Historian to relate spooky ghost stories at Raymond-Casco Historical Museum

By Ed Pierce

Did a prominent 19th century Raymond resident predict how he would die years before a tragic accident claimed his life? This tale and other eerie ghost stories will be part of a free community presentation to be held at the Raymond-Casco Historical Museum later this month.

Eerie and spooky tales from the Lakes Region of Maine
will be related by historian Mike Davis from 4 to 5 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 25 at the Raymond-Casco Historical Museum
during a presentation called 'Ghost Stories and Unusual
Happenings.'  COURTESY PHOTO 

Historian Mike Davis of Bridgton will relate spooky tales from the Lakes Region of Maine from 4 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25 at the museum while surrounded by historical artifacts during a presentation called “Ghost Stories and Unusual Happenings.”

Raymond-Casco Historical Society’s Sue Pride says with Halloween nearing, this will be an event sure to interest many in the area.

“Mike’s storytelling brings together history, mystery, and local lore – perfect for the Halloween season,” Pride said. “These historical tales of curious happenings, scary ghosts and unusual circumstances will be sure to entertain everyone in attendance.”

Among the tales to be told by Davis is one about Edgar Welch, whose story was originally contained in the book “Historical Gems of Raymond and Casco” written by the late Ernest H. Knight, one of the founders of the Raymond-Casco Historical Society.

Welch was born close to the Raymond/Casco line on the County Road to Otisfield (Route 85) in Raymond in 1849. His grandfather, James Welch was born in 1765 and came to Raymond from Cape Elizabeth as an early pioneer settler. Edgar’s father was born in 1819 and taught his son how to farm.

For years Edgar farmed and eventually worked for a neighbor, David McLellan, whose barn and part of his house are still in use, the main house having burned in 1954.

According to Knight, Edgar was a bright, pleasant person though inclined toward strange ideas on work and physical activity, which were extreme to say the least.

“Besides hard work, running was his pastime for which the urge seized him after a week or so of labor,” Knight wrote about Welch in his book. “Dropping whatever he was doing at the time, winter or summer, he would be off running to Portland, Norway or wherever fancy directed, and on his return, he’d pick up where he left off.”

He wrote that on frequent occasions Welch’s route was through the White Mountains and once a year he would run to the top of Mount Washington, an event to which proprietors and guests looked forward to with anticipation. 

“For this event he wore a suit, boots and a tall beaver hat where on his ordinary runs his garb was his overalls with woolen socks in the winter and barefoot in the summer,” Knight wrote. “On one occasion he ran to Boston, circled through Tremont Street and Boston Common and then headed for home. Once an owner of a nice span of driving horses challenged Edgar to a race to Portland. Starting from Raymond Village, the team soon left him far behind, but when the team reached its destination on Congress Street, Edgar was there waiting for them.”

Knight said that Edgar had unique ideas about labor and benefits to mankind.

“An astute observation that the McLellan farm, being on the easterly slope of Rattlesnake Mountain, had the sun set much earlier than farms to the north or south, set him on a mission,” Knight wrote. “To correct this fact of nature, he worked for many years off and on as time permitted, day or night, rolling boulders from the top of the mountain to reduce this bothersome interference. In the stillness of the night, people would awaken to the sound of crashing on the mountain, and remark that Edgar was at it again, and go back to sleep.”

While piling logs on the ice at Crescent Lake (then Great Rattlesnake Pond) to be floated to Sebago when the ice melted, Knight said that Edgar would get hot feet, take off his boots and run on the ice or snow until he could go back to work in comfort.

“He was a great conversationalist and interested in the politics of the day. As a composer of rhymes and ballads, with a good voice always in true pitch, he would sing on picnic occasions accompanied by Carrie McLellan on her portable melodeon,” Knight wrote. “His physical make-up baffled doctors, though he never had need of their services as he never even had so much as a cold. With all his work and running, Edgar never perspired, which the doctors said should have killed him.”

But Edgar Welch is said to have had one more attribute which will be part of the presentation by Davis and that is clairvoyance, or a sixth sense.

Reportedly when Welch was young, a man named Eastman Bean of Otisfield fell from a haymow while holding a pitchfork, and he impaled on the pitchfork’s tines and died.

Knight said that bizarre accident was on Welch’s mind for all of his life, and over the years, he was overheard muttering some sort of rhyme or reference to Eastman Bean.

On Dec. 23, 1903, Edgar was working in the McLellan barn, which is still standing on the easterly side of Route 85 not far from the Raymond-Casco line, when he slid from the mow while pitching hay down for cattle. He was impaled on his pitchfork and died in the same manner as Eastman Bean.

His funeral was conducted from the old Village School at Webb’s Mills, now Crescent Lake Village, and it was attended by so many people that the overflow stood outside near the windows which were left open so they could hear the orations honoring their friend who may have predicted the manner of his death years before.

