Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-05-31

i
Ilsey, acting as agent for the United
States, and to him they gave a war
| ranty deed. Isaac Ilsey was then the
collector of customs and government
agent in Portland. Upon Bakers Is
| land the United States erected light
house. Joseph Gilley, who was get
ting to be an old man then made no
objection to the erection of the light
house upon a part of this island, in
fact he, like other fishermen on the
coast, welcomed it. No attempt was
made to dispute the title of the land
with nor was any effort made to drive
him away from the island. When the
lighthouse was completed William Gill
| lev. his son, was the first light keep
er and continued in that capacity for
some years, until. in the turbulent
| politics of the day. another political
party came into power and William
| lost his job.
The controversy among the residents
on the island and the new keeper OF the
| lighthouse began about this time. the
lightkeeper claiming to be the autocrat
of the island and its king, which the Is
land people disputed. But whatever may
have been their petty squabbles among
| themselves, the ripples of the approach
| ing storm did not disturb the harmony
of the Washington government for many
years.
| In 1854, however, the matter was forced
| to a head Whether this was due to the
| squabbling of the island people and their
| trouble with the would-be autocrat OF
the lighthouse, or whether it was due to
an attempt which the descendants of the
Barring Brothers of London were making
| to force the government to prove title to
| their right to sell and deed Bakers is
| land, thus confirming their rights upon
| other islands which they claimed to own
does not appear. But in this year 1854
certain actions in the nature of writs OF
| entry were brought by the United States
against Alfred Gilley, Joseph Gilley and
Elisha Gilley in which the United States
sought to recover possession of the whole
of Bakers island.
The inhabitants Of Bakers island at
| that time were poor fishermen as they
are today, but much more was involved
| in the trial of this case than appeared
on the surface. The claims of the Bar
ings to other lands and island which had
been settled for 20 years or more would
have been declared valid had the govern
ment forcibly seized possession of Bakers
island 1t meant the loss of the homes
of many people and the paying of tribute
to the Barring Brothers or their descend
ants, some of whom were members Of
the British nobility. The property OF
hundreds of people was thus endangered
and they recognized their danger and
employed William Pitt Fessenden, after
Iy,,st tnfn
trea sury and a senator from Maine, and
his partner. DeBlois. to defend them in
court. George F. Shepley was then Unit
ed States district attorney and was
pushed on by the federal authorities who
| were in turn influenced by the Barring
Brothers interests to force the issue and
| este blish title to this property.
Shepley was evidently not anxious to
dispossess the poor fishermen of Bakers
island. and a sort of compromise was
reached. The Bakers islanders said they
didn't have any quarrel with the United
States. nor wise to deprive the govern
ment of its title to the land the light
house stood upon, nor the right of way to
the lighthouse, nor the right to a landing
place, nor the right to enjoy the pastur-
age upon the island. So a writ of pos
session to the property the lighthouse
stood upon was issued and the rest of the
action was discontinued, and as a part
consideration an agreement was darwin
UT which was subscribed to by both par
ties, but which it is claimed had no real
legal effect upon the point at Issue, which
was the ownership of the island. The
agreement gave to the inhabitants of the
island at that time not legal possession
of the island exclusive Of the govern
ment's claim. but set forth their plea as
to the settlement and ownership, and
there the matter ended for the time be-
ing.
For SO years the agreement than made
was lived up to by both parties the Off
Gals of the government and the inhab-
tarts of the island The lightkeeper's
cows ran at will over the island. he had a
right to landing and to road leading
| to the lighthouse from that landing and
there wasn't much trouble. But about
two years ago, for some reason, this suit
was again brought forward.
1t was reported in dispatches sent
| out from Bangor at the time that Lord
Cromer's solicitors in England had
been making inquiry as to the title of
the land. AS the possessions of the rich
Mr. Bingham are said to have included,
Mt Desert and other famous resorts
| the far-reaching effect of any action
which would give validity to the an
cient Bingham title is apparent. 1t
does not appear in the record. however,
that the claims OF the people in Eng
| land had anything to do with the
bringing of the suit which has just
been decided, and in which the light
house board was the moving party. 1t
may have been solely the result of
troubles between the lightkeeper at
Bakers island and his neighbors. Any
way the inhabitants of Cranberry is
land and of Bakers island, all of them
descendants Of the original Gilley, be-
ing William +. Stanley, Albert +.
Stanley. Gerald Stanley. Charles A.
Gilley, Joseph Gilley, Samuel B. Gilley.
Phoebe J. Stanley. Carrie Stanley.
Leonnc n. Gilley, Hattie f. Gilley,
Alice G. Gilley and Catherine NJ. Gil
ley
These poor people were sadly put to
| n tn fOht for tho pOSSaSeiOn Of their