The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1912-10-10

rich clusters from the denudet
branches of ash and elm at The
mouth of the Wesserrunsett.
The beauty of the trees along the
shore excited the admiration of the
travellers, who mentioned by name
many which grow here today. The
red oak, the white birch, and the Nor
way pine were then as now features
of the river bank, and specimens OF
each of them of gigantic size must
have been common. Yellow birch
rock maple and beech mixed with
spruce and fir and hemlock to form
the hillside covers; cedar and hack
matack fiourished in the boys, and elm
and butternut upon the alluvial levels.
But the sandy plains which bear away
to the north and south beyond the
hills that border the valley were the
natural ground of the white pine
which monopolized the country for
mile on mile. One of our citizens
remembers seeing a pine log hauled
into the village which measured five
feet in diameter, and glance at the
dado boards of some of the older
of lumber available from the vicinity
when they were built.
Through these primeyal pine for
ests ranged gigantic moose with huge
| branching antlers. One of the ira
~Velers was informed by the settlers
that moose had recently largely in
creased, and had entirely driven away
the deer that used to be abundant in
the Kennebec valley, and made them
selves masters of the forest. Bears
prowled about the settlers cabins,
and beavers plyed their trade in the
streams. In the river, salmon in
great quantity came every season
climbing up the rapids and waterfalls.
The earliest settlement of this
town had been made only three years
before, three miles down the river,
where Joseph Weston and Peter Hey
wood had cleared land, built their log
cabins and brought their families in
1772. There were at this time some
half a dozen families on the two sides
of the river, and the clearings made
by them, together with the two large
islands in the river between, which
had been previously cleared by the
Indians, made the only breaks in the
continuous line of forest. The Wes-
ton and Haywood clearings were on
the western bank, and their log cab
ms stood near together beside the
trail coming from Ticonic Falls, 1t
was then supposed that the village
would grow at the place of this set
! tlement, which was at first called
Heywoodstown or Howardstown, but
had even then come to be known as
Canaan under which name the whole
region was later Incorporated
= Between the settlement at old Ca
naan, where many of the army camp
ed for the night, and Skowhegan Falls
lay swift water and rocks and shoals
up to the Great Eddy where with
triple whirlpool the river makes its
sharp turn; then came dark rushing
water through the narrow deep de-
file, then even more dangerous by rea-
son of lodges in the middle which
have since been blasted out. These
lodges at the entrance of the gorge
going up formed what was known by
lumbermen as the barndoor. HaV-
ing passed up through the gorge the
boatmen would meet the headlone
current, fuller and perhaps stronger
before the dams We're built, sweeping
down from the double WATERFALL be-
tween whose white lines of foam pro
jected the black cliffs of the Island
The island without name which
forms the heart of our village is
shaped like an egg lying southeast
land northwest, with the point OF the
egg northwest The northern hall
of the island is solid rock, with the
lodges running northeast and south
west To the northwest up the riVel
the rocks are low and jagged; tC
north and northeast precipitous cliffs
descend to the river bed, while TO the
south alluvial slopes drop gently
down into the south channel
Northeast looking down the river
there is a slight embrasure between
the cliffs, with a small beach OF brok-
en- stone. This formed of old the
landing place for Indians coming VI
the river in their canoes. Difficult
of access between the rushing waters
of the two falls, with the ledge risine
twenty-five or thirty feet above it, III
which the boats and their contents
must be lifted and pulled. it formed
the only approach to the island carry
which was necessary part OF the VI
river voyage. The old Indian trail
which was followed by Arnold's men
came UP just behind where the found
ry stands, and along its north side
passing diagonaily across the Higl
School lot and that Of the Congrega
tional church. These two lots are
on the highest land OF the Island, the
highest point OF which was originally
the ledge under the southeast corner
of the old Jack Weston house. The
avenue has been cut down, but the
lots to the west remain at the origin
al elevation Further west there
was a high ledge running west IL
front of and under the old lighthouse
The highest part of this, which was
directly in front of where the dry
house stands, was blasted away anC
used for the construction of the build
ing, in which the interesting and vari-
colored slate rock of the island ant
of the river channel as well may be
observed. This ledge dropped abrupt
ly down into a bog-hole at the south
and still further south was another
ledge which dropped into another bog
hole. The trail followed the higf
land, keeping south of the big. ledge
and steering between the bog-holt
and the more southern ledge, ant
came down to the back channel by
a gentle slope between the lodges
near where the later roadway went
down which is now covered by pile