The “Ghost Stories and Unusual Happenings” presentation welcomes families to the event, although some of the tales in the presentation may be a bit spooky for the littlest ones. Participants are encouraged to wear a costume and enjoy trick or treat refreshments that will be available.

Admission is free, but donations that night would be greatly appreciated by the Raymond-Casco Historical Society to continue bringing these events to the community.

To learn more about the Raymond-Casco Historical Society visit raymondcascohistoricalsociety.org or find them on Facebook. <

Roosevelt Trail History Tour hits road for second year

By Erin Rose

Members of the public are welcome to journey through history during the Second Annual Roosevelt Trail Historical Tour from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12.

The public can tour the Raymond-Casco Historical Museum 
in Casco and other historical sites including some in
Windham during the Second Annual Roosevelt Trail 
Historical Tour running from Westbrook to Harrison
from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12.
COURTESY PHOTO  

A dozen different historical sites, from Westbrook to Harrison, will be open for visitors to tour at no charge. Refreshments will also be available at some locations.

“There are some new sites for this year,” said Bill Brennan from the Raymond-Casco Historical Society. “We had eight last year, and we have 12 now.”

One of the new additions had hoped to join last year but was unable to welcome visitors for last year’s tour after moving into a new location at 214 Main St. in Bridgton and is excited to join the trail historical tour this year.

“The Bridgton Historical Society had just taken over the Methodist Church on Main St.,” Brennan said. “They had to back out two or three weeks before because they weren’t going to be ready.”

Another new site for visitors is the Bridgton and Saco River Railroad Museum, located on the first floor of the Bridgton Historical Society. The group is working to preserve the two-foot narrow gauge railroad that once ran throughout the Lakes Region.

“That’s also an exciting addition,” Brennan said. “They want to do new things, like being able to show how they lay railroad track.”

The event provides a chance for locals who may frequently drive past the historic sites in their day-to-day lives, but who may not have taken a chance to stop in.

“I’ve heard it a dozen times this summer; ‘I’ve never been to the Raymond Casco Historical Society. I’ve seen it on the road and I’ve never dropped in.’,” Brennan said. “People just don’t stop.”

Brennan said that he’s guilty of the same, despite frequent visits to Bridgton.

“I’ve driven through Bridgton and have stopped at the Cool Moose but never stopped at the Rufus Porter Museum,” he said. “I stopped last year and will be doing some of the other sites out west before coming east on that Saturday, just so I can see the Harrison Historical Society.”

The Harrison site, located at 121 Haskell Hill Road, is a new addition to the trail and has new displays this year, including details on notable local businesses, farming equipment, and a replica of a canal boat.

All of the organizations that had previously participated in the tour returned for the second annual event, after seeing a great increase in attendance on the day last year.

“After the event last year, everybody has come back because they had some of their best turnouts,” Brennan said. “Sometimes you’ll get five or ten people showing up on a weekend. Some people had 40, 50, 60 that day.”

A returning site is the Scribners Mill and Homestead at 244 Scribners Hill Road in Harrison. They have recently opened the homestead to visitors who can see how the Scribner family lived when the mill was in operation, in addition to the sawmill.

Brennan said that a recent visit to a more modern milling facility helped show how technology has changed aspects of woodworking.

“My family and I went to Hancock Lumber last summer, and we got a two- or three-hour tour,” he explained. “When you compare what they do there to what Scribners Mill does, it’s exactly the same thing, just in a different era and different technology. Where a guy is looking at a computer screen now, at Scribners, you had a guy there shaping it, doing whatever he could as best as he could with what he had.”

The Raymond-Casco Historical Society Museum will also be participating in the day for the second year and will have a blacksmith operating the museum’s 19th century Watkins Blacksmith Shop. The property, which includes a one-room schoolhouse and 19th century barn in addition to the museum, is located at 1 Shadow Lane in Casco.

The Naples Historical Society and Museum, at 19 Village Green in Naples, will be highlighting their restored jail located on the site, while a guide will be on site at the Quaker Ridge Meeting House from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., located at 141 Quaker Ridge Rd. in Casco. The meeting house, built in 1814, is the oldest such Quaker building in Maine that is still in use today.

The idea for the day was developed from a desire to find a unique way to draw new visitors to the different historical sites that dot the area.

“The Hawthorn Community Association, met with the Raymond-Casco Historical Society a day in March” last year, Brennan said. “We were all talking about how we could reinvigorate our museums and historical sites.”

“This idea popped up amongst us, as something we might try,” he added, noting that the group worked to find a date in the fall that would allow more residents to attend.

The different organizations all meet to develop ideas for each year’s event, and they all are hoping that this becomes a tradition in the vein of other community events.

