Show PINE TRE ar a STATE 7 ma X I 1 pa M A view on Alon hegan island prepared bythe by the national geographic society washington evasn D C service HE pine tree state le legally gally T got e its name several years before be its neighbors the province T of maine was granted by the council of new england to sir ferdinando gorges and capt john mason in 1622 whereas the date of the ayal charter to the company of massachusetts bay was march 4 1629 so it happens that florida virginia california new mexico and maine all aneeda ant edaa a massachusetts as state names at first the province of maine extended from the merrimac river to the sagadahoc now the kennebec but on november 7 1629 by an amicable division captain mason received the territory between the merrimac and the piscataqua rivers and with the consent c of if tl the ae council gave to his portion the die name of new hampshire it was as the outpost of early settlement that maine offered a refuge for those who sought more religious freedom than could be found in massachusetts bay colony the settlers in the century came largely from across the sea but the wave of emigration from massachusetts to the new hampshire and maine frontier began even before the movement into rhode island and connecticut and these contributions like those of the cen tury following were of the adventurous and independent spirits trained in the french and indian wars to defend the frontier the men of maine were quick to support t the common cause ause i of independence indeed a month before the declaration of independence the town of york sent assurances to the general court of massachusetts that if congress should declare the colonies independent the inhabitants of 04 york would engage with their lives and fortunes to support them in the measure almost a boundary war As soon as independence from england had been attained the idea naturally arose of regaining the ancient privileges of the old province later the district of maine sentiment for the civic change was slow of growth but separation finally asked by a decisive popular vote was granted by congress in march 1820 U S highway no 1 entering maine by the interstate memorial bridge from portsmouth new hampshire at kittery point passes the site of fort mcclary erected by massachusetts early in the century to enforce its rights to commercial use of the boundary river and to protect its merchants from unreasonable duties exacted by the government of new hampshire the highway continues for miles to fort kent near the northern tip of maine fort kent takes its name from a two story blockhouse a reminder of maines own private war scare of 1839 when the state called its militia to arms and congress authorized the president to raise troops for the defense of the count rys northeastern boundary actual conflict was avoided by gen winfield scott who came to maine and established headquarters in augusta this boundary dispute had continued ever since the peace negotiations following the revolution the treaty of 1783 adopted as the northeastern boundary of the united states the southern boundary of quebec and the western boundary of nova scotia As agreed upon before the war these two colonial boundaries had been respectively the high lands which divide the rivers that empty themselves into the said river st lawrence from those which fall into the sea atlantic ocean and a line following the st croix from its mouth to its source and thence drawn due north to the southern boundary of quebec the preliminary negotiations had been largely a debate as to rivers the americans had at first contended for the st john river in place oi 01 the st croix and with somewhat similar spirit the british gov had instructed its diplomatic representatives to attempt to extend nova scotia wes westward to the new hampshire line if not then toi to the kennebec Kenneb cc or at the very leasel to include penobscot Peno scot settled by compromise but the identify of 0 the st croix river was settled in 1798 1793 by the old rap r ap and plan of champlain which was used to discover he ruins of the buildings of the de monts colony already covered by a forest of nearly two centuries growth evidence so conclusive that the commissioners were unanimous in the decision but argument continued so the king of the netherlands was se lecter as the arbiter his award was in effect more of a recommended comptom compromise ise than an interpretation of treaty language although his line was in general nearer to the united states claim than to the british the british government offered to accept his decision but the state of maine entered a protest and the united states senate accordingly refused its assent to the ward A settlement of the dispute which had now lasted for 59 years was arranged by the webster ashburton treaty of 1842 this was much less Livo favorable rable to maine than the spurned award of the king of the netherlands united states highway no 1 skirts the open sea at relatively few places from mit to wells the motorist may look out over a low line of sand dunes facing the ocean A mile or two beyond portland the scattered islands of casco bay open up many vistas of the atlantic again in the rockland camden region the road follows the shore with the broad penobscot bay in full view but east of here only between hancock and sullivan are there satisfactory is views out to sea so deeply indented a coast does not accommodate itself ti a shoreline shore line highway pleasing as is the panorama of sunny farms quiet villages and shady woods along the trunk highways to see the best of the maine coast detours are necessary of these sightseeing sight seeing excursions to the shore some are over well surfaced highways others along single track primitive roads detours to coast towns one detour over excellent roads leads through colonial york village past bold cape neddick beddick to lovely ogunquit Og distinguished as an artists colony another detour leads to kenne kenn bunk port the present literary capital of maine where an century village the winding river sheltered beach and wooded shores unite to set the scene for an attractive s summer tim community and an inspiring environment beyond cape porpoise is beachwood h and biddeford Bid deford pool th latter once called winter harbor se here richard vines and his co company m passed the winter of 1616 the next detour is a short one to po popular pular old orchard beach little could early explorers foresee that this long crescent of f firm irm sand would some day be a crowded pleasure rei re i sort as well as a favored takeoff take off for transatlantic trans atlantic airplane voyages portland is modern maines in me e tro polis a busy thriving world port po rt making the most of its fine harb harbor or and its geographic position posidio n a few f ew precious miles nearer europe than most other american coast cities yet it has never ceased to be the beautiful town through whose pleasant tree lined streets henry wadsworth longfellow wandered when a boy east of portland the coast line perceptibly changes the fjord character becoming nore marked with islands more numerous all this is explained by submergence of the land the present coast is now a drowned region wherein rein old valleys or ol the former topography have become bays and sounds and reaches long divides between valleys have become peninsulas stretching far out to sea and old hilltops are the islands of today |