Through the endeavors
of the MSODAR Chapters, hundreds of graves of
Revolutionary War soldiers and patriots have been marked, in addition
to the hundreds of markers that have been placed honoring historical
events and/or sites.
Monuments, Plaques, Markers & Bronze Tablets
- To honor Passamaquoddy and Penobscot Indians who served in
the
Revolutionary War, granite monuments were placed at both Indian Island
at Old Town, and Pleasant Point at Perry.
- A tablet was placed on the Cutt-Whipple House in Kittery to
honor
General William Whipple, who signed the Declaration of Independence.
- The home of William King, Maine's first Governor, was also
marked at Bath.
- In more recent years, markers were placed along the Arnold
Trail from
Pittston to Eustis in memory of those men who marched to Quebec.
- Markers were also placed on the home of Major General
George Ulmer,
Sr., in Lincolnville, and on the "Old Powder House" at Hallowell.
- A plaque was placed on a cannon brought up from the bottom
of the
Penobscot River at Brewer; it was from one of the American ships
scuttled during the ill-fated Penobscot Expedition in 1779.
- The first marking since WW II was at Bremer, June 27,1946.
This was
presided over by the State Regent Mrs. Roy Heywood, and marked the
Historic Spot where once stood the home of Commodore Samuel Tucker. The
bronze tablet on a boulder of Maine granite was unveiled by Mrs. Gail
Griffin, a direct descendant of Commodore Tucker. Tucker, who was born
in Marblehead, MA and died in Bremer, ME in 1833, was a Captain in the
Continental Navy 1776-1781. In 1776, he commanded the frigate "Boston",
which carried John Adams and his son, John Quincy Adams, to France
during the War of 1812. With the aid of local seamen, he captured the
British Privateer "Crown" off Pemaquid. Tucker was a Member of the
Convention which framed the Constitution of Maine in 1819. He was a man
o'vigilance, prudence and activity, who took more prizes, fought more
sea battles, gained more victories than any naval hero of his age.
Pemaquid Chapter assisted with this marking.
- July 25, 1947-A State Marking was held at Rockland at
Tolman Cemetery,
to honor the twenty-one Revolutionary War Soldiers who lie buried
there.
- 1947- Rebecca Emery Chapter placed a Bronze plaque at the
grave of its founder, Cora B. Bickford.
- 1948-Mary Kelton Dummer Chapter, Hallowell, marked with a
Bronze marker
a building known as the "Old Powder House", built in 1813.
- October, 1951-Lydia Putnam Chapter dedicated a flag pole
and placed an
historical marker on Garrison Hill, upon the site where the Hancock
Barracks once stood. It had been erected in 1828, when the U.S. Gov't
established a military post in Houlton to settle a dispute between the
U.S. and Canada.
- 1952-Rebecca Weston Chapter erected and dedicated a boulder
with a
bronze marker on the site of Dexter's first burial ground, where
Revolutionary War Soldier John Tucker is resting.
- September 1953-Margaret Goff Moore Chapter dedicated a
marker
commemorating the site of the first Meeting House, School House, and
Town House in Madison, with appropriate ceremonies.
- 1957-Lydia Putnam Chapter, Houlton, participated in the
Sesquicentennial of the City of Houlton and placed 16 markers at
various historical points.
- On Veterans Day, 1956, the Frances Dighton Williams Chapter
attached a
brass plate to a Revolutionary War cannon brought up from the bottom of
the Penobscot River by a construction company while dredging for the
new Joshua Chamberlain Bridge. It was dedicated with proper ceremonies
attended by Officials of Brewer where it now stands. This cannon was
from one of the American ships scuttled to save them from being taken
by the British. The Construction Company set the cannon on a proper
base in the small park adjoining the new bridge and on November 11,
1957, the Brewer Junior American Citizens Club of the Frances Dighton
Williams Chapter placed a plaque on the cannon.
- October, 1961-Tisbury Manor Chapter placed a bronze tablet
set in
native stone in front of the guide post at the "Moosehorns" in Abbot.
The original moose horn was erected about 1817 to mark the divergence
of the trail to Monson, from the Abbot to Blanchard (Million Acres)
trail, and ever since, moose horns have marked this spot, becoming a
familiar landmark.
