quite cursory, as de allied story of
ali the interesting events connected with its
settlement and growt til would be impossible
in the space allotted to US. In the years
Immediately following the Revolutionary
War the people of New England began to
pay much attention to the matter of estab-
fishing Schools and institutions of learning
and in this respect, as in nearly all others,
the good old Sta'e of Massachusetts, took
the lead The people of New Salem, itself
q pioneer settlement away towards the
| Connecticut river, sought aid from the
State in establishing an Academy in their
town and the Legislature on June 23d.
| 1893, passed resolve granting them lone
half of township of land of sig miles
square. to be laid out and assigned by the
Committee for the sale of Eastern Ian 10 in
some of the unappropriated lands in the
district of Maine belonging to this Com
monwealth, excepting all lands within six
miles fthe Penobscot river" On the 18th
of June, 1901, an additional resolve wa.
passed authorizing agents appointed by the
Legislature to convey the land The half
township was surveyed in 1901 by Park
Holland, Esq, and on Feb. 2lst, 1905, was
conveyed by John Bead and Peleg Coffin,
the agents named in the resolve, to the
trustees of New Salem Academy. This
tract is the southern half Of the present
fourishinR town of Houlton.
Previous to the survey. and soon after the
passage of the original resolution in 1893,
4 company of thirteen men Of the town of
New Salem, purchased the land of the
Trustees of the Academy and commenced
to take measures to have 1t lotted and
opened for settlement. The deed to these
thirteen proprietors was not made however
until June LIST, 1910. On June lst 1901. A..
these proprietors voted that Joseph HOultOn
be agent to survey the half township. and
he was directed to lay it out in square lo,s
of 100 acres each, and to divide it by lots
and half lots into twenty equal shares &C
cOrdrg to the quality of the land at his dis
erection, reserving two lots for public uses
Mr.. Houlton attended to this work, taking
Mr.. Holland with him as a survey or, and
on November 18th. 1901 the proprietor
voted to accept the division and to draw for
their respective shares, 1.-TWO lots and three e
half lots to each share" Seven of the
original proprietors owned two shares each
and the remaining siK one share each and
the drawing was made accordingly. At the
same meeting three of the number SOLD
'heir shares to the others, reducing the
number to ten, and the men to whom fell
the task Of opening the Grant to settlement
and ~bo may be called the founders of the
town of Houlton. were these: Aaron Put.
nam. Varney Pearce, Joseph Houlton,
John Putnam, Joshua Putnam, Rufus
Cowles, John Chamberlain, William Bow
man, Consider Hastings and Thomas Pow
ers. All of these prOprietors were citizens
of New Salem except Rufus Cowles ply
sician of Amherst, VIM. bowman Of Had
ley and Thomas Powers of Greenwich.
OF these ten only three became actual SET
tiers upon the Grant, viz Joseph Houlton,
who may be called the father Of the town
and for whom it was afterwards named
Aaron Pu nam and Joshua Putnam. The
other seven sold their lots to settlers at diff
ferebt times some of them holding theiI
proprietorship a. late as 1925. The act ol
the Legislature passed June 18th, 1901 re
quired that six families should be settled
on the lands within Ave years or the grant
should be void, but at the time that the
conveyance of the half toNnship by tht
State agents to the Trustees of the Academy
was made on February 2lst, 1905, no set
tier had as yet entered upon his lot. Onl,
one more year remained and the outlO0l
was not promising.
The region in which settlers were asked
to make home was then practically far
ther from the confines of civilization thar
it is possible now to get any where in oul
country. No settlement of any conse
quence bad then been made anywhere il
the district of Maine above the tide waters
with the exception of the exiled Acadian
in the Madawaska District upon tn,
upper St. John. All else was primeva
forest, a wilderness. trsckless and unex
plored save at a few distant points. tt
add to the difficulties of the situation tn,
lands are located upon a disputed border il
a section to which the British government
then laid claim and it was q matter o
uncertainty whether the settlers upon then
, would find themselves finally under tn
stars and stripes Of the young Republic o
, under the sheitering folds Of the banner o
I England. Sturdy pioneers have eve
been found when q ne~ country wa
to be opened to civilization, so in this cas-
six families of Massachusetts stock, som
of them directly descended from those WIN
landed in the Mayfower made know thei
intention Of emigra,ing to the far OF
Academy lands and making homes in tn
wilderness of the northeast. Those wer
the families Of Mrs. Ly dia Trask Putnur
whose father was soldier undr Wolfe
: and whose oldest con fell in the move
, ments following the battle Of Lexington
I Joseph Houlton. grandson Of . Revolu
D rionsry soldier, Varney Pearce John an
{ Joshua Putnam, also of the lineage O
e Revolutionary heroes and DIR. Samue
e Rice. Those families we're all relate
(. by ties Of blood or marriage. The ffst
= make an actual settlement upon the TOW
vac Aaron Putnam son Of Lydia Trask Pu
man who came with his mother and famil
in the summer Of 1905 The others followe
in due time though not ell within the q,
;. years allowed 10 the Grant. Mr.. Puima
:. and his family embarked at Boston On
sailed to st. John N. B., thence up Il
y river to Fredericton. Here they took
boat and worked their ~ay with mut
difficulty to Woodstock, where the weak,
ones Of the party remained and the ms
vent on through the woods and commenc,
: Telling trees and taking possession Of ne
!" lots. Mr.. Aaron Putnam appears however
u have remained at Woodstock o. sscrekee
er until 1909 When he Joined the Colony
Houlton. Mr.. Joseph Houiton and fsmi
came in the spring of 1907. Mr. II ,ult,
was the acknowledged leader Of th
pioneer band and was . man of much e
- ergy and ability being also man Of pro
eFty and influence in Massachusetts.
the years Of struggle and privatlon o
hsrdsh'p which followed 10 the ne
:, settlement Mr.. Houlton proved . tower
y strength to the settlers and his ever rea,
u counsel and assistance was Of much vslu
He lived to see the colony placed on
d. prosperous footing and the settlement
10 had helped to found in the wilderness
y ccrporssed into town in the good Sts
of Maine On . beautiful Sabbath aft,
n noon, August 18th 1882 - be sat in
N chair BY the window watching the soldi<
e, Of the garrison march by, be quietly .
r. peacefully passed away at the age
70 seventy-six. He vas accorded . milita