Daily Kennebec journal., 1918-08-27
JEWELS ISLAND
IN CASCO BAY

| JEWELS Island, containing 221 acres
still well wooded with evergreen trees
| with here and there groups Of beech,
maple and birch, and lying about 10
miles east of this City, is one Of the
prettiest islands in Casco Bay. For
more than 80 years the island has
been owned by Mrs. James Mexican.
whose late husband was a prominent
lawyer and financier in New York
! City. Mrs. Mexican and her two
! daughters pass the summer on the
| island occupying the large cottage
! that was built about six years ago to
, replace the former buildings that
. were burned. AS none of the steam
ers touch at this island they get their
supplies and mail BY way Of Cliff
Island, having a motor boat Of their
own. This season in addition to their
flower garden, with the assistance of
hired man, quite large vegetable
/ garden, in fact, a veritable war gar
! den.
! Of JEWELS Island little information
! is to be found in our local histories
and wnat is given here has been gath
! cred for the most part from other
/ sources. In 1888 Henry Donnell Of
/ York passing this island on fishing
; tri., was SO attracted by its appear
ance that he went on shore and looked
! it over. AS a result he bought the
; island Of the Indians and for the next
2G years occupied it for a fishing
: stage. On Dec. 6, 1864, Donnell sold
! the island to Captain Bryan Pendle-
ton of Winter Harbor, at the mouth
o. the Saco river for SO pounds and
, : shillings, as appears in the York
! deeds. MIR. Donneli named the island
! after himself, but the name died with
him, his death taking place in York,
! March Q. 17lS, at the age Of 70.
! AS early as 1910 a garrison house
was build on the island to which the
/ settlers on the mainland were accus-
. toned to fee when news came that
! the red men were on the war path. In
! 1876 during King Philips war the In
! dians along the Saco river began their
depredations. killing the settlers and
burning their log cabins. About 16
families from the mainland fed to the
garrison house on Jewelrs Island. In
! September of that year a band Of In
dians landed from their canoe on the
! island and began siege Of the gar
rison house. They had captured on
landing two white women. each with
two children. who were washing
clothes at the waterside. The gar
rison was on the point Of surrender
| ing when a party OF white men land
eG on the island, cut their way
through the yelling savages. got into
the house and prevented it's capture.
In this fighting 10 Indians were killed
and three white men. Shortly after
, a government ship arrived from Bos-
ton and brought relief. In the Indian
war OF / 68S the island was abandoned
and remained so until 1913. when the
new proprietors Of Falmouth laid out
the island to John Tying from whom
the title descends.
The island probably gets its name
from George Jewell, an early inhabi-
tant of Saco, who bought the island
Of Mr.. Donnell. He was drowned in
Boston Harbor in l64S. But accord
ing to John T. Hull. who was a pains
| taking local historian. the island was
named from the discovery Of iron
pyrites there which gave rise to the
belief that gold was to be found there.
Then for many years the belief pre-
vailed that Captain Kidd's treasure Of
gold, silver and jewels was buried on
the island. and many a rod Of it's sur.
face has been dug up in the vain
search. Captain Jonathan Chase
owned and lived on the island for
| several years and cultivated quite a
large farm, He lived to the unusual
age of 92.-The Stroller, Portland Ex-
press.