The Rebecca Emery Chapter NSDAR was organized January 25, 1897, with 12 charter members. Rebecca Emery, for whom the chapter was named, was lovingly called the “Grandmother” of all Biddeford and Saco, Maine. Five of the charter members were her direct descendants.
In 1904, our chapter erected a monument on the site of the old stone fort, known as Fort Mary. Fort Mary, located in Biddeford Pool, Maine, was completed by the government in 1710 and stood on Fort Hill opposite Biddeford Pool, formerly called Winter Harbor Maine. Richard Vines and his company of 32 men spent the winter of 1616-17 at what is now Leighton’s Point with his ship in Winter Harbor. The company of men lived with the Indians in huts and wigwams gaining a livelihood by fishing and hunting. Richard Vines was the first white man to settle here. A bronze marker was placed to mark the site of the first settlements by William E. Berry of Kennebunkport, Maine, who set up a fund with the chapter for the upkeep of the marker and a flag to be maintained on the premises.
In 1904 the chapter erected a boulder in the “Old Burying Ground,” Biddeford, Maine’s first cemetery, which also marks the First Congregational Church (1719-1830).
In 1907 a tablet was set in the wall of Pepperell Manufacturing Company on Main Street in Biddeford, Maine, to mark as nearly as possible, the site of the old stone fort and Major Phillips’ blockhouse, which served as a refuge from the Indians. The fort was built in 1693.
On April 26, 1916, the chapter unveiled a tablet on the Second Religious Society, as the church where Marquis de Lafayette worshipped while on a visit to Biddeford, Maine, in 1825.
On August 8, 1921, the chapter marked the battle site at Cape Porpoise, Kennebunkport, Maine, which was fought August 8, 1782.
In September 1929, the chapter marked the grave of a Real Daughter, Mrs. Sarah Thompson Usher, who was the wife of James Madison Usher of Baldwin, Maine. A Real Daughter was a DAR member as well as the actual daughter of a soldier or patriot.
Discover how our chapter supports the NSDAR values of historic preservation, education and patriotism!
Learn more about our chapter as you browse our tombstones of Revolutionary War soldiers, and our picture gallery.
Contact us for more information.