“It’s a collective effort from all of us,” Brennan said. “We brainstorm together ideas and we’re all invested in this.”

“It’s the second annual and we’re proud of that,” he continued. “We want it to be like the Maple Syrup weekend or the Sebago Fishing Derby, where it gives our community the chance to come out and see us and experience the local history.”

One local organization praised Brennan and the Raymond-Casco Historical Society for their drive to make the event a reality.

“Their society was an integral part in getting this idea off the ground,” said Susan Simonson, President of Windham Historical Society. “Windham Historical Society is pleased to be a part of this unique idea.” For more information on the day and the different sites open for visitors, visit www.raymondcascohistoricalsociety.org <

Local Revolutionary War patriots subject of historical presentation

By Ed Pierce

As the nation celebrates its 250th birthday this weekend, contributions made by Raymond and Casco patriots to the cause of liberty are easily overlooked. But thanks to a new presentation being offered by the Raymond-Casco Historical Society, the bravery of Revolutionary War patriots living in Raymond and Casco will not be forgotten.

Sue Pride of Raymond will highlight the lives and
service of 28 Revolutionary Way patriots during a 
free program at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 6 at the
Raymond-Casco Historical Museum, 1 Shadow
Lane in Casco. SUBMITTED PHOTO  

Sue Pride, the Collections Manager for the Raymond-Casco Historical Society Museum, will discuss and highlight the lives and service of 28 Revolutionary War patriots from the area during a free public program at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 6 at the museum, 1 Shadow Lane in Casco.

Her presentation includes a richly illustrated PowerPoint talk focusing on the remarkable stories of early local settlers who answered the call to defend America long before Maine became a state.

Pride was inspired to create the presentation while sorting through the historical society’s collections to organize them. It prompted her to research how Revolutionary War veterans ended their journeys in Raymond and Casco.

“This year is the 250th birthday of the United States, and I thought the museum should do something to bring Raymond and Casco into it. I thought we must have some veterans.”

In conducting research, Pride found that some patriots were living in Massachusetts on April 19, 1775, and responded immediately to the alarm of the Lexington and Concord opening of the American Revolution. Others were already living in the district that would become Maine, and they enlisted shortly afterward and marched to Cambridge to join American troops during the Siege of Boston.

When the Revolutionary War for American independence from Great Britain erupted, Raymondtown, now known as the towns of Raymond and Casco after the communities split in 1841, was part of the Cumberland County Militia territory, with its members serving under the command of early settler Captain Joseph Dingley of Raymondtown. Their membership roll was used as a recruitment tool for soldiers to join the Continental Army once it was founded and placed under the leadership of the Continental Army’s General George Washington in June 1775.

“Before the army, it was just the militias fighting,” Pride said. “Lexington and Concord were fought by the militia.”

The area’s sparse population at the time meant that not many men from Raymond enlisted and Pride’s research found four residents who had traveled south to fight. However, she has discovered at least 28 Revolutionary War veterans are buried around Raymond and Casco, which shows the influx of former soldiers locally after the war ended.

“Many of the 28 patriots later served under Capt. Richard Mayberry, taking part in the Saratoga Campaign, a turning point in the war, and enduring the harsh winter encamped at Valley Forge alongside General George Washington’s troops,” Pride said.

Her new program will also touch on the broader story of Maine during the Revolutionary War, including the Battle of Machias, which is often called the first naval battle of the war, and the devastating burning of what is now known as Portland in 1775.

“I found one veteran who only served three days and never served again, but he was at Lexington and Concord, so it was a pivotal three days,” Pride said. “I think there were four who were living in Massachusetts and marched to Lexington and Concord.”

She also found a story of one soldier who was captured by the British and then held in the notorious prison ships afloat in the harbor of New York City, which were decommissioned or damaged ships that were used to hold prisoners in overcrowded conditions, where many died due to illness or malnutrition. He survived to be discharged from the army six months after his service was meant to have ended. Pride also discovered two men buried locally that died while serving. One drowned after falling from a floating bridge and the other died of fever.

Both Dingley and his son Samuel volunteered for military service at the start of the Revolutionary War in the company of men from Raymond and Windham and returned to the fast-growing Raymondtown as Captains, a title that Joseph retained for the rest of his life, even though he later held the rank of Colonel in the militia.

The 28 patriots highlighted in Pride’s presentation came to reside locally and helped to build and shape the community’s legacy.

“As the nation marks its 250th birthday, the Raymond-Casco Historical Society emphasizes the importance of honoring their service and recognizing their influence on the region’s early growth,” Pride said.

To learn more about Raymond and Casco’s role in the Revolutionary War, visit www.raymondcascohistoricalsociety.org or find them on Facebook. <