- July 1962-Lady Knox Chapter placed and dedicated an
Historical marker
at Owl's Head Light, located in West Penobscot Bay, approached through
the Mussel Ridge Channel. The first lighthouse keeper was Isaac Sterns
who was appointed August 1855. The first beacon was lighted September
10, 1825; a fog bell attached to the shed was first rung by hand. In
August, 1862, a large bell was erected on a cliff nearby. Capt.
Jeremiah Berry was the lighthouse keeper at this time. In very early
days, bonfires were used as beacons, and sometimes tarpots were used.
In the 17th century, as many as 24 candles would be burned to keep the
light going. Whale oil and kerosene were used in turn, as was a
revolving clock. Winslow Lewis, who installed the beacon at Owl's Head
and is considered the "Father of Lighthouses", has his name in a place
of honor on the bronze marker placed there by the Mussel Ridge
Historical Society because of his connections with the beacons used in
all of New England and later, the United States.
- October 16, 1967-Pemaquid Chapter marked the site where
William Jones
lived. He was a Colonel in the Revolutionary War from 1747-1811, and
commanded the 3rd Lincoln County Regiment, which protected that whole
area. Besides holding many town offices, he was sent to the Legislature
as 1st Representative from Bristol. He also represented Bristol in
Massachusetts General Court many times, and was a member of the
Convention of Massachusetts which adopted the Constitution of the
United States. He wrote religious tracts which were published, and in
the floor plan of the Old Walpole Church, Mr. Jones' pew is plainly
marked. Col. William Jones is buried in the Old Walpole Cemetery in
Damariscotta. The marker was unveiled by Miss Gill Marie Russell, age
8, an 8th generation descendant of Col. Wm. Jones.
- July 1969- Lady Knox Chapter placed a bronze marker on the
home of
Major General George Ulmer, Sr., in Lincolnville, ME. In the
Revolutionary War, Maj. General Ulmer, Sr., was a Colonel in the
Militia. He was made Maj. Gen. of the 6th Division. He had over 200 men
on Clam Cove (now called Glen Cove). This site, which served as an
outlook for ships that came into the harbor, is where a marker was
placed. He was a trader near Lermond's Cove, and from 1785-1789 had the
first lime-burning business in Rockland. He also was a land surveyor, a
postmaster, a sheriff of Hancock County, a Representative and Senator
of Massachusetts & Maine, and a shipbuilder who launched the
first
boat in Rockland. His descendants, as much as anyone, have been
instrumental in creating the city of Rockland.
- 2005-2009
- 2009-2011 The Blue Spruce tree planted in 1938 at the Franklin County Court
House by Colonial Daughters Chapter, in observance of the 150th anniversary of the
Ratification of The Constitution and the 100th anniversary of the
establishment of Franklin County, died. The Chapter was permitted to replace it with a Balsam Fir in October 2009.
-
2011-2013 A marker for John Austin,
Revolutionary War Patriot, was placed by Colonial Daughters Chapter in the Austin Old Burial Ground Cemetery in
West Farmington.
Buildings and Rooms
Since 1910, Hannah Weston Chapter of Machias has owned and
maintained
the "Burnham Tavern" as a museum. The "Tavern"
was built in 1770 and is
the oldest building in eastern Maine, as well as being the only one
with a Revolutionary War history.
Montpelier in Thomaston, the home of General Henry Knox, first
Secretary of War, was built in 1795. It was razed in 1871, but in 1931
the replica, built and furnished by the Maine Daughters - under the
leadership of the General Knox Chapter of Thomaston - was dedicated. An
observance is held each year on July 25th, the anniversary of the
birthday of General Knox.
The old blockhouse at Fort Halifax in Winslow, built in 1754, was owned
by Fort Halifax Chapter until 1965 when it was deeded to the state. The
chapter also repaired the old Fort schoolhouse, where Arnold stopped on
his way to Quebec.
In Augusta, the Koussinoc Chapter maintains a room at Fort Western,
which was erected in 1754 by the Plymouth Company as a trading post; it
is now a museum.
During the Bicentennial period Maine Daughters contributed items
towards the furnishing of two period rooms in the Maine State Museum's
"Way of Life" exhibit.
Web hyperlinks to non-DAR sites are not the responsibility of the
NSDAR, the state organizations, or individual DAR chapters.
Updated 15 FEB 2014 by Melanie Farmer
