The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1916-11-02
EARLY HORSE NOTES
Prominent COrnyille Families of Days
Gone BY

The following letter from Edwin A.
Frost of Chicago is one of great in
terest. especially to the older resi-
dents of Skowhegan and Cornville:
Chicago, July %, 1916.
Skowhegan Reporter:
Inclose please find one dollar.
Kindly send to my address your valu-I
able paper for the year. A friend
has been sending me this paper sew
eral times a month and l find many
interesting things in them. l read
the ads. looking for names that l re-
member years ago. The death no
tees of so many old settlers, remind
us that we to are going down the
grade where none ever return. With
in a few months | read the notice of
the passing away of two of my old
Cornville friends Richard and Hiram
French, sons of Uncle Abel French,
one of Gods noblemen. whose faith
er was one of the first settlers OF
Cornville with the following parties.
Mr.. French. Mr.. Hilton, Joseph But
Ter, uncle of Gen. B. F. Butler Gen.
Kinsman, father of the late Gen Kins-
man, settled in Maine before 1775.
The old house, used by Uncle Abel
French as a carriage house was built
in 1875. The Hilton, French and
Butler farms are located on the old
stage road to Athens, via Brighton
and Moscow to Moosehead Lake
April l, 1854. Joseph Robinson.
John Robinson and Samuel Robinson
late of Skowhegan and Warren Frost,
my father, started for the foot of
Moosehead Lake to build the Eveleth
Hotel. The snow was level with
the fences. Their tool chests were
set out by the roadside for the stage
to pick up. They started to walk, as
hard crust had formed and as it
was long days trip they thought a
walk would do them good and before
10 a. m. the crust would be melted.
The hotel frame was constructed
from the hewd logs and sawed lum-
J Der on the rough the outside and in
( side finish, doors, window frames and
sash in fact everything was made
from the rough by hand At that
time a days work was from sunrise
to sunset. What would some of our
eight-hour carpenters do now if
they were up against that sort of a
proposition? Those men drew the
plans for the house, done their franz
ing and the hotel was finished before
cold weather At that time Green
vile was the starting point to the
logging camps. On or about 1880,
Ben McDaniels, Thos. McDaniels and
Murton McDaniels, brothers, with
Tom Frost. my grandfather, started
from Cornville thru the woods for
Meramish River, N. B. to make
square timber, which was RATED
down the river to New Castle or
Chuttana and loaded on the boat and
shipped to Liverpool. They walked
most of the way thru the woods car
rying their provisions, broad axe and
square. AT that time lumber was so
plentiful that they only used the best
cut and left the balance of the tree
in the woods. New Castle and Chat
tam is now located on the Intercol-
onial R. r. that runs north to None
ton Junction, east to Halifax, west SO
miles via New Castle to Qubec via
Riv Du Loup and Remouski, p. @.
They were the four guardsmen from
Maine in the lumber and bridge and
mill conservation business. They
all served in the Army during our un-
pleasantness with our English cou-
sins in 1872
| was born in the town of Corn
vile, June 2. 1S47. I remember the
old log cabin, that was built OH the
citizens road, by the side of Old
Hedge Hog. 1t was built during the
Gen. Harrison campaign. Also The
banner that was nailed on the elm
tree at Buffers schoolhouse bealirg
the name of Fremont and Eaton.
For neighbors we had some of the
best people in the world, Willis Nor
rill, Benz. Fogg, Abel French, Alden
Russell, Seward Mitchell, Hiram
Merrill, Chandler Robinson. Richard
Robinson Chas. and BENZ. McDaniels,
and Jon and Leroy Judkins. J. Byron
Robinson. son of Chandler Robinson,
and is the only one left, all have
passed away
| will attempt to write you bit of
Cornville horse history of SIS years
ago. At that time but little atten-
ton was given to the breeding of
horses by the farmers and stock men.
Pedigrees were unknown, the improv-
ing of the horse became an accident.
Any fair looking colt was kept for a
sire. Young horses as soon as they
could show little speed were sold
to the Boston and ~ Y markets. One
of the earliest prospects | can re-
member in the way of speed that was
owned in Cornyille was a G. G. own
ed by Richard Robinson. He was a
trapy gated, knee actor and he had
a good way of going. He was sent
to Fred Dore who at that time re-
sided in Athens After few weeks
schooling Mr.. Robinson commenced
to drive him to the road. He could
pull sleigh 2.30 clip and he could
step fast hooked to a 300 ID. wagon.
That was a light wagon in those
days. At that time Jonathan Fol-
som who resided one-half miles south
of Cass' Corner on the old stage road,
owned fine looking G. M. his son
Frank. who was a cousin of Richard
Robinson would drive down to Rich
ards house in the bright September
evening and that meant a free-for-all
race with only two starters. BY
moonlight, time and distance waned
can now hear the hum of those two
wagons as they would pass our house
in those days. A boot for a horse
was not known. The shoeing was as
crude as the heavy wagons. Horses
were shod with heel and toe calks
with shoes weighing 16 to 20 or
, oanb hnrca rora1u ctr,,oly bic