The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1897-09-02
The Isles of Shoals.

These consist of some seven or eight
islands lying southeast of Portsmouth. n
ID. distant about nine miles. At the recent
Unitarian conference held there myself
and wife were present. Portsmouth,
where we took the steamer Viking, is one
OF the most picturesque and quaint of our
old New England cities. Fort Constitu-
ton, on the right, with it's dismantled
granite walls and small port holes, and
the navy yard at Kttery, on the left, with
the historic old Constitution at the wharf.
were reminders of the great changes that
have occurred in warlike methods Reach
ing the mouth of the river the sea proved
SO rough that the captain thought best to
put back and wait for the tide to turn.
This is very rare occurrence, but seemed
justified by the extreme pitching of the
boat and the fright Of some lady pas
sengers.
We started again at z p. NJ. and reached
/ AppledOre in an"hour This is the larg-
est OF the group and may be three toulths
OF mile long by one half in width Star
island lies one half mile to the south, and
between these are Smutty Nose and Cedar
islands. Southwest of Star is White
Island, with a light-hous while Just
west is Lunging Island, patch of rock
/ with handful Of soil and fishing hut OF
two clln9ing to it. North of Appledore
IS Duck Island, with tall signal staff
but no houses. All about these are
| craggy reefs and punches of dark rocks
with never ceasing clouds Of spray break
| ing over them. \ walk over the southern
half OF Appledore showed it to consist of
a thin coating Of poor soil over the origi-
nal rock. Here and there are great
patches of ledge. secured and scanned and
| bleached through untold centuries Three
OF four small fishing huts added pic
| turesQueness. Some coarse grass with a
few bushes and shrubs are the only forms
| OF vegetation. Perhaps the term ''few
! bushes is not correct, for the wild rose
| bush, then in full blossom, covered acres
and added much to the charm of the
place.
Near the landing place Of the steamer
is large hotel called, as we might ex-
pect, The Appledore. This with two or
three cottages connected will accommo.
date several hundred guests, Everything
aboat this hotel is first class; and the
same may be said of its neighbor, The
! Oceanic, on star Island. Smutty Nose,
so named from a long snout-like point.
has half a dozen huts. Here several years
ago a man named Wagner, rowing from
| Portsmouth 10y night in dory, killed two
women y third woman escaped and hid
in her night clothes within an excavation
at one end OF the island. Wagner was hang
ed in Maine at the same time with John
I 7. Gordon OF Thorniike, | believe. On
Star Island beside the hotel there is
quaint stone church, several huts and
houses, tiny grave yard and smal
monument to Capt. John Smith who dis
covered and named hese islands
/ ''Smith' Isles, in 1911
For many years now these islands have
been popular as a summer resort. Never.
perhaps crowded, as are tile neighboIiug
beaches at Hampton and Salisbury, they
have been chosen year after year by per-
sons who admire theil unique situation and
healthtul climate OF who are drawn thither
by their interesting history. Few persons
probably realize the interesting part
which these islands have played in our
early history They We're first seen by the
French voyager Champlain in 1908. Capt.
J Ohm Smith saw them in 1914 and gave
them his own name. Long before per
manent settlements were made on our
coast numerous fishing craft from Eng
land, France and Holland frequented
these waters. The Isles of Shoals be
| came their headquarters. The bleached
rocks We're covered with flakes, while
many huts and houses We're built. IL
March, 1854, seventeen fishing ships ar
rived in the harbOr. Plymouth, Boston
and Salem were settled, but did not equal
in population, and probably not in wealth,
| these small islands. In 1850 they con-
tanned 600 persons with meeting house
| built of brick, a court house, a seminary,
| to which young men were sent from the
mainland. and well built houses, furnish
ed as comfortably as any in New England.
| There was tavern on Smutty Nose, a
| brewery, bowling alley and several ale
houses on Appledore (then called Hog Is
land y The soil was deeper than now, and
cattle, swine and hens were abundant.
Some of these thrifty island dwellers held
| estates valued at five and six hundred
pounds. Fish were exported in large
quantities to Spain and France, together
with clapboards and pipe-staves. In re-
turn, cargoes OF wine sugar, tobacco, etc,
were discharged into the traders ware
houses at the Shoals and from thence dis
trbuted among the various settlements
from Plymouth to Acadia. AS | have
said there is nothing to indicate this at
present. l fancy that not fifty persons
live on the islands during the winter In
that season they present as gloomy and